Vin – Page 2 – The Impulsive Buy

REVIEW: Dot’s Original Snack Mix

Vin / April 16, 2026 / Reviews / 2 Comments

Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s

Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s

Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s, Dot’s

EVERYBODY!

About here is where the DJ would probably drop some kind of siren sound effect, and scream, “SNNNNNNNACCCCCCKKKK MIXXXXXXX. Exclusive. Exclusive. Exclusive…”

Dot’s Pretzels has a new snack mix that definitely has a flavor exclusive to the brand. I never actually clocked what the flavor of its flagship pretzel is, but it’s categorized as “bold and savory,” which explains it pretty well. Dot dot dot, I guess.

Joining the mini versions of its pretzel twists are knockoff Chex pieces, garlic rye chips, and cheese-seasoned pita chips. On the surface, that sounds like a slam dunk snack mix; unfortunately, said surface is absolutely blasted with bold seasoning.

I’ll get the good out of the way — If you’re a fan of Dot’s original flavored pretzels, you’ll think this is just fine. I really like its spice blend, and dig the cute little versions of its typical pretzel sticks.

Pita chips are an inspired ingredient for a snack mix and are easily better than the typical cracker-y adjacent thing that gets tossed into other mixes of this ilk.

The rye chips are excellent. They’re smaller than the bagel chips in Chex Mix, and nowhere near as hard. You don’t have to fear for your molars with these.

The “corn cereal” pieces are solid but have tighter weaves and are denser than the superior, airier Chex pieces. I will give them a little credit, though, because they have an almost Bugles consistency. Bugles are underrated.

So yeah, what’s not to like? You get four distinct, crunchy pieces, you get a little cheese flavor, you get a little garlic, and… actually, no, you don’t, you just get the “bold and savory” Dot’s spice mix. It overwhelms everything.

You can taste cheese and garlic if you isolate the pita and rye chip, respectively, but when eaten as a mix, forget it; you might as well just get a bag of the pretzels. Not only does the flavor mask everything else, but the pretzels also intrude on the specific crunch of the other pieces. There are SO MANY pretzels. I had to stage the photos to give the rest of the cast some spotlight.

“Well, yeah, dummy, it’s a mix made by a pretzel company.” Fair point, Mom, but the ratio is still out of whack. They could’ve easily cut the pretzels by thirty percent and had a better actual mix.

If you’ve had Dot’s, you know the seasoning makes it tough to eat too many at once. They aren’t necessarily hot and spicy, but they still do a number on your mouth. My mouth is usually so dry that I yearn for the much maligned gumdrop candies of the same name. Yeah, that’s right, Dots are good actually!

Dot’s Snack Mix is a nice attempt, but the brand’s most distinct trait is also its fatal flaw. I like that flavor, but it wears out its welcome and makes for an unsuccessful “mix.” I actually think peanuts would do well to cut the flavor and texture. If you choose to indulge, maybe add some peanuts.

Oh, hey, that DJ is back…

No one will ever top Chex, Chex, Chex, Chex out my medley!

Purchased Price: $6.17
Size: 14 oz.
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1/2 Cup) 140 calories, 6 grams of fat, .5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 300 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of total carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of total sugars, less than 1 gram of dietary fiber, and 2 grams of protein.

Dr Pepper Tic Tac Review

Vin / March 30, 2026 / Reviews / 3 Comments

It took well over a century, but the good Doctor Pepper has finally released his iconic twenty-three flavored elixir in pill form.

That’s right, the long-awaited third flavor in the Soda Tic Tac trilogy is Dr Pepper. I was a fan of the Coke one, but hated the Sprite. If we’re just going off the drinks themselves, I like Dr Pepper better than both of ’em, so needless to say, I had high hopes for this collab.

Said hopes were… mostly met.

There’s no debating that these are Dr Pepper just from the smell and sight of them. They have the familiar cherry-ish waft of the fizzy drink, and to quote the late great Bugs Bunny, “What a maroon.”

We miss you every day, Bugs. Hope you made it to the great Albuquerque in the sky. If only you said, “What’s up, Doc?” to an actual doctor more often.

