Review: Untapped Recovery Drink Mix

Founded in 2013, Untapped portable maple products hit the market in 2015 as a natural alternative for synthetic before and during endurance gels. For the past ten years, Untapped has expanded to include maple-based products to include maple-infused “gels” and drink mixes. (Gel is not a term used by Untapped, but it is categorized as a gel. Untapped maple products are maple syrup and organic ingredients.) Needless to say, Untapped’s endurance fuel ended right as the athlete did - the finish line. This past week, Untapped has changed that with its release of Recovery Drink Mix. Now maple-powered athletes can fuel before, during, and after major workouts and events with the natural power of maple.

For the past few months, we have been testing out Untapped’s Recovery Drink Mix. With a variation of indoor training sessions, outdoor rides, and a number of long major events, the Recovery Drink Mix has been leaned on heavily. Think of that moment after a hard workout: it’s often difficult to get something down, but studies show the thirty-minute window after working out is crucial to refueling. It is this window that athletes deviate. The belief of, “I can eat whatever I want,” could actually undo much of the workout. At the very least, it can set up for a suboptimal next-day workout. Studies show a mix of carbohydrates and protein and essential in that post-workout window. That is exactly what Untapped Recovery Drink Mix is packed with.

Untapped offers three varieties of recovery drink: maple, cocoa, and strawberry. All three are also available in a vegan variety, which will be discussed later. The three standard varieties pack natural ingredients including: maple sugar, whole milk (powder), egg whites (powder), and sea salt for the magical 3:1 carb-to-protein ratio. Maple delivers those crucial 34 grams of carbohydrates while whole milk and egg whites deliver 11 grams of protein for muscle repair and rebuilding. Amino acids and key electrolytes further the restoration process, setting the athlete up for an optimal second workout. Per the packaging, Recovery Mix comes with eight servings, though we found more than that in each tub. 

Refreshingly, Untapped also offers vegan options as well. Instead of dairy, Recovery Mix showcases oat milk, while using hemp heart protein for muscle tissue repair and reducing inflammation. The vegan variety packs more carbohydrates - 37 grams compared to the standard Recovery variety - with a little less protein at nine grams to achieve an astounding 4:1 carb-to-protein ratio. The vegan variety specifically features a whopping daily value of manganese at 45%, a key part of the recovery phase. 

Per Untapped’s recommendations, two scoops are all that is needed to add to water. A drink frother can be helpful, but a standard bottle with a mixer ball will work fine. Sometimes part of the recovery is simplicity, and making a recovery drink in under one minute adds to the likeliness of athletes using recovery fuel. What’s even easier is the drink mix being clump-free, a happy stress-free way to start refueling.

So the mix is loaded with natural ingredients. How does it taste? I have to be honest, Untapped Recovery Drink Mix is remarkably delicious that I continued to think about consuming the Cocoa recovery as a standard drink. For the standard varieties, the cocoa was the out-and-out favorite because of my obsession for chocolate milk. The strawberry mix tasted like a fresh batch of strawberries. The maple tasted like the flagship ingredient Untapped is known for. Honestly I would recommend all of them. Moving over to the vegan variety, and there, too, the taste was refreshing. Think the standard flavors but with the added pillowy presence of oats. Not being a vegan, I also looked forward to vegan maple Untapped, which I had the most of. Abnormal for me, I followed up every single workout with Untapped Recovery, a testament to how much I enjoyed these mixes.

There is a reason why Untapped is featured on the website often. The natural ingredients encourage regular consumption. Gone are the side effects of flavor burnout of gels and bloating of post workout mixes. As I get older, nutrition has become a mild obsession. Untapped has made fueling for workouts easy. Now they’ve made recovery easy, too. And, as Untapped is known for, they make it perfectly delicious with the power of maple.