#258 Energise smoothie review (9.0/10) – “Tastes similar to more expensive drinks”.

Energise smoothie review (9.0/10) – “Tastes similar to more expensive drinks”.

The Good

“Pleasant smell”.

“Tastes similar to more expensive drinks”.

“Well balanced”.

“Natural fruity flavour”.

“Quite affordable”.

“Sufficient sweetness to balance”.

“Acidity not overpowering”.

“Pleasant fruity aftertaste”.

“1 of your 5 a day”.

“Session-able”.

“Smooth taste and aftertaste”.

The Bad

“Not full-flavoured”.

“Mouthfeel a little thin”.

Introduction

If you’ve been following me for a long time, you’ll know many moons ago soft drink reviews graced my blogs, including Cowbelle milkshakes, Schloer fizzy drinks, and a range of smoothies including Tesco own brand, Innocent, and The Juice Company ranges from Aldi. Links available below (Sources).

2 years later, after January 2019, I’m attempting my next “Dry” month this August. Since then, a lot has happened in my life including exhausting supermarket supplies of new ciders to review, relationship breakups, job losses, and a global pandemic. Due to this, I didn’t do a Dry January in 2021, but I like the idea of doing it for health benefits.

The main benefit I am doing this for is reducing risk for alcoholic hepatitis developing, which can be caused by regular drinking over long periods of time. This is reversible though by stopping drinking. Read below (Dry January benefits).

Ranges

The main smoothie ranges from my undercover trip to Tesco, revealed Tropicana, Innocent, and Naked.

Today’s review will be my 5th in the Innocent range following “Berry protein”, “Mangoes, Passion fruits, Apples”, “Strawberries & Bananas”, and “Wonder Green”.

Welcome

Energise

Calories here stand at 52 per 100ml or 156 total (300ml bottle), which is slightly more than Innocent strawberries & Bananas (ISB) which clocked in at 51 cals per 100ml, which is identical to Innocent Mangoes, Passion fruits, Apples. This isn’t as high as Berry protein however at 59 cals per 100ml.

Cost too is less than Berry protein, at 67p per 100ml, compared to 77p per 100ml. It’s also less than Mangoes, Passion fruits, Apples at 72p per 100ml.

Whilst not cheaper than ISB, this came in a larger bottle so is hard to compare like for like.

To summarise, calories are moderate, and cost is low compared to similar products.

Description below = number of fruit for one of your 5 a day.

Please note though that the NHS suggests smoothies shouldn’t contribute more than one of your 5 a day, so you can only count one of the fruits below. It’s also noteworthy that the juice extraction process can reduce nutrients compared to whole fruit consumption.

Energise 300ml smoothie includes:

“1 pressed Apple (50%), 13 pressed Red and White Grapes, 1/2 a mashed Banana”.

1 Apple, 1 Banana, and according to The Guardian, 11 Grapes counts as one portion of your 5 a day. The smoothie lists one in total, which aligns with NHS recommendations. Out of the 3 main fruits, both Apple and Grape appear to be sufficient for the maximum contribution of 1, to your 5 a day.

Let’s look at the drinks’ 3 most abundant fruits …

1 Apple

Apple is the most abundant fruit here, which is low in vitamins and minerals, but compensates with it’s high antioxidant and fibre content, which slows sugar absorption, increasing feelings of fullness, and improving digestion. The antioxidants are also beneficial for blood sugar control and heart health.

2 Grapes

Grapes are a good source of vitamin C which helps your body produce connective tissues, and Vitamin K which is essential to activate blood clotting proteins to prevent infections, but fortunately high levels don’t increase clotting more than normal. It also helps bone strength by assisting production of proteins which bind calcium.

3 Banana

Banana contains far more potassium than apple and pear, which is needed for muscle contraction, and controlling the amount of water inside your body building blocks or “cells”. Banana is also high in vitamin C, which helps your body produce connective tissues, with almost double the amount found in Apple.

Energise contains …

34% of the reference intake of Vitamin E per 100ml, 30% Vitamin B1 per 100ml and 29% Vitamin B6 as the 3 most abundant micronutrients, although these are added artificially.

It also contains 22% Vitamin C and 0.8g fibre per 100ml. This compares to just 9.7% Reference intake of vitamin C, but 1.2g of fibre in Innocent Strawberries and Bananas, suggesting Vitamin C is rich here, but fibre is a little low.

It’s also suitable for vegans.

Smell

The smell was natural and fruity, suggesting wild berries, and lasted a reasonable length of time.

Taste

It’s taste was very similar to Berry protein, although this had a thinner mouthfeel. It was a little weak, and not quite fully flavoured. The taste wasn’t harsh however, so appeared smooth. Whilst it wasn’t overly tart, it stayed natural and fruity in taste, which continued into the aftertaste, then gradually faded away. The balance of flavour was good here. It’s sweetness was also sufficient to balance the acidity.

Thanks to the thinner mouthfeel and non overpowering taste and aftertaste, the drink felt session-able.

Summary

“Tastes similar to more expensive drinks”.

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