QUICK REVIEW: Monster Pacific Punch Energy Juice

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Monster Pacific Punch Energy Juice

What is the Monster Pacific Punch Energy Juice?

It’s a tropical fruit punch-flavored Monster Energy Juice that comes in a can that looks like the textbook margins of that person in the back of the class who’s great at drawing, but not good at paying attention in class.

It has more fruit than a Carmen Miranda hat (Google her). There’s orange juice concentrate, apple juice concentrate, raspberry juice concentrate, guava puree, cherry juice concentrate, pineapple juice concentrate, and passionfruit juice concentrate.

How is it?

I wondered how similar this would taste to Monster’s Pipeline Punch – one of my favorite Monster Energy flavors – because they both are tropical fruit punch. After drinking both, Pacific Punch leans more towards what most taste buds would associate with fruit punch. Think of it as carbonated Hawaiian Punch that’ll punch your heart with 160 milligrams of sweet, sweet caffeine per can.

Monster Pacific Punch Energy Juice 2

Pipeline Punch tastes more “tropical” to me than Pacific Punch, but I enjoy both equally. I don’t know if this is a permanent addition to the Monster Juice lineup, but I hope it is because it’s really tasty.

Is there anything else I need to know?

It smells like a red popsicle.

I said it before, and I’ll say it again. Energy drink companies are getting really good at making their energy drinks not taste like energy drinks. And Pacific Punch is no exception. It was super easy to drink.

Conclusion:

Another great job by Monster Energy. If you want a fruit punch with a caffeinated kick, Monster Pacific Punch is what you should be drinking.

Purchased Price: $1.99
Size: 16 oz. can
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (16 oz.) 220 calories, 0 grams of fat, 80 milligrams of sodium, 54 grams of carbohydrates, 52 grams of sugar, and 0 grams of protein.

QUICK REVIEW: Mtn Dew Ice Cherry

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Mtn Dew Ice Cherry

What is Mtn Dew Ice Cherry?

The latest concoction from Mountain Dew’s burgeoning “Ice” line, Ice Cherry takes everything you love about cherry soda, mixes it with a little of that Mountain Dew magic and then turns up the ice, I suppose. Oh, and it’s clear too, which is a bit weird. Kinda makes you wonder what its larger gameplan is with all this Ice stuff, doesn’t it?

How is it?

Like a cherry Laffy Taffy that’s been your pocket for way too long or an illegal helping of pure ICEE white cherry syrup, Mtn Dew Ice Cherry tastes like a bottle full of melted fake cherries. But that’s not a bad thing, just something you have to take in small doses due to its incredible sweetness.

Mtn Dew Ice Cherry 2

With its strong cherry flavor and light carbonation, it might remind some of cherry-flavored Alka-Seltzer. Those people, like me, who’ve been known to drop about five or six tablets in their glass at a time, will love this.

Is there anything else I need to know?

I thought the sugar would be through the roof, but 41 grams doesn’t seem all that bad, does it? This Ice variant contains high fructose corn syrup, acesulfame potassium, and sucralose and no real sugar per se, but all that fake sugar can’t be good for you, can it? Oh well. 41 grams collectively doesn’t seem all that bad.

Conclusion:

Mtn Dew Ice Cherry 3

While not as mind-numbingly delicious as Pitch Black but way better than that DEW.S.A. dreck, Mtn Dew Ice Cherry falls somewhere in-between, leaning a little more on the plus side of the bracket.

Purchased Price: $1.29
Size: 20 oz. bottle
Purchased at: Buy for Less Supermercado
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (20 oz.) 160 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 10 milligrams of cholesterol, 90 milligrams of sodium, 41 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 41 grams of sugar, 0 grams of protein, and 91 milligrams of caffeine.

QUICK REVIEW: Red Bull Summer Edition Coconut Berry Energy Drink

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Red Bull The Summer Edition Coconut Berry Energy Drink

What is it?

Red Bull’s latest summer edition variety. It follows last year’s Grapefruit Twist. It combines artificial coconut and berry flavors into an energy drink that gives you wings.

How is it?

Red Bull The Summer Edition Coconut Berry Energy Drink 2

If you dislike artificial coconut because it smells and tastes as if you’re applying sunscreen with your tongue, then this is not for you. It’s a little surprising that coconut water wasn’t used. The coconut hit my nose and tongue hard enough that I was taken aback by it a little. But by the third sip, I got used to it.

The berry seems to be blue raspberry, and its color, which looks like what happens when you wring a Smurf, seems to supports that. The overall flavor leans more towards coconut with the berry’s tartness in the background.

Is there anything else I need to know?

When I look at the bright white can and taste the berries, for some reason, all I can think about are Fruit of the Loom tighty-whities. Of course, you may not experience that. But just by me mentioning it, increases the odds of you thinking that. You’re welcome. Do not spit this energy drink out whities, I mean, while thinking about folks dancing with Fruit of the Loom tighty-whities. That would be a waste because it’s a tasty beverage.

Conclusion:

To be honest, I was skeptical of Red Bull’s Summer Edition Coconut Berry because the combination is odd. When coconut is involved, it’s always paired with other “tropical” fruits. But it turned out to be a great flavor.

