We Tried the Stranger Things Throwback Gatorade Flavor

Stranger Things is almost over! The show is almost a decade old, but it’s finally time to put Eleven and the gang to bed—after a final season of movie-length episodes. Netflix is really wringing every last brand collaboration they can out of the show; luckily, Wednesday can pick up the slack moving forward. Today, we’re taking a closer look at the Special Stranger Things Edition Gatorade flavor: Citrus Cooler.

Gatorade Citrus Cooler was originally released in the 1980s and discontinued in the mid ‘90s. Now, it returns in not one but two different bottle designs: a retro-inspired “1987” edition and an “Upside Down” edition with a fittingly-upside-down Gatorade logo. That said, there’s only one flavor being released as part of this collaboration. 

Gatorade confirmed to me at this year’s NACS Expo that, despite the different coloring and label designs, both bottle designs contain the same flavor. Before that information was public, I was really hoping the “Upside Down Citrus Cooler” would be a blood orange take on the classic Citrus Cooler formula. Feels like a missed opportunity with all the gory demises in Stranger Things, no?

Returning Gatorade Flavor!

Gatorade Stranger Things Citrus Cooler Thirst Quencher

Target

Pros: This returning Gatorade flavor tastes appropriately classic. According to my research, Citrus Cooler was the first Gatorade flavor ever to get an ambiguous name rather than an exact fruit flavor as a name—this truly started a wave of Crushes, Freezes, and Blasts. For decades, fans have assumed Citrus Cooler was a mixture of the standard Orange and Lemon-Lime formulas; Gatorade actually released a very similar “Lemon-Lime + Orange” flavor earlier this year in their Mashups line. Whatever flavor this is, I’ll be picking up a few more bottles before it goes back into the void.

Cons: Do we really need two different labels for the same flavor? This truly feels like a missed opportunity.

Credit: Liv Averett / Total Wine

Rating:

8.5/10

Sporks

Does this mean Gatorade Citrus Cooler is back for good?

If only. Citrus Cooler, one of the earliest Gatorade flavors, only ever seems to return to shelves in limited edition fashion. The flavor was last available on shelves in 2015 as part of Gatorade’s 50th anniversary celebrations. A few more bottles were produced in 2017 as part of an online-only merch drop to celebrate 25 years of the “Be Like Mike” commercial. Citrus Cooler was chosen because it just so happens to be Michael Jordan’s favorite Gatorade flavor. If you’re like Mike in that regard, you’ll want to stock up on this one while you can.