Review: Review: Torq Energy Gels – Multipack
Generally delicious, mess free and packing a decent sized portion. Everything you want from a gel 9/10
Upon a recent pre-ride trip to Evans cycles I found myself without any gels for that afternoons ride, so not too bothered about what I had I picked up a couple of Torq gels – Strawberry yoghurt and Rhubarb and custard, without really expecting too much from them, because lets be honest it’s a gel and they are not normally anything to write home about!
How wrong I was!
So when a mixed box of Torq gels arrived on my door-step I was obviously pleased to work my way through them, and despite me telling my good lady wife that they would last me all summer I knew secretly that they were destined for my ride across Europe.
With 115 calories per gel in a 45g sachet they are a sensible size to hold, Torq have implemented a little tab on their wrappers to hold the rubbish to the gel sachet – a good idea in principle however I found in practise that I wasn’t as careful as it required and I just pulled the top off as per normal (I then place the tabs under the gripper of my shorts as a reminder later on to see how much i have consumed)
The primary consideration for me when it comes to fuelling on the go is that the flavours work – if it tastes like over boiled spinach I don’t care how good it is for me, I simply won’t eat it.
I’m happy to say that generally the flavours were yummy, actually resembling the label on the wrapper!
- Strawberry Yoghurt – Really tasty 5/5
- Orange and Banana – Ok flavour 3/5
- Rhubarb and Custard – Great! 5/5
- Raspberry Ripple – Again, Yummy 5/5
- Banoffee (with Guarana) – Ok, can see the appeal but not for me 4/5
- Forest Fruits (with Guarana) – the one I didn’t like – I found it a bit too bitter for my palate 1/5
- Black Cherry Yoghurt – Very smooth taste 4/5
Torq say that as part of their refuelling system they take the guesswork out of mid-ride nutrition by recommending 1 bar,1 gel, 1 drink per hour to delver the optimum amount of carbs. These carbs are provided in a 2:1 Maltodextrin:Fructose formulation that Torq say is the optimum mix according to current research.
Does it work? Well the gels taste good, so they were consumed happily, and I felt that the energy they provided helped to keep me going throughout the rides, with no surges in energy and no accompanying crashes afterwards.
The Guarana gels (with 89mg of caffeine) certainly pack a kick, giving a boost to alertness levels and helping to psychologically lift you through the troughs of a longer ride – but obviously be careful with the caffeine side of things as too much certainly isn’t good for you!
At £1.45 per gel individually or £27.40 for a box of 20 they are in the ball park of their competition price-wise. As regards flavours are concerned, they are the best I have experienced so far, with them being actually enjoyable to eat!
It must be said that it’s possible to buy a box of 20 gels with a mixture of flavours, avoiding the risk of buying 19 that won’t be eaten – this seems to me to be a great option to start with and find your favourites!