BY LAUREN CARR AND JOSEPH V. CUSMANO

A&E EDITOR AND SENIOR WRITER

From the drink to the girls and the cars that come with it, there is no doubt that the energy drink Red Bull is a household name among students.

Student ambassadors for Red Bull energy drink are tasked with distributing the beverage for free, not only within the college dormitories but out and about the Manhattan College community as well.

Director of Business and Conference Services Kenneth Waldhof confirmed that Manhattan College has zero affiliation with Red Bull distributing to students on campus and during student events.

“I should note we are restricted somewhat through our exclusive relationship with Pepsi who has energy drinks of their own,” he said.

Regardless of the heightened presence of Red Bull within our community, campus beverages will remain untouched.

“There are no present plans to add to the variety offered today, though I welcome suggestions and requests for such consideration,” Waldhof said.

Red Bull may have been one of the first energy drinks on the market, but it is often not the first choice at MC local bars.

“No, we don’t sell Red Bull here,” An Beal Bocht manager Bronagh Harmon said.

Actually, “We’ve found in the past that when we did [sell] Red Bull, a lot of people were going nuts on it, when it was added to vodka.” With its prime location just next to the Overlook Manor dormitory, An Beal Bocht is one of the most convenient and popular scenes for MC’s 21+ crowd.

Courtney Imperiale, MC alum ‘14 and local bartender at Riverdale City Grill, estimates that only about six or so energy-mixed drinks are ordered throughout the entirety of a college night.

Red Bull just simply isn’t as popular as it was years about 10 years or so ago, Harmon said. “If somebody really wanted one [energy drink/mixer] we’d go across the street and we’d buy a can of Red Bull for them.” But Harmon explains that Red Bull’s presence in the street doesn’t translate to a demand at the bar.

“There’s more of a demand for flavored whiskeys than there is for Red Bull,” she said. When it comes to the college clientele, An Beal Bocht is typically is not serving up Red Bull at all. “We’re always selling Fireball. We can’t keep it on the shelves,” Harmon said.

Despite the lack of demand, Harmon said that the Red Bull girls drop off a few cans “definitely once a week.” Imperiale, too, said that at Riverdale City Grille, “they [Red Bull Girls] have dropped off cases here before and we use them sometimes but we do not go out and buy more once we are out of them.”

In fact, daytime bartender John Kitson confirmed the ‘on the gun’ [on tap] energy drink served at Fenwick’s Bar & Grill isn’t Red Bull. It is actually a similar product named Dragon Energy Drink.

Still, Kitson is more than aware of the increasing community presence and frequent, free distribution of Red Bull products.

“They’ve [the Red Bull girls] dropped it [Red Bull] off to me probably within the last month and a half, about three times,” Kitson said. “I think one of them is from the college. I really don’t know,” he said.

Due to Red Bull’s policies regarding their employees, student representatives of Red Bull could not provide comment to The Quadrangle.