🔌Review - Ghost Energy

🔌Review - Ghost Energy - Peaches

Launched in 2025 with a limited-edition basketball pattern, Ghost Energy Peaches was the second flavor to have an exclusive themed wrapper. Ghost printed a small number of custom peach-and-black basketballs for use as prizes for in-app mini-game giveaways. Interestingly, the brand went with the plural "peaches" instead of the more common singular peach as a homage to Georgia peach crates.

GHOST (GHOST Lifestyle LLC) is a lifestyle sports nutrition and beverage company headquartered in Henderson, Nevada. Founded in 2016 by Dan Lourenco (CEO) and Ryan Hughes (CMO), the brand positions itself around its mantra "Be Seen," targeting fitness enthusiasts, gamers, and mainstream consumers rather than traditional bodybuilders. I first encountered them as a part of sponsored content around Call of Duty Warzone on Twitch. Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) is in the process of fully acquiring Ghost by 2028, having held the controlling interest in the brand since 2024. Ghost Peaches set an internal speed record for Ghost's distribution as the first to use the full KDP retail network, reaching more than 50k retail doors in under two weeks.

🛒Price: 3 for $6, two bucks apiece at Publix, similar pricing at RaceTrac stations.

✨Calories: 10, 16oz. can

🍵Caffeine: 200mg, slightly more than a cup of coffee, derived from Arabica beans

👅Flavor: Peach flavor is somewhere between what you get in teas and hard candy. There's not any creaminess or body to help balance the sweetness, so it may be a little on the higher side for me. Finish has a bit of a strange aftertaste, slightly metallic but also with a cardboard off-note.

🧪Ingredients: Zero Sugar, Gluten Free, No Artificial Colors, and Vegan Friendly(whatever that means). Ghost does include detailed dosage information on their active ingredients which is nice as opposed to just listing them.

Sweeteners: Sucralose & Acesulfame Potassium (as many diet energy drinks do)
Energy & Nootropic Blend:

Caffeine (200mg)
Carnipure® L-Carnitine L-Tartrate (1,000 mg): Cellular energy transfer agent aiding in fatty acid oxidation.
Alpha-GPC (Alpha-Glycerylphosphorylcholine) (150 mg): Highly bioavailable choline donor that crosses the blood-brain barrier to support acetylcholine synthesis for cognitive focus.
NeuroFactor™ (Coffea arabica Fruit Extract) (100 mg): Patented whole coffee fruit extract shown to elevate systemic levels of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF).
AstraGin® (Panax notoginseng and Astragalus membranaceus) (25 mg): Absorption enhancer designed to increase amino acid and nutrient uptake.
Taurine (1,000 mg): Osmolyte and neurotransmitter modulator aiding cardiovascular and muscular endurance.

B-Vitamins: B3 Niacin (110% DV), B5 (100% DV), B6 (100% DV), and B12 (100% DV).

🏆Rating: 2.25 - Fine, cutting it close - It's okay. Peach is a hit or miss flavor for me and this one is slightly outside the strike zone. The biggest issue is the aftertaste which is odd; some minerality is to be expected but the wet paper aspect throws me for a loop.

⚖️Scale:

🥃Review 92: 1.75L Costco's Kirkland Kentucky Bourbon 2026

Costco has historically worked with Barton 1792 for it's bourbon line, putting out a small batch , bottled-in-bond , and single barrel edition in liter bottles in waves over the last few years. This new 1.75L edition debuted in Spring of 2026 and mysteriously lacks a named distiller. The label proudly states that it was distilled and aged in Bardstown, Kentucky before being bottled in Columbia, Tennessee by DC Flynt MY Domaines & Estates (never heard of them). Flynt appear to be more wine focused and have led a number of wine bottlings for Costco historically in addition to some Gins. Distilleries at scale in Bardstown include Jim Beam, Barton 1792, Heaven Hill (though primary production is at Bernheim in Louisville), Lux Row, Willet, and Bardstown Bourbon Company. I doubt it is Barton 1792 since they proudly label their existing collaboration and I suspect it may be a producer without a 1.75L bottling line (would justify the move better than just adding logistics for ...

