Erektus Guarana Energy Drink Review

Erektus is an all natural energy drink that is doing very well in Eastern Europe and parts of Africa. The beverage is brought to us by the Czech makers of Semtex. With a pedigree like that you know that Erektus will have high expectations. I have had many all natural energy drinks in the USA, but have never seen one come out of Europe before so am really excited. Erektus Energy Drink comes in the classic 8 ounce can that is all yellow with a bony, knobby stick figure guy. It is the natural element of Erektus that makes it exciting since it combines mostly energy producing herbs to give the drinker a boost.

I had no idea what Erektus was going to taste like. I thought maybe it would be a dark, smoky energy drink since the can is kind of similar to the one for Dark Dog, another guarana based European energy drink. I could not have been more wrong. Erektus comes out of the can with a light red color. The non-carbonated beverage is in the mold of an excellent strawberry lemonade. It has a very smooth taste being only lightly sweetened so that it makes a great lemonade flavor. The lemon aspect is clear and clean up front with sour edges that remind me of a fresh squeezed lemon. The strawberry is mild and blends flawlessly with the lemonade flavor. Considering how many herbal ingredients are blended into Erektus Energy Drink I am very impressed with how pure the flavor is.

I call Erektus an all natural energy drink because it features mostly energy producing herbs and has only a few non-herbal ingredients. Those non-herbal ingredients are ingredients I am happy to see with 1000 mg of taurine, 75 mg of caffeine, L-carnitine, and B Vitamins. The herbal ingredient list is impressive with guarana, ginseng, schizandra, damiana, and mate. With a line up like that you expect an incredible energy rush and you get it. Erektus had me fired up, big time. I felt like my energy boost was deeper than normal tapping into areas of my body that I normally didn't feel in an energy rush. You are wide awake and clear on this boost with a great shot of stamina. I enjoyed Erektus greatly and am hopeful I will find more European energy drinks of this caliber.

Turkey Hill eBlast Energy Drink Review

I want to give thanks to Joe P who hooked me up with some eBlast Energy Drink from Turkey Hill. eBlast is Turkey Hill Dairy's private label energy drink. The can is definitely on the generic side with the bare aluminum look and the basic tagline, "Energy, Endurance, Excitement, eBlast." eBlast promises to "power up your performance with the exhilarating rush of eBlast Energy Drink." Turkey Hill does have a reputation for top quality products though, so I was interested to see if the flavor would belie the looks of the can.

I expected a Red Bull Clone from eBlast, but instead I get a nice variation on the classic Mountain Dew flavor. In some ways it hews closer to a Full Throttle than a Mountain Dew and can almost be seen as a mix between them. A subdued citrus melon flavor comes out to the forefront of the drink. The citrus is predominantly lime and comes across rich with little of the classic sourness. eBlast has almost no tartness and no bite since there is little carbonation. The sweetness is on the subtle side and the flavor has a richness and thickness to it. I like it although I believe it could be better if lightened up a little with some more acidity or carbonation. Consider me favorably impressed with my first Turkey Hill product.

While the taste of eBlast Energy Drink scores very well, the energy boost is only average. Don't get me wrong, when taken in aggregate this is a very worthwhile product. However, don't expect to go nuts with a massive energy boost from eBlast. After drinking this puppy you'll have a good 4 hours of energy with plenty of alertness. You'll be wide eyed, but not crazed. Alert, but not hyperaware. Turkey Hill has created a great drink with eBlast that features 180 calories and 46 grams of sugar. The solid buzz comes courtesy of the main ingredients of HFCS, citric acid, taurine, caffeine, guarana, ginseng, gum acacia, B Vitamins, and ester gum. I am pretty stunned that such a good drink came from a dairy and will be looking forward to trying the sugar free version as well as their tea energy drink.

Rockstar Energy Shot Review

I feel like I have been waiting for Rockstar Energy Shot for so long, but it has only been a few days since I even heard about it. Rockstar is the first of the big boys to release an energy shot (NOS Power Shot hardly counts), but they will not be the last since Monster and AMP are coming out with their own shots soon. Rockstar bucks the shot trend by going for a 2.5 ounce package, which is larger than your classic 5 Hour Energy Shot. The tall thin bottle is nice looking, but I think the packaging falls down a bit compared to what I expect. The black color and theme mimic the original Rockstar beverage, but the label seems a little cheap and chintzy (you'll see it better when I get a real good picture up). Still there is no doubt that this bad boy is classic Rockstar all the way. The nicest touch is the little cross hairs for the O in Energy Shot. There's also a little caution sign on the back that reads, "Caution: Powerful."

