AMP Energy Drink

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 16 oz
BevNET Review: Pepsi’s AMP’s “Boost Original” is what appears to be the flagship flavor of Amp’s 2012 revised lineup. This particular flavor does taste like what we remember Amp tasting like, with a sweet flavor (58g of sugar per can) that’s heavy on the citrus flavors (it’s also made with orange juice concentrate) and has a mild bite to the finish. While it’s pleasant tasting as far as soda-like energy drinks are concerned, we wouldn’t mind if the liquid weren’t such an unnatural green color and if the drink didn’t have its syrupy finish (presumably from the high fructose corn syrup). Functionally, it appears to be a pretty standard blend of B vitamins, caffeine, ginseng, guarana, and taurine. That said, we’re not really sure what the word “Boost” means -- there’s nothing noticeably different about this product’s ingredients. Visually, the new design gives the product a fresh look, with a technical style to the graphics that feels in line with what the Amp brand is all about. However, there’s too much text on the package with the back panel of the can making a failed attempt to succinctly explain the new approach to Amp’s lineup. Overall, the taste is, at least compared to other soda like energy drinks, good, and the look of the product is much better than what Amp was previously going to market with. It does not, however, offer anything new to the category.Reviewed on: 8/16/2012

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 16 oz can
BevNET Review: Unlike Amp’s “Boost Original,” the Cherry variety of their “Boost” subline is a reduced-calorie formulation that uses a blend of high fructose corn syrup and sucralose. Still, this is in no way a light or low calorie product, with 130 calories and 31g of sugar per can. The flavor of the product is very much that of cherry soda, with a slight bite (from the sweetener and functional ingredients) to the finish. The functional ingredients in this flavor includes the same base ingredients as the Original (B vitamins, caffeine, ginseng, guarana) but it is also enhanced with yerba mate extract (a natural source of caffeine). As far as the can goes, the red color and technical design feel like a good fit for the Amp brand, but there’s something about it that feels like it’s lacking in the personality department. Furthermore, we’d like to see better communication of the fact that the product contains sucralose (you have to read the ingredient label). Overall, this is a good entry that fits into the middle of the energy pack.Reviewed on: 8/16/2012

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 12 oz PET
BevNET Review: The first ingredient in the Orange flavor of Amp Energy Juice is, in fact, orange juice. That starts this 12 oz. drink off on the right foot, with lots of citrus flavor. From there, they’ve added lots of stuff to the mix, including white grape and other ingredients that are common in mainstream food products (ascorbic acid, food gums, flavorings, etc.). Then there are the energy ingredients, which include caffeine, taurine, guarana, ginseng and B vitamins. All in all, this energy drink hybrid tastes pretty good, although it’s full bodied non-carbonated formulation is definitely not going to appeal to everyone. Functionally, the product seems to have some good caffeine kick, although they don’t disclose how much is actually in it. On the outside, they’ve certainly done something different, with a squat PET bottle that looks like a miniature version of the popular 16.9 oz. bottle. While it’s not a bad looking package, it’s hard to see where this product really fits on the store shelves or what type of consumer will find this more appealing than the countless other juice and energy hybrids that have already been on the market for a while. Still, we think that Amp has made something that’s surprisingly enjoyable – and it’s definitely one of their better efforts to date. Reviewed on: 2/25/2010

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 12 oz PET
BevNET Review: Like its Orange flavored sibling, this “100% juice” product’s flavor comes from orange juice, white grape juice, and natural and artificial flavorings. The latter is something that seems a bit at odds, at least from a marketing perspective, with calling something 100% juice. In any event, this product’s flavor is very much an evolution of the Orange variety, with a berry flavor placed on top of the orange and grape base. To that extent, we’d stick with the other variety instead of this one, if only because it has a more natural fruit flavor. Plus, this flavor just isn’t different enough. Adding more berry flavor (and maybe some berry juice) might make a difference. Functionally, the formulation includes a decent dose of caffeine as well as taurine, guarana, ginseng and B vitamins. On the packaging front, the product is as good as it’s counterpart, with a unique looking bottle design. However, the color of the liquid is less appealing than the orange variety. Overall, it’s decent, but just isn't as good as its more natural-looking counterpart. Reviewed on: 2/25/2010

