Challengers to Red Bull ...

Picked up a few cans from the energy drinks aisle in Sainsbury's a while ago, thought it would be interesting to see if Red Bull can justify being #1... after all, if you say energy drink, most people think 'Red Bull'.

The new Sprite3G, 250ml, same as Red Bull, and the '3G' refers to Glucose,(caffeine from) Green Coffee Beans, and Guarana, bit desperate really. It is also pretty low in the caffeine department, at 20mg/100ml, but then I guess it has the other stuff to perk it up some.

Taste wise, as expected from a 'Sprite' its still lemon and lime, but the added glucose etc numbs the sharpness to make it pretty dull to be honest, its not nearly as enjoyable as Sprite or Sprite Z (which for the reference is one of the few 'diet' drinks I've found to be fairly good) while being utterly different in flavour to Red Bull. Maybe it will find itself a niche in the market, but I don't rate its chances of being around in 6 months. (Update - appears the site on the can is for regular sprite too, you lose points for that Mr Coke).

Ok, maybe our Scottish friends can do better with IrnBru32. Same deal, 250ml can, but at least the 32 is relevant, being 32mg/100ml of caffeine, with taurine, glucose and vitamins this time. Strangely, it tastes like a 'faded' diet version of Irn Bru, an amazing thing to pull off when you consider the amount of added sugars in the form of glucose and sucrose. Not bad, and an improvement on Sprite's offering, but I can't see it encroaching on the 'Vodka 'n' RedBull' market any time soon. I didn't poke around the site too much, but at least it is faintly relevant. Hell, it even tells you IrnBru32 is ok for veggies and it is halal, but not vegan. More info that I am used to, most promo sites seem to be very much style over substance.

Well, last chance, Relentless, another one by Coke, but maybe this time it won't be going the way of Dasani. For a start, it comes in a 500ml can, like most lager, and it's at a similar price point to Red Bull, around £1.09, the others were around the 89p mark. Twice as much for your money, but that's no good if you wouldnt want the first half! It seems that all the usual suspects are inside, caffeine, taurine, guarana, vitamins, etc, although surprisngly, going on taste, less sugar than the other two, per 100ml.

Taste wise, Relentless is definately the closest thing to Red Bull, in fact I have to say I slightly prefer it. Althought I don't drink vodka 'n' red bulls, I imagine this would be an ideal substitute, and a way to save a few pounds on supplies without having to go down the Tesco Value Energy Drink route. After all, same price, twice as much! I say its closest of the three, but that isnt saying much when the others are Sprite and Irn Bru, so I'll restate the opinion, that Relentless is actually fairly similar in flavour to Red Bull, and could well take a small chunk of Red Bull's Market, although I dont see it appearing in pubs and clubs alongside Red Bull any time soon.

On a small side note, Relentless looks like a lager at first glance, so may even get you left alone at parties when you dont want to drink, and everyone is going 'ahh go on, have a drink, have one, you can have ONE drink, go on go on'. The website, very much style over substance, again.

Sadly, I can't comment on their actual effects, as my sleep patterns, well, they just are not patterns!