BCAAs are one of the most important supplements you can use. They are directly involved in the process of muscle growth. That’s not all they do, either.
Yet, no matter how many benefits a powdered supplement has, it has to taste good. Many BCAA powders offer amazing flavors that taste sensational.
This guide will review the best tasting BCAAs on the market right now. Let’s get going!
In a Hurry? Here is our top pick:
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Best Tasting BCAAs
- Scivation Xtend Original BCAAs – Best Overall
- 5% Nutrition All Day You May – Best Tasting Southern Sweet Tea
- Mutant BCAA 9.7 – Best Tasting Lemonade
- Muscle Pharm Essentials BCAA Powder – Best Tasting Blue Raspberry
- Bucked Up RACKED™ BCAAs – Best Tasting Pina Colada
- NutraBio BCAA Natural – Best All Natural Flavors
- Nutricost BCAA for Women – Best Tasting BCAAs For Women
- ANS Performance Quench BCAA – Best Tasting Fruit Gummy
- Evlution Nutrition BCAA Energy – Best Tasting Lemon Lime
- Myokem mTOR Pro – Best Fruit Punch Flavor
Reviews – The Best Tasting BCAAs
Scivation Xtend Original BCAAs – Best Overall
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Scivation Xtend is one of the original new era of BCAA supplements. Its true BCAAs have been around for many decades. Yet it was the popularity of protein synthesis that brought BCAAs into the spotlight.
Scivation Xtend was one of the first to capitalize on this. One serving provides 7g BCAAs. This product also contains glutamine, electrolytes, and glutamine. The key, of course, is the BCAAs. Xtend is available in quite a few flavors. There are 17 altogether. Standouts include Freedom Ice and Tropic Thunder. There’s a flavor for everybody.
PROS
- One Of The Original BCAA Supplements
- Features 17 Flavors – Including Several That Are Exclusive
- Provides 7g BCAAs
CONS
- Contains Artificial Ingredients
5% Nutrition All Day You May – Best Tasting Southern Sweet Tea
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Here’s a comprehensive BCAA drink that has the best tasting Southern Sweet Tea flavor available. Rich Piana 5% Nutrition All Day You May is the flagship product of the 5% line. This product is much more than BCAAs. It includes the other EAAs and CEAAs (Conditionally Essential Amino Acids).
There’s also a joint blend, an acid buffer blend, and an amino support blend. This is a drink that you can consume throughout the day. There are other flavors, and they all taste good.
Yet, the Southern Sweet Tea will take you back. Imagine sitting on your grandmother’s porch on a hot day with a glass of refreshing Sweet Tea.
That’s how good this flavor is. Finally, there is a caffeinated version of this product. That means you can start your day with delicious, caffeinated Southern Sweet Tea.
PROS
- Contains 6g BCAAs
- Includes EAAs And CEAAs
- Available In 7 Flavors
CONS
- Contains Artificial Ingredients
Mutant BCAA 9.7 – Best Tasting Lemonade
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Mutant BCAA 9.7 is available in six delicious flavors. Some of them are Pineapple Passion, Tropical Mango, and Watermelon. The best of these is the Roadside Lemonade. One sip of this, and you’ll think you’re drinking delicious homemade lemonade.
Mutant 9.7 contains 7.2g BCAAs and 2.5g additional amino acids. This product is sugar free and vegan-friendly. Finally, there’s also a caffeinated version available.
PROS
- Features 7.2g BCAAs And 9.7g Total Amino Acids
- Delicious Roadside Lemonade Flavor
- Sugar-Free
CONS
- Contains Artificial Ingredients
Muscle Pharm Essentials BCAA Powder – Best Tasting Blue Raspberry
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Here’s our pick for the best tasting Blue Raspberry BCAA powder. Muscle Pharm Essentials BCAA Powder is available in other great tasting flavors as well. These include Watermelon, Fruit Punch, Lemon Lime, and Unflavored. The advantage of Unflavored is that you can flavor it any way you like. Yet, who can say no to Blue Raspberry?
