XS Citrus Blast Energy Drink Review

Wait, didn't we just see this can? Yeah, Orange "Naranja" Blast looked nearly identical, and it suffers from the same problems. However this can is questionably eight ounces, but when free samples are sent my way, such a small size does not feel like so much of a rip off.

After a recent aforementioned disappointment, the line seems to be back on track with Citrus Blast, a leveled flavor with orange the most prominent. It is as realistically sweet as artificial sugars allow, and is mildly refreshing. Lemon is next tasted, vaguely sour and decently faithful to the fruit. Lime is the final to note, adding its own dry acidic bite to each sip's finish. There is a slight aftertaste thanks to the synthetic saccharinity, but at only eight ounces it is not much of an issue.

Each can contains only: caffeine(eighty three milligrams), ginseng, taurine, among other herbs. The buzz was an hour plus, rather weak in duration and equally in strength. Overall, XS Citrus Blast certainly has its problems, but only its dumbly diminutive size comes close to being a deal breaker.

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XS Root Beer Blast Energy Drink Review

The bright brown works well for this exhausted design, mentally bridging the product to the popular soda. The logo finds no problem popping off of the background color, a decently organized can that is easy to read despite some superfluous text.

The scent is magnificent, however the first sip is an unfortunate disappointment. The sassafras flavor is muted and distractingly synthetic, with deaf hints of identically artificial vanilla and anise. There is a glaring absence of rich sweetness or bright spices, no potent molasses or fiery cinnamon to note. Rather everything is distant and wrapped with a blunt fabricated taste; whether it is before, during or after. The herald herbal blend trademark of the line gives each exposure its only organic essence, an incongruous and pungent attribute starved of purpose. Overall, this brew is a polluting wreck to the soda it (poorly) imitates.

Each can contains only: B vitamins, taurine, the aforesaid herbal blend, and caffeine. The blend can kick for only two hours; after that you will find yourself reaching for something else. Probably better too, because it would be a stretch to find something worse.

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XS Black Cherry Cola Blast Energy Drink Review

A black background is unquestionably appropriate for this black cherry cola variety of XS, although one cannot help but think of Coke Zero or Pepsi Max, not their cherry counterparts. But for the line, this can is surely some of their best yet, still too small but clean and advertises itself without consumer uncertainty.

Although neither Pepsi Wild Cherry or Coca-Cola Cherry would be jealous, XS has brewed up something that stands out both for the line and energy drinks in general. There is a whole lot of cherry to every sip, followed obviously by a rather mundane cola. It tastes somewhat muddled being diet, but fortunately the flavor is never the center of attention. You mostly realize only the aforementioned fruity flavor, but it is spry and refreshingly cold on the tongue thanks to the popular soda enactment. The sweetness adequately facsimiles the real stuff, but while it would never be mistaken for actual sucrose, there are plenty of potations that are far less sufficiently simulating. Overall, XS has already both a cola and a cherry variety, but neither taste tastes as complete on their own.

Each can contains what every XS has in the past: caffeine, herbs, B vitamins, and taurine. The energy flowed for only two hours, before the tantalizing allure of something more potent was too much. On the whole, Black Cherry Cola Blast is a unique flavor that XS did well.

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XS Electric Lemon Blast Energy Drink Review

Although a scheme better suited for lemon-lime and not just lemon, the yellow is visually arresting, and the perfect background for the green visuals and the orange gradient logo. The slogan, "All the energy! None of the sugar," feels ripped right off of an '80's can of Jolt Cola, but it gets its point across nonetheless. It does however, render the above "0 Sugar... 2 carbs" and parallel "only 16 calories" redundant. The latter line, though, is confusing on its own, considering consumers will wonder why and how something diet has a dime, nickle and penny's worth of food energy.