But enough about real doctors, do these “mints” taste like actual Dr Pepper? Yes! And no!?

They do, but it’s not as uncanny (or unbottley if you prefer) as Dr Pepper collabs usually are. The candy shell has a vague cherry/cola sweetness, but once that’s gone and the mint turns white and gritty, it just tastes like a really watered-down Dr Pepper knockoff. Dare I say Mr. Pibbian – a far less educated soda.

I was ready to say these tasted just like cherry Bottle Caps, but I ultimately landed on a particular black cherry soda. They remind me of a drink made by an old med school colleague of Dr Pepper’s — Dr. Brown’s Black Cherry. He’s not as celebrated, but still makes a solid pop.

So, I really like the flavor for about eight seconds, and then I only kinda like it. It reminds me of the delicious sweetness you get from Tic Tacs’ pill cousin, Advil, before you suck on them for too long and they just end up tasting like bitter medicine. That’s how you’re supposed to eat those, right?

With all that said, there’s a kicker here. A saving grace. These Tic Tacs have a fizzing sensation. Have you ever had Zotz, or similar fizzing candy? It’s like those on a much smaller scale, but still noticeable. I honestly don’t think every mint fizzes, only a couple per “sip,” but it adds a fun and creative element to the eating experience.

The fizzing actually made me incredibly thirsty, which might be a stroke of genius brand synergy now that I think about it.

I imagine most Dr Pepper fans will enjoy these just fine, but I’m still not sure they serve much of a purpose. They’re “mints” that don’t freshen your mouth, and not a top-tier “sucking candy.” They’re also not a candy that sucks, and the fizzing is undeniably fun, so I guess that still makes them worth a try. Nothing wrong with a twist on two old classics.

I’m still here for any and all Dr Pepper collabs moving forward. In fact, I have an open pack of Dr Pepper Peeps slowly maturing in the cabinet, and I can’t wait til they get to their maximum staleness to indulge. If only they came in bunny form to honor our old friend, Bugs.

Purchased Price: $4.52
Size: 3.4 Fl. Oz.
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Mint) 0 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 milligrams of sodium,0 grams of total carbohydrates, for some reason they don’t even bother mentioning sugar, 0 grams of protein.

Candy Dr Pepper Mints Soda

Red Bull Spring Edition Cherry Sakura Energy Drink Review

Vin / March 10, 2026 / Reviews / 1 Comment

Spring has sprung.

I’m still staring at mountains of dirty snow everywhere I turn, but as far as I’m concerned, Red Bull is the official arbiter of the season. That’s right, forget the fat little terrified groundhog, because the only animal you should be getting your seasonal assurance from is the bull.

Every year in early March, my rites of spring involve being angry at the Mets’ hypothetical roster, re-exposing my blindingly white calves to the world, and tossing back a few of whatever flavor concoction Red Bull has waiting for me. It’s 2026, and this year it landed on Cherry Sakura, or Japanese Cherry Blossom.

In case you’re like me and are wondering if the flavor name is an “ATM machine-like” redundancy, no, this is Cherry AND Cherry Blossom. Flora and Fruit(a.)

I enjoyed their last foray into Japanese flavors with “Fuji Apple,” and was reasonably satisfied with last year’s Spring Edition, also a fruit/flower hybrid, “Grapefruit Blossom,” so we were off to a good start. Still, I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect.

After drinking two cans, I’m still pretty stumped on the flavor profile, but I can tell ya, it’s a winner. This is a very confusing flavor, and the internet seems to agree.

Upon first sip, I immediately started lying to myself. Did I taste cherry? I think. It just wasn’t the typical sweet cherry you’d expect. Did I taste something mildly floral? I think. I’d say it’s more “leafy” than “flowery.”

Well, there ya go, it’s Cherry and flowers, they didn’t lie… but wait…

Was it cherry? I just kept tasting slightly sour, unripened fruits. I couldn’t distinguish which fruits. Despite reading the can and trying to convince myself it was cherry, I just refused to commit to that. Was it dragon fruit or something? I liked it a lot, I just didn’t know why.

