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Four Loko: 5 Best & 3 Worst Flavors + 4 Alternatives

Ever felt a sudden urge to combine an energy drink with a lot of booze? Then you’ve probably had a Four Loko. In this article we’ll look into the very best flavors to try, what’s special about modern-day Four Loko, and the few flavors you’d better avoid.

The notorious alcoholic drink was first made popular in 2005 and quickly became known for containing a huge amount of alcohol as well as well-known energy drink ingredients such as caffeine, guarana, and taurine. A lot has changed since those early days.

Four Loko was forced to reformulate its drinks in 2010, and it’s now just a regular alcoholic beverage. With that said, Four Loko has retained many of its loyal fans from those early, borderline dangerous days.

The modern Four Loko offers a range of flavors , including the popular Fruit Punch, Watermelon, Sour Apple, Blue Raspberry, and many more.

Interesting Facts about Four Loko Flavors

Interesting Facts about Four Loko Flavors

Four Loko was initially marketed as ‘blackout in a can’, which may have been a fun slogan back in the early 2000s but likely wouldn’t do so well today.

It was created by three college friends who developed the concept based on a high alcohol content paired with caffeine.

Four Loko is still probably best known for its vast alcohol content. To put it simply, one 24 fl oz can of Four Loko can contain the same amount of alcohol as 4-6 12 fl oz beers.

Essentially, it’s marketed at people who intend to get drunk rather than really enjoy their alcoholic beverages.

The brand has a massive social media presence, making it popular with a younger demographic in particular. Four Loko are well-known for engaging with their audience through irreverent, funny content.

Four Loko has faced numerous legal challenges over the years, in particular relating to its alcohol content, marketing practices, advertising, packaging, and more. At one point the brand was even accused of targeting underage consumers and promoting risky or irresponsible drinking behavior.

Regardless of what you think of Four Loko, the brand remains popular today and is now available in many countries across the world, including the UK, Canada, Australia, and many European markets.

What Four Loko Is

What Four Loko Is

Four Loko was originally an energy drink come highly alcoholic beverage.

The modern formulation no longer contains guarana, caffeine, or taurine.

Seeing as the original drink was named Four Loko for its four ‘key’ ingredients (the above plus wormwood), it should probably be called No Loko now, but that’d be less catchy.

Origin of Four Loko

Origin of Four Loko

The popular alcoholic drink was created by three friends. Upon graduating from Ohio State University, Chris Hunter, Jeff Wright, and Jaisen Freeman decided to formulate what is now Four Loko.

Their original recipes mostly stemmed from their fraternity mansion’s party room and basement — so you can imagine why they ended up being pretty boozy.

They were also heavily influenced by the rising popularity of Red Bull mixed with vodka, and decided to introduce a product that did this in a pre-mixed fashion.

Alcohol in Four Loko

Alcohol in Four Loko

Four Loko’s alcohol content varies depending on the state you’re buying it in. However generally speaking it’ll be either 8%, 10%, 12%, or even 14% alcohol by volume.

This means a single Four Loko may contain as much alcohol as several cans of beer or even as much as a full bottle of wine.

What Is Special About Four Loko

What Is Special About Four Loko

The original Four Loko recipe was marketed as an ‘energy beer’ and contained a lot of alcohol as well as caffeine, taurine, and guarana.

It also had wormwood thrown into the mix, which is claimed to have psychoactive properties and is one of the key ingredients of absinthe.

Nowadays, wormwood is seen as a potentially hazardous substance as it contains thujone, a known GABA-blocker.

The Best Four Loko Flavors Ranked

The Best Four Loko Flavors Ranked

Four Loko comes in a huge range of flavors, with some of course being better than others. Below are our all time favorites, the most well-loved varieties fans of Four Loko keep heading back to.

Gold

Gold

This rather unusual concoction features flavors of tutti frutti and candied fruits. If it sounds very sweet that’s because it is, and it’s exactly why Four Loko fans keep coming back to it. The can does look a little garish if you ask us, but it’s certainly distinct.

Fruit Punch

Fruit Punch

Fruit Punch is Four Loko’s more generic fruity flavor. It tastes like mixed fruit and it’s pink. It’s sweet and lacks bite. That’s about all there is to say about this flavor, and people love it for exactly the above.

Green Apple

Green Apple

This flavor is popular for all the right reasons: it’s tangy, sweet, and tart all at the same time, making it one of Four Loko’s more balanced flavors. If you like green apple flavored candies, we think you’ll probably enjoy this.

Watermelon

Watermelon

Unsurprisingly, Four Loko Watermelon tastes like watermelon Jolly Rancher candies. This is a good thing, however, and makes it one of the more delectable flavors to try. All that being said, a 23.5 fl oz can of this flavor contains a whopping 60g of sugar. So, it’s sweet for a reason.

Black Cherry Hard Seltzer

Black Cherry Hard Seltzer

Cherry-flavored hard seltzers are huge just now with pretty much every major hard seltzer brand selling their own variety. Four Loko’s are no different, offering ‘a hint of black cherry’ which some fans adore, while others (as with any cherry flavor) hate it.

Worst Four Loko Flavors

Worst Four Loko Flavors

Four Loko comes in so many different flavors that it’s hardly a surprise to find some that are less than stellar.

As with anything, whether or not these are actually bad is down to individual tastes.

With that said, you may want to pick some of the more popular varieties instead. Here is our list of the least popular Four Loko flavors.

Sour Grape

Sour Grape

Grape is one of those incredibly divisive flavors you’ll either like or loathe. The Four Loko Grape flavor is no different, though it certainly gets more hate than love.

