The latest in rave drinks
Oct. 3, 2006. 06:12 AM
It hasn't hit T.O. yet, but a new energy drink called "Cocaine" is stirring up controversy south of the border.
Just like, one can surmise, it was intended to.
The high-caffeine beverage contains no actual cocaine.
But its site, at http://www.drinkcocaine.com, which was down for a few days last week due to high traffic, says it will give you an "Instant Rush. No Crash!''
Drinkers are told they will experience the "highest energy content of ANY energy drink on the market today! 350 per cent greater than The Bull!" — a reference to Red Bull.
The website also says drinkers will experience "possible feelings of euphoria," all, apparently, from sugar and caffeine.
The drink is made by Redux Beverages, out of Las Vegas.
As the can hit the stands, you could cue the reaction from the easily appalled. "Kids get hopped-up on drinks called Cocaine and Xtazy and then what happens when someone offers them a line of real cocaine or an Ecstasy pill?"
Joseph Califano Jr., president of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, told the Newark N.J. Star-Ledger. Xtazy Energy, PimpJuice and Tantra Erotic Drink are all drinks aimed at young people and advertised heavily on the Internet.
The Cocaine Energy Drink so far is available mostly in clubs in New York and California, but it will soon be available online, promising to appear on Amazon soon, its website says.
"It's an energy drink, and it's a fun name," spokesman Jamey Kirby told ABC News. "As soon as people look at the can, they smile."
In an interview with the Star-Ledger, Kirby said the 8-ounce energy drink does not promote or glamorize drugs. "Kids already know what's out there," Kirby said. "Maybe this can help by making parents and kids not afraid to talk about drugs," he said.
Kirby said he originally wanted to name his energy drink "Reboot," but the name was taken. He expected controversy, "but we were not prepared for this insane media blitz."
Industry experts seem less alarmed than drug experts and say marketing campaigns for the new energy drinks are merely trying to take on a "street attitude" and stand out from the crowd. "They are going after the savvy, sophisticated twentysomething male. They used to show extreme sports, like skateboarding. Now they are taking on a street attitude," said Sarah Theodore, editor of Beverage Industry magazine, a trade publication based in Illinois.
Kirby said the Cocaine Energy Drink contains 280 milligrams of caffeine and costs about $2 U.S. a can. An average cup of coffee contains about 80 milligrams of caffeine.
