Crystal Light Energy Drink Mix

For the record, I have received countless free items from my social media efforts. I am going to have to make it a point to post reviews on them over time. But for my first official post on this blog, I will be reviewing Crystal Light's new "energy" drink mix.

I vaguely remember a Facebook campaign where I signed up for a sample and  it arrived in the mail yesterday. The packaging boasts "90% fewer calories than leading beverages." And that it provides energy through "caffeine and energy releasing B vitamins." The flavor of the sample sent was citrus although it is also available in "Peach Mango," "Wild Strawberry" and "Grape" varieties.

As usual with drink mixes, you pour a packet in a bottle of water and shake to mix it. In terms of convenience, I love that the packets are small enough to carry around in your purse so that you always have access to them. I guess if you are at a restaurant and ordered a glass of water instead of a soft drink or tea, you could pour a Crystal Light packet into your water to add flavor. The instructions suggest adding the packet to either 16.9 ounces of water (your standard sized bottle of water) or 2 cups of water in a glass. I  also love the concept of having a product that promotes the consumption of healthy beverages as opposed to those packed with sugar and other unhealthy byproducts. Presumably, this is about as close to drinking a glass of water you can get and still have a little flavor.

But let's be realistic, if it doesn't taste good, you're not going to drink it. The first couple of sips left an unpleasant after taste. But it seemed as though the more I drank it, the less I noticed the after taste. It definitely had a citrus flavor to it. I wasn't overly pleased with it, but it didn't completely turn me off either. I can personally admit that I need to drink more water and make healthier beverage choices throughout the day. But the reality for me is, I'd rather just drink a bottled water than invest in these drink mixes. Furthermore, I didn't notice myself having a boost in energy from drinking it. I felt the same as I would after drinking pretty much anything else. That having been said, I don't see myself recommending this product to anyone. It's not great, and it's not bad. For me to purchase something, it has to be great and/or meet some kind of need. So there we have it, my first official review of something I got for free.