Spar Budget Energy Drink
August 18th, 2012Standing out in the shop cooler with its bright green label covered in Spar’s trademark arrow logo, this energy drink had to be purchased – any product brave enough to use the word ‘budget’ in its name must be interesting! It’s a Red Bull clone, so no real surprises there. The taste is watery but sweet like many of the French and German own-brands I’ve tried over the years. It was very nice and left no nasty aftertaste, and it wasn’t bitter at all and at less than 50p per can it won’t feel like you’re being ripped off either. They do say it’s the small details that stand out, and like Red Bull and their ring-pull with a cut-out of a Bull, Spar have also customised their ring-pull with a cut-out of the Spar logo – although I have to say I thought it was a Christmas tree at first.
Mountain Dew Sugar Free
August 11th, 2012Finally, the great flavour of Mountain Dew, without the calories that go with it. Sadly, this is a low calorie version of the UK version of Mountain Dew (dubbed Mountain Dew Energy), but nevertheless it’s nice and refreshing on a hot day. The flavour is identical to Mountain Dew Energy – I couldn’t even tell that they’d used sweeteners instead of sugar, so the flavours they added must be pretty potent.
| Taste: | Originality: | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Strength: | Visitor Ratings: | ||
| Caffeine: | 19mg/100ml |
Tags: Citrus, Large Can, Low Calorie, UK |
|
| Calories: | 0.6kCal/100ml | ||
| Size: | 440ml | ||
| Sold By: | Hillend, Llangennith | ||
| Web Site: | Click here | ||
n-gine
August 3rd, 2012When I opened the can I initially thought, uh-oh, another Red Bull clone. But, once I’d tasted it I changed my mind. Yes, there’s a definite whiff of the expected energy drink flavour to it, but it’s more sour and metallic than expected. It’s trying to be different, even if it doesn’t taste brilliant – but having said that it’s a lot better than many other drinks I’ve tried. It was only 25p after all…
| Taste: | Originality: | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Strength: | Visitor Ratings: | ||
| Caffeine: | 32mg/100ml |
Tags: UK |
|
| Calories: | 46kCal/100ml | ||
| Size: | 250ml | ||
| Sold By: | Tesco | ||
| Web Site: | |||
Pink Bolt Zero
July 27th, 2012Do you see what they did there? They took ‘Blue’ and replaced it with ‘Pink’ cuz it’s a pink drink, so funny, the marketing department at Sainsbury’s must’ve been in stitches over that for hours… <end of sarcasm>. As a drink though, it’s rather bland. There’s a nice taste of strawberry and kiwi in there somewhere, but it’s so watered down that you don’t get enough of the flavour coming through. That said, it’s refreshing and light.
| Taste: | Originality: | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Strength: | Visitor Ratings: | ||
| Caffeine: | 30mg/100ml |
Tags: Kiwi, Low Calorie, Strawberry, UK |
|
| Calories: | 3.6kCal/100ml | ||
| Size: | 250ml | ||
| Sold By: | Sainsbury's | ||
| Web Site: | |||
Red Alert
July 21st, 2012Not too sweet or watery or sour or bitter… just right! It’s a shame it’s another Red Bull clone because the balance of flavour is ideal. I purchased Red Alert from my local shop, and looking at the can it seems to have been produced for Booker’s cash and carry therefore I am assuming this is their own brand product. Looking at the can however you’d be forgiven if you assumed this was a premium brand and the taste lives up to the assumption. Overall, a great product but still not as good value as either the Euro Shopper, Aldi or Lidl drinks.
Blue Bolt Mango and Passion Fruit
July 14th, 2012Tart, sharp and sweet – it’s like a can of fruit juice more than energy drink. The tropical flavour is very strong and makes you draw back the corners of your mouth like you’ve sucked on a slice of lemon. It’s very sugary and I can’t say it’s one of my favourites – I do prefer a more traditional energy drink flavour if I’m honest!
Nalu
June 30th, 2012Another foreign import, this time thanks to a friend who had visited Belgium. This ‘Fruity Energizer’ claims to have a ‘Reinforced Formula’ and gets its caffeine hit from green coffee beans. Although claiming to be low calorie, I’d really classify it as ‘a bit lower in calories’ because it still packs in almost 20 calories per 100ml.
| Taste: | Originality: | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Strength: | Visitor Ratings: | ||
| Caffeine: | 32mg/100ml |
Tags: Belgium, Low Calorie |
|
| Calories: | 19.8kCal/100ml | ||
| Size: | 250ml | ||
| Sold By: | Belgium | ||
| Web Site: | Click here | ||
Crunk Grape-Acai
June 23rd, 2012I was taken straight back to my childhood when I took a sip of this one. Many years back, on the way to school, we used to buy zillions of packets of some sour ball sweets (can’t remember the name). We’d have daily competitions of who could fit the most in their mouth before gagging… oh the memories. Anyway, this drink reminds me of the sour grape flavoured sweets we had. Might not be the nicest tasting but the memories filled in the gaps! If you can find a can, try it and maybe you’ll take a trip down memory lane too.
| Taste: | Originality: | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Strength: | Visitor Ratings: | ||
| Caffeine: | 40.6mg/100ml |
Tags: Grape, Large Can, UK |
|
| Calories: | 50.7kCal/100ml | ||
| Size: | 473ml | ||
| Sold By: | Filco | ||
| Web Site: | Click here | ||
KX Tropical
June 9th, 2012I’ll spare you the usual rant about tropical drinks this time. It’s not too bad to be honest but then again it is a predictable addition to the KX range. Sweet, tart, and what you’d expect… It’s a ‘tropical’ clone.
| Taste: | Originality: | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Strength: | Visitor Ratings: | ||
| Caffeine: | 32mg/100ml |
Tags: Guarana, Tropical, UK |
|
| Calories: | 46kCal/100ml | ||
| Size: | 250ml | ||
| Sold By: | Tesco | ||
| Web Site: | Click here | ||
