First Look: Hoppy Trails Energy Gel by GU
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Hoppy Trails Energy Gel—Hops-Flavored GU
Calories: 100
Sugars: 7 grams
Price: $1.50
Weight: 1.1 oz
Best Features: Silky texture, not too sweet, herbaceous flavor.
Room for Improvement: Add a Hoppy Trails option with caffeine?
GU is back at it with another unique flavor to keep your runs interesting. We thought they’d outdone themselves with French Toast, but the latest and greatest means you can have your beer and eat it, too.
While the Hoppy Trails flavor might be meant to satisfy those runners who consider themselves drinkers with a running problem, the flavor is more herbaceous and piney than double IPA. We had mixed feelings in the Trail Runner office about the flavor—some said they would definitely train and race with this flavor; others said they’d stick to French Toast. All agreed that the texture and nutrition information are terrific for energy on the go.
Fat: 0g
Calories: 100
Sodium: 65mg
Carbohydrates: 23g
Sugars: 7g
Calcium: 20mg
Of note, the Hoppy Trails flavor isn’t incredibly sweet which adds points in my book. The flavor was more refreshing on my test run than expected and the lack of saccharine sweetness was very welcome. It washed down easily and left a subtle, natural taste in my mouth, like I had just taken a big bite of a meadow. Maybe they should rename it “Meadow Mouth.” Or maybe I should stick to my day job.
—Megan Janssen is the Associate Editor of Trail Runner magazine.