Olipop just released a Mountain Dew dupe (Dewp?) called Olipop Ridge Rush. The name has that same extreme sort of feel—makes you want to hang glide or parasail or sit in a darkened room for 17 hours playing World of Warcraft, right?—but can it possibly approximate the zingy, citrusy, very sugary flavor of everyone’s favorite neon-green soda?
I’ve personally tried a lot of Olipop flavors. If you’re reading this and thinking, “What the hell is Olipop?” the TLDR is that it is a low sugar soda alternative that contains prebiotics, plant fiber, and botanicals, and purports to support digestive health. Alas, I can’t really tell you whether Olipop will grease your gears, if you know what I mean, but I can tell you whether this new Olipop flavor tastes good. So let’s Dew that.
- Olipop Ridge Rush
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The brand describes Olipop Ridge Rush as “an exhilarating fusion of lemon, lime, and orange juices [that] creates an energizing blast of flavor that’ll gear you up for your next adventure.” So, yeah, they don’t come out and say this is their take on Mountain Dew, but c’maaan, we can read between the lines.
Pros: Olipop Ridge Rush definitely tastes citrusy. It has a nice, light fizz. It’s pretty refreshing. If I were, I don’t know, white water rafting or spelunking or something and one of my companions handed me a Ridge Rush, I’d crush it. Also, I poured a little bit into a cup because I was so curious whether they’d attempt to approximate the toxic-waste green of the original article, but they went with a much more natural opaque yellow. It looks like a lemon-ginger health shot from a juice bar, which seems appropriate for a “healthy” soda. My colleague Jordan Myrick liked this a lot, caveat being they thought they would really hate it and were pleasantly surprised.
Cons: The flavor is citrusy, but Ridge Rush doesn’t really taste like Mountain Dew. It’s just not as zippy. Mostly, it’s just very, very sweet in a way that dulls the fun flavor combo. As you drink, you get lemon tea up front (making it very similar to Olipop’s lemon lime soda), a little bit of Mountain Dew in the middle, and then lots and lots of alternative sweeteners on the finish. That cloying sweetness really settles on your tongue. Olipop makes a few compelling dupes, but, personally, I like when the brand goes its own way. I’ll be sticking with Cherry Vanilla and Lemon Ginger.
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!