Purchased Price: $3.49
Size: 12 fl. oz.
Purchased at: 7-Eleven
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 can) 160 calories, 0 grams of fat, 125 milligrams of sodium, 40 grams of carbohydrates, 38 grams of sugar, less than 1 gram of protein, and 114 milligrams of caffeine.

REVIEW: Sparkling Ice Mystery Fruit Flavor Sparkling Water

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Sparkling Ice Mystery Fruit Flavor

Flavor innovation is all the rage recently. From mystery Peeps and Oreo to the ever-popular public vote or creation like Lay’s and again Oreo.

Now enter Sparkling Ice’s new Mystery Fruit Flavor Sparkling Water. With so many of the recent mystery entries being food it’s nice to see a beverage brand decide to follow this trend.

This mystery sparkling water has a cloudy-white appearance as to not offer any hints to the correct flavor. A trick color would have been pretty fun, though, as it would play with your mind as you wonder about its true purpose.

Upon opening the bottle, you get an immediate whiff of just citrus. It definitely smells like it could be lemon-lime like (how lame would that be or absolutely genius depending on how you look at it) but it also does have a little something extra as if maybe another fruit is thrown in there. While executing the sniff test, I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

Before drinking I decided to examine the bottle for any clues to see if the mystery gods dropped any breadcrumbs for us. Look at the back, for example, the question mark graphic contains line art of different fruits.

Sparkling Ice Mystery Fruit Flavor 2

There’s a lemon or lime or orange, a strawberry, a blackberry or raspberry, some cherries and then one that looks to me like a tomato. Remember a tomato is a fruit, not a vegetable, so it totally counts! How clever!? However, I’m not holding my breath that’s the flavor.

The others are your most basic fruits. LAME. The ingredients list shows lemon juice and green tea extract but they are both trumped by natural flavors as an ingredient. So not much help there either.

Sparkling Ice Mystery Fruit Flavor 3

Taking my first sip I’m completely underwhelmed. It tastes like, umm, fruit? Again there are the citrusy undertones but it’s hard to pinpoint what else it actually is. I was initially thinking something kiwi but Sparkling Ice already has a kiwi strawberry flavor so it can’t be a recycled one.

Then it hit me.

What’s exotic and different but also kinda kiwi-like? A dragonfruit! As I kept drinking that’s all I thought of, and once I started thinking about it, that’s all I could taste. So that’s my guess.

Overall, it’s a nice tasting zero sugar sparkling water, but I was expecting something more captivating. Just be warned it definitely tastes diet-y as in you can make out the artificial sweeteners from a mile away, but nothing worse than a diet cola.

When the flavor is revealed, I hope it is something more trendy or out there like avocado toast. Just please don’t be lemon-lime coupled with generic fruit, unless it’s an official Sprite or Mist Twist partnership because we all know brand mashups are pretty hot right now. It would be neat and almost make up for the boring flavor.

Almost.

(Nutrition Facts – 8 fl. oz. – 0 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of sodium, 0 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of sugar, and 0 grams of protein.)

Purchased Price: $1.00
Size: 17 fl. oz. bottle
Purchased at: Giant
Rating: 6 out of 10
Pros: Liquid mystery item for once. No color trickery. Pretty good citrus fruity beverage.
Cons: Packaging and ingredients offer no help. Tomatoes and avocados are in fact fruits. TBD for when the flavor is revealed and it’s a huge let down.

QUICK REVIEW: Yoo-hoo Chocolate Peanut Butter Drink

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Yoo hoo Chocolate Peanut Butter Drink

What is it?

Every now and then I crave chocolate milk. While I peruse the beverage section’s numerous options, there always seems to be one beacon, one brand living up to its name by calling out to me – “Yoo-hoo.” So, why wouldn’t I pounce on the newest flavor in Yoo-hoo’s chocolate “drink” arsenal? As far as I can tell this is the first time Yoo-Hoo has ever added peanut butter to its classic recipe. What took so long?!

How is it?

Yoo hoo Chocolate Peanut Butter Drink 2

Are you a fan of Yoo-hoo like I am? If so, it’s right on par. I imagine there are many people that prefer chocolate milk to Yoo-hoo’s thinner, more watery “drink,” so I can tell you this version is a tad creamier than normal Yoo-hoo, but still nowhere near the consistency of milk. As a skim guy, it has never bothered me. This tastes like Yoo-hoo with a pronounced peanut flavor. I wouldn’t describe it as super “peanut-buttery” per se, but it’s still tasty. There’s a delicious aftertaste that made me feel like I just ate peanut brittle.

Is there anything else I need to know?

This doesn’t contain actual peanuts so you can pack one in your kid’s lunch with no worries. This was the first time I’ve had a drink in box form in probably two decades, and it’s small, so they went down super easy. I had two at a time. They are low in calories, a good source of vitamins, and actually curbed my appetite a bit so they make for a good snack.

Conclusion:

If you like Yoo-hoo, I see no reason why you wouldn’t dig this. It’s a slight remix on a successful formula. Don’t expect to be blown away with peanut butter flavor, and since these are tiny and aimed at children, know that you’re probably gonna breeze through a 12 pack.

Purchased Price: $2.98
Size: 10-pack/6.5 oz. boxes
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Box) 100 calories, 1 gram of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 170 milligrams of sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 20 grams of sugar, and 1 gram of protein.

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