You know, there are liquor stores – the ones that you know you can find that perfect bottle of wine or that seventy dollar bottle of single malt scotch – and then there are the other ones – the ones where you have to be sure you have the cash because they might not accept credit cards and there are more bars on the windows than neon signs. Those are the best places to go to find the cool crazy alcoholic sodas like this.
I am not sure how old Max Vibe is, but I can tell you that it is possibly the best tasting and most alcoholic of all the bad cheap caffeinated malt liquors out there. Max Vibe is the latest drink out by Joose brand creators, United Brands. This has drink has been out before, but never with this look and feel, and never made it to my cheap crazy liquor store either. But now their cooler is stocked with all three MAX flavors.
Buzz:8
Max Vibe has 12% alcohol content. That is a crazy amount, especially when you add in the caffeine, plus taurine and ginseng. This is definitely not a sipping drink, or one you would have out with polite company. Max Fury is what you bring so the ladies at the party can get just a messed up as you drinkin’ your Joose. After two cans of this, anyone will be getting brainless, with more than enough energy to spare. My guess is there is about 35-40mg of caffeine per serving in here, so it is about as much caffeine buzz as drinking 3 Diet Cokes. This flavor is made for only one reason – to get drunk quickly and cheaply, and have it taste like a wine cooler in the process.
Taste:8
OK, this stuff tastes worse than a wine cooler, more like Nyquil and Hawaiian Punch. But it is much much tastier than Joose and Four Maxxed, and appeals to the wine cooler and bottled mixed drink bunch. It does not taste as harsh and sour as most alcopops do, and the added energy blend can barely be tasted. This is not the drink for sitting alone at home and tying one on – it is too sweet and tasty for that. It is also not the drink for just hanging out on a Sunday afternoon and sipping. But when you have to entertain the partying crowd on a budget, This is definitely the drink to get.
Packaging:8
The good news is the can itself is very nicely designed. The huge can is triple faced, and visually intense with lots of red and shiny silver. To keep them selves out of trouble, they have the mention of alcohol being in this 10 times on the can. Of course this won’t stop them from being sued by greedy states, lawyers and non-profits, but they can try. It definitely appeals to teh younger market, with the look right out of an old school rave flier. The only thing I wish is that they listed caffeine content or ingredients, but I know that the FDA strictly regulated all of that, and would not want them to get in any trouble.
Either way, this can is a definite win for the caffeinated alcohol department.