I would have bet my life that this XS would have me reaching for something else, and although that was correct, I never would have surmised it would be a second can. The flavor initializes with a sharp souring, puckering the palate and prepping you for an onslaught of sweet lemon bliss. The tart fruit lacks depth, but it is a radiant caricature with its own sort of satisfying simplicity. There is implications of lime in the sweet nectar, a grainy texture of hyper-saccharinity that is oddly refreshing as the gulps dance down. The second citrus is internally less saccharine despite its surfeit surroundings, providing its own acidic bite in the back of your throat. Overall, I would drink this again, by choice, and even if there were other drinks on the shelf.

Each can contains: caffeine, B vitamins, taurine, ginseng and the brand's trademark herb blend. The buzz is not on par with its flavor, lasting only an hour and a half. Overall, XS Electric Lemon Blast should come in a larger can, because its diminutive eight ounce serving kicks without impressing.

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XS Classic Blast Energy Drink Review

This can is actually quite decent, with the ordinarily bleak bare aluminum working well with the blue graphic. It does feel a tad compressed, with a considerable amount going on, however the bright logo jumps off of the colors and out of the text with good verve. I am concerned on the accused flavor "Classic," as the line has not exactly been the best tasting one.

The flavor is nothing but a maddeningly bland Red Bull clone, albeit with misguided idiosyncrasies that only give the experience a rushed and awkward feel. First off is the sourness; initially non-existent with a touch of medicinal bitterness instead. Things do eventually become tart as ounces are coerced, but it is a chemical creation unfun to the tongue. A less acute acidity would averagely be applauded, however such an austere abatement leaves a flavor uncharacteristically apathetic. Speaking of flavors, there is only vanilla honestly present, with perhaps some diluted citrus for purposed complexity. This leads us to the next problem outside the obvious one-dimensional taste; the vanilla itself. It is slightly alcoholic which tastes about as good as it sounds. The assumed cause is the beverage's tripe sweetness, woefully weak and also conceivably the cause for the aforementioned adulterated acerbity. Overall, XS Classic Blast is anything but what the name suggests.

Caffeine (124.5mg), B vitamins, ginseng, taurine, and its special herb blend are the ingredients to mention, an energy cocktail obviously made by a noob bartender. The buzz lasted something under two hours, unfortunately typical for the line. In the end, XS Classic Blast may be bad, but it at least takes a risk or two.

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XS Cola Blast Energy Drink Review

The albino can to XS Cola Blast is only appropriate considering how Diet Coke popularized it years ago. The logo certainly blasts off of the bland background (yeah, I went there), as does most other text, but there is nothing here that has not been offered by previous varieties or other drinks.

Energy colas tend to struggle, as do diet colas in general (and be honest, so do regular colas), but XS does a surprisingly adequate job here. Its body of vanilla is spiced with cinnamon and cloves, a thick marbleization incomplete without a note of citrus. The caloric free sugars do there thing as you would imagine, however they do leave a bit of an aftertaste. Additionally, the former is mildly herbal, contributes from the drink's energy cocktail, but the beverage's bold acidic bite beards it to some success. This is definitely not the definitive energy cola, but it is unexpectedly sufficing.

The buzz from the eight ounce drink was nothing to shake a stick at, lasting up to two hours without jitters. Each can contains: B vitamins, herbs (including ginseng), taurine, and caffeine. Overall, Cola Blast is probably the best XS since Summit Blast, but that honestly is not saying much at all.

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XS Wild Berry Blast Energy Drink Review

With an easily noticed logo and two shades of blue, Berry Blast does its best to breath life into the fatigued design. The color scheme actually works quite well here, arguably the brand's best yet, although it redundantly remarks about its diet nature one too many times.

My can sweating in New England's humidity, I cracked open the can without emotion. Not because perspiring turns me off (quite the contrary...) but because this is where the brand tends to fail. The flavor tries never to persuade the drinker out of the their low expectations, a dormant drink who sips flatly. Tasting quite complexly of blue, black, rasp and strawberry, the fruits do not play well together, free of tartness or their natural verve. The first of the tetralogy could be toned down, and the last of the quartet should be more confident on the tongue. But overall, this rather quaffable Rockstar Zero Carb ripoff does not flatter its likely inspiration.

