Tuesday, January 3, 2012

MiO Energy


Kraft recently sent me a promotional sample pack of their new MiO Energy flavor line. As many of you likely remember, I reviewed MiO when it was first being introduced about nine months ago, and I really liked it. But to be honest, I was a little bit nervous going into MiO Energy. I've never been a fan of the taste of most energy boosting beverages, and I have been disappointed in the past by companies attempting to branch out into the energy drink market. However, I am happy to report that MiO Energy maintains the ease of use and great taste of the original, and I think that both the black cherry and green thunder varieties are great additions to the MiO brand.

It should be said, however, that the secret to MiO maintaining the elements that made the original product so good is the fact that MiO Energy isn't really all that different from the original. In fact, it is essentially just two new flavors of MiO with caffeine added into the mix. But this is by no means a bad thing. The size of each bottle has been scaled down to approximately 12 (8 oz.) servings per bottle, and each serving contains about 60mg of caffeine; about the same as a typical cup of coffee. I have always been somewhat impervious to the effects of caffeine, especially in smaller quantities, so I can't really attest to the "energy-giving" capabilities of MiO Energy, but the 60mg of caffeine should be enough to give most drinkers a quick pick-me-up. Both flavors do contain trace amounts of other energy enhancers such as taurine and guarana extract, but not enough to really affect the flavor in any way (so no worries there). Both flavors are still sweetened with sucralose and acesulfame potassium, but the typical "diet" taste is subdued and is not nearly as intrusive as it is in so many other artificially sweetened beverages.

Both flavors are quite tasty, although I am partial to the black cherry. The black cherry is pretty straightforward, and has a sweet, cherry taste without being overbearing or cough syrupy. The green thunder, on the other hand, has a more generic, acidic energy drink taste. Normally, I would consider this to be a bad thing, but this time I don't. Although it does have that energy drink taste (some refer to it simply as "citrus punch"), it is not nearly as acidic as the usual energy drink, and has a much less abrasive and more mild flavor. I actually like the taste a good bit, and any doubts I initially had about the flavor were based purely on precedent.

Overall, MiO Energy is a very worthy addition to the already impressive line of MiO products. My only real complaint is that the "squirt nozzle" on the MiO bottles is still a bit hard to control, and I often find myself accidentally adding a bit more flavoring than I necessarily meant to add. Other than that, I find very little about MiO Energy to dislike. This is definitely one to try out. Especially the black cherry.

Verdict: Recommended

Samples provided by Kraft Foods, Inc.

Be sure to check out MiO on facebook and Twitter. And be sure to check out "Thunder" Dave Steinman's hilarious (but probably NSFW) promo video for MiO Energy.

28 comments:

  1. I tried MiO energy myself and while I am a fan I am a little disappointed in the flavorings. Maybe I went to light on the first few doses, but the flavors seemed a little bland. I did use a soda fountain fizzer, which makes water carbonated and added the MiO to make my own diet soda, and I had to add a LOT to make the taste come through the carbonic acid taste, but it managed to be pretty good and satiate my desire for sodas.

    Since I'm trying to get off the caffiene train, being able to control the dosage of caffeine in the drink is a great touch.

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    1. I am a mom of 3 little ones under the age of 10. I need a little boost to help me get through just a regular day but I also want to try and stay on the healthy side and be a good example to my kids as well. ( meaning I try not to drink sodas or energy drinks often) I like that in the morning I can squirt a few drops of the black cherry ( my preferred taste) in my bottle of water and I have a little pep to my step. I am a bit concerned with the artificial sweetener ( it would be nice if the company could switch to Truvia hint, hint) but hopefully it is diluted with the rest of the plain water I drink through the day. So I tried again for the second day, I think tomorrow is looking pretty favorable too :)

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  2. I just tried a whole bottle of the black chery MIO energy. The flavor was awesome but all the caffeine got me pretty effed up. Was shaking and sweating all night. It would be nice if the made this flavor in a caffiene free MIO. I will be trying the green thunder flavor tomorrow.

