The Adina website is a bit busy, it is full of information and giveaways and an aggressive sense of community and purpose. They have a fantastic monkey logo and a slogan - 'Drink No Evil!' Yet, the Hazlenut Hook Up can doesn't have the logo anywhere on it. And it has the more tepid slogan - 'Feel Good - Do Good'. Ah, well, that doesn't matter. This is the PW's first energy drink!
The Hazlenut Hook Up is a coffee-based drink best served chilled. The Colombian coffee and evaporated cane sugar are both organic and fair trade certified. I'm hoping the dairy cows were treated humanely, but nothing is mentioned on container concerning bovine welfare.
Surely, there must be an ingredient besides coffee, milk, and sugar that sets this drink apart from a cup of Joe. There is. It contains natural hazlenut flavor and guarana; the latter delivering even more caffeine than coffee.
Presentation/Appearance - 6/10 Nothing special here. A simple 8 oz (240 ml) can with text highlighting the fair trade and naturalness of the beverage. Without detailed explanation, the contents are declared the "antioxidant equivalent of 4 servings of fruit" as measured by the USDA. However, we know that coffee, like tea, contains antioxidants.
Nose/Aroma - 6/10 The sugar is easy enough to detect, along with the nuttiness of the hazlenut flavoring. I had expectations of a more significant coffee aroma, but it never materialized. This tells me that we're about to taste something sweet versus bitter.
Taste/Flavor - 6/10 And sweet is what we mainly have here. The purpose of this drink is to provide a non-evil way of delivering caffeine to the body in a harmless, if not especially pleasing way. Nothing bad here, but nothing exciting. Except for my pulse...which we'll cover in a moment.
Finish/Satisfaction - 8/10 The drink delivers on its energy promise. Perhaps I am unused to caffeine, but I can feel the surge. The coffee flavor does linger after the sugar and hazlenut have left, which makes this feel more like an iced coffee experience than an awful energy drink session. (As we'll see in future Potable World entries, we're not a huge fan of sweet tart tasting sugar blasts.)
Overall - 6.6/10 Tasty energy drink with a solid mix of sugar and coffee flavors. The guarana doesn't add much to the flavor, which works for me in this drink. The hazlenut flavors are plenty here. Somewhat expensive at $1.99 per can, but a visit to the website will bring you access to 2-for-1 coupons. Print them and use them. They have other flavors, too, plus fruit & herb drinks and some sweet latte/espresso offerings.
Hey, hey, I think I have a caffeine buzz. My hair is tingling. What's your favorite energy drink?
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