The best modern-day elixirs

The downside of a short-lived sugary boost is obvious and thankfully energy drinks have now become so popular that South African consumers have a virtual plethora of liquid pick-me-ups to choose from.

Furthermore, during a recent taste-test of seven of the most popular energy drink brands available south of the Limpopo, I realised that there is so much more to energy drinks than the expected caffeine boost.

Suggestive

Now while each one promises so much extra zip, zest, vim and verve that they sound more like miracle cures or aphrodisiacs than mere energy enhancers, only one was responsible enough to encourage consumers to limit their battery-recharging to two servings per day. Interestingly, that was the relatively new entrant from the States, Cintron, which in typically-American style also contains this advisory: "These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease."

With suggestive names like Power Play, which sounds like a condom brand, energy drinks have carved out a massive market since Red Bull hit our shores in the early '90s. So I put them to the test and sat down with a collection of energy drinks, a healthy dose of scepticism and an empty glass. The plan was to indulge in a wine tasting of sorts, but with the kick coming from caffeine, taurine, guarana and other modern day elixirs of youth.

Before we launch into the review of these drinks, I must supply a disclaimer of my own. Some of the energy drinks below, like Red Bull, also come in super-sized versions obviously designed to turn a lethargic, slim person into a raging bull of an individual, with the kilos to match. Monster comes standard in the larger can which makes sense as no one was ever frightened of the regular-sized monster under their bed. A few of the drinks also come in different flavours, with Cintron taking pole position here with its five flavours, cranberry, pineapple, tropical, original and citrus, brings versatility and allows a broad range of use for cocktails and mixers.

Sticking to the regular size

For our purposes, I have only reviewed the regular-sized cans and selected one flavour for each brand. I don't think the latter approach really matters as everyone I spoke to in the run-up to preparing this story mentioned ingredients over flavour.

First came the task of reading all the exotic ingredients and enticing promises.

A drink called V begins with an entertaining history lesson worthy of a comic book complete with bad English. "To help them get more stuff done, the ancient Amazonian Indians would suck on gobfuls of guarana berries," it says. "To help you do more of whatever it is you're into, we've mixed guarana and caffeine too."

It comes in a funky green metallic tin and wins points for looking hip and cool. V has 195kj in every 100ml, along with 120mg of guarana extract, 31mg of caffeine and 200mg of taurine.

Taurine, what's that then? According to the highly unscientific method of a Google search, it's a colourless substance obtained from the bile of humans and other mammals. It may be needed to properly develop and maintain the central nervous system and its role in bile is important for fat metabolism and cholesterol control. High cholesterol is no laughing matter so the red meat and butter brigade would do well to carefully examine the amount of taurine in their tipple to ensure it's the maximum amount available.

'Gives you wings, bru'

Another taurine-rich energy drink, Red Bull, has the distinction of being commonly credited as the world's second official energy drink after Scotland's Irn-Bru of 1905. That's a pretty trendy SMS-type spelling for a beverage first consumed 105 years ago!

Red Bull has its marketing message down to a fine art. It "revitalizes body and mind" and promises increased performance, increased concentration and reaction speed, improved vigilance and emotional status. Red Bull and vodka, as most of us would know, is a common beverage for the young and emotional to consume so this marketing message is clearly hitting home.

Next I tried Volt, "a fully charged premium energy drink" billing itself as "South Africa at its best." Its name conjures up images of electrified suburban walls which is certainly an area where South Africa excels.

Volt has 200kj per 100mg, lots of B-group vitamins and 31mg of caffeine. Which means it contains less caffeine than the average cup of coffee which comes in at around 100ml.

Bad rap for caffeine, but...

Caffeine is a well-known short-term stimulant to boost alertness and energy, but it gets a bad rap for also producing headaches, jitteriness, insomnia and upset stomachs. Yet the average energy drink declaring itself high in caffeine actually contains less than a good old cuppa. Caffeine, the way, generally gets a bad rap when in fact it has been linked to the prevention of many diseases, dementia and Alzheimer's amongst them, which kind of makes sense.

Back to the newbie in the South African market, Cintron. This American offering that aims to attract news drinkers in the energy drink category, arrived - like the Americans - in time for the Soccer World Cup, ostensibly to meet the demand from Americans feeling homesick. Cintron claims to be less cloying than its over-sweet rivals. But the main difference is the colour of the Tropical flavour I tasted. The bright blue in a sea of greenish yellow was, you could say, a welcome change and certainly a surprise as it came gushing out of the can. Cintron packs 106mg of caffeine into 250 ml and 529mg of taurine, both of which are on the high side but then that appears to be a bonus if one Googles the health benefits of both of those ingredients.

Confused, so chose the cake

As mentioned above, Power Play does sounds more like a prophylactic than an energy drink, but I guess one may lead to the other. It's got roughly the same calorie and caffeine content as Cintron, and guarana extract and ginseng too, but none of the highly-fashionable taurine stuff. And it lost points for its garish orange can.

Monster came next in a suitably monstrous sized can. It bills itself as "the meanest energy supplement on the planet, with twice the buzz..." That probably has something to do with it containing two servings in one can. Monster is presumably promising an energy boost not from its mere 10 calories per serving, but from its caffeine, ginseng, guarana and a hefty 1000mg of taurine. That makes it less sweet than the others, which has a certain taste appeal.

The last up was Spike, "for peak performance of body and mind." But after putting seven energy drinks to the test my mind was decidedly confused rather than extra-clear. Yet there was a definite buzz in my brain, a bit like the raring-to-go feeling you get with alcohol, coupled by the cocky knowledge that you'll beat the breathalyser.

So the testing was over and after the buzz that comes with tasting seven energy drinks, I needed something to level out my new-found enthusiasm for these beverages. A waitress glided past and I waved her over. "A glass of Chardonnay and a slice of chocolate cake, please."