We think this is because it’s an oddly sour grape flavor. The can’s name should probably warn you of that anyway, but this one just doesn’t really work.

Sour Melon

Sour Melon

Four Loko actually caveat this flavor with the words, ‘you’re welcome’ on their website, but fans aren’t exactly thanking them. It’s one of the brand’s most hated flavors and consistently gets poor reviews.

Melon can be a very artificial tasting flavor, and this one sadly just isn’t good.

Four Loko USA

Four Loko USA

One reviewer described this as tasting like beer meets blue raspberry slush. It’s not a great flavor, probably due to clever marketeers somewhere trying to invent something too unique and gimmicky.

Even if you decide to taste our other worst flavors, do yourself a favor and steer clear of this one.

The Original Four Loko Flavors

The Original Four Loko Flavors

It may or may not come as a surprise, but the original Four Loko lineup included just four flavor varieties. Since then, many more have been added, but the originals are still amongst the best-tasting. Here they are:

Watermelon

Watermelon

As mentioned above, Watermelon Four Loko tastes like your favorite childhood candies. This is a great thing if you enjoy a sweet yet mildly tart drink that’s summery, refreshing and, in the case of Four Loko, boozy. It’s no wonder this flavor has stuck around.

Fruit Punch

Fruit Punch

Another classic fan-favorite, Fruit Punch tastes like a mix of fruits. It’s sweet and moreish (probably not a good thing when it comes to that ABV). This one was a clever original creation that will probably stick around forever.

Blue Raspberry

Blue Raspberry

Blue Raspberry Four Loko has been described as tasting a bit like apple cider with a twist of raspberry flavoring.

Some like it, but generally it’s not one of the more popular flavors. This is perhaps why there’s now a Sour Blue Razz instead, though we can’t say that gets any more love.

Lemonade

Lemonade

Four Loko Lemonade is fairly good at quenching your thirst, all while offering a zesty, distinct flavor. It’s lemony and tart, and non-carbonated, so it isn’t fizzy.

Essentially this flavor is a boozy lemonade, which you may enjoy if you like regular lemonade.

Types of Drinks You Can Get At Four Loko

Types of Drinks You Can Get At Four Loko

Four Loko offers three distinct ranges, though the first really falls into two categories — classic Four Loko flavors and sour ones. The latter two are more recent additions to the lineup, though some are already proving to be quite popular.

Core Flavors – Four Loko Classic

Core Flavors – Four Loko Classic

The Core Flavors range feature some of Four Loko’s most consistently popular flavors, including Gold, Fruit Punch, and Watermelon.

They’re the ‘regular’ flavors, if you will and offer a nice amount of sweetness with a balancing touch of tart for some.

Sour Flavors

Sour Flavors

The Sour Flavors at Four Loko are exactly what you’d expect: their sour range.

These currently include Sour Apple, Sour Grape, Sour Blue Razz, and Sour Melon.

It’s a bit surprising that these get their own range, given their lack of popularity, but here they are. If you do enjoy a more sour alcoholic beverage, you may enjoy these ice cold.

Innovation Series

Innovation Series

Four Loko’s Innovation Series is their range of limited or special edition flavors. At time of writing, these feature Four Loko USA, Warheads Sour Loko, and Jungle Juice.

The only one out of this lineup that sounds quite good to us is the Warheads variety, which is described as a ‘sour cosmic punch’.

Warheads candies are pretty delicious, so this one will probably be popular.

Pregame Series

Pregame Series

Four Loko’s Pregame Series are essentially readymade, mixed shots you can enjoy prior to a party.

They’re not carbonated and come in at 13.9% ABV (unless you live in Tennessee, where the ABV is down at 10%).

Honestly speaking, we don’t recommend these, they sound a lot like a hangover in a bottle.

Flavors include Sour Apple, Sour Blue Razz, Sour Grape, Sour Peach, Lemonade, Wicked Tea, Loko USA, and Warhead Sour Loko.

Tasty Alternatives to Four Loko

Tasty Alternatives to Four Loko

If you really must try other energy drinks with alcohol mixed in, you’ll be pleased to find out that Four Loko is far from the only option.

Some other popular brands have their own line of boozy energizers. Here we list the top ones to try… with caution.

Sparks

Sparks

Sparks had a very similar history to Four Loko and brought an alcoholic drink with caffeine and taurine to market in 2002. Modern Sparks doesn’t do this anymore, and now produces a line of flavorful 6-8% ABV drinks in colorful soda cans.

Flavors include Lemonade, Blackberry, and Iced Tea among others.

Joose

Joose

Joose (pronounced juice?) is another popular line of alcoholic beverages that originated as an energy drink that’s also a ‘beer’.

Modern versions contain alcohol but no caffeine.

They do make some unique flavors, including Spiked Teas in the flavors Wild Raspberry, Spiked Lemonade, and Sweet Peach. Joose is available in 6-14% ABV contents.

Moonshot

Moonshot

This particular drink is actually no longer available, having been banned by the FDA. It was an interesting rarity, however, mixing beer with quite a large amount of caffeine (69mg of it).

Seeing as many of these beverages originated as ‘energy beers’ of sorts, this one is the only drink that really seems to fit that description.

Other ‘Energizing’ Alcoholic Alternatives

Other ‘Energizing’ Alcoholic Alternatives

The mix of alcohol, a known relaxant, and any caffeinated beverage which boosts your energy is generally to be enjoyed with caution.

With that said, there are some more natural alternatives to drinks like Four Loko and the others above.

Try an Irish coffee, which combines coffee with whiskey, or a Gunfire, which combines black tea with rum.

Alternatively, you could also try the original vodka and Red Bull combo, though the caffeine content here is pretty high too, and it’s long been advised against.

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