Jingshen
NRG Concentrate Intense Mandarin Orange shot
Shots are popping up almost daily it seems. There is a varied market for these and everyone is trying to tap into different customer bases. NRG seems to be going for the office worker or more mature energy consumer. I saw these and was happy to give them a try. I’ll start with the Mandarin Orange.
Packaging: NRG concentrate comes in the standard 2 oz shot plastic bottle. It is wrapped in an orange label with orange circles that remind me of blood cells for some reason. Little round donut shapes. There is also some sarger orange in the background as well. The name “NRG” Is in a really nice orange fade font that grabs your eye good. Above the name is “Intense mandarin orange” which is the flavor. I like the intense. You can never go wrong using that name on an energy product. Below the name it reads “Concentrate” That’s is a little strange. It does not say shot it just says concentrate. (I notice from their site they changed the Concentrate to Energy shot on the label on newer bottles). Below all this you have some highlights of the shot. “NRG for Hours”, “No Crash technology”, “0 Net Carbs”, “Sugar Free”. Directions and supplement facts on the back. Under the twist off lid is a nice secondary foil seal to keep the shot fresh. I give them a grade of B- for packaging. I like the font of the name and the overall mature look. It works well I think for their intended audience. I almost forgot the cool phrasing “No Crash technology” That is nice as well.
Slogan: Nothing really to be found on the bottle but I found “NRG. Whenever, Wherever you need it”. This plays well on the portability of shots and they should work this onto the label I think. Grade of B+ for Slogan
Taste: I like the sound of “Mandarin Orange” so I have high hopes. I twist off the plastic lid, pry off the foil seal and take a sniff. Ouch I’m not sure what went wrong here but this smells bad. I can smell the orange in the background but up front it smells of plastic and??? I pour some in a cup and it comes out a cloudy white color. It appears not to be blended very well even though I shook it. I take a sip and it really has a tangy mandarin orange flavor. Much better than just a regular orange flavor. I really enjoyed the taste but the smell lingered and kind of put me off. I give them a grade of C for taste. Maybe I got a bad bottle and that caused the smell. The flavor was very awesome though so I hope they can fix the smell.
Kick/Ingredients: I downed the bottle quickly to avoid the smell. I’m looking for energy! I will say with in 10 minutes I was pretty damn energized. I was not expecting the boost I got. I’d say the smooth energy I had lasted a good 4 or 5 hours and was smooth and jitter free. My focus was good and I was very alert. I had no crash either. Yay! No Crash Technology! In the energy ingredients department you have L-Glysine , L-Tyrosine, Taurine, N-Acetyl-Cysteine, Caffeine(amount unknown), 200% DV of Vitamin C, 1600% Dv of B6, and 3333% DV B12. No calories, No carbs and it is sweetened with sucralose. I give this shot a grade of B for Kick/ingredients. Good healthy ingredients with a nice kick.
Web Presence: They have a nice little site at nrgshot.com. It looks really sharp, professional, and mature. You have your images of people doing different things like hanging out and playing different sports. There is product information, where to buy, Events ect. Some still seems to be under construction. The design is really really pleasant to look at. Not sure who designed it but it really works well for this shots target audience I think. The only bad part is the music. Loose the music. I hate to go to a site and all the sudden music is blaring out of my speakers. This is even worse if you’re at work. I will give them a grade of C+ for web presence. Visually very nice but still a little sparse.
Recap:
I can really see where this shot will attract some customers. It’s packaging is more appealing than 5 hour energy and the target market is most likely the same. The Kick was really better than I expected. The taste was really a nice flavor but the Smell and the coloring need some work. Still give it a try I say. If you get past the smell it performs better than average.
