Red Bull Simply Cola Taste Test – From Energy to Cola

Red Bull have decided to take on the giants in the drink market. Pepsi and Coca-Cola, but how does it taste? Read our Red Bull Simply Cola Taste Test to find out.

So time to Taste Test a drink for the first time. It’s the Red Bull Simply Cola Taste Test. The reason why I’m testing this one is that it was recently launched on the Swedish market. The Simply Cola was first introduced by Red Bull in 2008 so it has been around for awhile.

When introduced Simply Cola was launched in a number of countries including the home of Cola, the United States. But in the US Simply Cola never took off and in 2011 Red Bull stopped selling Simply Cola in the US to focus on other markets. I guess that includes Sweden.

I can understand that Red Bull tries to expand beyond the Energy Drink niche that they are in. With the Red Bull Simply Cola they are making some things right. With this product they are going all natural and are marketing the Cola as a more adult and natural alternative to regular Cola. But how does it taste and what does it contain?

Packaging and Design

I bought the can version. Like the original Red Bull can it is thinner and higher, something many other brands have adapted. The colors is red, blue and silver and it just says Simply Cola. There’s also a Red Bull logo on the can.

To me the design is nothing that stands out. It looks ok but nothing more. I’m also guessing that Red Bull have been struggling with the product when it comes to the marketing. In all the marketing material I’ve seen Red Bull have explained what the product is. It’s Red Bull but not an energy drink.

I get how they want to use the powerful name of Red Bull and still go natural but it is always bad news when you can’t rely on the consumer to understand the product.

Simply Cola Ingredients

There is lots of stuff in a Simply Cola. More than 20 ingredients like lemon, ginger, nutmeg, mustard, cinnamon just to name a few. The sweetener is caramelized sugar which also gives the Cola it’s color. The stuff contains lots of things but nothing bad so nothing to complain about here.

Taste Test Result

Sadly Red Bull Simply Cola falls when it comes to the taste. I didn’t really like the flavor, too herby and spicy. For me there are too many flavors at once. Think herbal tea or something that sort of reminds me of a shot of Fernet Branca. Not terrible but not great either.

This might be one of the issues with launching a Cola. We are simply too used to Coca-Cola to be able to appreciate something new. With that said I still like that someone is trying to take on the biggest in the industry. But good effort doesn’t mean I can give it more than 2 out of 5.

Info
Name: Red Bull Simply Cola
Brand: Red Bull
Bought: Sweden

Taste Test at Ateriet

Taste Test at Ateriet is what it sounds like. We test food and drinks from all over the world and rate each product. The result is a grade that rates from 1-5 where 1 is bad and 5 is outstanding. This is also the only category at Ateriet where we might write down a product or brand. For any taste suggestions, opinions or if you have a product you want us to try contact us via email. For all Taste Tests check out the full coverage here.