Energy Drinks: Rip it Energy Fuel A'Tomic Pom

Sizes: 16 ounce and 20 ounce.
Price: $0.99 cents to $1.99
Availability: Most markets.
Website: http://www.ripitenergy.com

Rip It Energy is an energy drink brand produced by Sundance Beverage company. The brand is a "value" brand and competes directly with higher priced energy drinks on the market. I say "value" brand because the majority of Rip It energy drinks have "99 cents" printed right on the can. This small price for a full 16 ounce size can of energy seems like a great deal compared to Monster, Rockstar, and Red Bull who often charge 2 dollars or more for a 16 ounce can of their energy elixir. So does the big discount still deliver big energy?

Taste:

Rip It comes in a wide range of flavors and the one I am reviewing here is A'Tomic Pom which is a berry pomegranate type flavor. It comes in regular and sugar free. For this review the regular one was used. You can see a complete list of flavors at their official website available above.

I was actually impressed with the taste. Often "cheaper" label energy drinks come with a lot of extra sugar and what I can only describe as "cheap tasting" sweeteners if those even exist. But Rip It was juicy and flavorful and reminded me a bit of a fruit punch style drink. There was little aftertaste but at times the flavor was slightly inconsistent throughout the can.

Kick:

Caffeine, the all important ingredient comes through in Rip it A'Tomic Pom at 102mg of caffeine per 8 ounce serving which is more than original Red Bull , original Monster, and original Rockstar. The drink also contains the usual B vitamins, some Vitamin C, Taurine, and Guarana. Oddly enough this particular flavor does not have Ginseng in it.

The kick was good and steady with a nice initial rush followed by a relatively steady period of alertness. There was a bit of a crash although not as bad as some other energy drinks. This drink does have more sugar in it than some of the big name energy drinks, but I have found that a lot of the "value" energy drinks tend to boost up the sugar because sugar is a cheap way to give a drink a sweeter taste and the feeling of more energy.

Overall:

If you can find the 99 cent packaging of Rip It Energy, give it a try. After all, it is only 99 cents and that is far cheaper than forking over 2 or more dollars for a drink you might not like. Keep in mind that this drink has more calories and more sugar per serving than the higher priced competitors and that the flavor consistency can vary throughout the can. Rip It does offer a wide range of flavors with different levels of sugar, caffeine, and energy ingredients which may be a first for the "under a buck" energy market. Look for it cold in gas station food marts, or warm on the shelf at dollar stores and other value stores.