During-effort fuel · gel · reviewed 28 Aug 2026
UnTapped Coffee 43
The same single-source Vermont maple syrup as UnTapped's plain Maple gel, with 27 mg of caffeine from real coffee added at essentially the same $0.086-a-gram price as the non-caffeinated version.
Score breakdown
The overall score is the average of what's below, each measured against every other gel we've reviewed.
43
Mixed
Based on 4 of 5 measures ?A dimension a product doesn't declare is left out of its average rather than counted against it -- so this score reflects fewer measures than a product with a full panel.
Carb density ?How much fuel one sachet carries. 90 g is the ceiling here, matching the top of the range cited for multi-transportable-carb intake.29
Sodium ?Sodium carried by the gel itself, on a scale topping out at 1000 mg — the upper end of what's typically lost to sweat in an hour.1
Value (cost/gram) ?Price of one gram of carbohydrate. Not physiological -- a market-based scale from $0.15/g (0) to $0.02/g (100).49
Gut comfort ?A proxy, not a taste or tolerance test: shorter ingredient lists score higher, from 15 ingredients (0) to 1 (100). Nobody has actually run these through anyone's gut for this score.93
Cost per gram of carbohydrate
$0.087/g
Glucose : fructose · not disclosed
n/d
Comparison
6 of 22 gels heldPrices per single sachet at the cheapest box size we track. Best in green, worst in red, across the gels shown.
| Measure | UnTapped UnTapped Coffee | Maurten Maurten Gel 100 | Science in Sport SiS Beta Fuel Gel | Precision Fuel & Hydration Precision Fuel PF 30 Gel | NEVERSECOND NEVERSECOND C30 Gel | GU Energy Labs GU Original Energy Gel |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CarbohydrateHow much fuel one sachet carries. | 26 g | 25 g | 40 g | 30 g | 30 g | 22 g |
| Glucose : fructoseGoverns how fast you absorb it. More fructose, higher ceiling. | n/d | 1 : 0.8 | 1 : 0.77 | 1 : 0.5 | 1 : 0.5 | ~ 1 : 0.47 |
| SodiumAgainst 400 to 1000 mg an hour typically lost in sweat. | 11 mg | 20 mg | 30 mg | not declared | 200 mg | 60 mg |
| CaffeineA preference, not a quality, so it is not scored. | 27 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg |
| ProvenanceWhether that ratio is read off the panel, computed from it, or inferred. | Not disclosed | Stated | Derived | Stated | Stated | Estimated |
| Price per sachetWhat one costs. Not comparable across sachet sizes. | $2.25 | $3.75 | $2.50 | $3.12 | $3.50 | $2.00 |
| Cost per gramThe only price that compares across sachet sizes. | $0.087 | $0.150 | $0.063 | $0.104 | $0.117 | $0.091 |
| Sachets for 90 g/hrHow many you open an hour to hold a 90 g/hr target. | 3.5 | 3.6 | 2.3 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.1 |
Verdict
what it does · what it costsWhat it does well
- Two-ingredient label — organic Vermont maple syrup and coffee — carrying 27 mg of caffeine from a real source rather than an isolate.
- $0.086 a gram of carbohydrate, matching UnTapped's own non-caffeinated Maple gel almost exactly.
- 11 mg of sodium, a small but real step up from the plain Maple gel's 5 mg.
What it costs you
- No glucose-to-fructose ratio: maple syrup's sugar profile isn't a controlled blend.
- 27 mg of caffeine is fixed into every sachet; there's no non-caffeinated version of this specific flavor.
- 25 g of sugars out of 26 g total carbohydrate is essentially all simple sugar, with nothing metered by a slower-digesting carb source.
Where to buy
Prices and links as last checked.
Who this is for
the numbers, appliedThe field tells you what it is. This is who should act on it.
Worth the money if
- You want caffeine from real coffee rather than an extract, at no price premium over the plain gel.
- You like UnTapped's short-ingredient approach and want a jump-start flavor for early starts.
Look elsewhere if
- You're caffeine-sensitive or racing late in the day.
- You want a declared, verifiable absorption ratio.