Strike Force Energy Plus Beer?

Continuing our multipart Strike Force Energy review I decided to take advantage of the phrasing on the packages…

It says “Beverage Enhancer”...

Brose Beer from Palmetto Brewing Company is a beverage…

Into Daddies Big Cup…

So Brose is already an IPA shandy flavor wise so I decided to add the lemon to it.  Brose comes in a convenient 16 oz 1 pint container which works for the recommended 16ish ounces.

Results???

Again i wish I had two beers, but then again when do you not want two instead of one.  I just think that the drink is a little concentrated for my tastes.  But the effect was great.  Chugged it down a little faster because of the taste.  It was like a pleasant little lemon Jaeger Bomb.  Like a caffeinated shandy.  

Buzz and buzz!

Again would love to add one packet to the next pitcher of beer I find.  Would be a nice Beer/Caffeine Powerball.

So if you are feeling adventurous and want to try your two favorite chemicals at once make yourself a caffeinated beer via the power of Strike Force Energy!  The Beverage Enhancer!  Ok juiced up now gotta run!

Strike Force Energy ER Night Shift Party!!!

So and an ER nurse I decided to test Strike Force energy in the brutal world of the Night Shift!!!

So I got some of my co-workers together…

Not those guys! Actually the real ER is more like this

We are all a bit off because it takes a person who is a bit off to survive in the chaotic bloody environment that is the ER.

All of us are pot heads, as is Coffee Pot!

We have a Keurig that we abuse daily.

Many others are bull riders

And then there are the true hardcores that go for the 5 hour…

Which means 3 for a 12 hour shift.

How would this group of caffeine addicts respond to Strike Force?

Many were hard sells and I asked them to indulge me for my blog.  Hilarity ensued as one tried to drink it straight like a small energy drink

After some added instructions  (which are printed on the package) they all tried it at various points in the shift.  

The flavors were universally praised.  Better than Red Bull was heard pretty often and let's face it even 5 Hour Energy knows their product tastes like like licking the bottom of a rotten bottle of Flintstone’s vitamins.  

The “perk factor” was a little more diverse.  Some really felt the jolt immediately while others appreciate a slower but steady energy build.  This is probably because I recommended mixing it with more than the 16 oz of water that the package says.  This made it harder to chug down but gave a more sustained energy release.  

We were all alert and no one complained about any crashes.  Coffee is a cruel mistress that will drop you down once you are no longer in her hot caffeine embrace. Strike Force is more supportive and stays around longer, having breakfast with you in the morning and driving you home.  

There were really only two complaints.  The first being while tasty the taste was a bit intense at the 16 oz dilution.  The second is the two servings in one small tear pouch that is impossible to split.   You can't just use part and keep the rest for later.  And as mentioned most liked it a little watered down.  

These are of course not fatal flaws by any means.  Simply make more and save some of the mixed drink for later (in a future episode I'll tell you how I mix it for running).  The great solution by the manufacturer would be to simply make pouches that are measured out for single servings, not make it a double.

All in all it was very well reviewed by my fellow trauma hounds in the trenches.  The Grape and Original where a tie for favorite with Orange being the next and Lemon in last place.  Suck it Lemon!!!!  They still liked the flavor, it just wasn't the favorite.

Well we've got incoming wounded, but at least we can be a bit perkier now thanks to our rounds of caffeine treats from Strike Force.

Gotta run…

Strike Force Energy Comparison

The proud veterans at Strike Force Energy sent me a sampling of their wares.  By the frog and trident in the logo I assume the creator Sean Matson was Naval Special Warfare, SEALs.

No! Not those idiots!  The real ones.

In preparing for a long in-depth review series first I wanted to do some strategic pre-planning.  To get to know my target for review….

First off let's compare the target to a few other High Caffeine Targets (HCT).  

All these stats are pulled from Caffeine Informer.

Strike Force Energy is listed at 160 mg in 16.91 fl oz.

How does this stack up against the first HCT of Mountain Dew?

The Dew is only 54 mg for a 12 oz serving.  With a whopping 46 grams of sugar and 170 calories!!!! Mountain Don't!

Next up is Starbucks

A 16 oz Cafe Americano (my favorite) has a whopping 225 mg.  There are three shots of Espresso in that bad boy… but hot drink on a hot run not really my thing.

Now let's look at some direct competition…

No not that Red Bull…

There we go…

Coming in and 160mg caffeine per roughly 16 fl oz.  But that will cost you 52 grams of sugar and 220 calories. Plus they taste like crap…

Our final competitor….

5 Hour Energy packs a 200 mg Caffeine punch.  But it also has a crap ton of vitamins and stuff that you don't need that can make you feel super weird. And if Red Bull tastes nasty these taste like utter ass.

8333% of your daily dose of vitamin B12!!! That can't be good for you.  But it does have no sugar and only 4 calories.

Ok now that we know what we are up against we can plan out our missions to test out Strike Force Energy in the field.  Since we will have 4 flavors we will formulate 4 missions to test it's performance in a dynamic and diverse environments.  I will test it as an Emergency Room Nurse. I will test it as a morning runner and on a trail half-marathon.  And finally I will test it as a husband and father on a dreaded Honey-Do List day!!!!

I love it when a plan comes together!

As a true independent  with no wing affiliation  left or right I would like to thank Sean for his service.  

More to come later…but for now...gotta run!