The following review is the work of Ryan, site administrator over at GrubGrade.com. This entry was the winner in our Starbucks Contest, so make sure you congratulate him and check out his site!

Overview:

I’ll admit, I’m not much of a coffee drinker or an energy drink kind of person.  I have dabbled from time to time but I’m definitely no expert.  I find that energy drinks that I’ve had in the past do help in boosting my alertness but I’ve never been a fan of the taste.  I feel as though energy drinks place me in some alternate universe where I’m Mega Man….half machine, half boy and I’m fueling up my power cells in order to defeat Dr. Wiley.  If you’re confused, please forgive my geeky early-1990’s Nintendo mascot references.  The bottom line is this, I am rarely compelled enough to try cold coffee or energy drinks.  I felt that this Everyview/Starbucks contest was a good chance for me to get out of my box and try something new.  The Starbucks DoubleShot Energy+Coffee drink may make me a believer in the endless array of energy drinks that occupy my local convenient store fridges.  I stayed up late and woke up early to put this drink to the test.

Review:

On first glance, I felt that a 15oz can was a pretty big change from the tiny standards set forth by industry giant Red Bull.  I really liked the black and tan colored design of the can.  By appearances alone, it looked like quality.  The can throws out enticing words such as “Guarana”, “Ginseng”, “B Vitamins”, “Energy” that I hope will keep me awake on a slow Friday at work.  I also hope to not suffer any crash after effects later on in the day.

So it’s 6:30am and I crack open the can.  Within seconds I notice the subtle aroma of coffee.  I’m hoping to get some semblance of natural smells and flavors from this drink and it’s off to a good start.  On first sip I take in a creamy and rich flavor of coffee.  There was no notion of what I was drinking was a bitter energy drink like I’ve had in the past.  The drink wasn’t too sweet and tasted pretty natural. It felt very clean and not a hybrid of too many strange flavors hitting me at once.  I took in natural flavors of coffee and hints of what tasted like nutty chocolate and caramel.

It went down very easy but wasn’t diluted and watered down.  I never figured a cold coffee drink to be very refreshing but it was.   When I drink a hot coffee drink, on some rare occasions, I always feel a need to chase it with a bottle of water and gum.  While this drink did leave me with a bit of coffee taste in my mouth, it doesn’t coat my entire palette with it.  I was pleasantly surprised.

I was also pleased to see the entire can is only 210 calories and 2.5 grams of fat and a whopping 12 grams of protein.  It can almost take place of a morning breakfast with 12g of protein.  It was good to see that a satisfying coffee energy drink does exist.

Final Words:

So does this Starbucks DoubleShot Energy+Coffee drink make me a believer in the ever-expanding lines of energy drinks?  I’m going to have to say yes, definitely.  After about 30minutes I felt clear headed and energized.  Four hours later I was still waiting for a crash, but the crash never came.  I began writing out this review about 6 hours after I had the drink and it definitely helped me get my thoughts out.  I’m sure different people will have different reactions to the caffeine and vitamins but in my experience I felt like my body and mind didn’t pay for it later on in the day.  I’m actually looking forward to trying out the other flavors in the Starbucks Energy Drink line.  The drink did everything I hoped it would — gave me energy and actually tasted very natural. At a price of $2.59 for a 15oz drink, I think I might have found my go-to breakfast drink for days when I really need the energy. Good work Starbucks.

Pros

• Natural tasting
• Delicious
• Rich and creamy but still smooth
• Vitamins
• Energy and no terrible crash later on.

Cons

• Coffee after-taste is almost impossible to avoid with these drinks…although not that bad.

Score:

Overall: 8.6/10 (Great)

Aroma: 8.75/10 (Nice and subtle)
Taste: 9.0/10 (Really impressive.  Rich and flavorful)
Kick: 9.0/10 (Really helped me get through my day and I didn’t pay for it later)
Value: 8.0/10 (About what I’d expect for a drink like this to cost)