Then it hit me – does this taste like Strawberry Banana, or am I insane? I might be insane. I’m not alone though. I’ll get to that in a bit.

I couldn’t shake it; I tasted what I would call Red Bull’s attempt at a Strawberry Banana Smoothie. It’s not super flavorful in either fruit’s direction, but something about it just tastes like a lite, unripe version of those two fruits in energy drink form. Like if you mixed 75% Sugar Free Red Bull with 25% Strawberry Banana juice.

Yeah. Cherry Sakura = Strawberry Banana Smoothie. “You’re insane.” So, after a little Googling I saw opinions on the flavor vary from what it’s actually supposed to be to… banana. There were a lot of people saying they tasted banana, which I’m sure sounds bananas.

Maybe this could be the Yanny/Laurel of a new generation. Perhaps my fellow blue/black dress observers are phantom bananas, while the white/gold psychos are something entirely different?

Either way, no matter what flavors you pinpoint, I think most will agree this is a strong addition to the Red Bull lineup. This might be one of my most puzzling reviews, but all I can really tell you is that I kinda loved “Cherry Sakura” by the end.

Purchased Price: $2.50
Size: 8.4 Fl. Oz.
Purchased at: Quick Chek
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 10 calories, 0 grams of fat, 140 milligrams of sodium, 2 grams of total carbohydrates, 0 grams of total sugars, 0 grams of protein.

Beverage Energy Drink Red Bull

REVIEW: Oreo Stuf of Legends Cookies

Vin / February 26, 2026 / Reviews / 2 Comments

Greetings, true believers.

Are you ready for one of the biggest crossover events in comic history? Yes, even bigger than Archie vs. Predator! Maybe not quite as big as Godzilla vs. Charles Barkley, but still pretty big. It’s up there.

Earth’s mightiest heroes have assembled once again, but this time in sandwich cookie form for the new “Stuf of Legends.” They’ve made the jump from the printed page and the big screen onto… Oreo wafers.

Does that sound fun? Well, this might be the laziest issue of “What If” ever.

Stuf of Legends are just regular Oreos with a twist. Not the classic Oreo twist, you can still do that, but these cookies have a gray colored crème that turns blue. That’s essentially it. And here I thought heroes never dye.

Almost 90 years of creative inspiration to pull from the pages of Marvel Comics, and this is what they landed on. Ya know what? Fine. That’s fine. Excelsior!

Who am I to judge? I couldn’t muster even a few “creative” alternatives.

I was trying to think of some Marvel heroes that changed color, and… yeah, don’t bother Googling that, lest you want to hear the worst people’s stupid opinions on which Captain America is better. No, they didn’t ruin your childhood, MagnetoMike73.

Speaking of Cap, he’s joined by a couple dozen of his fellow heroes/anti-heroes/mutants/robots/aliens/I think one dude is just a regular non-powered guy – the whole gang’s here embossed on the cookies, which I guess is the ultimate selling point. It’s cool, but I still wish they did something more interesting flavor-wise.

I took a picture of all the characters and team logos represented in my pack. Feel free to see if you can name them all. Hint – they’re all Skrulls!

Do you want me to review an Oreo? These taste exactly the same, although I do believe they are slightly dryer. Perhaps it’s the gray crème with the little white thumbprint of it all.

As far as the crème goes, I dipped it and also did the typical untwist-and-lick technique, and the gray-to-blue transition was uninspired at best. If I had to rank these amongst the myriad of Oreo variants we’ve seen in the past decade, I’d say they are about a Thor: Love in Thunder out of Avengers: Infinity War. I still like ’em, but they aren’t going near the top.

While the imagery of the blue crème doesn’t exactly pop off the page, it did make my mouth extremely blue – not even Beast blue, I’m talking navy Nightcrawler blue. I spared you all the pic of my disgusting maw. They didn’t even really turn the milk blue, which I assume was intentional, so as to not run into brand confusion with Disney’s other rapidly declining blockbuster property.

