Gatorade Fast Twitch comes in six flavors, but only have three in their variety pack. While the variety pack is good for, you know, variety, I do not think that they selected the three best flavors. If you are going to buy Gatorade Fast Twitch in bulk (as I recently have started doing to use as preworkout), then you need to try all six to see which is right for you. Here is a breakdown of how I perceive the six different flavors:
Taste
Taste is obviously the biggest differentiating factor between these six that all are similar in kick and appearance.
Glacier Freeze comes in handily at number one. It tastes like a blue liquid popsicle, which is incredibly enjoyable when cold. Glacier Freeze is most reminiscent of the flavor you would find in name brand energy drinks, if that makes any sense. With its unique berry flavor and slight bitter aftertaste, this will probably be the fan favorite for many pure energy drink lovers.
Tropical Mango is firmly in second place. Of all six Twitch flavors, this is the one that I would elect to casually drink while just sitting around enjoying myself. It is the most refreshing of the six, and has a stronger mango flavor than most legit mango energy drinks.
Strawberry Lemonade is likely the smoothest of the six. It is very refreshing and goes down easily. Strawberry lemonade as a flavor is very easy to envision, and this Twitch edition is no different. While smooth and tasty, its lighter mouthfeel delivers slightly less of a kick than most of the others.
Strawberry Watermelon is a unique take on a strong strawberry flavor with a light watermelon aftertaste. It is smooth as well, but not enough to have any sort of lessened kick. This is where the tier break begins after the first three that each received overall grades of 8+/10. Strawberry Watermelon is a good midday pick-me-up that is unique, but just does not necessarily provide the same level of enjoyment as the first three.
Cool Blue was the most disappointing to me because I thought that it for sure would be my favorite. Perhaps I was too hard on it with the grade, but a blue beverage that I do not enjoy immensely is difficult to find. Whether it is an energy drink or alcoholic beverage, blue is typically the best. Unfortunately, this tastes more like your run-of-the-mill Gatorade. Blue sports drinks are decent, but nothing special compared to that of energy drinks. If you love Gatorade, then you will probably enjoy Cool Blue more than I have. It is just less unique and inspiring than many of the other flavors, and belongs in tier two for me despite having the coolest (ha) color on the can.
Orange is unsurprisingly my least favorite. I love orange drinks typically (although not as much as blue), but Fast Twitch Orange is just different. It is more bitter, which honestly helps with the kick. Unfortunately, that does not overcome its Kool Aid Burst-esc taste. It tastes more artificial than the rest as well. If I want something this bitter, my go-to wouldn’t be a sports drink. It’s fine overall, but clearly the worst of the six.
Kick
With identical caffeine concentrations and energy blends, they all make you feel about the same way. The only distinguishing factor is mouthfeel. There are three tiers of Fast Twitch mouthfeels: Bitter; neutral; mellow. Orange is more bitter and delivers a slightly greater kick than the rest. Glacier Freeze, Tropical Mango, and Strawberry Watermelon are all neutral, and provide what is expected from 200mg of caffeine. While still somewhat bitter, Glacier Freeze does not have the same intensity as Orange.
Strawberry Lemonade and Cool Blue are more mellow, but for different reasons. Strawberry Lemonade is mellow because of how smooth it feels on your tongue. Cool Blue is more like a standard Gatorade, and therefore does not get me revved up like the more unique and pronounced flavors would. Overall, the kick for each is nearly identical, and the differentiating factors in any given circumstance will more likely revolve around your mood, diet, and sleep as opposed to any noticeable differences in kick between any two of these flavors.
Appearance
Dark blue is dope. The rest are fine. Overall, the front of the bottles is uninspiring.
Upshot
I personally group these drinks into two tiers. Tier one consists of Glacier Freeze, Topical Mango, and Strawberry Lemonade, which are all enjoyable beverages regardless of the situation. Tier two consists of Strawberry Lemonade, Cool Blue, and Orange. These also enjoyable, but not my first choice when casually sitting around and sipping on something.
Gatorade Fast Twitch as a whole hit it out of the park with their flavors. Caffeine aside, I enjoy these significantly more overall than typical Gatorade. I have begun buying these in bulk, which I rarely have done in the past, and highly recommend them to any energy drink lover, gym goer, sports player, or weekend warrior. With a solid kick, no carbonation, and no real crash, this could take your performance to the next level.
Not to mention... it's the ultimate hangover recovery drink.
I agree with the ratings for the most part, but I feel like Cool Blue being so similar to the OG gatorade flavor is a pro not a con 🤷♂️