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 16 oz can
BevNET Review: The Black Tea variety of Amp is significantly better than the green tea enhanced variety. This is the direct result of having actual tea flavor present in the body of the drink, as well as a touch of lemon on the way out. As a result, the product drinks like a carbonated version of a canned iced tea (like Nestea), but with a bit of punch at the end. That might not sound overly innovative, but we think it’s got some marketability to it, assuming Pepsi gives this a chance. However, the chances might be hurt with the busy can, which, like the other flavors, suffers from too much text trying to explain what’s actually a pretty straightforward product. Overall, likeable flavor, but messy packaging.Reviewed on: 2/25/2009

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 16 oz can
BevNET Review: Flavor wise, this product tastes almost identical to Mountain Dew, which means that it will be a hit with at least some fans of the CSD segment. There’s maybe a touch more lemon flavor, which is likely why the product is labeled as a “shock of lemonade flavor.” Beyond that, this is a standard fare energy drink, with caffeine, taurine, ginseng, and L-carnitine to name a few of the functional ingredients. The can is really our biggest issue, with countless taglines and text fragments which have created a dizzying array of things competing for your eye. As the old saying goes, less is more – and this package could certainly live without the “Charge” and “Shock of Lemonade” bits as well as the text circling the can’s neck. Overall, nostalgic flavor and a busy can leave this product smack in the middle of mediocrity.Reviewed on: 2/25/2009

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 16 oz can
BevNET Review: Amp’s Green Tea enhanced entry comes to the party pretty late and, unfortunately, seems to have taken a step backward rather than forward. Specifically, it delivers very little tea flavor, with something that’s more like a citrus soda than a tea based drink. Further hurting the situation is the lingering syrupy coating from the sweetener that they’ve chosen (high fructose corn syrup). Nothing against corn syrup, but this seems like a poor pairing, since green tea is typically light and corn syrup is viscous. Packaging doesn’t feel much different, with lots of words slapped on top of a busy backdrop. Plus, it just lacks the personality that the brand had back when it was co-branded with Mountain Dew. We think Pepsi can do a lot better than this.Reviewed on: 2/25/2009

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 16 oz
BevNET Review: We're really not a fan of this drink's flavor or packaging. First, there's the grape flavor, which tastes very unnatural and is syrupy in finish. Second, there's the packaging, which feels generic and is generally unattractive due to its text heavy appearance. Really, the product lacks personality, which, to compare it with Monster Energy, a competitor, this product feels too corporate and lacks personality. Overall, we're definitely not fans of this product.Reviewed on: 4/2/2008

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 16 oz
BevNET Review: AMP Relaunch is an orange citrus flavored energy drink that's very similar in flavor to Mountain Dew LiveWire from its CSD lineup. Otherwise, there's nothing really new and exciting about this flavor -- just another line extension to AMP. The execution is very similar to other AMP flavors, complete with high fructose corn syrup leaving a coating in your mouth. We find the front panel of this can to be jumbled and confusing, with the eye jumping between the words "Relaunch" and "Revive." Overall, an OK choice for people who really love AMP, but otherwise, we don't feel like they've differentiate this product enough.Reviewed on: 4/2/2008

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 16 oz
BevNET Review: Elevate is a "mixed berry" line extension to the AMP Energy Drink line. The flavor tastes like a caffeine spiked fruit punch, which more or less seems to be what Pepsi was going for with the drink. It's fairly enjoyable, although the finish is too syrupy for our liking. In addition, we're not fans of the packaging, which has a cluttered look to it and strays a bit too far from the familiar Mountain Dew / AMP Energy green scheme. Overall, a mediocre line extension.Reviewed on: 4/2/2008

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 8.4 fl oz can
BevNET Review: AMP Energy Drink is Pepsi's first real entry into the energy drink market -- and it is betting on the established Mountain Dew brand name to bring it a good market share. AMP is based on the original flavor of Mountain Dew, so it's a taste that most people will be familiar with. It has been enhanced with a variety of ingredients typically found in energy drinks (taurine, ginseng, guarana, etc.), so the flavor has a bit more bite than regular Dew. Overall, it tastes good -- if you like Mountain Dew. Compared to Red Bull and the Red Bull knockoffs of the world, its a flavorful product. Not too original, but at least we can stand the taste.Reviewed on: 8/16/2006