Mountain Dew Kickstart Recharge Blood Orange

I recently reviewed another flavor from Mountain Dew's Kickstart lineup. This blood orange flavor, labeled "Kickstart Recharge", has now been discontinued. As far as I can discern the "recharge" aspect is maybe because this one features several antioxidants, like vitamin C, E, B6, and Niacin, not listed on the other can. There's only an inkling of citrus scent that arises from the can. For a soda, and with only 5% actual juice, it's oddly very close to the taste of orange juice. With the additional vitamins, if you were unable to have actual orange juice for some reason this would be a pretty good match for your breakfast on the go and with some caffeine to give you a bit of morning pick up. The carbonation seems decent enough. The taste is quite orange and I'm not getting much of a sense of Mountain Dew's traditional flavor blended in. Overall I'm happily surprised with the taste of this drink.

Coca-Cola Energy

Similar to the yesterday's post, this was soda was a foray by Coca-Cola into the energy drink space. However, Coca-Cola Energy ceased production in North America but is available from other parts of the world. This particular can is original cola flavored in a zero sugar variety. A regular sugar version and cherry version were also available. Among its ingredients are vitamins that regulate electrolytes as well as guarana which is a fruit bearing plant from South America that is commonly used in energy drinks in combination with caffeine. Although it has zero calories, this can contains more than three times the amount of caffeine of a similar size (12oz) can of normal Coca-Cola. 

The drink smells very much like normal Coke. There's a faint difference in the aroma which could be from the guarana, but it is very slight. It still tastes of cola but it is a much different taste than regular Coca-Cola. The guarana, used in many energy drinks, provides a fruitiness and even bit of herbs to the taste. It does indeed taste like someone spilled a touch of Red Bull into a Coke. It tastes fine, but as mentioned, it isn't going to taste like normal Coke. 

Mountain Dew Kickstart Black Cherry

I try to avoid so-called "energy drinks", but sometimes there's a cross over from some of these soda brands that kind of sit on the fence. Kickstart is a line of drinks from Mountain Dew to wade themselves into the energy drink market but in many places resides among the sodas rather than on the shelves with the Red Bull's and Monster drinks. Their website lists "Dew®. Juice. Caffeine." but it only contains 5% juice. While that may be more than typical sodas, 5% isn't something I'd be crowing from the rooftops about. Are there buyers who think that means it healthy? These cans are 16oz. and the nutrition label says there are two servings per can. I can't help but wonder if they realize putting it aside to consume the second serving later means the carbonation will be gone. As far as the sugar content goes, it actually has just 19g for the entire 16oz can, which is better than original Mountain Dew at 46g for only a 12oz can. I think perhaps they are leaning on the added electrolytes and differentiated marketing as their primary separations from traditional Mountain Dew soda.

Cracking open the can I find it has very little smell, but what is there seems a bit citrus-like rather than cherry. I was not expecting this to taste anything like the citrus-forward Mountain Dew, and yet the first thing I get from it is just that. The black cherry flavoring arrives later, in the finish and aftertaste. I'd say it's almost 50/50.... more like traditional Mountain Dew until finished swallowing, then my mouth is overcome with the taste of black cherry you'd expect to be the focus. I find it to be a decent drink in terms of its flavor. While it isn't a health drink or sports drink by any means, it is healthier than regular Mountain Dew, with both fewer calories and less sugar.  

Bawls Ginger

This is the second flavor of Bawls to be featured on the blog. Follow the link here for the previous review on their root beer. Bawls is popular among gamers and programmers for its high levels of caffeine, one of the reasons I've only ever found it at computer equipment stores. 

While it has the typical aroma of a ginger ale, the taste is a bit unique. It has a touch more ginger spiciness than ginger ale, but much less than a ginger beer. What makes it interesting is a botanical punch of after taste that sort of drifts up the back of your mouth into you sinuses that makes you think you're smelling it rather than drinking it. It's not unpleasant but not exactly the flavor of ginger ale I grew up with. If you let it drift over the taste buds at the side of your tongue it presents and almost bubblegum-like flavor. It does pack plenty of carbonation which gives it a great tingle and aids in that botanical scent I mentioned before.

Lolli's Cherry Pop

I picked up this bottle on a hunt for new sodas a few months ago. Billed as a soda/energy drink, Lolli's is no longer in business. It appears to have been a shortly lived venture though you can find some bottles out there still for sale from online soda vendors. 

It smells sweet and fruity but is just a smidgeon under carbonated in my opinion. Rose wine colored, it carries only a slight hint at cherry flavor. It seems champagne-like but carried by a cherry/raspberry finish. It contains ginseng and guarana, along with caffeine and niacin. As they are no longer bottling this beverage you're not likely to find it but there you are... I tasted it. 

