Tag: Gatorade

What is it?

Gatorade has a new yellowish flavor, Tropic Flash. The label claims “Limited Edition,” but I don’t know whether that applies to the flavor itself or the Serena Williams bottle.

How is it?

Well, I don’t have anything against it. But I don’t really have anything for it, either.

It has a generically fruity flavor, but what that is, I have no idea.

I was happy to drink it (after a seven-mile trail run in the heat), but I like it less than literally every other regular Gatorade flavor (except for Cool Blue). There’s something bland about it.

Anything else you need to know?

I don’t know what “Tropic Flash” is supposed to be, and the term “natural flavors” on the ingredients list doesn’t help me. I live in the desert, so I don’t have much experience with tropical fruit. The flavor seems like it belongs to something with the texture of cantaloupe, honeydew, or papaya. But I find it exceedingly strange that I taste the texture of a fruit more than I taste the flavor of a fruit.

Conclusion:

If I finished a long workout and someone gave me a Tropic Flash Gatorade, I would gladly drink it. But when I look at the Gatorade flavors in the fridge at the gas station, I would never pick this one over, say, Glacier Freeze or Lime Cucumber.

Purchased Price: $2.69
Size: 28 fl oz
Purchased at: Miller’s
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (12 fl oz) 80 calories, 0 grams of fat, 160 milligrams of sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, 21 grams of sugar (including 21 grams of added sugar), 0 grams of protein, and 50 milligrams of potassium.

What is Gatorade Fit?

It’s “Healthy Real Hydration.” I’m not sure where Gatorade is going with that because plain ol’ water could also be considered healthy real hydration. But does that also mean all of Gatorade’s other hydration products aren’t healthy?

What makes Gatorade Fit “healthy”? Well, it has no added sugar, no artificial sweeteners or flavors, no added colors, has only ten calories and one gram of sugar, and is an excellent source of vitamins A & C. It’s available in five flavors — Cherry Lime, Citrus Berry, Tropical Mango, Watermelon Strawberry, and Tangerine Orange. But I was only able to acquire the first four via a variety pack sold on Amazon. The line is available in 16.9- and 28-ounce bottles.

How is it?

Well, the short answer is they taste like Gatorade. If you’ve chugged the various colors of the Gatorade rainbow during your lifetime, you’ll be familiar with these four. With every flavor, I thought to myself that I had this before.

Tropical Mango and Watermelon Strawberry stood out to me among the four varieties. Their flavors mirror what I remember from their BOLT24 counterparts. The former has a pleasant strong mango flavor with a pineapple kick. Watermelon Strawberry leans more towards strawberry than watermelon, and that strawberry flavor reminds me of candy.

While those two are great tasting, Cherry Lime and Citrus Berry are also tasty. The former has a nice cherry and lime balance, while with the latter, the berry dominated the flavor so much that if you told me it was a mixed berry variety, I’d believe you.

Anything else you need to know?

Much like the skin under my shirt, Gatorade Fit has no color.

Reader Josh G, who sent in photos of the new line for our Spotted post, mentioned that Gatorade Fit seems like a rebranding of Gatorade’s BOLT24. Because both lines get their electrolytes from watermelon and sea salt, provide 100% daily values of vitamins A & C, have no artificial sweeteners or flavors, and share some of the same varieties — Cherry Lime, Tropical Mango, and Watermelon Strawberry. But BOLT24 still exists because several types show up in my “Inspired by your purchases” section whenever I visit Amazon.

There are several differences between BOLT24 and Gatorade Fit. The latter has fewer calories (10 calories vs. 80 calories) and less sugar (1 gram vs. 19 grams). While BOLT24 used sugar and stevia, Gatorade Fit has only stevia. Much like when I tried BOLT24, I was surprised this has stevia. But I was even more surprised that it’s the ONLY sweetener because it doesn’t have any of the blechness that I’ve experienced with other beverages with it.

Conclusion:

If you enjoyed Gatorade BOLT24, there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy Gatorade Fit. Heck, maybe it should’ve been called Gatorade BOLT24FIT.

Purchased Price: $19.99 (12-pack)
Size: 16.9 oz bottles/12-pack
Purchased at: Amazon
Rating: 9 out of 10 (Tropical Mango), 8 out of 10 (Watermelon Strawberry), 7 out of 10 (Cherry Lime), 7 out of 10 (Citrus Berry)
Nutrition Facts: (1 bottle) 10 calories, 0 grams of fat, 230 milligrams of sodium, 3 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of sugar (0 grams of added sugar), and 0 grams of protein.