This formula provides 6g BCAAs. There are no other ingredients. This is a simple formula, yet provides an excellent dose of BCAAs. Yet, you may be looking for a formula with more ingredients. If so, bear that in mind as you consider the options in this guide. Finally, this product uses natural flavoring.
PROS
- Provides 6g Of BCAAs
- Available In Several delicious Flavors – Including Delicious Blue Raspberry
- There’s No Artificial Flavorings
CONS
- The Formula May Be Too Limited For Some Users
Bucked Up RACKED™ BCAAs – Best Tasting Pina Colada
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How does a refreshing Pina Colada sound? If that’s a taste you enjoy, Bucked Up RACKED BCAA Racked has the best. Some cheaper, poor-tasting BCAA products use duck feathers or hair as a BCAA source.
Who wants that? Bucked Up RACKED uses fruit. This means there’s no need to mask or hide the natural flavors. This approach enhances the Pina Colada taste.
RACKED contains 4g BCAAs, plus electrolytes, carnitine, and taurine. There’s also absorption-enhancing Bioperine black pepper.
PROS
- Great-Tasting Pina Colada Flavor
- Contains 4g BCAAs
- Includes Electrolytes And Other Performance Ingredients
CONS
- Contains Artificial Ingredients
NutraBio BCAA Natural – Best All Natural Flavors
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When it comes to quality, this is an unparalleled BCAA powder. NutraBio BCAA Natural contains zero artificial ingredients. As always, this product has an extreme open-label. It lists the grams and milligrams right down to the flavors, sweeteners, and coloring. In fact, this product contains 1.2g of natural flavoring.
BCAA Natural only has a few flavors. Still, NutraBio has several great-tasting powders. BCAAs powders are most often available in fruity flavors. Here, we have Strawberry Lemonade, regular Lemonade, and Sun Tea. There’s also an unflavored version. That means you can flavor it a different way every time you drink it.
PROS
- All-Natural Formula
- Features An Open-Label Right Down To The Flavoring And Sweeteners
- Provides 5g Of BCAAs
CONS
- While This Product Tastes Good, It Could Use More Flavors
Nutricost BCAA for Women – Best Tasting BCAAs For Women
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Here’s a great-tasting BCAA powder made exclusively for women. Nutricost BCAA For Women provides 6g BCAAs. There’s also hyaluronic acid, rose hips, biotin, and calcium. This BCAA powder is good for hair, skin, and nails.
Of course, it provides all the benefits BCAAs have to offer. It’s sugar free, and there are five flavors. These include Grape, Green Apple, and Peach Mango.
PROS
- Exclusively Designed For Women
- Provides 6g BCAAs
- There Are Five Fruity Flavors Available
CONS
- Contains Sugar
ANS Performance Quench BCAA – Best Tasting Fruit Gummy
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Sour Gummies are a popular candy and a popular supplement flavor. ANS Performance Quench BCAA features Superfruit Splash, a delicious gummy flavor. If you enjoy the sour taste of gummies, you’ll love this powder.
There are 7.2g BCAAs, plus glutamine, taurine, and electrolytes. ANS Performance Quench BCAAs use natural flavoring. It is sugar-free. There are other fruity flavors available. Superfruit Splash is a standout gummy flavor..
PROS
- 7.2g Of BCAAs
- Sensational Superfruit Splash Flavor
- Natural Flavoring – Zero Sugar
CONS
- Contains Sucralose
Evlution Nutrition BCAA Energy – Best Tasting Lemon Lime
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Evlution Nutrition BCAA Energy is a caffeinated BCAA drink. There’s 110mg total caffeine per serving. It’s available in 12 fruit and other flavors. The standout flavor is classic Lemon Lime. This is an exceptional flavor. Other exceptional flavors include Cherry Limeade, Pink Starblast, and Orange.