Jolt Red Eye

Jolt began in 1985, when C.J. Rapp invented the highly caffeinated Jolt Cola. This occurred during a period of soft drink development focused on fewer calories or less sugar. In college he noted that many students created their own blends of drinks trying to stay awake to study. He created Jolt with 72mg of caffeine per serving, which was the most allowed by the FDA. Jolt was the first beverage to feature functional marketing, the idea that certain ingredients were included for a purpose. They also utilized beer distributors, when other soft drinks were distributing through other means. These innovations lead the way for the revolution seen in the beverage industry today. However, with stiff competition from other energy drinks they filed for bankruptcy in 2009. Today, Jolt has been remade into an energy drink rather than being marketed as a soda. It currently falls under the umbrella of Boylan Bottling Works.

I only recently found this bottle at a gas station, it was clearly created before the marketing revamp as the ingredients do not list taurine, guarana or other typical ingredients from energy drinks. In addition, the label still reads Wet Beverages. It has been many years since I had a Jolt Cola and I have never tasted Jolt Red Eye. It has the aroma of a red cream soda but I also notice tiny bits floating in it. The drink carries only a light level of carbonation and the flavor is similar to a red cream soda but smoother. It does not have an acidic bite nor much of an after taste. Perhaps its decline was due to those seeking a bolder flavor or should I say, more "extreme." I find it pretty pleasant but it will take several more minutes to judge it's caffeine feed to my blood stream. Drink if you are a code monkey, cramming for exams, or in need of more pep and don't like the sometimes odd flavors of other energy drinks. 

Bawls G33K B33R Root Beer

Bawls began in 1996 as a high-caffiene soft drink with guarana flavoring. They market a line up which now includes Bawls Cherry as well as Bawls Root Beer, as well as provide several recipes for use as a mixer. 

I could be wrong, but it appears as if Bawls G33K B33R was renamed to Bawls Root Beer because the name may have been to cryptic, nor does not appear in the list on their website. It pleasantly tastes like root beer rather than some sort of odd energy drink flavor with a tinge of root beer. It's unique, studded bottle lends some curb appeal as well. While not a particularly memorable root beer flavor, it's not creamy either... it still stands up as a tasty bottle. I'd recommend this to root beer aficionados, late night code monkeys or someone who wants an extra wired edge to their root beer float.

Unknown Dred Formula No. 53 Road Rage Red

This is an interesting one... Unknown Dred, as he's called, is the man with his face on the label that also happens to resemble George Clinton a little. He's worked as a driver for Real Soda, a California beverage distributor and licensed bottler of many sodas. Ol' Dred wanted a soda with kick, but also wanted a punch flavor. The gang at Real Soda wanted to give him a soda namesake as a 53rd birthday gift. Although I'd love to have my own soda... the official website looks like something a kid did and could use some work.

Once opened there is a terrifically vibrant fruity smell. However the cap leaves a new mystery. On the underside a quote reads, "We aren't going to sell out our reputation for $74.75!" I have no idea what this alludes to... an inside joke a Real Soda maybe? Billed as a carbonated energy drink, the ingredient list names guarana, maca, maté, kola nut, schizandra, ginseng, green tea, and caffeine among other things. 

While the smell is enticing, the flavor is a bit strange, which is typical from the ingredients used in energy drinks. It's still fruity but has that herbal quality that can't really be described due to such a unique blend of these extracts. It's not unpleasant, but I wouldn't choose to pair this with anything. I could certainly see using it as a mixer with a fruitiness that Red Bull doesn't have. 

Red Bull Cola

An Austrian, named Dietrich Mateschitz travelled to Thailand in 1982 and discovered an energy drink named "Krating Daeng", which translated to "Red Bull." He and the owner of Krating Daeng founded Red Bull with the aim to tweak the drink for the European market. The Red Bull energy drink hit the streets in Europe in 1987, but didn't arrive in America until 1997.

The Red Bull energy drink became hugely popular and in 2008, the company introduced Red Bull Cola. I found the aroma quite enticing with a sugary sweet smell. The flavor however, may be a result of the fact that there is no phosphoric acid, preservatives or artificial flavors added. I found it to have a heavy herbal flavor from the natural herbs used but it had nearly no cola flavor. While the drink does the trick in giving you a nice boost of energy, I'd probably drink a regular Red Bull instead if that was my goal. As far as a cola drink goes, I think it falls short.

Fukola Cola

The folks at Skeleteens decided to make a line up of "counter culture" sodas of which this is one. I'm not so sure yet how counter culture their sodas are other than the unusual names they have. Apparently they were banned in some areas due to their names and labeling. At last check the company website was no longer in service.

Fukola Cola has the aroma of Pepsi. It's taste however is much more herbal. Among other things the ingredients include ginseng, guarana, lime and orange oils, clove, echinacea, sage, kava kava, damiana, african capsicum, and something called skullcap. While it has a complex herbal arrangement, the predominant flavor is still cola so it's something I can get behind. All in all not a bad cola. I'll see if I can get my hands on some of this brand's more unique flavors in the future.