Rockstar's Australia/ New Zealand version of their punched guava flavor
No Milk Thistle extract.

News Flash! We in the Southern Hemisphere have been cheated!

I was stoked to see Rockstar Punched Guava in New Zealand stores because of the great review Dusty gave it a little while ago.

However, upon closer examination I discovered that it has a different formulation and not in the good way.

The can did create quite a bit of attention as I was sitting at the cafe eating lunch. People seemed to be amazed and strangely drawn to the huge, purple 500ml can sitting on the table.

Rockstar Energy has established a separate Australian Division to their Company and unfortunately for us has to adjust their drinks to conform to the caffeine regulations in AUS and NZ.

Taste

The good news is Rockstar Punched Guava has pretty much the same taste Dusty raved about. From the first sip I knew that it was a winner and with later gulps, I had to remind myself that I was drinking an energy drink...Yes, it is that good! Completely void of any mediciney taste whatsoever.

The only complaint about Rockstar Punched Guava would be that I found it a tad too sweet. It was great at first, but towards the end of the can the 83.5 grams of sugar was making my teeth hurt. Certainly not something you want to drink after having teeth whitening; caffeinated drinks already have a reputation for discolouring teeth!.

Ingredients

Ok, here's the sad part. This version of Rockstar Guava only has 160mg of caffeine per 500ml while in the USA this energy drink has 254mg/500ml. Also, the down under version has no milk thistle. As for the rest of the ingredients they appear to be the same.

Effect

I'm sure you know the feeling, you have just eaten lunch and now you're back to work fighting to stay awake at your desk, right? Well, drinking Rockstar Punched Guava with my lunch completely annihilated my desire for a siesta. I'm not crazy energized, but feel pretty motivated.

Verdict

My number one drink in New Zealand used to be Rockstar Juiced, but then last week Demon Killa Troppo toppled it from its throne. Now it seems I have a new contender in Rockstar Punched Guava. I guess it might come down to price when I'm forced to decide between the two.