Rockstar has called Rockstar Energy Shot a Wild Berry flavor. I don't know if I would call it wild berry, but it is pretty smooth going down. When you shoot this puppy, it's like you don't even feel it. The berry flavor is a mixture of raspberry, strawberry and blackberry. It definitely has an artificial feel to the flavor, but still tastes good. Like most shots that are zero carbs and zero sugar there is a little bit of artificial aftertaste, but it isn't too bad overall. Again like most shots there is plenty of citric acid that leaves a sharp bit. On the whole though, I think Rockstar Energy Shot is one of the better shots on the market and I like it better than most.

Where Rockstar Enegy Shot really excels is on the kick. This shot had me standing on top of my head I was so wired with energy. The energy boost you get lasts easily 6 hours and is strong in intensity. There's no doubt you'll be partying all night long in true Rockstar fashion off of just one shot. Rockstar Energy Shot is like fuel for your veins with its 1000 mg taurine, 200 mg caffeine, L-carnitine, guarana, inositol, ginseng, and the patented Rockstar Milk Thistle. Rockstar Energy Shot also adds some purified filtered water (only the highest quality), phosphoric acid, benzoic acid, sorbic acid, B Vitamins, neotame and sucralose. I am very impressed with Rockstar Energy Shot and if they only adjusted the packaging they would have the hands down category leader.

Youk's Signature Slumpbuster Energy Drink Review

Slumpbuster Energy Drink has brought on Kevin Youkilis, first baseman of the Boston Red Sox to endorse their new drink, Youk's Signature Slumpbuster. Youk's Signature Slumpbuster is a completely different drink than the original Slumpbuster with darker packaging, the endorsement, and 0 carbs. I am not a Red Sox fan myself so I did some digging on this Youkilis guy and he is a real fan favorite of the Red Sox. The people of Boston really love him for his play on the field and his charitable work off the field, which is why a portion of all proceeds from the sale of Youk's Signature Slumpbuster benfit Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids Charity. I am impressed with the guy and was impressed with the original Slumpbuster so am excited to review this drink.

Youk's Signature Slumpbuster Energy Drink has a creamy honeydew flavor with some notes of red cherry coming on the back end. The cherry gets stronger the more you drink, but it never loses that creaminess and rich taste. Youk's Slumpbuster is both unique and very refreshing. The sweetness is nearly perfect for a 0 carb drink with no bitterness noted at all and no artificial high notes that distract from the flavor. The acidity and carbonation are well balanced, being significant but not overpowering. They add some depth and contrast to Youk's Energy Drink that really impressed me. This is my favorite 0 carb drink I have had in awhile. Slumpbuster keeps impressing on flavor and I'm hoping they add some more brand extensions to their line up.

After drinking Youk's Signature Slumpbuster I know why Kevin Youkilis is known for his energy on the field. This drink packs a major wollop. Despite having not calories, sugar or carbs Youk's Signature Slumbuster really energizes you and gets your moving. After drinking the 16 ounce can I was going full speed with plenty of energy and an active mind. I felt like I was on overdrive and my day rocked by quickly. This is a drink that an athlete or ordinary joe can enjoy based on the flavor and great kick which comes courtesy of the ingredients of citric acid, taurine, caffeine, sucralose, acesulfame potassium, B Vitamins, L-carnitine, and gingko biolba. I hope both Youk and Slumpbuster keep up the good work and I will be drinking much more of Youk's Signature Slumpbuser in the days to come.Back to Taurine Rules main energy drink page.

Bodywell E2 Voltage Lemonade Energy Drink Review

I am trying the second flavor of Bodywell's E2 Voltage, their lemonade flavor. I had a good experience with the Orange flavor and am now back to trying this sweet black bottled elixir. E2 Voltage is powerful and is geared towards the workout crowd. Although I can't say I'm in the best shape, I do go for a run and lift on occasion so I took this opportunity to review E2 Voltage during one of my infrequent workouts. The black plastic bottle is great since you can just throw it into your bag and not worry about breakage. Like any good piece of equipment, E2 Voltage is tough and looks good. Those are keys for me when I hit the gym.

