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Blade Sugar Free energy drink
Not wanting to miss out on the energy drink craze a lot of stores are busting out their private label drinks. Sometimes the just plain suck(see 24:7 from pri labs for Walgreens) and fail because they are just low quality. Other Times they work out pretty well because they use quality ingredients and put some time into their products. Here we have Blade Sugar free. Blade is CVS pharmacies private label drink. Lets see if they actually make a good energy drink.
Packaging: We start out with your typical 16 ounce aluminum can. The can is black with a jagged silver section around the top where it Reads “Sugar free – Low Calorie” . Vertical up the front is a blue white jagged electricity pattern with the word “Energy” in an interesting silver font over it. Above the “Energy” is the name “Blade” in a smaller silver font. I like the way the word energy is in the larger font. You know it’s an energy drink right away. At the bottom it list Taurine and B vitamins as highlights of this drink. On the back you have your Nutrition facts. I will give them a grade of C for packaging. It’s pretty good for a store brand but still it looks like a store brand.
Slogans: Nada. Grade F for slogan. Too bad because the name Blade would be easy to come up with a slogan for.
Taste ect: Well when I see no flavor listed I automatically thing RB clone. I open the can and get that familiar scent. I pour some in a glass and it is a caramel color but with a higher level of carbonation than your typical RB clone. I take a sip and it is sugar free Red Bull clone all the way. It’s a pretty good one though with the level of sweetness being lower and no bitter aftertaste. I will give it a grade of C for taste. It’s a good sugar free RB clone and I would probably pick it over the real sugar free Red Bull.
Kick/Ingredients: Ok so I was not expecting a lot of kick since most private labels usually are kind of weak. I drank it down over about 20 minutes. By the time I finished I was very energized. I was impressed and even somewhat jittery. The buzz lasted for about 3 hours with no crash since it is sugar free. The energy in Blade sugar free comes from 240 mg of caffeine per can (impressive!), malic acid, Taurine, D-Glucuronolactone, Inositol, and some B Vitamins. You have 15 calories and no sugar. It is sweetened with Ace K. I will give this drink a solid B- for kick/ingredients
Web presence: Well I can’t even find a website for the company that makes this drink much less a website for the drink. Grade F
Recap:
Well I think if you like Sugar Free Red bull then you will like Blade Sugar Free. It taste a little better, comes in a 16 oz can, and has more caffeine (more than 2 cans of Red Bull 8oz). Hard to go wrong here. I think CVS has put out one of the better private label drinks I have tried. If you see it give it a try especially if it is on sale.
