It’s been a busy year for GU, introducing several new flavors of their energy gel, as well as their roctane gel, chomps and brew. Their most recently released gel flavors are Root Beer and Caramel Macchiato and of course I had to try them.
Before I get into the Root Beer flavor I have to admit that I had to rewrite this section because I originally thought it was Root Beer Float (yummy) flavor. I have no idea why I thought that except for wishful thinking. Or maybe the foam on the package made me think about a float? Regardless, it is Root Beer GU. I’m a fan of root beer in general and this gel definitely tastes like root beer. I think they really hit the mark with the flavor. It’s also one of a few GU flavors that does not contain caffeine which is a plus for those of us who are sensitive to caffeine. As you have probably already guessed, I’m also a fan of root beer floats (although I prefer Coke floats) and when I originally tasted this gel I thought it was missing the “float” part of it so it made me wonder if it would taste like a root beer float if I mixed it with their Vanilla Bean flavored gel. I’ve mixed gels in the past with great results (Chocolate Outrage + Salted Caramel = Rolo!) so I had to try this mixture. I’m happy to report that mixing Root Beer gel with Vanilla Bean gel does actually taste like Root Beer Float. I guess I wouldn’t have thought to try this mixture if I had read the package correctly the first time.
I had a very different experience with the Caramel Macchiato gel. It tastes just like you would expect it to. Reminiscent of the drink I can get from the popular coffee shop it did play with my mind a little that I was getting that flavor in the consistency of a gel. The great flavor makes that adjustment easier though. It’s a nice blend of coffee and caramel flavors, neither one overpowering the other. It is one of the many gels that contains caffeine-40mg, which is more than some of their other caffeinated gels and is equivalent to about half a cup of coffee.
Both of these flavors contain 100 calories per gel packet as well as sodium and potassium which are much needed during training.
Root Beer
Caramel Macchiato
GU Website
Buy Caramel Macchiato GU at Amazon
Buy Root Beer GU at Amazon