With each can containing: caffeine, a proprietary herb blend, taurine, ginseng, and B vitamins, the kick averaged only an hour. In the end, XS Berry Blast is just another one of those unexceptional energy drinks us critics suffer through time after time.

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XS Cherry Blast Energy Drink Review

XS Cherry Blast logo is mysteriously succeeded by the text “Powered by Pomegranate,” insinuating both the fruit's involvement in the flavor and buzz. And while I cannot vouch that it will do much in the name of energy, it could give the taste some depth. But we can discuss flavors and tastes later, and for now let us close this paragraph with one puny sentence, stating my surprised liking for the red with the design.

Cherry drinks can go either one of two routes: a candied path or the realistic approach. The flavor here attempts the latter two-fold, with a simple foundation of sweetness that supports the iron tartness. This sourness respects the honest complexion of the fruit, and gives the experience an impressive edge of realism. But while we do get some tartness, a lot of it, the flavor is suggested more in theory than in actuality, as there really is never any moment of pure cherry bliss. The sugariness should also be a pinch sturdier, but is a minor complaint until we get more flavor.

We get some caffeine, B vitamins, ginseng, taurine, and other herbs to help us tackle the day. The resulting kick lasts only about an hour and a half, but with a name like “XS,” which sounds like “excessive,” the can should offer an excessive amount. In the end, Cherry Blast is one of the better attempts in the line, but it still cannot break the shackles of mediocrity that the company crest imposes.

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XS Tropical Blast Energy Drink Review

How the color blue is 'tropical' is beyond me, and the bright and cartoony can is not especially energetic. The logo is easy to spot however, but that is not enough to carry the well-worn weight of the design. Its caffeine free version looks similar with the addition of the red banner warning about the lack of the stimulant, but it simply worsens its already uneven flow.

It certainly smells good, but if only the flavor was as good. Each sip swallows roughly thanks to its potent carbonation, and any taste hides well within. There is a bit of a fruity finish however, which is actually quite decent save for the artificial bite from the proxy sugars. The effervescence ebbs eventually, and the once flavorful aftertaste migrates to being the definitive taste. But by this point there is only a gulp or two left to take, and even if you break into another can you must undergo the same bubbly misfortune. The caffeine free substitute is admiringly less fizzy, however when one weathers the disciplined experience, its interminably vapid bouquet of fruits is unearthed. Pineapple and mango are on the forefront, and backup comes in the form of lime, raspberry, and lemon. It is an unfocused association, one without balance and certainly without depth. It is a run of the mill flavor, a completely drinkable one, but never anything more.

Each can contains: caffeine (eighty three milligrams), B vitamins, taurine, and folic acid. The kick lasts only about an hour, and the caffeine free variety lasts even less. In the end, XS Tropical Blast is pretty decent for its line, an entirely unimpressive, often awful line.

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XS Peach Tea Blast Energy Drink Review

There is no possible way to be excited about reviewing this Peach Tea variety in the startlingly dreadful XS line. Its can is one of the reasons, an exhausted design let down by bright green and soft orange, two colors that do not exactly scream energy.

There definitely is a lot of peach to each sip, however the somewhat oily and uncarbonated fluid is actually not nearly as bad as expected. It is certainly better than Rockstar's pitiful attempt, with the fruit appearing more vibrant with an adequately appropriate sweetness. But most of the entire eight ounces was spent admiring the unexpectedly decent peach that the tea flavor never really became noticed, a combination of green, black, and white varieties. The drink does climax with an herbal bitterness thanks to the trilogy, a temperate taste who subtly bridges the experience to that of any ninety nine cent and twenty three ounce canned tea. Would I drink it again? Probably not, and especially if I actually had to buy it.

