When I was a kid, my parents were very careful about my caffeine intake. I was fairly hyperactive under the best of circumstances, so adding a stimulant to the mix was not a good idea. I wasn’t allowed to have coffee flavored ice cream. If I begged and pleaded to have some Coca-Cola because my cousins were drinking it, my mom would sneak off and water it down so I wouldn’t be too high-energy. And yet, for some reason, the fact that Mountain Dew (as it was then called) had a tremendous amount of caffeine completely eluded them. So I’d be bouncing off the wall after a friend’s birthday party or trip to a mall food court and my parents would have no idea why. Eventually they got wise, but by then it was too late. Mountain Dew had made a fan for life.
And for those of us who do the Dew, there is perhaps no Mtn Dew flavor more sacrosanct than Mtn Dew Baja Blast, originally sold exclusively at Taco Bell. If you’ve never tasted this particularly delicious beverage—or even if you have—you might be wondering, “What flavor is Baja Blast?” In short, it is classic Mtn Dew mixed with lime flavor. To get more granular, the ingredients list is “Carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, citric acid, natural and artificial flavor, caffeine, sodium benzoate (P), sodium citrate, gum arabic, calcium disodium EDTA (PF), yellow #5, blue #1.” Or, to put it in PepsiCo adspeak, “The exhilarating taste of DEW combined with a blast of tropical lime.”
Since it first appeared on the scene in 2004, Baja Blast has exploded in popularity. Now, Taco Bell knows a good thing when they’ve got it (see also their Doritos Locos tacos) so they’ve expanded to a number of different Baja Blast flavors and varieties. These include the citrus punch-flavored Sangrita Blast, Mango Gem, and pineapple-flavored Caribbean Splash, plus a frozen slushy variety and an alcoholic version. And while there may be nothing that pairs more perfectly with a Baja Blast than a Crunch Wrap or a cheesy bean and rice burrito, if you’re averse to going to Taco Bell for some strange reason or there’s just not one in your area, PepsiCo frequently brings Baja Blast to store shelves during the summer. So keep on the look out!
Finally, if you need some Baja Blast right this single second and want to make your own version, the folks at the bizarre nightmare factory that is WikiHow have obliged with a recipe that simply involves mixing regular Mtn Dew with blue Gatorade. I haven’t personally tried this concoction so I can’t speak to its accuracy. And if you want to get particularly hedonistic, they also have a recipe for a Baja Blast flavored ice cream. I likewise cannot speak to this delicacy’s flavor profile, though I have a hunch it’s rather gross. Prove me wrong, readers!
Now that you know everything about this Mtn Dew variety, go out there and have a Baja Blast!
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