Vancouver Energy Drink Trip 2019

Hunting Grounds: Vancouver

Arriving at the airport in the afternoon, I encountered my first-ever suitcase-related trouble... With the help of the airport staff, I lost about an hour, but I finally made it to the hotel safely. ε-(´∀｀*)ﾎｯ

This time, I stayed a bit outside of Vancouver, so as soon as I dropped off my luggage, I headed straight to downtown Vancouver for my energy drink hunt. If things went smoothly, I estimated that I could hit about 3-4 stores downtown and finish my hunt within two hours. ((o(´∀｀)o))

The main goal of this trip was to collect the limited design cans that hadn't yet been released during my summer visit, as well as the new designs that came out in late 2018. I also planned to check out any minor design updates.

First stop: a store with a massive stockpile. They had nearly every major energy drink brand in stock! I immediately secured all available Rockstar Destiny 2 Forsaken cans. Once I arrived, I realized that the Monster Energy BO4 cans, which hadn’t been released during my summer visit, were now available. I made sure to grab them this time. (●´ω｀●)

At 7-Eleven, I found Killer Blue Razz from the Revolt series still on the shelves. I wasn’t sure if it was a limited-time release or an exclusive to certain stores. So far, I had only seen it at 7-Eleven.

The Tattoo cans were haphazardly piled up, and their stock had noticeably decreased compared to last summer. The transition to 710ml Big Star versions for both the Original and Punch flavors was well underway.

For reference, here’s a photo from the same store’s fridge back in July. The Big Star Original wasn’t stocked yet at that time.

Since downtown Vancouver has a limited number of stores I visit, it’s interesting to compare past and present stock through my photos. While some stores and regions still had Tattoo cans, it’s impressive that they had been on the shelves for nearly three years. That’s quite a long run!

I’m glad I started collecting the different Tattoo can designs from the beginning. ( ´∀｀)bｸﾞｯ!

Rockstar Vodka seemed to have completely lost its momentum. The remaining stock was tucked away in the back... a sad sight (-_-;)
In some stores, I still saw them stacked near the register, but the variety of flavors had definitely diminished. I think VENOM Vodka was discontinued in 2017 as well.

Failed to Complete the Rockstar Destiny 2 Forsaken Collection...

After checking around downtown and nearby areas, I confirmed that there were 8 standard designs and 2 additional designs of the Destiny 2 Forsaken cans available in the western region, totaling 10 variations.

No single store had a full set in stock, but by visiting multiple locations, I was gradually able to collect more. Since it had been nearly six months since their release, I was a bit worried, but I carefully checked what I had already bought and what I still needed before adding them to my basket.

However, despite visiting numerous stores, the BURNER variant had already switched to the normal design. Had it been phased out? Or was the initial stock just limited? Most likely the latter. I immediately realized this was a bad sign.

On the first day of hunting, I couldn’t find either of the BURNER designs. However, while shopping at a mall a few days later, I randomly spotted one! It was overpriced at over $4, but I had no choice but to buy it.

Now, I was down to just one more can to complete the set, so I went all in on the hunt! But no matter how many stores I visited, the BURNER variant was always the normal one... (´・ω・｀)

At this store, I spotted a BURNER can lying in the back, but it was the same design I had just purchased. In the end, I couldn’t complete the collection on this trip. Ironically, they still had the long-discontinued Sparkling variant in stock, but no BURNER cans. What a bizarre sight! This kind of unexpected discovery is part of what makes energy drink hunting so exciting.

After doing some research during my stay in Canada, I found out that another region still had plenty of the Destiny 2 Forsaken BURNER cans, so I asked a friend to send them to me. (^_^;)

The regional and seasonal differences in stock availability make energy drink traveling so much fun. I already have plans to visit Canada again this year, and I’m looking forward to exploring a different region and discovering what’s new. ((o(´∀｀)o))