Hard Ketones Dr. Up Unsweetened (aka NASTY) | 17g Ketohol | 12 Pack, 8.4 Oz Cans

The Ginger Mule taste absolutely nasty. The worst aftertaste I've ever experienced. Ice doesn't help, nor does sugar. The aftertaste hits immediately after having a sip. If you are a die hard health nut, (and I mean hardcover health nut) then maybe the almost $90 is worth it. But you're still not getting around the nasty taste. If this is the price for health, then I'm out. I have 11 cans left. Paper weight I guess. I wish I could give a minus 5. To me, that's how bad this is.

I’ve read a lot of research about the benefits of ketosis for epilepsy, mood disorders, metabolic health, and dementia. Some years back, I helplessly watched a family member's long, losing battle with Alzheimer's. I learned how insulin resistance in the brain leads to neuron starvation, and that the brain would happily accept ketones as an alternate fuel source. I decided that getting ketones into my brain would be a good insurance policy. So, over a few years, I shifted to a keto diet. I found it hard to stay strict enough with my diet to meet my ketone goals. (I had decided, provisionally, that I wanted to keep my ketones above 1.0 mmol/L for a significant part of each day.) But the other issue was alcohol, which I had enjoyed in moderation (mostly :) ) for decades. As I got older, drinking started to ruin my sleep. And anyone will tell you how important good sleep is for brain health and cognitive function. It also interferes with ketosis, because when ethanol is present, the liver gives it priority over making ketones. So about a month ago, I quit alcohol. I was very used to at least having a nightcap every day, so I started looking around for a non-alcoholic substitute, so I could keep that comforting ritual in some form. That's when I ran across some YouTubers trying out some beverages sold under the name “Hard Ketones”. Something that gives you an ethanol-like buzz, but then metabolizes to ketones? A win-win, if true. I had to try it. I went shopping, and found that along with the pre-mixed Pina Coladas and Ginger Mules and such, you could buy a concentrate, little two-ounce bottles containing 17 grams of the magic ketone precursor. I decided I would try that first, so I could mix it to my taste, as well as avoiding ingredients I didn't particularly want, like Stevia and L-theanine. I got a pack of 12 little bottles from Amazon. Billed as "raw & nasty" - now that's truth in marketing. For my first attempt, I emptied one into a glass, and started adding lime juice and ginger juice and taste-testing. They did a good job of masking the raw-and-nasty aspect. I got up to 3 tablespoons of lime and two of ginger, called it good, and topped it off with some allulose and soda water. It was OK. I wouldn't say it was great. And that much lime and ginger made my stomach burn for the rest of the day. However, it did raise my ketone level to 2.5 mmol/L an hour after I drank it, and it was still above 1.0 the next morning. That was significantly better than the levels I had gotten from a past experiment with MCT oil. I figured I would order some of the pre-mixed cocktails, but meanwhile I had 11 more bottles of the concentrate, so I decided to get it nice and cold and see what it was like as-is. (Amusingly, it says right on the box, "WARNING: NASTY TASTE. DO NOT DRINK STRAIGHT-UP!") It wasn't that bad. I quickly figured out that it's the smell that's nasty, more than the taste. If you close your nasal passages and breathe through your mouth, it's kind of appealing, like doing shots of some unfamiliar distilled liquor. I decided to drink one a day. Soon enough, my brain did the same thing it had done in the past with coffee and whiskey, which was to decide that because it liked the effects, it would just tell my taste buds to start liking the taste. Powerful, that. I don't notice any buzz from one bottle. I was curious, so one day, I tried two bottles a few minutes apart. I think it made me slightly relaxed, but that's all, certainly not impaired. There's a YouTube video by the product's inventor about how to troubleshoot a lack of buzz from the product (Hard Ketones, a Buzz Guaranteed? No Buzz? Try this...). I'm not really drinking it for the buzz. However, psychologically, one bottle does a great job of making me feel rewarded in the same way that a beer or glass of wine used to, and on that level it's making my transition off of alcohol easier. It feels like a nice addition to my daily routine. Cost-wise, it comes to about $7 a day at current prices. That feels expensive in normal money; but if you think of it in cocktail dollars (or coffee shop dollars), it's in the acceptable range. And by drinking it daily, I'm continuing my n=1 experiment with exogenous ketones, which so far are making me feel great. I'm glad this product exists and that I found out about it.

EDIT: The company reached out to me, apologized, and sent me their Pina colada drinks to try. Very good customer service and company. The Pina colada flavor is MUCH better and I recommend that one. If this was as cheap as a regular alcoholic drink, it would be just ok as an ethanol replacement. The major problem is, it's obscenely expensive. On top of that, It has a sort of distant rubber taste to it, which might be passable if it was about 5x cheaper, but it's not. In my lot of 12 small bottles, I found a few that had very loose caps and no foil seal on the mouth of the containers. I obviously didn't drink those and it made me a bit worried about the rest. In the end, this product is a complete non-starter and is only "ok" if you're desperate for an ethanol replacement, you have deep pockets, don't care about the rubber flavor, and are ok with the calories.

It really is nasty, but it really does get you buzzed, I honestly like the buzz more than alcohol, no hangover and the buzz is much cleaner, but short lived. Wish they had some sort of spirit, as I do not have to keep sipping a shot, would be much easier to deal with the taste and I would get buzzed much easier, oh well. I like it.

Taste was terrible. Bought the strawberry and it was barely drinkable. Could not drink more than one so no idea if it gives you a buzz. The horrible chemical taste is a complete bar.

I was pleasantly surprised that this did actually give me a buzz. I am fairly steady drinker and so I did not know if this would act in the same way and and give a head buzz and relaxed body, but it did work for me. I had the Unsweetened version and added some lemon seltzer water and about a teaspoon of lemon juice and it tasted just fine. I had two cans on an empty stomach after work. I am not sure why anyone complains about the taste of the Unsweetened version. They are very clear that it has to be doctored to taste. And maybe the buzz does not work for everyone, but it is worth a shot to take a break from the booze and find some better alternatives. The only negative for me is the cost. I have watched the videos on the justification for the cost and do understand the situation. But if they cannot find a way to lower the cost I think this will just stay a fairly niche product. I am hoping they can get it down to a more reasonable price point. I would drink more the lower the price.

The flavor isn't nearly as bad as marketed, much easier to do shots of the "straight liquor" unflavored version of this stuff than it is something like straight vodka. There is a strong gross rubbery taste, but it's tolerable. The real bummer with this stuff is the inclusion of L-theanine... not that there's anything wrong with L-theanine, in fact I love L-theanine, but the problem here is that any perceived buzz or calming effect is probably coming from the L-theanine and not the "ketohol". This makes me feel like its inclusion is to sell the effect as a sort of marketing placebo. I pound two of the "shots" (individual bottles) on an empty stomach and it most definitely doesn't function as a viable alcohol alternative, not for me anyway.

Terrible taste that lingers & did nothing except made me nauseous & No “buzz”… definitely don’t recommend/waste of money.