Red Bull, an energy drink known for kooky animated commercials, extreme sports, and an ever-changing lineup of special-edition flavors, has been a staple of my life for the last 15 years. I’m not proud of this, but when I drink those little eight-ounce cans, I feel a lot better than I would if I was chugging an eight-foot can of Monster, or whatever.
But since the flavors are always changing, which ones are worth your money? What does Red Bull taste like? What flavor bull should you be grabbing by the horns? I tried seven flavors available near me, and now that I am cranked out of my mind, I’m prepared to share my findings with you! Let’s rock and roll, baby!! Whooooooooooooo’s with me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Prices and availability are subject to change.
Best: The Peach Edition (Peach-Nectarine)
$2.68 from Walmart
Red Bull is smart: It knows exactly when it’s supposed to be making soda, and this is one of those times. There’s that familiar taurine flavor, but it’s heavily masked underneath the stone fruit.
Would I reach for this instead of a soda? No, probably not. But of all Red Bull flavors, this is the biggest surprise to me. And it’s not bad at all.
2. Original Red Bull
$2.79 from Target
I’m used to it by this point, I guess. What flavor is Red Bull, anyways?
To me, that metallic, taurine-soaked flavor is far more tolerable than any other energy drink I’ve dared to try. It’s fruity and citrusy, and while I’ll never be able to explain put my finger on it, I’ve seen it described as tamarind-flavored on the internet, and I don’t fully disagree. It’s just not that bad, and if you need a boost for a few hours, it legitimately does the trick.
3. The Red Edition (Watermelon)
$2.68 from Walmart
I have found that there are two types of artificial watermelon. There is the one that most drinks go after, and then there is a variant I like to call “Jolly Rancher magic.” Red Bull’s watermelon-flavored energy drink is the latter. If you like Jolly Ranchers, you’ll like this.
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4. The Blue Edition (Blueberry)
$2.79 from Target
This just feels heavy, like a weighted blanket in your mouth. It’s a deep, rich, almost soulful blueberry flavor, kind of like a muffin or a pancake. I usually love blueberry muffins and blueberry pancakes, but look, this is a beverage. It’s not breakfast time. I don’t need pancakes right now.
Related: I Tasted 11 C4 Energy Drink Flavors: Here are the Best Ones, Ranked
5. The Coconut Edition (Coconut Berry)
$2.68 from Walmart
I don’t like coconut, gang. I really had to brace myself for this one, but thankfully, “berry” is doing most of the heavy lifting here. Frankly, I wouldn’t be surprised if this is just that blueberry flavor with artificial coconut injected into it. Yellow’s far worse, but that doesn’t make this any good.
Irrelevant, but surprising and terrifying: When I poured this out, it was bright blue.
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6. The Yellow Edition (Tropical)
$2.68 from Walmart
I fully winced when I tasted this. The can is neon yellow and it says the word “tropical,” so I’m not sure why I didn’t expect it, but holy goddamn moly, this is very tropical. It’s sort of a general citrus flavor, with a biting sting of pineapple and a blast of passion fruit; maybe even some dragon fruit. I wanted to figure out just which fruits this is based on, but the ingredients are no help. “Natural and artificial flavors” are the best they’ve got for me. Natural, eh? That can’t be right.
7. Red Bull Sugarfree
$7.24 for a four-pack from Walmart
Once I tasted this monstrosity, it became clear to me that the only thing tethering me to Earth when I drink a normal Red Bull is the sugar. As previously mentioned, I’m surprisingly unoffended by the standard Red Bull edition, but man, this sugar-free situation is tough. Artificial sweeteners are doing nothing to help out here. Yeesh.
