BooKoo Wild Berry Zero Carb

The only zero carb BooKoo Chan and I have reviewed is that 24oz BooKoo Zero Carb. It turns out that one was a little old and we would probably re-review it if it hadn't been discontinued. Well, there still are some Zero Carb BooKoos, and I've got one now, the BooKoo Wild Berry Zero Carb. Just like many others, we found this at a nearby Big! Lots, in their enregy drink aisle, for 60 cents, a bargain for an energy drink. Now, I'm not a fan of diet or zero carb energy drinks, but I'm confident that BooKoo will do a good job handling the artificial sweeteners in this drink, like they seemed to have done with the BooKoo Zero Carb. I love BooKoo's awesome can design that just looks perfect. The words Boo+Koo go vertically across the front of the can with a wild tribal flame design behind them. Hopefully this is as good as the regular Wild Berry.

This Wild Berry Zero Carb seems to be less pungent than the regular Wild Berry, with a sort of subdued yet rich strawberry/raspberry. The stuff comes out of the can an almost clear rosy purple-pink. I remember this vaguely from the regular Wild Berry. Because this is cold, the artificial sweeteners aren't getting in the way too much, but I do notice a minor metallic aftertaste. Going in the mouth, first you taste simple raspberry and then some sourness that you can tell is meant to cover up some bitterness. Finally, toward the end the strawberry comes in strongly after the bitterness fades away. The aftertaste that is left is some strawberry and a little bit of sweet sucralose that is a bit irritating. You could call this blue raspberry/strawberry/grape, but I'm not talking about concord grape that you so often taste in grape soda. I think it's more like red grapes that you buy at a grocery store with a more neutral taste. This definitely does not taste natural; there's artificial, yet rich berry/strawberry and the artificial sweetness does that. The carbonation is more than average, and the gumminess does get in the way soon. As this is warming up, the artificial sweeteners are much more noticable and it tastes almost unpleasantly sweet. I'm guessing BooKoo meant for this to be served on ice because this is sweeter than I'd like it to be. It's also getting old fast and I don't think it would on ice. Overall, this is decent, but not really exceptional. I suppose if you're going to have this, it would be a good idea to have it on ice.

Although the taste wasn't exactly favorable, the BooKoo kick is pretty insane. After slamming this thing down, I had huge energy that started out with an awesome boost that gradually dwindled and left me in a state of hightened alertness, probably from the Caffeine. I had a bit of trouble getting to sleep, but that's what you pay for drinking this after noon or so. The energy ingredients in this consist of Caffeine, Glucuronolactone, Inositol, Taurine and B Vitamins. What's puzzling is how such a short list of energy ingredients can provide so much power. I can't tell how much of what is in here, except for the Taurine, 2000mg of which are present in the whole can.The only explanation I can come up with for the awesome boost this gave is that maybe there is a large amount of Caffeine. And come to think of it, the energy was a sort of jittery energy that kept me awake all night. Now, in terms of sweeteners, this drink uses Sucralose and Acesulfame Potassium. Neither of which gets me too excited, especially Sucralose, which I have come to dislike. But these artificial sweeteners weren't handled too badly; there wasn't a terribly bad artificial sweetness. The only complaint I have with this drink is that it was a tiny bit artificial and way too sweet. If you have this, it's got to go on ice.

Taste: 7.5 - Good strawberry/raspberry but too sweet and pretty artificial
Kick: 8.4 - Great kick for so few energy ingredients
Overall: 7.7 - Good choice for a zero cal beverage

Reviewed by: Jeff