RATING: 5.7 OUT OF 10.
Ever since Living Essentials developed 5 Hour Energy in 2004, energy shots have been an ideal way to get some energy. Their small, portable, they don't need to be refrigerated, and they have barely any calories. On the downside, they usually taste like Robitussin, and some of them don't even work at all. So how will Up! fair? Well to start, let's talk about the package. It's either orange or purple depending what flavor you have, and it's pretty much generic in every way. This one is flavored grape, and that got me a bit worried. You see, grape is a common cough syrup flavor and with all these medicinal ingredients I hoped that it didn't taste like dextromethorphan. When I unscrewed the cap, my nostrils were greeted with a familiar smell: artificial grape candy. And when I slammed it down, things went well. The grape flavor was definitely artificial and candy-like, which is fine. It shot down my throat with ease and there was absolutely no aftertaste. So far, so good then. Now let's move on to the energy blend. Up! Energy Shot is powered by 100 percent daily value of vitamin b3, 2,000 percent daily value of vitamin b6, 100 percent daily value of folic acid, 8,333 percent daily value of vitamin b12, and their 2,125 milligrams energy blend: taurine, malic acid, caffeine, glucuronolactone, n-acetyl, l-tyrosine, and l-phenylalanine. Unfortunately for me, the people at Up! thought that they would be cool by not listing the caffeine content. Instead, they put that "contains as much caffeine as a cup of brewed coffee" nonsense that hardly makes any sense. Although, I can think of a reason why they put this phrase. If a new consumer of energy drinks and shots looked at the label and saw "caffeine: 200 milligrams", they wouldn't really know how much that was. But if you put the "as much as a cup of coffee" junk, he/she would understand. As for us caffeine junkies, it's one of the most annoying phrases in the entire world. So, does it work? No, actually. I actually took this before a workout and I honestly did not feel a single thing. Their was absolutely no change whatsoever. I can't tell you how long it lasted because it never kicked in in the first place. So their you have it, Up!. It's an energy shot that tastes good but has no effect on me at all. I'll give this 5.7 out of 10.
