Jolt Blue Raspberry

Earlier this week, my local Rite Aid was having a sale on sixteen oz. Jolt energy drinks, and even though Orange Blast was an utter disappointment, I picked up a few flavours for review. Because blue raspberry isn't a very common flavour for energy drinks, I decided to review Jolt Blue Raspberry first. Now, I have no real idea what to expect from Jolt Raspberry. The last time I drank a can, it was called Jolt Blue, but it's been so long, and I have no idea whether or not they changed the formulation. Either way, I hope that Jolt Blue Raspberry will turn the line in the right direction, after the poor performance of Orange Blast.

FIRST IMPRESSION: While Jolt Blue Raspberry uses the same can design as the prior Jolts, I feel the smaller sixteen oz. size improves the overall appeal. But then again, that's not saying much. The logo is still way too big, and though it's not part of the can, the sealing to open the cover is distracting and unfitting. The red and yellow label doesn't match the black and blue can, making them fight for your attention. I also don't like that the logo is written on its side. I know it's common among energy drinks, on Jolts can, it just seems unnatural. Overall, the novelty of the battery can has worn thin, and the design is scattered and feels rushed.

TASTE: I opened the can and took a sip. The flavour starts out a light cotton candy and blue raspberry hybrid. They're blended together quite well, with the cotton candy being more prominent, and the raspberry being more subtle. The experience is a sweet one, a sickly sweet one that increases with time. A soft vanilla appears briefly, but never reaches it's full potential as it becomes lost in the ever growing and cloying sweetness. Eventually, the sweetness goes from cloying to syrupy, and it more than lightly coats your mouth. The coating has a mild cotton candy taste in it, and is the only real aftertaste. Jolt Raspberry starts out a good strength in carbonation, but around half through the can, the carbonation leaves, and the drink becomes flat. This makes the flavour seem more thick than it was. Overall, Jolt Blue Raspberry's taste is too sugary to really be enjoyed, and is quite a chore to finish.

KICK: Each can contains: Taurine, 190mg of caffeine, guarana, ginseng, niacin, riboflavin, and 120% of your daily intake of Vit. B6. The kick behind Jolt Blue Raspberry was far less than what I expected. While I know the previous flavours have been larger, therefore more powerful, even for a sixteen oz. the kick was less than impressive. Though the moderate sugar and caffeine content certainly perked me up with mild jitters, it was only for a mere two and a half hours. Unlike the other varieties, though, I didn't crash.

FINAL WORD: Personally, I'd much rather buy a cheap disappointing energy drink than an expensive one, and that's probably the only positive thing about Jolt Blue Raspberry. I bought it for $.99 on sale, and while it's certainly a better deal than Orange Blast, which retails for $2.99, neither variety is worth it. The can was off-balance, the taste was sickly sweet, and the kick was lacking. Orange Blast landed on my "Your Drink Sucks 2009 list," and I have a feeling Blue Raspberry will appear on my "Your Drink Sucks 2010" list. All in all, you can do a lot better with $.99, but you can't do much worse...2.3/5

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