Did your parents ever get you stuff when you were a kid from KMart? If you answered yes, then you know what I am talking about when I mention the horrors at being caught as the kid in school who shows up in Kmart private label shoes or jeans. While everyone else has Levis, Adidas or vans, you get stuck with horrible knock-offs that fall apart at the slightest provocation. Freefall falls in line with those horrid products of my youth. This Red Bull wannabe is so pitiful, I pity the poor kid who brings this drink along with friends who are downing the Rockstars. Everything from the taste to the package is just so so wrong. I implore any well meaning parents who would even think of bringing ths into their house – you are setting yourself up at being the biggest losers on the block. just like leaving your dirty underwear on the floor when guests arrive, you want to keep this nastiness well hidden in case there could be any witnesses to your poor taste.
About a year ago, Kmart expanded its American Fare beverage line, adding 32 new products to the private-label brand.“It’s all about providing choice and value to our customers,” stated Tom O’Boyle, vice president and general merchandise manager of food and consumables for Sears Holdings. “We believe Kmart’s American Fare is now the most complete line of moderately priced, private-label beverage products in the county… From energy drinks, flavored water, vitamin water and teas popular with teens and young adults, to real juice pouches and mini-bottles of fluoridated water for the entire family, there’s a full range of new American Fare beverages.”
Unfortunately Tom, you need to actually produce a quality product or Kmart will always be seen as the playground joke that it is.
Taste:2
Freefall is what happens when Red Bull gives up on life and becomes a bitter old shell of the creature he used to be. This drink is devoid of any uniqueness or character, trying to live up to other Red Bull clones, but it too sour and bitter and just plain wrong. The 8 ounces it comes in are even too much for it, being unpalatable even for Red Bull Clone standards. This lacks sugar, sweetness and texture, ending up with a mess which is too sour to be chugged down. According to Taurine Rules, the companies make the drink bitter to hide the sourness of the caffeine and other energy ingredients. Seems like in this case they failed to even mask the bitterness – as it comes of both sour, bitter and overall an undrinkable mess.
Buzz/Nutrition:4
15 calories and 0 grams of sugar. taurine, glucuronolactone, caffeine, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, inositol, and B Vitamins. So it is like a Red Bull, only not even close. Even Prilabs can make a better drink tan this. MY guess is there is 80mg of caffeine, but I felt very little buzz after holding my nose and downing the thing.
Packaging:4
Oh My. Right on the front of the can, emblazoned for the world to see is the huge “I am a discount knockoff drink” badge advertising this as “American Fare”. The cheap aluminum in the can does not do much adding to the overall concept – and it is clear from first sight that this layout clearly needs help. While not as bad as it could be, it could use a lot of work. It lists the website – which the drink is not on, to the phone number, where people who never heard of the drink get confused when you ask about it. There is little nutritional information, and the caffeine content is non-existent. Their only consolation is Target stores did just as bad with their Archer Farms line of energy drinks.