ESN EAA+ - 12 Essential Amino Acids AstraGin® Vegan

What is ESN EAA+?

It is an essential amino acid powder to be mixed with water, with a serving of 20 g, or one and a half scoops. The 400 g tub covers 20 servings. The flavours listed: Peach Iced Tea and Green Apple.

What sets this formula apart from the other EAAs on our shelves is that it does not stop at the nine essential amino acids. It adds three non-essential amino acids — L-cysteine, L-tyrosine and L-glycine — twelve in all, plus the trademarked active AstraGin® (extracts of Panax notoginseng and Astragalus membranaceus) and vitamin B6.

An important point for some buyers: the formula is vegan, gluten-free and inulin-free. The amino acids are obtained without any animal-derived raw material, the emulsifier is a sunflower lecithin, and the “inulin-free” wording is aimed at those who find this fibre troublesome. The full German range is in our ESN section.

What does a 20 g serving contain?

Net weight: 400 g, or 20 servings of 20 g.

It has to be said plainly: the manufacturer publishes only the three BCAAs. The six other essential amino acids, the three added amino acids, AstraGin® and vitamin B6 are listed on the label with no quantity. Of the 20 g of powder, only 6.4 g are quantified; the remainder also includes citric acid, flavouring, sweeteners and colouring. We will not fill those gaps with unverified figures, and we invite you to read the label on the tub you receive.

A concrete and slightly frustrating consequence: vitamin B6 is indeed present, but we cannot use the regulatory wording attached to it. Such wording may only be used if the product provides at least 15% of the reference value per portion, that is 0.21 mg. With no declared amount, that threshold cannot be verified, so we refrain. The vitamin B section offers products with declared doses if that is what you need.

What is solid is the headline figure: 3,200 mg of leucine per serving. That is a generous dose, higher than most EAAs on the market, which sit between 2 and 2.5 g. The leucine-isoleucine-valine ratio is 2:1:1, the classic pattern. And histidine really is in the ingredient list, which is not always the case: it is the essential amino acid some formulas leave out because it is expensive.

To finish on the regulatory side: no health claim is authorised in Europe for free amino acids, nor for astragalus, nor for notoginseng. So you will read nothing here about improved absorption, focus or protein synthesis. We are describing a composition, not an effect.

How do you take ESN EAA+?

Serving: 20 g, or one and a half scoops. Liquid: 500 ml of cold water. Timing: 20 to 30 minutes before the session, during training, or within the 30 minutes that follow. Frequency: one serving a day, including rest days according to the manufacturer. Duration: ongoing, as no set course is specified.

Five hundred millilitres is a markedly more generous volume than the shelf average, and that is a good thing: a free-form amino acid powder is acidic and concentrated, and a drink that is too strong becomes unpleasant to finish. The manufacturer's tip is worth trying: let it stand for two minutes after mixing, or put the shaker in the freezer for fifteen minutes. On a summer session, it makes a real difference.

The powder dissolves just as well in cold water as in lukewarm, which is handy in winter — few EAAs can claim as much.

The manufacturer recommends a daily serving, including on days without training. We will be more measured: if your protein intake is already sufficient, a serving on rest days adds nothing that has been demonstrated. Save it for the days when you are genuinely short of a protein meal, and your tub will last twice as long.

The pairing advice it gives is, on the other hand, sound: after a long session, combining this drink with a carbohydrate source from the cyclic dextrin section makes sense in terms of refuelling.

Who is EAA+ for, and who is it not for?

It is aimed at three profiles. Vegans first, as the formula contains no ingredient of animal origin. Then those who train fasted or a long way from a meal, since a milky shake sits badly in that case. And those looking for a well-dosed leucine intake without swallowing a protein powder.

The manufacturer declares it unsuitable for minors, pregnant women and breastfeeding women. It contains an emulsifier based on sunflower lecithin, and it is declared gluten-free. Do not exceed the recommended daily serving; store in a dry place, away from heat and light.