I did a collagen peptides deep dive on the internet to find out why 10 grams of it is included in Gatorade’s BOLT24 Restore. Let’s just say my Google journey involved preventing or reducing skin wrinkles, joint pain caused by osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, and Jennifer Aniston. Just to be clear, the supplement does not prevent or reduce Jennifer Aniston.

I’m sure the reason for the collagen is one of those I mentioned that’s not Jennifer Aniston. But I have no way to test whether the collagen peptides in BOLT24 Restore help with any of those things. So I’ll just tell you how the two flavors – Peach Mango and Apple Pear – taste.

Both varieties look like flat champagne or white wine. They pour like regular beverages, but they’ve got a mouthfeel that’s like Jello that’s been put into the fridge to set but taken out after 30-45 minutes. I don’t want to say there’s a thickness to them, but I already typed it, so I’m not going to use my arrow and delete keys to change it. I’m going to assume that’s the collagen at work.

If you need or want more collagen in your diet, go with the Peach Mango because it’s the better tasting one of the two. Its flavor has an equal balance of peach and mango. The stevia is a bit more noticeable in these Restore versions than with the original BOLT24, but they don’t taste as odd as other beverages that are only sweetened with it. I’m looking at you, Zevia.

Now, Apple Pear mostly tastes okay. It has a flavor that’s more Fuji apple than pear, and that sounds wonderful. However, the aftertaste takes an acrid turn. Once the fruit flavor fades, there’s a sweet artificial meat-like taste in my mouth that pops up for a few moments. It’s odd, and enough for me to push the Peach Mango one instead.

Because these are Gatorade beverages, of course, they come with electrolytes. But unlike your standard Gatorade, BOLT24 drinks get it from watermelon and sea salt. Also, these don’t contain artificial sweeteners or flavors.

The bottle says it has 10 grams of protein, but it also says it doesn’t provide any daily value of the nutrient. It’s making my head hurt. Does collagen help with that?

Purchased Price: $1.99 each
Size: 16.9 fl oz bottle
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 7 out of 10 (Peach Mango), 4 out of 10 (Apple Pear)
Nutrition Facts: (1 bottle) 80 calories, 0 grams of fat, 230 milligrams of sodium, 11 grams of carbohydrates, 9 grams of sugar, 8 grams of added sugar, 10 grams of protein, and 100 percent vitamin C.

As someone who gets thirsty, doesn’t consume the daily recommended amount of protein, and likes to drink things with names that describe how I’m feeling, I think I can get behind Gatorade Zero with Protein.

The no-sugar thirst quencher is available in three flavors, and if you’ve explored the Gatorade rainbow, your taste buds have probably come across them before in other lines the sports drink brand offers. There’s Fruit Punch (a classic G flavor), Glacier Cherry (a flavor that I always want to add red food coloring to), and Cool Blue (a blue raspberry variety with a name that could also be a cologne or aftershave product).

Because these are part of Gatorade’s sugar-free Zero line, there are artificial sweeteners, which in this case are acesulfame potassium and sucralose. As someone who regularly drinks zero sugar beverages, I’m okay with the sweetener combination here.

I would also like to note, and this is going to make you wonder if my taste buds are broken, they taste fine at room temperature. With almost every other sugar-free beverage I’ve consumed that was not chilled or was out for too long, the artificial sweeteners overwhelm the flavor. But that wasn’t the case with these. Of course, your taste buds may vary.

The cloudy drinks get their 10 grams of protein in every bottle from whey protein isolate, which makes these thirst quenchers slightly gritty. Although having had other protein beverages, I did expect that. What I didn’t expect was that the additive makes my mouth feel quenched one moment and then parched the next. It’s definitely weird. I imagine this will be a deal-breaker for some. It isn’t for me.

Look, I don’t have a physiology lab with dozens of scientists to test the recovery efforts of Gatorade Zero with Protein. But I have a tongue and thousands of taste buds to determine if these sugar-free sports drinks taste good. I think for zero sugar protein beverages, these are surprisingly good, and I enjoyed them all equally.

Purchased Price: $19.99 (3 flavor variety pack)
Size: 16.9 fl oz/12 pack
Purchased at: Amazon
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 bottle) Cool Blue – 50 calories, 0 grams of fat, 230 milligrams of sodium, 1 gram of carbohydrates, 0 grams of sugar, and 10 grams of protein. Fruit Punch – 60 calories, 0 grams of fat, 230 milligrams of sodium, 1 gram of carbohydrates, 0 grams of sugar, and 10 grams of protein. Glacier Cherry – 50 calories, 0 grams of fat, 230 milligrams of sodium, 1 gram of carbohydrates, 0 grams of sugar, and 10 grams of protein.