Overview:

Amp has been making a ton of new flavors and blends lately, and I decided to review them. So far I’ve done the original and Revive, and now Lightning. This drink is meant to, like lighting, strike fast with a quick surge of energy. It gives a great boost, but expect a crash shortly after.

Straight from the can:

Amp Energy Lightning. Charge up your intensity.

The power of Amp Energy plus Lemonade flavor and a specially formulated blend of L-Carnitine, Guarana and B-vitamins for an explosive energizing bolt.

Amp Energy Lightning. More power to YOU.

Wow, that’s intense!

Review:

Amp Lightning has a delicious aroma. The sweet zest of lemon tickles the senses and causes you mouth to flood with saliva in anticipation of the delicious drink to come. Unfortunately the lemon scent seems mostly artificial or from concentrate so it’s not as appealing as real lemonade. Still pretty good, though.

The flavor is pretty disappointing. It seems almost entirely artificially flavored and doesn’t quench your thirst like a glass of cold, sweet lemonade would. Instead it leaves a thick residue in the back of your throat making you crave more liquid. It’s a little too sour, as well. At least it doesn’t hurt your teeth like a lot of the other Amp products, but don’t expect to chug this baby without giving your throat a nice case of chemical burn.

The kick is powerful, at least. After drinking I almost immediately felt energized and ready to take on anything. I used the new found power to do what all college kids living at home with mommy are forced into doing on the occasion. Yeah, that’s right. I cleaned my room. Cleaning chemicals, dusting, varnish, vacuums, I did it all. But now that the room is sparkling clean I feel a mild crash brought about by the intense and immediate rush of energy. It’s good while it lasts, but make sure you have an upper (Monster Hitman or an energy shot along those lines) if you can’t deal with the crash.

Amp has an average value running at an SRP of $1.99 for a 16 oz, 2 serving can. Industry standard. The huge immediate boost is nice and more powerful than most other drinks, which earns it an extra point in that category.

Final Words:

Amp Lightning suffers from a lot of the same problems as other Amp products but separates itself by providing an awesome rush of energy almost immediately. Unfortunately it is followed by a medium-intensity crash so make sure you have another drink to follow if you need the energy for more than an hour and a half or so.

Pros

• Lemonade flavored
• Great kick
• Yellow can stands out

Cons

• Tastes and smells artificial
• Crash

Score:

Overall: 7.25/10 (Slightly above average)

Aroma: 8.0/10 (Sweet and lemony, a little too concentrated)
Taste: 6.5/10 (Artificial. Burns to chug)
Kick: 7.5/10 (Powerful but loses points for being short, followed by powerful crash)
Value: 7.0/10 (Industry Standard, upped by powerful kick)

img via Taurine Rules