COMPANY: Pepsico
CAN DESIGN: The design on the Amp can is very nice, very attractive, but it doesn't scream energy drink. It may not have to since it has the Mountain Dew logo underneath the Amp logo. Mountain Dew fans are more likely to buy it because of the recognizable branding. The background on the can is an impressive design. It doesn't interfere with the text at all yet it's a complex pattern. I would say that the Amp can is going to stand out amongst the competition but it doesn't quite stand out as an obvious energy drink.
CAN DETAILS: 16 FL OZ, 110 Calories
PRICE: 2.29 at Albertsons
WEBSITE: AmpEnergy.com . Nicely designed site. The green patterns really set this site apart from other energy drink sites. It did seem slow possibly to the Flash menus and the music setup.
Amp does the usual sport sponsoring which looks like it only includes auto racing thus far. The best feature of their site, however, is their 6 pack artists. I may not be cool enough to know any of the bands on the list but I did like being able to preview "College Radio Style" music. Though I wish they were full songs and the artists didn't interrupt.
The Amp site avoids the usual cliches of wallpaper downloads which I must admit are getting old. Wallpapers are fine if they're going to update them regularly like a babe of the week or a video game tie-in of the week. But just having the text logo as a wallpaper is boring.
TASTE: Confession: I hate Mountain Dew. I never liked it as a kid and it was always a last resort if there wasn't any other choice of soda available. The fluorescent color of the drink reminds you of pee which was an ongoing joke amongst my classmates. Amp is a glorified version of Mountain Dew. In some ways I think it tastes better, and in other ways I still have that reaction that I'm drinking hyped Mountain Dew. I honestly don't care for the taste of Amp, but Mountain Dew fans might think differently. So the taste isn't necessarily bad, it just isn't a taste I like. Because Mountain Dew has lasted for so long and I can't condemn the taste based on my own prejudices.
AFTERTASTE: Sugary citrus taste
SUSTAINED EFFECTS: Nothing unusual.
OVERALL: I can't really comment too well on the taste since I'm biased against Mountain Dew from the beginning. The packaging of the product is good and the site is pretty good. I can only recommend this drink if you're a Mountain Dew fan or if you're curious. I also chose the Tallboy version. Amp comes in 3 sizes: regular, Tallboy, and Big Rig.
WOULD I BUY IT AGAIN? No.

GENERAL COMMENTS: It's Mountain Dew reformulated. The pee drink with more energy.