This is a continuation of part 4 of my energy drink reviews, a special on ABB.

• Adrenalyn Stack – Berry Energizing: 7/10

  First you get a strong blast of berry flavor, but unfortunately it doesn’t last very long. It fades to a general fruity flavor, similar to the Subzero Red, but has a slightly chalkier texture. I didn’t get an aftertaste, though, so it’s not bad overall.

• Ripped Force – Fruit Punch: 8/10

  This is a good option if you want a strong energy boost. The Ripped Force drinks have 200mg of caffeine along with some blend called Adrenergic Catalyst Technology. I have no idea what that means, but it gives me a bit of the jitters. The Fruit Punch variety is an interesting beast – it has a nice (though very sweet) fruity flavor at first, and then completely disappears, as if you didn’t have a drink at all. Then, there’s a bit of chalky texture, but no real aftertaste. I haven’t had that experience before, but it’s not too bad – a little better than the Berry Energizing flavor.

• Speed Stack – Lemon Lime: 9/10

  I love the flavor on this one. That means something because I normally hate lemon-lime flavors. In this one, the citrus is toned down and it’s fairly sweet – not overly bright. The energy level is fairly strong, as in other Speed Stacks, but not as strong as a Ripped Force. There’s a bit of aftertaste, but not of chemicals, just a slightly sweet flavor.

• Diet Turbo Tea – Peach Tea: n/a

  I don’t like peaches, so I’m not going to give this one a number rating to be fair to people who like peaches. (It would have been a 7.) In essence, this tastes like the lemon Turbo Tea with a bit of peach flavor. Pretty simple. Neither the lemon nor the peach flavors are too strong. You get a faint teabag-like taste, some lemon or peach, and a strong sweetness. If you like sweet tea, you’ll like these.

• Speed Stack – Fruit Punch: 9/10

  This is better than the Ripped Force Fruit Punch – the type of additive really makes a difference in taste. The flavor is more consistent and there’s no chalky aftertaste at all. It has a very slight aftertaste, but just of fruit – similar to the Lemon Lime speed stack but a little deeper. It’s a good balance of fruit and sweet, even though it has no sugar.

• Adrenalyn Stack – Fruit Punch: 6/10

  Tastes a little chalky and bitter compared to the Fruit Punch flavor of Speed Stack or even Ripped Force. The energy boost is really strong, but I’d rather have one of the better-tasting alternatives.

• Diet Turbo Tea – Green Tea: 7/10

  Fairly smooth, like the other Turbo Tea flavors, but the green tea flavor isn’t as good as the lemon. It’s still sweet, but drier and slightly bitter. I wouldn’t have guessed it was green tea if it weren’t on the label, to be honest. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it just doesn’t stand out like the lemon flavor.

• Speed Stack – Grape: 8/10

  This is better than the Ripped Force grape because it’s not as jittery and a bit smoother. Other than that, it’s similar – very sweet, slightly artificial, but if you like grape drinks you’ll probably like this. I happen to like grape, but the flavor could be a bit more mellow.

• Diet Turbo Tea – Raspberry Tea: 9/10

  Another great drink in the Turbo Tea line. It’s very different than the other ABB drinks, though – more like a flavored water than an energy drink. The raspberry flavor itself is great. It’s not even as sweet as the other Turbo Teas. Slightly sweet aftertaste, no chemical flavor, and no chalkiness. One of the better drinks in the line.

• Adrenalyn Stack – Berry Blast: 5/10

  I expected this to be similar to the Berry Energizing flavor of Adrenalyn Stack, but unfortunately it’s a couple steps down. It’s a little chalkier, a little more bitter, and tastes less like berries – almost metallic. I’ve certainly had worse – see my previous energy drinks reviews – but this is the worst from ABB.

Suggestions for ABB: More complex flavors. Packaging that works outside of the gym. They could justify the price if it came across as a high-end energy drink rather than only being for bodybuilders. I love Hugs, but not everyone does.

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• essn Energy: Pomegranate Limeflower – 8/10

  This is another tea-based energy drink, like some of the others I’ve reviewed, but they managed to subdue the green tea / yerba mate flavor with a slightly fruity back-end of pomegranate. The limeflower, which I had never heard of, isn’t very noticeable. It just classes up the tea a bit. The energy boost from this is not strong at all, even though it has 240mg of guarana and a bunch of B vitamins. It only uses evaporated cane juice for sweetness so it falls handily into the “natural” category. This one’s worth a shot, particularly if you like tea, and I can recommend it over most other green tea-based energy products.