☕ All Java Monster Flavors Tasted & Ranked

As a habitual caffeine abuser, I have a soft spot for Monster, both for their expansive lineup of flavors as well as their support for Sports and E-sports. Coffee is my standard caffeination vector, so the Java Monster suite of products is the perfect mix of bean flavor and energy boost. In this post, I'll provide my personal rankings and rationale for what is a very strong lineup. Note that I have not been compensated in any way for this write-up... I just like them. Currently, Monster Energy 's Java Monster lineup has five available flavors: Mean Bean - Vanilla Irish Crème Loca Mocha - Chocolate Salted Caramel Café Latte There are two "triple shot" versions of the Vanilla and Mocha which contain 300mg of caffeine though their flavors are very similar to the base versions above. At this point, we should also take a moment of silence for the two cold brew flavors, sweet black and nitro latte. The nitro latte was a personal favorite and I quite liked the sweet black,...

🎮Call of Duty Zombies: The Drinking Game - Rules

Since its introduction in Call of Duty: World at War , Call of Duty Zombies has been a PvE staple for gamers everywhere and has appeared in many subsequent titles. In this post, we'll explore rules for turning a game of round-based zombies into a lovely drinking session. As with all drinking games, set limits before you begin and be sure to conduct yourself both legally and responsibly. Preparation To play the game, you'll need the following in addition to an internet connection, gaming device, and Call of Duty: A Party Sipper of your Choice - I recommend something relatively low ABV. We balanced the rules for a player of moderate ability and a sipper of 4-8% alcohol. Light beer is my go-to here since it has enough lovely hydrating waters to help stave off some small sadness. A Couple of Shots - I would pre-pour a couple of shots to have on hand. Again, lower end of ABV which for shots likely means 80 proof. Kirkland Canadian Whiskey, Tito's Vodka, or Lunazul Tequila wo...

🔌Review - Costco's Kirkland Sparkling Energy Drink - Orange

Released earlier this year in 2026, the Kirkland Sparkling Energy Drink lineup features three flavors: Orange, Tropical, and Peach. The style, ingredients, and caffeine content seem to be talking aim directly at recent CPG success, Celsius Energy. It echoes that brands "clean" veneer with no high fructose corn syrup, GMO ingredients, or artificial colorings. 🛒 Price: $16.99/24 ~$.7/each - Costco. Celsius is normally around $20/12 without sales, so figure around 95 cents savings per can vs. full sticker which is around 58% savings. Celsius is showing up frequently on sale around $15 now but that's still not nearly enough to reach parity. ✨Calories: 10 , 12oz. can 🍵 Caffeine: 200mg, around a third more than a cup of coffee, more than Monster and Red Bull - similar to Celsius. 👅 Flavor: Very effervescent, I get tons of bubbles - close to Red Bull and more than Celsius. It does have a thinner mouthfeel vs Monster Ultra and Red Bull on balance whi...

🥃Review 29: Costco's Kirkland Canadian Whisky - Is it Crown Royal?

Awarded 91 points and a gold medal by the Beverage Tasting Institute, Kirkland Canadian Whisky is known a great value and many in the popular culture have alleged that it is repackaged Crown Royal due to its relative quality for the price. But is it? 📚 Background: Kirkland first introduced their line of spirits in the 1990s and has expanded their offerings over time. While I wasn't able to find a first release date for this product, the first TTB label in the COLA database is from 2016. The whisky is imported for Costco by Wide World Importers in Louisville Kentucky. Digging a bit further reveals that Wide World Importers is an alternative name for SAZERAC . For me, this conclusively busts the popular myth that Kirkland Canadian is made by Crown Royal (a Diageo property). Sazerac has a number of Canadian Whisky brands in-house, including: Rich & Rare Reserve ($19.99 for 1.75L - No Age Statement), Seagram's VO ($22.99 for 1.75L - Aged Six Years),...

Castle & Cairn

Search This Blog