+RED Elixir

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 12oz Alum Can
BevNET Review: +RED Rescue Elixir’s Cranberry Citrus flavor is an agave sweetened energy drink that features functional ingredients including natural caffeine (150mg), porphyra yezoensis ueda (red algae, a superfood), electrolytes, and B-vitamins. From a flavor perspective, the carbonated formulation definitely has a familiar flavor, fitting within the realm of other tart berry energy drinks that have come before. It’s a perfectly pleasant product to drink, with the agave giving it a nice note of flavor at the finish. Functionally, it’s hard to imagine the consumer who is drinking this type of product caring about much more than caffeine content (there are other means of adding superfoods to your diet) and, on that front, 150 mg is definitely going to provide some kick. Added electrolytes for hydration are nice, but the product is still going to be viewed as an energy drink. That’s not meant as a knock on the product, but as reassurance that it’s okay for this product to embrace the space that it fits into. Being a “rescue elixir” or “power elixir” (used to distinguish the two varieties) tells us that this product is afraid to commit at the expense of potentially confusing consumers. Visually, the product definitely catches the eye, with large block lettering and a cleanly executed three color design. The red plastic neck ring and black can topper are sure to catch your attention as well, but we question their true benefit, especially given the added production cost. The mechanism is, according to the company’s web site, meant to keep the top of the can sanitary while also providing a coaster. While the former makes sense (albeit an expensive approach to do so), you still have to put your mouth on the red ring (we couldn’t remove it), thus defeating the purpose. It's something that’s clumsy to use -- for the limited number of occasions on which one would use it. Plus, there’s no description of this on the can -- when we first looked at the product, we thought that these were simply there for aesthetics. Ultimately, we think this takes away from, rather than enhances, the product. Overall, we appreciate their effort to be unique in packaging and formulation, but some streamlining needs to be done in order to best take advantage of the great taste and design that is at the core of this product. Reviewed on: 10/15/2012

Product Type:Functional: Energy Drink: Regular; Container: 12oz Alum Can
BevNET Review: While a white can typically signifies a diet formulation, the +RED’s white can signifies a slightly different functional formulation and flavor. The most material difference is a reduced level of caffeine, although unlike the Cranberry Citrus flavor, they don’t state how many milligrams of caffeine are contained in the drink. Using an agave sweetened formulation is a nice point of differentiation and adds a unique note to the flavor, but otherwise the fruit flavor they're using in the drink tastes like other energy drinks that we’ve tried in the past (meaning that it will be hard for this drink to build a loyal following on that alone). Beyond that, our comments about this flavor are basically identical to what we said about the Cranberry Citrus flavor. Perhaps the only other thing we’d add after sampling several cans is that drinking from the “red ring” around the neck is somewhat cumbersome, with liquid building up on top of the can as you drink from or pour the product multiple times. Again, we’d like to see this product simplified so that it can focus on the points of differentiation that are truly meaningful to the consumer. As it stands right now, there’s a nice tasting and looking energy drink here, but it’s hidden. Reviewed on: 10/15/2012