BCAA Energy provides 5g of total BCAAs, plus other supporting nutrients. Yet, these additional ingredients are under-dosed. Still, there’s no sugar, and it uses natural flavoring. Finally, the caffeine sources are all-natural.
PROS
- Delicious Lemon Lime Flavor
- There Are 12 Total Flavors, Including Cherry Limeade
- Contains Caffeine
CONS
- Contains Several Under-dosed Support Ingredients
Myokem mTOR Pro – Best Fruit Punch Flavor
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This is a delicious fruit punch-flavored BCAA drink. It’s also unique from every other product in this guide. Myokem mTOR Pro provides 5g BCAAs. There’s also the other EAAs, and 3g of Active TR (Time Released) Leucine. Further in this guide, we will look at the role of BCAAs and protein synthesis. This product is important because it promotes continual protein synthesis stimulation. It will do this for several hours after you drink it.
This is a BCAA that is exceptional not only for its formula. The Fruit Punch flavor tastes absolutely delicious. Mix it with some ice for a cold drink that would taste great on a hot summer day. No matter the time of year, this is a refreshing favor you can enjoy anytime.
PROS
- Exceptional Fruit Punch Flavor
- Features A One-Of-A-Kind Formula – Contains Time Released Leucine
- Also Contains 5g BCAAs
CONS
- Contains Sucralose
Buying Guide – How To Choose The Best BCAAs?
What Are BCAAs
Protein consists of amino acids. There are twenty-two. The body makes all but nine of them. These nine are essential amino acids. That means they need to come from your diet and from supplements. Of the nine, three of them are BCAAs: leucine, isoleucine, and valine.
It should be noted that there are also conditionally essential amino acids. These are aminos the body can make. Yet under certain conditions, seven of these may need to come from diet and supplements. What are the conditions that make these conditionally essential? Illness, physical stress, elderly individuals, and infants. (1,2, 3)
BCAAs And Protein Synthesis
BCAAs have many benefits. Yet the most important is their role in protein synthesis stimulation. The relationship between BCAAs and protein synthesis is a somewhat recent sports nutrition development. Currently, it’s believed that all the EAAs are important for protein synthesis.
The BCAAs, especially leucine, stimulate protein synthesis. To be clear, protein synthesis is a direct trigger of muscle growth. There are more factors involved in the process, but BCAAs (and EAAs) are critical.
Of the three BCAAs, Leucine has the most impact on protein synthesis. It’s the most important amino acid in terms of muscle growth.
(1, 2).
BCAAs, Protein Synthesis, And Mechanism Of Action
The mTOR Pathway is a signaling mechanism. One of its functions is to stimulate protein synthesis. mTOR reacts to leucine levels in the body. As leucine levels decline, signals tell mTOR that there’s not enough protein in the body. This means new muscle protein won’t be synthesized. It also means that protein synthesis turns off. This happens within 2-3 hours after protein ingestion.
As soon as you take in more BCAAs, amino acid levels elevate. This means mTOR is signaled that there is now enough protein in the body. As a result, protein synthesis turns on again.
Let’s recap. BCAAs come from food, BCAA supplements, and protein supplements. They trigger mTOR to activate protein synthesis. Unless your protein intake is well timed, protein synthesis will turn off. If you’re interested in muscle growth, you don’t want this to happen. What’s the bottom line? You need to make sure you’re ingesting adequate protein in all forms. Plus, you should be ingesting throughout the day. (2)
Additional BCAA Benefits
What else do BCAAs do? Here’s a list of benefits besides protein synthesis stimulation:
- Support Post-Workout Recovery And Ease Muscle Soreness
- Prevents Muscle Protein Breakdown
- Supports Fat Loss By Preserving Muscle Mass – Maintaining Muscle Burns Calories
- Improves Immune System Function (4)
What Is The Suggested Dose Of BCAAs?