Each can contains: caffeine (eighty three milligrams), taurine, B vitamins, and ginseng. The buzz is unapologetically unexceptional, lasting an hour or so without any jitters or subsequent crash. Though I have surely had better peach teas in the past, the flavor seems to be held back by the line's consistently bad can and kick.

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XS Cranberry-Grape Blast Energy Drink Review

The darker purple in the middle is more appropriate than the lighter shade towards the ends, but the logo bursts off of the colour regardless. The "Caffeine Free" version is unfortunately not as mildly attractive, lacking the shine and adopting not only even lighter shades but also ugly strips of yellow, but suffering the most from its small eight ounce can.

The gross scent of grape cough medicine escapes from the can, and although the flavour is an improvement, the first sip is not particularly enjoyable. There is not much of the alleged cranberry, unwisely focusing only on grape and is groundlessly viscid with some rough carbonation. The taste does eventually gather adequate dimension, not endless but as much as any other such drink. The "Caffeine Free" alternative tastes less potent and partially diluted, but is otherwise identical enough to the regular version. The sweetness for both is impressively synthetic and honeys the purple fruit strongly, if not a bit too strongly. Overall, whether it has caffeine or not, this XS variety is below average.

Each twelve once can contains: caffeine (124.5mg), taurine, ginseng, B vitamins, and other herbs. The buzz lasted two hours and did not result in a crash. The decaffeinated version preformed even worse, as energy drinks really need the stimulant to provide any sort of kick. In the end, XS Cranberry-Grape lacks the major payoff needed to forgive the myriad of problems.

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XS Orange Blast Energy Drink Review

The logo is easily lost within the background and the orange colour is a bit too much, but the can is clean and reads well. Its official name is "Naranja" Blast, and the paragraph on the back is written in Spanish also; perhaps my obtuseness is getting the best of me, but I am not quite sure why the can is trying so hard to be bilingual.

The citrus tasted is an unenthusiastic facsimile of something a lot more vibrant, complete with a dull sugariness and a boring tartness. The fruit has no depth yet tries for a more honest expression, however its lack of detail and poor mimicking halt its sluggish attempt. It is closer to tangerine or mandarin than orange, however your uninterested tongue could care less. Its sweetness tastes glaringly artificial despite its mildness and its proprietary herbal blend bitterly burns. Your battered palate hurrays with your last sip, a cancelled suffering that goes on for twelve ounces too long.

With caffeine(124.5mg), taurine, ginseng, B vitamins, and other herbs, the kick lasts two hours tops. Overall, XS Orange Blast just does not taste good, and your sufferings are rewarded only with a mediocre kick.

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XS Summit Blast Energy Drink Review

Taking cues from an obvious source, XS Summit Blast sports a paragraph on its side that mentions its "...mountain of B vitamins" and its "...dewy blend." Funny. Its can is dually green and pleasantly clean and easy to read, though the jingle to the left cannot seem to stand out against the lighter of the two shades.

Its flavour certainly fits the bill of its humorously blantant inspiration, though more so vividly crisp and spiked with acute bursts of lime and lemon. Heavier on the first citrus, and there is some mild melon to note under the breath of the aforementioned, a usual little something familiar to this taste often tasted, as evidenced by the pile of crushed Diet Dew cans next to my desk. They are all adequately sweet but not unknowingly artificial, as are the fruit's themselves. And soon they are swallowed in coarse carbonation, halting anyone from swiftly sipping and dulling the fruit's otherwise sharpness. But the experience is mostly successful, and is miles ahead of the soda it dittoed.

Each can contains: caffeine(124.5mg), B vitamins, taurine, ginseng, and other herbs. The blend is not particularly buzz worthy but is functional, lasting two and a half or so hours without a crash. All in all, XS Summit Blast is a pretty decent energy drink facsimile of Diet Mtn Dew.

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