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    1. dramk just a third of the green thunder 2day during lunch at school, n it was amazing. Made me kinda sick, but nuthin bad. Might have been a little too much tho, cuz i had a test after, n i cudnt concentrate. After a while the spazz went away, but im still a bit shakey even tho its been bout 10 hours, n i was amazed by neon greens n light reds, dont know why, n i wasnt on any other drugs, but it was fun

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    2. Holy cow. Please tell me you didn't have the whole bottle at once. The entire bottle has over 1,000 mg of caffeine - far, FAR beyond a safe dose of caffeine all at once.

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  3. A whole bottle? Yikes! I hope that you don't mean that you had it all at one time...

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  4. its the best. i got a buzz but mot a big buzz they need more caffeine but i LOVED IT !!!!!!!!!

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  5. definitely just drank it all in one sitting, have the jitters and hyped up to the extreme. but don't worry i weigh around 140 pounds so it would take around 159 servings to kill me. Im a fan. its cheap easy to use and a great pick up for work :D

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    1. Holy crap. Do not drink that much caffeine all at once. While it might not kill you, it will certainly wreak havoc on your nervous system while it's in your body. You're not going to feel well, I can promise you that.

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  6. Great product. Can you leave the food coloring out. Red drops on white shirts suck.

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  7. I came across your website in an effort to get some information about the MIO Energy. I have enjoyed the regular MIO drops and since they are not inexpensive, I wanted to find out if the energy is just hype, or really delivers the boost that obviously is what their target market is seeking.

    I take issue with your review, you pretty much dismissed the entire point of the review by stating that energy drinks have little effect on you, and then go on to review the flavors.

    Finding reputable unbiased products reviews are invaluable and it requires a reviewer to choose a position, and make it specific. If a person like myself searches for product reviews it's because we want to build trust with a reviewer and know they are no timid or appear scared to commit to an opinion, otherwise, when you take a middle of the road position, you just sound like an advertisement for the product and you are not doing your job. In my review of your reviews is that you might be so happy you are thoughts of as a reviewer you don't want to upset a manufacturer for fear they won't send you samples in the future if you give their product a negative review.

    MIO drop flavors review is great, but that's been done, so do I buy the product because it delivers Energy or Not? You haven't even answered this question in your comments. If your body doesn't respond to caffeine, or other stimulants, find a friend, co worker, person on the street or a combination to test the product.

    Thanks

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  8. Anonymous,

    I'm sorry to hear that you did not find my review of MiO Energy useful. However, I'm not entirely sure what your actual problem is. If you read carefully, I do address the caffeine issue in the review. Each serving of MiO Energy has about the same caffeine as a cup of coffee, so presumably, if a cup of coffee is enough to give you some extra energy, the MiO Energy should have about the same effect.

    Also, I can assure you that my favorable review of MiO is not due to bias alone. I really do like it. No, I don't really experience the effects of caffeine; but I review beverages based on the aspects of each drink that I personally enjoy. Just because I did not personally feel any energy boost from MiO Energy does not mean that others won't, and it certainly does not mean that I have to give it a negative review.

    My reviews are biased by default because I am an individual, and my personal tastes heavily affect my enjoyment of any particular drink. But I make no effort to hide this. It is simply an unavoidable byproduct of running a review blog rather than a market research department. Trying to pretend like my blog is a source of unarguable truth abut the beverage industry would be flagrant arrogance on my part.

    Anyway, I thank you for your input. I hope that you are able to find a review of MiO Energy that can better provide you with the information that you seek, and I hope that you continue to visit Drinkable Review in the future.

    - Hayden

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  9. I tried (am drinking it as we speak) the black cherry. Added 4 generous squirts into a bottle of water (16oz) and and still feeling the caffeine... Good product. Not over bearing flavor, like a flavored water. It does say water enhancer... It enhances, not changes.
    I like it! Kudos!

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  10. I Enjoy both Mio products but I was curious, other than the one cup of coffee/caffeine in each dose,Is there any unhealthy ingredients in Mio Liquid or Mio energy?

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  11. I bought the black cherry and after drinking it I'd have to say its alright, but you can definitely taste the sucralose in it. It's somewhat similar to cherry grenadine, it you've ever had a cherry vodka sour or the like to compare it with. It takes two squeezes for me to really get the taste I want. Honestly though, I have no idea how a person could drink a whole bottle of this in one go. After about one bottle, the fake sugar taste gets pretty overpowering. The caffeine is minimal, and I didn't even notice it after being a dr. Pepper drinker then going to weight training supplements that have high doses of caffeine. I would have to warn people though, caffeine affects people differently, so don't go overboard unless you know you can handle it and have done it before in the past. Overall I agree with your review.

