There is something about Orange drinks that seems to make drink designers lose their minds. Seriously. But not in a bad way, but in a totally amazing blow the energy drink design wide open sort of way. I am reminded of the first time I saw the original NOS can – I think that is what started my love affair with fantastically packaged caffeinated soda. Rage has done a Fantastic job with this can – nevermind the small flaws. This is unique, artistic and gorgeous, especially for being a 1 spot color job. The bubbly orange sugar water could taste like tang, In something this cool taste and buzz are almost secondary. Rage is put out by Pinnacle Exclusives – and is supposed to be in the US now, although I have yet to see it in stores.

Packaging:9.5
I dont usually give off decimal points. Think they are silly. back when teaching college I told my students I only gave 3 grades; A, C- and F. If you were good enough to show up and do all the work, you get an A. Slackers get a C-. If you could not even work hard enough for a C-, then there was no need to even show up, and chances are you did not learn the material. The art on this can definitely deserves a 9. 10 is reserved for being groundbreaking, which this is not, but the art on this can is phenomenal. Not only does this do everything right, but it exemplifies all that is energy drink. Loud, obnoxious, completely befitting the audience and full of the little details that I look for. This one does not list the calories, but that is obviously an internation issue, as Canada does not have the same standards for labeling as the US. I included a large picture with this post strictly because the art should be seen. The design wraps fully around the can, so there is no need for the “second label” so your can is not missed if shelved wrongly in the convenience store. There is all the product information about rage and pinnacle, along with emails and websites. They have full disclosure of all ingredients, and list caffeine and taurine content. If you are in the business of making energy drinks for the younger market, this aggresive package is one you can take a lesson or two from.

Nutrition:7
boosts up the levels of caffeine to a much much higher percentage. There is 200mg per can, opposed to the 160 found in most 16oz energy drinks. They also boost the taurine levels as well as the rest of the usual energy drink cast of characters.
Like the other Rage I tried, this drink has Creatine in the mix. Creatine is used mostly by bodybuilders to gain muscle mass. However when they take it as a supplement, it is usually measured in grams, not milligrams. 50mg is not really enough to do anything unless you plan on drinking cases of this stuff. Creatine can also cause nausea and diarreah, so there are some pros and cons to adding this into your energy drinks.
As for calories – no idea. Guess it is not important as it is not listed anywhere on the cans or in the pounds of literature they sent along to me. I am guessing there is a bunch, But they do not list High Fructose Corn Syrup, instead using Fructose and sucralose.

Taste:6
After drinking the first red Rage, I was excited to see what their Orange would be. YOu could tell from the color of the mackage that this was going to be an orange/citrus in some way – and the orange color of the liquid confirmed it.
Unfortunately, I was not nearly impressed with the flavor coming out of this one. I mean, it is a fine orange soda, on the same level of countless other orange sodas, like NOS, 180, Khaos and so many other orange tinged drinks. That is just such a shame because of the completeuniqueness and fantastic flavor of their red can. I was hoping for a new riff on the old orange, but no. This is just another overly sweet orange soda with a bit more sour added. Get this one for the can, not for the drink inside.

Website:4 rageliquidenergy.com
Great effort, but horrible execution. The plash page – which by and large I find superfluous, is the coolest part of the site. After that, the idea comes through, but it barely works – sowing pictures in the wrong places, not giving me any info on the product and the company. I would rate this even lower, but the concept and idea behind it is pretty fantastic. I just hope they finish it and do some more bug testing.