180 Natural Orange Citrus

Talk about a 180 from the past drinkables by Anheuser-Busch, 180 energy is a radical departure from their usual glack, instead concentrating on healthy and tasty ingredients to make natural energy drinks. 180 is better now - no matter how many followers of the old formula there are out there. If you want extra caffeinated orange soda, there are a dozen other choices. But if you are not an old school 180 zealot and enjoy a wide palate of energy drink flavors, you might just fall for this drink as much as people fell for the original formula.

This gets its color from fruits and veggies, gets the sugar from beets, has fiber as well as loads of vitamins and minerals, flavored with fruit juices and a decent supply of energy. I am wildly impressed with 180 - a major step forward for a company who still foists Bud Dry upon our civilization.

Taste:9
You would think because of the big old orange on the front, along with the orange font color, that this would be orange. the last 180 was very orange, enough that it was hard to distinguish from Fanta or Orange Crush.
Not anymore. The new and improved 180 is a strong citrus - tasting more like a mix of lemon, grapefruits and tart oranges. I really enjoyed the flavor, but it definitely is not for everyone. It has a bite to it that has really nothing to do with the energy ingredients but is with all the citrus itself. While I thought it was fantastic, for those who are expecting the usual energy soda will be taken by surprise. The flavor tastes real and natural, with no aftertaste whatsoever.

Buzz:8
The nutrition inside this can is pretty impressive. Besides being all natural and going premium with the ingredients, they add a host of vitamins and minerals. I don't know of many other drinks with Soluble Fiber in them. This has none of the usual energy drink suspects in it, which is a little odd; no taurine, no inositol, just B and C and caffeine from guarana. The sugar in this is also easily processed, not giving any crash after the 186 mg of caffeine works its way through your system. The touch of Yumberry along with the orange juice concentrate is supposedly high on antioxidants, if you get into that stuff (there have yet to be reports that drinking antioxidants do anything to help out your system).

Packaging:9
Another Radical change for 180 is the loss of the old logo, style, and character, and i say good riddance. The new design is clean and flowing, with a minimal feel. It is really a wonderful futurist package, light years nicer than the XTREME packaging of years past. They list the caffeine amount, and instructions, like Verve, to gently roll the can to combat settling. While the printing job itself could be of a higher quality, the high concept is so much more appealing.