All six Gatorade Fast Twitch flavors

Gatorade Fast Twitch comes in six flavors, but the variety pack only has three. Variety packs are good for, you know, variety, but I don’t think Gatorade picked the best three. If you’re buying Fast Twitch in bulk (as I’ve started doing for pre-workout), try all six to find the right one for you. Here’s how they rank. (Start with my variety pack review for more on Glacier Freeze, Orange, and Strawberry Watermelon.)

  1. Glacier Freeze
  2. Tropical Mango
  3. Strawberry Lemonade
  4. Strawberry Watermelon
  5. Cool Blue
  6. Orange
Gatorade Fast Twitch bottles

Taste

Taste is the big differentiator, since all six are nearly identical in kick and appearance.

Glacier Freeze comes in at #1, handily. It tastes like a liquid blue popsicle, which is incredibly enjoyable cold, and it’s the closest to a name-brand energy drink flavor, if that makes sense. With its unique berry flavor and slightly bitter finish, it’ll probably be the favorite for most energy drink lovers. (Amazon)

Tropical Mango is firmly in second. Of the six, this is the one I’d sip casually while hanging out. It’s the most refreshing, with a stronger mango flavor than most actual mango energy drinks. (Amazon)

Strawberry Lemonade is probably the smoothest. It’s very refreshing and goes down easy, exactly the strawberry lemonade you’d imagine. The lighter mouthfeel makes it feel like slightly less of a kick than the others. (Amazon)

Strawberry Watermelon is a unique take: strong strawberry with a light watermelon finish. Smooth, but not enough to soften the kick. This is where the tier break happens; the first three all scored 8+ for me. It’s a good, unique midday pick-me-up, but not as enjoyable as the top three. (Amazon)

Cool Blue was the most disappointing, because I was sure it’d be my favorite. It’s rare for me to find a blue drink I don’t love, energy drink or cocktail. Unfortunately, this tastes more like run-of-the-mill Gatorade, and blue sports drinks are decent but nothing special next to energy drinks. If you love regular Gatorade, you’ll probably like it more than I did. Tier two for me, despite the coolest (ha) color. (Amazon)

Orange is, unsurprisingly, my least favorite. I usually love orange drinks (not as much as blue), but this one is different. It’s more bitter, which helps the kick, but that doesn’t overcome the Kool-Aid Burst taste, and it’s the most artificial of the six. If I wanted something this bitter, I wouldn’t reach for a sports drink. Fine, but clearly the worst. (Amazon)

Kick

All six have the same caffeine (200 mg) and energy blend, so they all make you feel about the same. The only difference is mouthfeel, which falls into three tiers:

  • Bitter: Orange, which delivers a slightly bigger perceived kick.
  • Neutral: Glacier Freeze, Tropical Mango, and Strawberry Watermelon, which deliver what you’d expect from 200 mg. Glacier Freeze is a little bitter, but nowhere near Orange.
  • Mellow: Strawberry Lemonade, because it’s so smooth, and Cool Blue, because it’s closer to standard Gatorade and doesn’t rev me up like the bolder flavors.

Overall, any difference you feel day to day will come down to your mood, diet, and sleep more than the flavor.

Appearance

Dark blue is dope. The rest are fine. Overall, the fronts of the bottles are uninspiring.

Upshot

Tier one: Glacier Freeze, Tropical Mango, and Strawberry Lemonade, enjoyable in any situation. Tier two: Strawberry Watermelon, Cool Blue, and Orange, still enjoyable, but not my first choice for casual sipping.

Gatorade hit it out of the park with these flavors. Caffeine aside, I enjoy them way more than regular Gatorade. I’ve started buying them in bulk, which I rarely do, and I recommend them to any energy drink lover, gym-goer, athlete, or weekend warrior. With a solid kick, no carbonation, and no real crash, they could take your performance to the next level.