E2 Voltage has a pretty good tasting lemonade. It's on the sweet side and it took me a moment to realize it was created with all artificial sweeteners. I liked how the sweetness fit into the overall lemon flavor. There's an upfront tartness to it, but it's not really sour throughout. Even though no sugar is used the flavor is very rich like a good lemonade. It has a full body and robust thickness to it that fit in well with the lemonade. So far E2 Voltage is 2 out of 2 on flavors I have tried.

I would say that E2 Voltage Lemonade definitely helped with my workout. I drank the drink in the locker room 30 minutes before my workout. I took my sweet time getting ready since I had to look good. The combo of beta alanine, phosphatidylserine, alpha GPC, rhodiola rosea, gingko, and caffeine produce the effect. It kicked in easily in the 30 minute window when I was preening and helped me with my lifting and endurance run. I felt focused and seemed to have more stamina and strength than usual. Voltage could be a synonym for power and e2 definitely brings that to the table.

Cascabel Sugar Free Energy Drink Review

With Cascabel Sugar Free Energy Drink, I recall my experience of the original Cascabel Energy Drink by Don Humberto. I was not favorably impressed back then, but decided that I would give the sugar free version of the beverage a try. I still appreciate the rattlesnake branding of Cascabel Sugar Free and think that a snake is an under appreciated energy drink mascot (dang, why can't I find Cobra Energy Drink). Rattlesnakes are renowned for the bite and my first experience with Cascabel showed that the flavor sure did bite. I'm hoping the Sugar Free version can step it up.

Cascable Sugar Free Energy Drink has the classic yellow energy drink color. The taste reminds me of those candies made by Willy Wonka, Runts. They were little hard fruit shaped candies that had a distinctive sweet-sour flavor. Cascabel Sugar Free specifically reminds me of the lime ones with a dull sourness. I actually like the sugar free version better than the regular because the sweetness is a little more tame even if it tastes kind of artificial. This isn't your average energy drink flavor, but is worth trying for a change of pace.

Another thing I remembered about Cascabel was the crazy ingredient list. Cascabel Sugar Free has the same list, but trades in the sugar for sucralose as an artificial sweetener and has only 10 calories. That makes the list of ingredients Vitamin C, B Vitamins, 1100 mg taurine, l-carnitine, gingko, caffeine, guarana, green tea, inositol, glucuronolactone, MPS, Oat Beta Glucan, MSM, CoQ-10, siberian ginseng, and sucralose. I felt like the boost was a little above average, but nothing outstanding. I had hoped for more given the ingredient list. I would say this snake will translate into about 4 hours of energy, which is decent for an 8 ounce drink. However, you don't really get a great peak of energy and just have an average rush that seems to last a decent amount of time. It's too bad all those ingredients just aren't working for Cascabel Sugar Free.

Archer Wild Berry Energy Drink Review

This is the first of the new Archer 12 ounce cans I am reviewing. Target has revamped the Archer line with the slimmer bullet cans and added several new flavors. The logo and overall design remain consistent with the previous flavor I reviewed months ago. There are so many private label drinks out there now that it is hard to keep up and review all of them, but I am trying. Wild Berry seems to be an increasingly popular flavor so be on the lookout for these.

Based on the Red Bull like bright yellow green color I thought this would be a berry tinged Red Bull Clone. Boy was I wrong. Archer has really done something different with their Wild Berry flavor, it tastes very different from other drinks. A nice subdued sweetness merges with sweet berries. It almost seems like you are getting the flavor of berries with cream and the mix is a melding of strawberry, blueberry and boysenberry. The drink really seems to burst with flavor and has almost no sourness to it, a departure from many other berry drinks. I tried Full Speed Berry a few weeks ago and thought it was good, but this really buries it on flavor.

Archer Wild Berry contains 150 calories and 36 grams sugar so definitely won't overwhelm you on the caloric front. I would say that the boost is pretty mild compared to many of the other energy drinks I try. I was kind of disappointed based on the weak kick. It didn't wake me up much and certainly didn't fill me with energy. Checking the energy ingredients backs up my claim since there is only Vitamin C, B Vitamins, ginseng, 70 mg caffeine, guarana, 10 mg taurine and sucralose. One wonders why they even bother with taurine at 10 mg. Trust me that level certainly does nothing for you. At least Archer Wild Berry is good on taste, but I still have 4 more flavors to try and the results on kick are not promising.