euphoric energy - lemon lime

Euphoric Energy is a small energy drink company in Arizona with big plans. is a small outfit with just 6 employees - and a dream to make it big with distributors and sold nationwide. Of course, I am not sure how big you are going to get when your product has ended up at Big Lots for 60 cents, your local number disconnected and your own website not showing you for sale out of Arizona.

This is really a shame, as I really liked this drink's taste and mood lifter - and is one of the best I have seen at Big Lots for some time (certainly better than Hooters Lite, at least). Breaking into the energy drink market is really hard, especially for a drink without any particular cache. Of course having a consistent direction definitely helps.

During an interview with the CEO of the energy drink, he stated that his wife made the energy drink as something that would appeal to many different markets, from the older woman to the young teen. I could tell this by all their Hottie Models in thong bikinis with their logos correctly positioned. This "energy drink for everyone" idea is carried on further by the techno futuristic background and the trance on the website, with release parties at Dude Bars featuring tight toned waitresses in tiny outfits and stripper poles. So this universal energy drink is only universal if everyone is dudes and lesbians over the age where hormones kick in.

Buzz/Nutrition:8
I got a surprising buzz out of this, especially when it has only 70mg of caffeine per serving, just a little less than what energy drinks typically serve. Other than that, is has a small dose of taurine (600mg), a bit of ginseng and inositol. I think what did it for me was their "euphoric blend" of aphrodisiac herbs, a blend of damiana, Maca, and Suma. These same ingredients can be found in Fever Stimulation Drinks, Turn On Love Drinks and even Lil' John's Crunk!!!. The flavor was so good I also chugged the whole can as opposed to my usual slow drink to record flavor and buzz - so I am sure that added to the bump in my energy.

I think it is a little odd that they tout the fact that their drink is 95 percent natural. Like the marketing, that really means that you are NOT natural, even though you are reaching that way. Go natural or don't. Go healthy or add preservatives. Just don't say you are one thing and then do another. Energy Drink Rule 212: Hypocritical energy drinks always fail.

Taste:8
This is one of the few Lime drinks I had that was so damn good. I wish I had a little gin to add to this - as it would make an UNBELIEVABLE mixer with some clear grain spirits. By itself this was still surprisingly delicious, really going for the lime in the lemon-lime, and coming up with something original and tasty. Tasty enough that even with my supply of drink I already have growing in my stockpile, I had to run out and spend the 3 bucks for 5 more cans of the stuff (that was all the Big Lots had left). IF you find yourself wandering the aisles of your local super-discount store, pick a can or two up.

Packaging:3
This looks very bottom of the barrel here. Not really their fault, as it was the not so brilliant marketers at www.media-architects.com who designed a sci-fi can that no one will pick up. Have they never seen an energy drink before? Really -- there are not many well designed energy drink labels out there, but few that suck as bad as this one. Unless you happen to be a raver at an actual rave party, this can looks about as out of place as wearing Big Spiky Red Goth Boots to your corporate company picnic. Simple is better people - this over the top mess of lights, grids and techno graphics does not appeal to the "everyperson", or even the Jock crowd they seem to be reaching for.
As for all the other stuff, I appreciate the caffeine listing, and the mechanics of the can are OK. Still, if there is any hope of a resurgence in Euphoria, a new design has to be essential.

Website:6 www.euphoricenergy.com
As a use of flash goes, this is nice enough - although I still don't like it when something starts playing music at me, especially when it is on a loop and restarts again after every click. The flash is still well programmed and the design is nice enough for a Super Techno Trance site, albeit still stuck in dreamweaver hell. On the design end, it seemed like there was lots of superfluous design elements that make the UI weird (text in the corners that don't click, design bubbles that don't have any reason to be there, etc) and the coding still has lots of macromedia and default flash tags hanging about taking up the page size. Overall, the site is decent, but it could be soooo much better.
energy heaven
caffeineking101