Long rides (hot, over ~3 hours): will either pack/prepare a bottle of flat soda, then mix half-half with water. I'll buy it and shake it up if I'm desperate, but I really don't like carbonation when working out. The whistling bottles also drive me crazy. Never noticed a particular difference with regards to fancy hydration products personally, and it suits me just fine not needing to clean salty sweat off everything.
Short rides: water. Sometimes I'll drop a pinch of sea salt in the bottles if it's particularly hot.
If I need calories, I eat them, can't tolerate Gu, and only barely tolerate shot bloks. In order of preference: cow tails, peanut/peanut butter m&ms, trail mix, swedish fish. LONG long rides, I'll pack 2 PB-and-generous-tablespoon-of-honey sandwiches. The honey crystalizes the bread, and keeps it from leaking as much as jam/jelly. If I could figure out how to 'candy' the bread with honey and make it not sticky, it would be perfect for me. And also make me gain back all 45 pounds I lost over that last 10 years.