We Tasted And Ranked 14 Mountain Dew Flavors

I'm a big fan of the flavor of Mountain Dew. Always have been, always will be. So I jumped at the opportunity to taste as many flavors as I could for an ultimate ranking. It's likely that you love Mountain Dew, too, or at least like it a little bit ... or you wouldn't be here. After driving all over town to gather the goods, I sat down to live out my childhood dream of tasting more than a dozen sodas. 

Now, I didn't just randomly throw these flavors in an order. Although if you disagree with some of my assessments, it might feel that way. Instead, I chose to rank the flavors on initial taste, smell, and aftertaste. I used the general availability of the flavor as a tiebreaker, where needed. You can read more about how I ranked the sodas at the end of the article. I sampled old favorites, seasonal options, and might have even found a flavor or two to add to my regular rotation. These flavors, as the old Mountain Dew tagline went, tickled my innards. Where does your favorite flavor end up on the list?

Spark lives up to its name because it has a strong, sharp flavor. Just not in a good way. I was initially excited to try this flavor because of the light pink color showing through the bottle. Meant to be a raspberry lemonade, this soda appeared similar in hue and texture to Country Time lemonade, a childhood favorite. When I opened the bottle, my excitement grew because it smelled fantastic, just like a raspberry lemonade you might get at the Olive Garden. However, all of this excitement died away upon my first sip. Unfortunately, it seems like Mountain Dew put all the effort into the color and smell for this one, but saved nothing for the taste.

When I first took a gulp, it tasted okay. However, I didn't even have to wait for an aftertaste to kick in before my mouth was overwhelmed with a strong taste of medicine. It's a bit like cherry Nyquil, or similar. The flavor is too artificial to be enjoyed. It is one of the strongest medicinal tastes of all the flavors I tried. It was also difficult to find this flavor in stores. So, I can't rank it highly.

This soda hardly tastes like anything. I scoured the bottle for information on what it might taste like, but couldn't find it listed. Rumors on the Internet say it's a cool melon flavor, kind of like a blue Powerade wannabe with fizz. However, I couldn't really taste that. It didn't taste bad, per se, just kind of like nothing. I was disappointed as I liked the bold blue color and assumed the taste would match, perhaps like the blue Icees you get at the movies. Unfortunately, it fell very short. It's flat. It's generic. Frost Bite is a total flop.

Yet the reason it doesn't rank dead last is because, while it wasn't great, it wasn't bad either. As mentioned, the flavor is so hard to place that I was so focused on trying to figure it out that I didn't notice an aftertaste or anything. None showed up on the second sip, either. While it was easy to find Frost Bite at many different locations, in both bottle and can form, I wouldn't try it again.

I was excited to try Diet Mountain Dew because, through all my years as a Dew enthusiast, I had never tried this flavor. Things started off well when I opened the bottle, as it smelled fantastic. It had a bright and lemony zest, just like the original. The taste was bold and sweet, too, which I liked. At first sip, it seemed a lot like the original option. It was also easy to find, as every location that sold Mountain Dew had diet, too in many different sizes. 

However, the aftertaste was where things began to fall apart. It had a delayed onset, but it was too bitter for my liking. I find that this is often the case for zero sugar options and diet options, and Diet Mountain Dew was no different. While the initial flavor was OK, the aftertaste wasn't great. However, as it's a good sugar-free option for the original, I still give it a place in the middle. 

This flavor of Mountain Dew really lives up to its name. When I think of blue raspberry things, I think of airheads, ring pops, and slushies, and when I opened the bottle, the smell of Blue Raspberry AirHead came pouring out at me. I also thought the drink tasted like a liquid piece of candy. That might be too sweet for some people, but Mountain Dew has definitely nailed the flavor here because it tastes so familiar. There's a touch of citrus to taste, as per the label, but it's not very strong. Instead, any non-blue raspberry flavor is taken over by a kind of cotton candy aftertaste.

I liked this aspect, as many of the other flavors had aftertastes so bad I felt like I needed to wash them down. Unfortunately, as good as it tastes, this flavor is very hard to come by. It was only available at 7-Eleven in bottle form and absent from every other convenience and grocery store. Because of its unavailability, I chose to put other easier-to-find flavors above it.

This flavor was such a nice surprise. I was impressed with how well Mountain Dew incorporated the watermelon flavoring into the drink. When I first cracked open the can, the sweet smell hit me immediately, even when it was on the counter and not even near my face yet. It doesn't smell like a real watermelon, but rather the sour watermelon candies from Trolli. Yet when I drank it, it didn't have the intense, pucker-your-lips flavor to match the aroma. Instead, it was more subtle. Kind of like I was drinking sparkling water with a hint of watermelon and not a sugary soda.

I also liked its vibrant pinkish-red color. Because it was so subtle, I felt like the flavor had hints of bubblegum or strawberry to it. The lighter taste also meant there was no aftertaste to contend with, which I considered a plus. Yet it was a little difficult to find this option in bottles. Most locations only sold it by the can. So I rank it high and suggest you try it, but only if you can get your hands on some.

This ranking challenge was the first time I had ever tried Code Red Mountain Dew and now I have a new flavor to add to my rotation of faves. When I first opened the bottle, I was overwhelmed by the powerful cherry scent. It was like opening a jar of maraschino cherries for dessert. The taste was also very strong and sweet, which I liked. It kind of reminded me of one of my favorites from Sonic, a Cherry Limeade.

While many people might be understandably wary of a cherry soda because of childhood cough syrup associations, Code Red is nothing like that. While it does have a sticky, candied cherry taste it's not bitter or sharp like you get from medicine. The aftertaste is also pleasant, which I was relieved by. It stays sweet, almost bubble-gummy, and never morphs into something you would be eager to get rid of. It was also easy to find in both cans and bottles in every store I went to. So, it was easy to rank it in my top three.

There's just something about the classic flavor of Mountain Dew. Any fans will know just what I mean. When I first opened the bottle, the smell of lemon was very strong. It hit me right in the face. The drink was also very bubbly and crisp. A pop of carbonation even came out and bopped me on the nose. Upon first sip, I noticed how smooth and even the lemon flavor was. While it didn't taste anything like a natural lemon (or lemonade), I don't think anyone really expects that from a manufactured soda, anyway.

Instead, classic Mountain Dew has a sweeter candied taste, kind of like a lemon drop. It's consistently delicious. The aftertaste of this flavor is also good. I didn't think it changed much from the flavor of the original sip. Some of the other flavors had aftertastes which were bitter or medicinal, but the classic flavor tasted the same while drinking and in between sips, too. This was important to me because it made drinking it a better experience overall. Mountain Dew is also easily available as the original flavor. Every store I stopped by had it in cans and small bottles, as well as in 2-liter size. Because of this, it's no surprise that it comes out on top.