The guys behind For Goodness Shakes! recovery drinks have released their first ever energy drink - and they reckon it's a twist on the tried and tested formula.
They claim to have come up with the first sports energy drink that athletes can tailor to their own training needs. So whether you're going all out and need fast energy, or taking it a little easier over long distances, Nectar can be diluted to suit. We received a sample of the stuff recently and, as with all nutrition products, wasted no time in trying it out.
It comes in either a two litre tank (Light Orange & Lemon Lime/£25), or 50ml sachets (£1.50 each/£18 for 15) that can be used mid-ride. To get the correct dilution from the tank, they also sent us a dosing pump (with added extension), sold separately for £5, which pumps out 25ml of liquid per dose. An energy kit, consisting of a 600ml water bottle and two 50ml sachets, costs £5, while the water bottle alone costs £4.
The full Nectar kit shown here would cost £35
So how does it work? One pump (25ml), topped up with 500ml of water, gives you a hypotonic (3 percent carbohydrate) drink, two gives you isotonic (6 percent) and three gives you hypertonic (9 percent). Using a typical isotonic concentration, a Nectar tank will keep going for 40 drinks.
We've been using the drink for a few weeks now, and like most nutritional products it's a matter of personal taste as to whether we get on with it or not. One tester found it kept him strong long into intensive rides, while another found that even mixed to a hypotonic concentration, it was too sweet to stomach.
We haven't tried the Lemon Lime flavour yet, but the Light Orange has a tasty, slightly salty, mandarin flavour that is easily ingested. The dosing system is a nice touch, and cutting out the 40 bottles you'd get through in traditional energy drinks can only be good news in our environmentally-conscious world. It's also relatively cheap, with 40 isotonic drinks working out at 63p each.
Our concern that the dosing pump wasn't long enough was alleviated with the assurance that a dosing pump extension will be included in retail packs. We also had an issue with the Nectar solution dyeing the water bottle a disconcertingly bright orange colour, much like it's done to the tank above.
Nectar will be available soon from For Goodness Shakes! website.
