Mountain Dew Kickstart Orange

Apparently this is supposed to be a morning drink so you can 'kick start your day'. So it's competing against coffee and energy drinks essentially, two things I love and definitely drink a lot. When I first heard about this new drink from Mountain Dew, I thought it was just going to either be a repackaging of their energy drink Amp, or a slightly modified version of Mountain Dew Livewire. At least that was what I was expecting when I tried it.

Those who hate energy drinks will be pleased to hear that this is nothing like them taste wise. And despite high fructose corn syrup being the second ingredient, it's not syrupy like a soda. It has a consistency closer to sparkling juice, but with much more sugar (and caffeine). It's not quite as refreshing as most sparkling juices I've had, but it's definitely easier to drink than soda. As far as the orange taste goes, it's closer to orange soda than orange juice.

So will this drink replace coffee and energy drinks? Maybe for some people but it's not a groundbreaking drink. But that is also coming from someone who loves coffee and energy drinks so I'm probably not their target demographic.