Jolt Cola was a beverage originally made by The Jolt Company, Inc., of
Rochester, New York. From the outset, Jolt's marketing strategy centered on the caffeine content, billing the drink as a means to promote wakefulness. The initial slogan was "All the sugar and twice the caffeine." In the summer of 1987, the company began marketing a low calorie version, called Jolt 25, which was sweetened with a mixture of sugar and
NutraSweet (a brand of
aspartame), with 25 calories per can. Jolt Cola later diversified into additional flavors named Cherry Bomb, Citrus Climax, Orange Blast, White Lightning (grape), Red Eye, and Electric Blue. In 2003, the name was licensed to a
Hackensack, New Jersey, company named GumRunners, Inc., which manufactures a line of caffeinated gum and mints bearing the Jolt label and the slogan "Chew More, Do More." The gum came in two flavors: Spearmint and Icy Mint. In 2006, Jolt Cola revamped its product line to Jolt Energy and changed its logo and packaging, called "Jolt battery bottles", resembling the shape of an
AA battery and which make a loud popping sound when opened. The cans were resealable
aluminum bottles, with a body similar to that of a standard aluminum beverage can. The top had a twist-off aluminum cap with a plastic gasket liner. They also offered smaller "Quick Fix"
single-use pull-tab aluminum cans, similar to those used for
Red Bull and "battery cans" ( resealable aluminum cans with the same twist-off top as the battery bottles. The Jolt Cola Web site claimed that the "Quick Fix" sizes were available at establishments serving "adult beverages", for use as a mixer. The flavors of Jolt were changed. Flavors were Cola, Blue Raspberry, Cherry Bomb (cherry cola), Silver (lemon-lime), Wild Grape, Orange Blast, Passionfruit (featuring a yellow can) and Ultra (a diet drink with
Splenda as its
artificial sweetener alongside
guarana,
ginseng,
taurine, and
vitamin B complex). In 2008, the founder of The Jolt Company, C.J. Rapp, sold a controlling interest in the company to Emigrant Capital. In early 2009, the new owners removed Rapp as CEO of The Jolt Company. Later in 2009, the new owners filed for bankruptcy. Rapp and other shareholders had the bankruptcy filings overturned and dismissed from the courts. Rapp and another shareholder sued Emigrant Capital for breach of fiduciary responsibility. After eight years of litigation, Rapp and Emigrant reached undisclosed settlement terms. In August 2017,
Geek.com confirmed that Jolt Cola would return at
Dollar General stores in September 2017. This version of Jolt Cola was produced for ECC Jolt, LLC, a
New York City-based company. Jolt Cola ceased updating its international social media outlets in March 2019. Shortly thereafter, Dollar General stopped selling the product. It is still being manufactured for the domestic market in Australia. In October 2024, the sports supplement company Redcon1 announced an upcoming release of a sugar-free energy drink with Redcon1 and Jolt Cola co-branding. ==Jolt Energy==