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  12. Thanks for the heads up. I have a really high caffeine tolerance, so it's good to hear from someone with a different perspective. However, I do want to go ahead and say that you probably can't imagine anyone drinking an entire bottle of MiO Energy because you really shouldn't do that anyway. That would be like drinking 12 cups of coffee (or 24 if you bought the larger bottle) in one sitting. MiO should be enjoyed in moderation, just like all other beverages.

    To back up a couple of comments, the ingredients in MiO are largely artificial, but they are all perfectly safe in small quantities. There are many people who are concerned about the potentially negative effects of artificial sweeteners, emulsifiers, and preservatives, but each serving of MiO conains such small amounts of each of these that they are quickly metabolized and harmlessly passed through the body.

    The research that has been done on the possible negative effects of artificial ingredients like propylene glycol and sucralose are inconclusive at best right now, and any negative effects that have been found occur at very, very high levels of intake. Essentially, as long as you are not ingesting a constant stream of undiluted MiO all day every day, you will be fine.

    There is nothing inherently unhealthy about MiO. But, like I said above: everything in moderation.

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  13. i use mio energy (green thunder) daily and although it is relatively effective and easy to use i will say that using too much of the flavoring can create a taste similar to what some would consider anti-freeze or "chemical overload" which means it tastes like you're drinking chemicals from under the kitchen sink. its fine if you use a normal serving but if (like me) you accidentally squirt 1/5 of the bottle into a water bottle, do not drink it. it tastes awful, creates an insane caffeine overload, and then causes you to crash a few hours later.

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  14. Wow i am making a commercial for "Mio Energy!" This was a very helpful message. Thank You!

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  15. i have tried mio energy and I like but I think there should be more flavors for the energy. The original flavors should be engery flavors too instead of wanting to buy the energy one and you dont like the flavors that they have so that is my opinion for the Mio energy water in hanster.

    -A

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  16. I excited to try mio because I going on a diet with just water to drink and just water is really boring

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  17. I love mio green energy, and I use in moderation and It helps, from a children author in Concord, Ca.
    from William Sawyers

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  18. Thanks for the reviews, I came on here to see if it really works because I am trying to lose weight and stop drinking energy drinks!

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  19. Just got some MIO last night. Put a drop or two on my tongue and felt a bit jittery! Not a bad thing though, cause I work on a construction site and we quite often work through the night, and I hate coffee, which is usually all there is. So, definitely gonna try this!

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  20. Just started using the Mio Black Cherry. I needed to get more water into my diet as I am trying to get off drinking Coca Cola. I gotta say, this is a GREAT alternative. Taste is spectacular, and I get just a little energy lift. I don't know why anyone would drink an entire bottle or even more than 1 squirt. Moderation people. It has great flavor with just one squirt. Im so glad I gave this a shot.

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  21. The review was fine. I am concerned about the person using a whole bottle because it's a cheaper caffeine high. My Lord does he know that can harm his kidneys? The dye itself is a caution to be concerned about as well as the two mixed together at a dose of 24 servings. Not healthy. Please tell your nurse or doctor what you did and bring the Mio bottle with you so he can explain the harmful effects and possible future injuries. Using as directed, it's wonderful. I hate drinking just plain water. This is a fantastic substitute because I do not like nor drink sodas. Good job Mio. Love it.

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  22. I walk everyday approximately 2 miles and I squirt 2 little drops in my water..This is absolutely the best. you do not need more than 2 drops. I am not a water drinker in fact I hate plain water so this is great. Thanks

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  23. A whole bottle in one day? Wow.

    I started drinking Mio Black Cherry last May. I have now stopped drinking pop all together...I love it. Three squirts in the morning, and off I go.

    I drink another in the afternoon, mind stays sharp and I get things done. So glad to say good bye to pop. So glad.

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  24. I was wondering why its considered a hazardous chemical and has to be separated and then put in a black can

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