The typical dose of BCAAs ranges from 2.5g to as high as 10g. Some studies have used higher amounts. For example, ANS Performance Quench BCAA provides 7.2g BCAAs. When considering the best tasting BCAAs, look for at least 4g leucine. That’s a good middle-ground amount.
Most BCAA formulas will advertise their ratio of leucine to isoleucine and valine. The standard ratio is 2:1:1. This means there’s twice as much leucine as the other two. Some aminos will use ratios such as 10:1:1, or 8:1:1. There’s no research supporting anything other than the standard 2:1:1 ratio. (5, 6)
BCAAs And Flavors
We’ve seen that BCAAs are an important supplement. Their benefits make them a cornerstone product. It goes without saying that they need to taste good. Flavoring has dramatically improved in recent years. Most current BCAA powders taste amazing. Plus, they offer a wide range of flavors. This includes the “standard” fruity flavors, such as orange, fruit punch, lime, and so on.
There are also more “exotic” flavors, such as Pina Colada, Hawaiian Ice, Sour Gummies, and Sweet Tea. Some products have flavors such as Snow Cone. For example, Scivation Xtend comes in 17 flavors. Evlution Nutrition BCAA Energy offers 12 flavors, with several unique choices. There’s no doubt you can find a BCAA that’s right for you.
Most BCAAs are sugar-free. Some, like NutraBio BCAA Natural, use natural sweeteners and flavorings. Read the label before using it.
How To Get The Best Taste
Despite the flavor choices, how can you get the most out of your BCAA drink?
Here are some tips:
- Mix It In Lukewarm Water – Using warm water will allow your BCAA powder to dissolve completely.
- Drink It As Cold As Possible – Once mixed, add ice.
- Use Enough Water – Use 8-10oz water for the best flavor.
- Add Flavoring – What if you don’t like your BCAA? You can add fruit juice, yogurt, or Crystal Light to spice up the flavor.
How To Use The Best Tasting BCAAs
As noted, make sure you have read the nutrient panel before buying. Read all directions before using. Mix as suggested in the tips above. You can also add your BCAA to your pre-workout or protein powder. The best time to take a BCAA is before, during, and after a workout. Is your protein powder low in BCAAs? Add a scoop every time you drink a protein shake.
Conclusion
Scivation Xtend Original BCAAs feature 17 amazing flavors. Some of the best tasting flavors include Freedom Ice, Watermelon Explosion, Blue Raspberry Ice, and Tropic Thunder.
Do you want a BCAA that tastes great and extends protein synthesis? Then Myokem mTOR Pro is the ideal choice. This formula features timed released leucine. This means protein synthesis stimulation is extended for several hours. There’s also a delicious Fruit Punch flavor.
Finally, do you want a mouthwatering Southern Sweet Tea drink? 5% Nutrition All Day You May is the option for you. It’s available in Southern Sweet Tea and other delicious flavors. Plus, you can also get it regular or caffeinated.
BCAAs are a foundation supplement. Of course, it needs to taste great. Use our guide to find the flavors you like the most.
References:
- https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324229.php
- Wolfe RR; “Effects of amino acid intake on anabolic processes”; Can J Appl Physiol. 2001; 26 Suppl:S220-7; Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11897897
- Wolfe, RR; “Branched-chain amino acids and muscle protein synthesis in humans: myth or reality?”; J Int Soc Sports Nutr; 14(1):30; 2017; Retrieved from https://jissn.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12970-017-0184-9
- Kephart, W.C., Wachs, T.D., Mac Thompson, R. et al. Ten weeks of branched-chain amino acid supplementation improves select performance and immunological variables in trained cyclists. Amino Acids 48, 779–789 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00726-015-2125-8
- Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) – Scientific Review on Benefits, Dosage, Side Effects | Examine.com
- Leucine Supplement — Health Benefits, Dosage, Side Effects | Examine.com