It suits you less well if you want to compare precisely what you are buying: of 20 g of powder, only 6.4 g are quantified. That is the real limitation of this product, and it weighs against competitors who publish their full profile amino acid by amino acid. It also contains sucralose, acesulfame K and a colouring: this is not a neutral powder.

What you should not expect from it: an EAA does not replace a protein intake. Twenty grams of powder, part of which is flavouring, is not 25 g of complete protein, and the cost per gram is far higher. Nor can we say anything about cysteine, tyrosine, glycine or AstraGin®: with no published amounts and no authorised claim, there is nothing honest to write about them.

EAA+ or a plant protein?

For a vegan athlete, that is the real trade-off, and it deserves to be set out clearly.

A plant protein provides 20 to 25 g of complete protein per serving, at a cost per gram that bears no comparison. It is the better choice for building a daily protein total, and it is the product to buy first if you are only buying one. Its known weak point is the amino acid profile: pea or rice on its own is limiting in certain amino acids, which blends correct.

EAA+ is not playing in that category. Its place is the training drink: clear, tart, with no heaviness, and 3.2 g of leucine. That is something no plant protein does, its texture being thick and its taste earthy. The two complement each other rather than replace each other.

If your budget forces a choice, take the protein. And if you are instead torn between this EAA and a product three times cheaper, our BCAA section offers that option — bearing in mind that you will only find three amino acids out of nine there, which is a real sacrifice.

Frequently asked questions

Why are the amounts of all the amino acids not stated?

Because the manufacturer publishes only the three BCAAs in the labelling data available to us. The six other essentials, along with cysteine, tyrosine and glycine, appear in the ingredient list with no quantity. We will not invent them: the label on the tub you receive is what counts.

What is the difference between 9 and 12 amino acids?

The nine essentials are the ones the body does not make. Cysteine, tyrosine and glycine, for their part, are produced by the body — they are formulation additions, not nutrients that must be supplied. No claim is authorised for them, and their presence does not make this formula superior to a well-dosed nine-amino-acid EAA.

How many servings are in the 400 g tub?

Twenty, at 20 g per serving, or one and a half scoops. That is a small format compared with most EAAs on the shelf: at one serving a day, it lasts three weeks. Kept for training days only, expect a month to a month and a half.

Is the formula suitable for vegans?

Yes, the manufacturer declares it vegan. The amino acids are produced without any animal-derived raw material and the emulsifier is a sunflower lecithin. It is also declared gluten-free and inulin-free, that last point being aimed at those who find this fibre uncomfortable.

Why is 500 ml of water a lot?

Because 20 g of free-form amino acids in a small volume make for a very acidic drink that is hard to finish. Five hundred millilitres make the taste pleasant and get you drinking during the session, which is a benefit in its own right. The fifteen-minute trip to the freezer is genuinely worth it in summer.

Should you take it on rest days?

The manufacturer recommends it; we are more reserved. If your protein intake already covers your needs, an extra serving on days without training brings nothing that has been demonstrated and halves how long your tub lasts. Save it for the days when a protein meal is genuinely missing.

Peach Iced Tea or Green Apple?

Peach Iced Tea is the milder of the two and the easier to drink over 500 ml; Green Apple is distinctly tarter and more refreshing, but also more marked. Both contain sucralose, acesulfame K and a colouring. If you have to finish a large shaker mid-session, the first goes down more easily.

Where can you buy ESN EAA+?

The flavours can be ordered from this page, and we ship throughout France and Europe. The 400 g tub with 20 servings is a trial size: three weeks is enough to know whether this drink earns its place in your sessions.

At the Vendargues shop, about ten minutes from Montpellier, this is a product we use to show customers how to read an EAA label: look for the leucine, then check whether the other eight carry a figure. Here the leucine is generous and the rest is not — it is a trade-off, and it is for you to say whether it suits you. The rest of the amino acids can be compared in our sports nutrition section.