So, we’ve got dressed up O.G. Oreos in one of three “collectable” bags, with various, almost indecipherable characters chiseled on the cookies. They’re worth picking up as a one-time purchase if you’re a fan of the MCU – Mondelez Cookie Umbrella.

That said, if you don’t care, skip ’em. The blue isn’t fun enough to warrant what I fear is coming next. As Uncle Ben says, “With blue power comes green… well, you know.”

Cute, but hopefully DC and Hydrox cook up something a little more creative.

Purchased Price: $4.97
Size: 10.68 oz package
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2 Cookies) 140 calories, 7 grams of fat, 2.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 90 milligrams of sodium, 21 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 12 grams of sugar, and less than 1 gram of protein.

Cookies Nabisco Oreo

REVIEW: Tostitos Mexican Street Corn Tortilla Chips

Vin / February 12, 2026 / Reviews / 3 Comments

Ya know, I’ve never actually had Mexican Street Corn.

Growing up near NYC, I’ve eaten many street pretzels, various street meats, street nuts… and while I’m talking about the literal gutter, I’d kindly ask to keep your mind out of it. Street gum is another big one! There’s a veritable rainbow of delicious street gum on every block, and it’s there for the picking, Buddy the Elf buffet-style.

However, Elote eludes me. I just never WANT corn on the cob, especially if I don’t have floss nearby. All that said, I’ll absolutely demolish some Elote-flavored snacks. I love Mexican food, and I love that Elote flavor profile, so when I saw Tostitos dropped a Mexican Street Corn chip, I hit the streets in search of them.

These chips probably mark the seventh or eighth “Mexican Street Corn” flavored snack I’ve tried, and they’ve all been good. If I had to choose the best, it would be Trader Joe’s “Organic Elote” Corn Chip Dippers. I’d rank these Tostitos just below those.

What you get here are restaurant-style tortilla chips made with whole corn kernel masa, the “traditional way.” I don’t know the exact Aztecan process, but I can tell you that these are larger and denser than a typical Tostito. You get some “thiccc boys,” as no one still says.

I wanted to guess the ingredients before reading the label and landed on a hint of “Hint of Lime,” mixed with a soft cheese/queso-adjacent flavor (representing the cotija), mixed with maybe some sour cream, and a chili-like powder providing a flash of heat. In the end, I almost nailed it.

Seriously, you can envision a little bit of every flavored Tostito that came before this while chomping down on one of these massive triangles – Hint of Lime, Queso, Salsa Verde, Black Bean and Garlic – their spirits live in these chips. If I had to describe the flavor, I would call these Tostitos All Dressed.

These pack so much flavor that they’re almost a Dorito. You get savory, tangy, and spicy all in one. It’s everything you’d want from Mexican Street Corn without the strings of the cob stuck in your teeth.

I had a stack with turkey chili, and they were money. I’d imagine they’d be versatile enough to work with literally any of the Mexican-style dips on the shelf.

All that said, there is one thing that bugged me a bit.

I don’t usually harp on the nutrition of the snacks I review because it’s junk food, no one’s under the impression it’s healthy… but I gotta say, these things are highly caloric. Six chips are 140 calories. For context, Nacho Cheese Doritos are twelve for 150, so while six of these chips are basically the size of a taco shell, try not to indulge too much.

The “big game” is over. If it weren’t, I would tell you to grab a bag along with every dip you can find. But ya know what? There will be more big games that call for big chips. Hit the streets.

Purchased Price: $4.99
Size: 11 oz.
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (6 Chips) 150 calories, 7 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 140 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of total carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of total sugars, 1 gram of dietary fiber, and 2 grams of protein.

Chips Frito-Lay Tostitos

REVIEW: Dot’s Original Snack Mix

Share this:

Dr Pepper Tic Tac Review

Share this:

Red Bull Spring Edition Cherry Sakura Energy Drink Review

Share this:

REVIEW: Oreo Stuf of Legends Cookies

Share this:

REVIEW: Tostitos Mexican Street Corn Tortilla Chips

Share this: