Whether you are cramming for a test, working out, or trying to get through a long day, energy drinks have become the go-to for people when they need a sudden boost of energy. With so many brands and flavors available that promise more energy and sharper focus, it is nearly impossible to determine which is the best.
Some of the biggest brands in the energy drink industry are currently Celsius, Monster, and Redbull. Teenagers are constantly showing up to school with different energy drinks and all different brands, which makes one wonder, which brand is the best?
Granada students were asked about their favorite brand and flavors of energy drinks, or if they even drink the sugary, caffeinated beverage.
“Monster is the best energy drink because it has really good flavors and it wakes me up faster than the others,” said Megan Bruns (11).
Monsters contain, on average, 380 mg of caffeine (16% of daily intake), taurine, and can cause increased heart rate, anxiety, restlessness, insomnia, and heart palpitations.
When Bruns was asked to rate two of the most popular Monster Energy flavors, Ultra Fiesta Mango and Zero Ultra (White Monster), she had this to say;
“I think the mango tastes too artificial and fake. There are definitely worse flavors out there, but i would not get this one again.”
Although for the Monster Zero Ultra, she had a different opinion. “This one is really good. Definitely one of my top flavors.”
However, not everyone shared Bruns’ opinion on the Monster Zero Ultra. Junior Raelyn Clouser said, “It’s too sugary, and every can is different. Like, sometimes it’s good, but most of the time it is bad”.
Overall, the Monster Zero Ultra was rated a 3.6/5 pomegranate seeds, whilst the Monster Ultra Fiesta Mango was not much better at 3.7/5 pomegranate seeds.
Other students, such as Andy Plummer (12), prefer Celsius over any other energy drink. “Other energy drinks taste like battery acid,” Said Plummer.
The average Celsius contains 200 mg of caffeine, and can cause increased heart rate, anxiety, restlessness, insomnia, and heart palpitations, and has 0 sugar and taurine.
“Watermelon is the best flavor of Celsius, it is sweet but not too sweet and doesn’t taste super artificial.” She rated the Watermelon Celsius a 3/5 pomegranate seeds because she is not the biggest fan of energy drinks to begin with.
Clouser Rated the Peach Vibe Celsius and Mango Passionfruit Celsius.
“Mango is better than the peach one. I would probably give the Mango Passionfruit one a 4/5 and the Peach Vibe a 3.5/4.”
Peyton Danforth (11) claims that compared to Redbull, all the other brands are inferior.
“Redbull is my favorite, it tastes the best out of all of them,” Danforth says.
Usually Red Bulls have 80 mg of caffeine, are 8.4 oz, sugar free, and can cause increased heart rate, anxiety, restlessness, insomnia, and heart palpitations.
She was asked to rank the Red Bull Sugar Free and Red Bull Winter Edition (Fuji Apple and ginger).
“Tastes like a Jolly Rancher, slightly sour and sweet, but not overly sweet to the point that it’s not good. I would rate it a 4/5 pomegranate seeds,” Danforth said about the Winter Edition.
But when asked about the Sugar Free Red Bull she said, “It tastes like battery acid in a good way, but the [Winter Edition] is still better. So I guess I would rate it a 3.8/4 Pomegranate seeds.”
Energy drinks appeal to many different types of people for many different reasons. The preference of the brand and flavor depends on the person and their needs, so there is no definite answer as to which energy drink brand or flavor is the best overall.
