Rockstar Citrus Punched
Photo By EnergyGuru
Rockstar has won its place among the top energy drink brands by promising its customers that they too can party like a Rockstar. And despite the decidedly “cool” aura that surrounds the drink, I’ve never been a big fan of their flavors.
The original suffers from the mediciney aftertaste that plagued many early energy drinks. The Guava Juiced flavor was hard for me to even finish. It wasn’t until I found the “Punched” can that I even gave them a second look.
The Punched flavor quickly became my goto drink and had me rethinking my stance on Rockstar. So, as you can imagine, I was intrigued when I happened upon a Rockstar Citrus Punched several months later. Let’s see how the Vegas boys do this time.
Flavor
The first time I took a swig of Rockstar Citrus Punched I was hooked. It’s a classic clean flavor similar to childhood favorites like Squirt or the 7-Up punch my aunt used to make for holidays. Similar, but not the same. It has its own distinct mark on the citrus drink that I can only attribute to the acai berry listed on the front of the bright green can. Best of all, it has a dry finish that doesn’t leave your mouth gummy like it’s sibling Punched flavor.
Ingredients
Citrus Punched advertises as having 50% more caffeine than standard Rockstar at 120mg per serving. It backs up its potent blend with generous amounts of B Vitamins, Taurine, Ginkgo Biloba, Guarana, Inositol, L-Carnatine, Panax Ginseng Extract, and Milk Thistle Extract.
Energy
Great flavor aside, Citrus Punched stands up as a powerhouse energy drink. 240mg of caffeine per 16oz can wakes you up and the rest of the blend keeps you going for 5 hours or more of strong energy. Several weeks of using this drink as my everyday start-up did not disappoint. While high in sugars, the lack of High Fructose Corn Syrup limits the crash typically felt with such powerful drinks.
Overall, this drink is top notch in every category and has changed my opinion of Rockstar. They’ve gone from ubiquitous yet underwhelming to a premiere player.
Reviewed by TNT
9 Comments
Nice pick for a review! This is without a doubt one of my favorite drinks of all time.
I agree. I like that new drink too. Nice job to both of you, Dusty and TNT! I liked the flow of both of your reviews.
Man, I should have done my submission on this one. O well, this is one of my favorites too. My personal favorite brand is RockStar. I love the original drink but this one and the punched are my favorites. Oddly, the guava one is the only one my fiance can actually down. Didn’t hurt that I got a 12pk of 24oz for $8 at big lots.
The extra caffeine in this one is a great bonus too. Sometimes the normal 80mg serving isn’t enough for us “experienced” users anymore.
Steve – It’s about more than obesity (unfortunately I don’t have links handy, but iirc wiki does)
Anyhow, original rockstar is the best ‘early energy drink flavor’ IMO. You can taste the chemicals, but in a good way, unlike some knockoffs (or red bull, for that matter).
Punched is too sweet, citrus is great, guava is too sweet, pomegranate is wayyy too sweet, and the orange one is really good.
Gilly, thanks for the compliments!
My understanding of the HFCS debate is that different sugars are processed by the body in different ways. The HFCS requires little work by the body to process and gives you an immediate energy boost followed by a precipitous crash. Other, more complex sugars don’t share this characteristic. I’m no scientist though, I could be wrong….
I just ordered a 6pack of these so it was nice to hear it was so good ! /Akan @ Forum.taurin.se
ive always been a energy drink drinker and i like this one but for me it leaves an after taste for awile and i dont like it but overall i think the drinks ok
The HFCS problem is largely imaginary. The Dietary benefits of Sugar (Sucrose [ a combined chemical of Fructose and Glucose]) vs. High Fructose Corn Syrup ( Fructose and Glucose simply mixed together) have never been found to exist for sure. There is a SLIGHT obesity link with it but not conclusive.