Energy gels put to the test: Maurten Gel 100 and Gel 160 – four ingredients and a premium price

Maurten Gel 100 and Gel 160 They impressed in the test with a short list of ingredients, a neutral taste and packaging that is easy to open. The jelly-like consistency makes the gel an interesting alternative to traditional energy gels. There are a few minor drawbacks, however, such as the lack of a tear-off seal and the high price.

The manufacturer mixes glucose and fructose in a ratio of 1:0.8. This allows you, provided your gut is accustomed to it, to absorb up to around 120 grams of carbohydrates per hour. With a ratio of 2:1, the figure is up to around 90 grams, whilst with pure glucose it is a maximum of 60 grams. Particularly interesting: the manufacturer offers the exact same formula in different sizes. You won’t find anything like this elsewhere on the market.

Neutral composition, high cost

The gels score highly for ingredients (grade 1) and ease of opening. However, the price (scores of 5 and 4 respectively) drags the overall score down. Gel 160 performs better because the price per gramme of carbohydrates is lower than that of Gel 100. Either way, however, Maurten is firmly positioned in the premium segment.

The gel in detail

• Manufacturer: Maurten
• Products: Gel 100 / Gel 160 (same formula)
• Carbohydrates per gel: 25 g / 40 g
• Gel size: 40 g / 65 g
• Ratio: Glucose to fructose ratio: 1:0.8
• Ingredients: Water, glucose, fructose, gelling agents (sodium alginate, gluconic acid, calcium carbonate)
• Flavour: neutral
• Sweetness: medium (2 out of 3)
• Consistency: jelly-like
• Caffeine: No (Gel 100 Caf 100 containing 100 mg of caffeine has not been tested)
• Electrolytes: not declared
• Manufacture: Denmark
• Shelf life on delivery: at least four months
• Price per gel (pack of 12): €3.38 / €4.58 >> available here
• Price per 30 g of carbohydrates: €4.05 / €3.44

Practical, but expensive

Maurten is worth it if a list of ingredients free from preservatives is more important to you than taste and price. Even its rival, Mnstry, costs significantly less at 2.42 euros per 30 grams of carbohydrates. So if you eat a lot of gels, you’ll have to dig deep into your pockets.

Packaging and handling

The gel tube is easy to open; the opening is large. The gel flows at a good to moderate rate, and it empties well. There is no tear-off tab: you have to tear off the top section completely, meaning you end up having to bin two parts. Our tester, Leon, opened the packaging very carefully during the test, which is why the tab remained attached, but the gel flow was significantly poorer.

Flavour and texture

Maurten is only available in a neutral flavour, with a medium level of sweetness. Opinions on the taste range from ‘okay’ to ‘delicious’: ultimately, it’s always a matter of personal taste, of course. The consistency is jelly-like – it’s the only gel in the test with this texture, which feels a bit unusual at first. If you want more flavour, you can mix your own Maurten gel: the Gel Mix 480 comes with flavour sachets (Additions); Sandra found the apple flavour particularly tasty. The Gel Mix Flask costs 15 euros.

Additives

The list of ingredients contains no preservatives, colourings or flavourings. Apart from the gelling agent mentioned, no other additives are listed. This clearly merits a mark of 1.

Caffeine and electrolytes

Gel 100 and Gel 160 Do not contain caffeine; electrolytes are not listed. We have not tested Gel 100 Caf 100, which contains 100 milligrams of caffeine.

Overall mark: Gel 100 = 3.3, Gel 160 = 3.0

• Open: good
• Gel flow: good
• Emptying the remainder: good
• Tear-off protection fitted: no
• The tear-off protection holds: Not applicable
• Packaging and handling: 3.3
• Price: 5 (Gel 100) / 4 (Gel 160)
• Ingredients: 1

How TOUR Energy Gels are tested

Every product is tested in real-world riding conditions: in training, in competition and on long rides.

We rate packaging and ease of use on a scale of 1 to 6 (1 = very good). The key factors are whether the gel can be opened easily with one hand and your teeth (good, average, poor), whether there is a tear-off seal and whether it holds, how easily the gel can be squeezed out of the packet, and whether the contents come out completely.

We rate sweetness and flavour on a scale of 1 (not very sweet) to 3 (sweet) and 1 (very tasty) to 4 (difficult). As both are subjective, we state both test results; these do not count towards the overall mark.

We check the ingredients against the declared list of ingredients and compare the manufacturer’s claims with the label. Additives are assessed. Electrolytes are not included in the rating, as manufacturers use different approaches. For our price comparison, we use the price per gel when purchasing the smallest available multipack, as well as the price per 30 grams of carbohydrates – this allows for a fairer comparison of gels of different sizes and carbohydrate content. However, not all manufacturers offer the same multipack sizes; often, the price per gel decreases as the pack size increases.

The overall mark is based on packaging and ease of use (50 per cent), price (30 per cent) and ingredients (20 per cent).