Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past year, you can’t failed to have noticed the insurmountable rise of lemon-based hydration and recovery drinks from Eastern European countries (LBHARDEEC). Almost every site is now on back order, with only influencers and pro cyclists able to get their hands on the most in-demand product in cycling.
But don’t just pre-order recklessly. This is an increasingly saturated market, with competitors and clones popping up to cash in on the LBHARDEEC bubble. Here are our top four products in this market, ranked from least to most recommended. Number one will surely be no surprise.
4 – Micgmomc – Mocunoinc
With box art evocative of lazy Tuscan rides, you might be convinced that this is a San Pellegrino of recovery drinks. Rich yet subtle, with an organic lemon flavor, the drink you’re imagining makes you feel classy just for holding it.
Yeah, that’s not what this is. This is a packet of yellow Skittles coarsely ground into a dust with more lumps than the mattress in a Bulgarian AirBnB. Mixed at a ratio of one scoop to 8oz water, this makes an emulsion of sticky syrup and thin, gritty liquid.
Verdict: We’re not sure this is even fit for human consumption
3 – Enindung
Don’t fixate on the ‘dung’ part of the title. There’s no dung involved, at least as best we can tell from trying to decipher the ingredients list. There IS lemon involved, or at least something that Google Translate returns as “lemon-based paste.”
Despite looking and smelling like washing powder, Enindung mixes into a cloudy, lemonade-like drink that almost certainly has no electrolytes. It’s simultaneously bitter and sugary, tasting more like a cocktail mixer than anything you’d want in your water bottle.
Verdict: Add a splash of vodka for a fun Friday night
2 – Piixtionc
Piixtionc are onto something here. As far as we can tell, they share a parent company with Enindung, a fact that’s obvious from the similar box art, and a fact that becomes even more obvious when you open the box and find yourself greeted with an identical washing powdery sight and smell.
Nevertheless, Piuixtionc’s offering actually tastes like a hydration drink. It’s smooth, light, and the lemon taste is a fleeting hint rather than a full-on assault on your tastebuds. We’re three products into our top four, and we’ve only just met the first one that feels fit for purpose.
Verdict: Move over, Science in Sport
1 – MTING
Mting is like nothing you’ve ever experienced. We absolutely guarantee it. This is rapidly becoming the most sought-after hydration product in the cycling world, and for two good reasons. The first is that it actually works, a low bar that half of our list has failed to clear.
Every other product we’ve mentioned has been trying to emulate Mting, which has really led the charge in carving out a new niche industry. But where the pretenders fail is the taste. Mting isn’t lemon flavored. It’s lemon meringue flavored. And it really does taste like drinking a lemon meringue. It is the most bizarre flavor we’ve ever experienced while riding a bike. But you know what? It’s great.
Verdict: Add ‘powered by meringue’ to your Instagram bio, this is your new go-to hydration drink