During the summer, it’s hard to pass up a refreshing drink from America’s Drive-In, Sonic. Their wildly successful Summer of Shakes is back again this year, joined by a new promotion: the Summer of Slushes. With 13 official new flavors, including an optional NERDS® add-in, Sonic’s 25 new slushes have been a hit with most customers.

The new flavors include Polynesian Punch, Cotton Candy, Super Peach Ring, Sour, Miami Sunrise, Atomic Lemon, Blue Raspberry, Banana Taffy, Hazelnut, Cheesecake, Blue Coconut, and NERDS®. To make the other 12 flavors, you can mix NERDS® into any of the slushes. Adding NERDS® candy and flavoring to the slushes puts a good spin on some, but it completely ruins others.

The slushes were put to the test by critical taste buds. Beginning on the tropical end, Polynesian Punch and Miami Sunrise started with a bang. Brightly colored and bursting with citrus flavor, the two slushes defined summer. The familiar tastes of cherry and orange collided with other flavors to create these sensational slushes. The addition of NERDS® almost detracts from the already exceptional drinks.

Sour is in a category all of its own. The slush tasted sour, exactly as expected. Those who like sour candies will probably enjoy this flavorful drink. The NERDS® candy pairs somewhat well, but can become overbearing, with both syrup and candy working to numb the taste buds like a box of Sour Patch Kids. For those who don’t like sour, the slush is a burst of bitter in the worst way possible. It tastes like Sonic took every artificial sour candy they could find then mashed and blended it until liquified.

A surprising favorite is the Atomic Lemon. The slush, expected to be bitter, tastes exactly like frozen lemonade. The slush was very refreshing: slightly tart, but only for a second before the sweet lemony flavor sets in. Sonic did an amazing job achieving a realistic lemon flavor without making it overwhelmingly sour.

Super Peach Ring is a bold slush that tastes the same as it looks. The slush has the flavor of peach candy rings on steroids, with an unnecessary amount of sugar and artificial flavoring. This slush was definitely on the fake side, and a bit too much for most palates.

The menu takes an interesting turn with the addition of Hazelnut and Cheesecake. Hazelnut is loveable for about all of two sips; however, it quickly becomes too much to handle. The initial reaction was, “Wow this is hazelnut in liquid form!” followed by the realization of, “Ugh, this is hazelnut in liquid form.” And that’s the problem. There’s definitely no way to finish anything more than a kid’s size. On the same note, Cheesecake shouldn’t be transformed into slush consistency. The syrup was accurate, if you like to buy cheesecake from a gas station. Cheesecake is definitely a second-class choice. The value of these slushes differs by person, but there was an agreement wholeheartedly that getting NERDS® in either of these is a huge mistake. The syrup and candy combination completely ruined the slush and it tasted like Sonic wasn’t sure what they were doing.

Guaranteed to turn tongues blue are the classic twists, Blue Raspberry and Blue Coconut. While they may come across as boring, these flavors are very enjoyable, and are a great way to cool off during hot summer days. If NERDS® compliment any of the slushes, it would be these. The fruity drinks pair extremely well with the tart NERDS® candy, which escalate the otherwise repetitive flavor.

Cotton Candy and Banana Taffy are two flavors expected to be fabulous, but turned out extreme disappointments.  While collectively accurate in taste, the syrup left them tasting overwhelmingly artificial. After the first sip, they become boring and tactless.

The new slushes were either hit or miss. Not all flavors were Sonic’s best idea, but they definitely tried their hardest, maybe a little too hard at times. The biggest recommendations are the Polynesian Punch and Atomic Lemon above all others. Meanwhile, NERDS® are good for livening up the original flavors, but not much else.