🔌Review - Red Bull Red Edition

🔌Review - Red Bull Red Edition - Watermelon

This watermelon iteration of Red Bull seeks to add a summer fresh flavor to their energy drink range. Coming in both 8.4 and 12oz services, Red Bull Red Edition Watermelon has the same b-vitamins and taurine as other offerings in the portfolio. Since its introduction in 2020, reception has generally been favorable and it has replaced the cranberry flavor as bearing the "Red Bull Red Edition" name. Note that it is typically a summer release, though you may see it on slower moving shelves throughout the year.

🍵Caffeine: 114mg, less than a cup of coffee

👅Flavor: Sparking and surprisingly juicy with a little bit of a citric acid tang. The flavor has both the pink melon flesh as well as a little bit of rind vegetative freshness, impressive for something that doesn't include any fruit juice whatsoever. You can definitely tell there are 26 grams of sugar ironing out any taste bumps, but they can't quite eclipse a sight metallic aftertaste.

🏆Rating: 3 - Good, Decent - A fairly well done riff on watermelon, a flavor that is very easy to overdo. There is enough bite to keep the sweetness in check, though it is a little more sugary than I would prefer. I could see this being an outstanding mixer if you're the type to mix uppers and downers (do at your own risk). For me, it's not one I would reach for often, but I can see how it would be popular.

⚖️Scale:

1 | Bad | Don't Drink it | I Wouldn't Drink it

2 | Poor | I would drink it if there was nothing else or it was free

3 | Good | Serviceable | Buy it on sale

4 | Great | A Cut Above | White Monster | Buy at full price

5 | Excellent | Standout in the Category | Pay venue prices

🥃 Review #40: Kirkland Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky (2024)

Like Costco's other Scotches, the Kirkland Signature Islay Single Malt is bottled for Alexander Murray and imported by MISA Imports after being distilled and aged in Scotland (TTB.gov plant registry TX-I-1277). The isle of Islay is one of the southern most islands in Scotland and is one of the five whisky regions ensconced in law. There are only nine active distilleries on the island, and the Islay style is typified by strong peat or smoky flavors. As a single malt, we know that the juice in this bottle comes entirely from one of those nine! All of the distilleries are significantly smaller than Glenlivet and many of the mainland producers. Taste testing has people split between Caol Illa, Bruichladdich (Port Charlotte), and Bunnahabhain as being the source. Caol Illa and Laphroig both have done deals for private brand scotch without rights to name the source distillery, but Laphroig does not match the flavor profile for this bottle. Realistically, Caol Illa is the most likely cand...

🍺 Costco's Kirkland Vintage Ale 2025 - Review & Tasting Notes

Fall is in the air, and that means we have yet another year of Kirkland's Vintage Ale! Brewed proudly by Deschutes (pronounced "Da-Shootz") in Bend, Oregon, this Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout spends nine months in the wood, picking up what the whiskey left behind (mostly vanillin and tannins). Bottled over the summer, this particular beer is from Lot B. Neither Costco nor the packaging give us much additional detail beyond the ABV and style. I remember finding last year 's edition to be solid but nothing to write home about, fairly dry but a pleasant pour. The use of the work "vintage" to me implies that some changes may be made year-to-year but we'll have to see if our taste buds can help us validate. How does the 2025 vintage fair? 💅Style: Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout 🛒Sourced: $7.99 Costco, GA for a 22oz bottle. $2 cheaper than the 2024 edition! 💥Hops: Not Mentioned sadly. Other ingredients include chocolate malt, milled oats and Dutc...

🍺 Definitive Light Beer Tier List: Meta-Analysis & Ranking

Trends come and go: Craft Beer, Hard Seltzer, Canned Cocktails, and more. In the world of beverage, the currents are constantly shifting, but one drink has an irrevocable grip on America: Light Beer. Good old beer flavored beer may take a hit from new competition, but brands like Miller Lite and Michelob Ultra constantly sit at the top of sales volume lists, even with the fall of Bud Light and rise of Modelo's Flagship. But which light beer is best? Let's find out. Methodology - Light Beer Ranking Taste preferences vary significantly between consumers, but across a large sample we should be able to get a somewhat representative picture of the populations preferences. For this ranking, we will combine data sourced from multiple beer rating sites with an internal Castle & Cairn house ranking to create an overall beer quality score. The starting population of beer brands will be those that are explicitly branded as "flagship light" or beers with less than 100 calor...

🥃 Best Bourbons at Every Price Point Guide - Updated for 2025

Bourbon, America's native spirit, offers a wide range of flavors and experiences. Bourbon hunters scour the shelves for rare or premium offerings but a rising tide lifts all ships. Whether you're a seasoned connoisseur or just starting your bourbon journey, there's a perfect bottle out there for you, and at a price that fits your wallet. Here's a quick guide to some of the best bourbons at various price points in 2025 that you won't have to search all over the world to find. Methodology Pricing will be for $750ml bottles of bourbon since that size the most widely available. Similarly, I am only bringing in bottles that can be readily found in the market (proxying this by using the stock from my local Total Wine for the base catalog and pricing unless noted). The best bourbon in the world isn't the best bourbon in YOUR world if you can't reasonably find it. Additionally, chosen bottles must be versatile enough to be consumed straight or neat as well as in a ...

🍺Low Calorie Beers that are Actually Good

While the sad truth is that beer just simply isn't health food, it doesn't have to be dessert level calories. At the same time, keeping those frosty carbs down doesn't mean that you have to put flavor out to sea. It is worth mentioning that the key mechanism driving the calories in a beer is alcohol by volume. Each gram of ethanol contains around 7 calories per gram, almost double that of other carbohydrates and protein. Other residual sugars do still contribute to the beer as any sugars not converted to alcohol remain from the original malt bill. Big beautiful beers often have both high ABV and residual sugar levels, but some "smaller" beers still manage to have good flavor. I've pulled together my list of brews that pack decent flavor without blowing up your diet. Low Calorie Beers with Alcohol Guinness - Crushing the myth that dark beers are higher in calories, Guinness has an iconic creamy feel due to the nitrogenating widget in each can. With 125 cal...

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