REVIEW: Dairy Queen Biscoff Cookie Blizzard

It's just soft serve and Biscoff cookies.

There is almost nothing enjoyable about air travel, unless you like long security lines, flight delays, and people in Group 10 who line up at the gate before boarding even starts. But one thing that helps me take the edge off is the Biscoff cookie many airlines toss out to the plebs in economy. It can sometimes be the only positive experience during a day of flying, and now you can get that feeling without having to listen to a safety demonstration, as Dairy Queen has introduced the new Biscoff Cookie Blizzard as part of the Blizzard Cup lineup.

The Blizzard Cup sounds like a minor league hockey tournament.

This Blizzard is about as simple as simple gets. It’s Biscoff cookies blended with vanilla soft serve. That’s it. But sometimes simple is splendid, and that’s the case here.

Biscoff cookies and soft serve is quite simple.

As much as I like Biscoff cookies, I don’t think I’ve ever actually purchased them at the grocery store. I really don’t know why, because the sweet blend of caramel and cinnamon is delicious. So this Blizzard might be the first time I’ve had a Biscoff without sitting uncomfortably in an aluminum tube. I was really looking forward to this Blizzard, and it delivered as expected.

But it's a tasty combo.

It was a delight every time I got a significant chunk of Biscoff in a spoonful, but even the soft serve mixed with just cookie crumbs was tasty. Much like a regular Oreo Blizzard, this one is not going to astound you — it’s just cookies and vanilla ice cream — but it is certainly a sweet, satisfying treat.

My only advice is not to dilly-dally as you eat this Blizzard. I guess because of the airy texture of Biscoff cookies, I did experience a bit of cookie sogginess toward the bottom of the cup. That’s just a minor complaint, however, and I hereby declare this as the winner of the Blizzard Cup (even though I’ve only had two of the three in the new lineup).

Purchased Price: $4.49
Size: Mini
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 330 calories, 11 grams of fat, 77 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 160 milligrams of sodium, 50 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 39 grams of sugar, and 8 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Dairy Queen Mexican-style Hot Chocolate Made with ABUELITA Blizzard

Dairy Queen Mexican-style Hot Chocolate Made with ABUELITA Blizzard

Here’s a sentence that likely has never been typed before: I know more about the Spanish language than I do about hot chocolate. That’s a weird thing to say, but it applies to the Mexican-style Hot Chocolate Made with ABUELITA Blizzard at Dairy Queen. It is part of the new Blizzard Cup menu and probably the record-holder for the longest Blizzard name in history.

I know enough Spanish to know that abuelita means grandmother, but I have an odd dislike for hot beverages of any kind, so I had never heard of ABUELITA hot chocolate. I also don’t know why the word has to be in all caps, or why Mrs. Doubtfire is on the logo. But I do know this Blizzard is quite good.

My aversion to hot chocolate only pertains to the hot part, so I was excited to try it as part of an icy-cold Blizzard. If you’ve had Nestle’s ABUELITA or any Mexican-style hot chocolate, you know there’s a lot more going on than with the standard version. And that’s certainly true with this Blizzard.

The ABUELITA packs a nice punch of warm cinnamon, and the chocolate flavor is not as sweet or powerful as other chocolate-focused Blizzards. There’s still plenty of chocolatiness in here though, thanks to the choco chunks that are a staple of so many other Blizzard combinations. The result is a complex and pleasing blend of chocolate flavors.

Whipped topping has never made anything worse.

The only letdown comes from the fudge-coated mini marshmallows. I realize marshmallows are chewy by nature, but these are distractingly rubbery and don’t impart much fudge or marshmallow flavor. They just add a weird texture against the crunch of the choco chunks. And since whipped topping has never made anything worse, the addition of it on top is a nice bonus.

Even after a slight downgrade because of the marshmallows, this Blizzard provides a tasty change of pace and stands out from most others. It did not quite make the list as one of my all-time favorites, but I would definitely get it again, and it’s worth a try if you are a fan of Mexican-style hot chocolate.

And it turns out that’s not Mrs. Doubtfire on the label, but instead is the late actress Sara Garcia, who was known as Mexico’s Grandmother.

Purchased Price: $4.49
Size: Mini
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 430 calories, 19 grams of fat, 13 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 150 milligrams of sodium, 59 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 49 grams of sugar, and 8 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Starbucks S’mores Chai

I heard the siren for Starbucks' new S'mores Chai

It’s S’mores Season! So let’s savor these summer months by stuffing our mouths with a sugary surge of s’mores.

Starbucks is going all out this S’mores Season with the return of the S’mores Frappuccino and the introduction of two new drinks: the S’mores Cold Brew with Marshmallow Cold Foam and the S’mores Chai.

I’m a chai guy, so the S’mores Chai got my attention over the cold brew. I’ve had tasty chocolate chai drinks before, so I thought this would be a sweet, satisfying beverage. The fusion of chai tea with toasted marshmallow, milk chocolate sauce, and graham cracker sounds amazeballs. However, while I’m a chai guy, I’m also a shy guy, and I can spot shyness when I see it. The s’mores flavor in this drink is even shyer than I am.

Hello, sweet stuff.

Despite three pumps of marshmallow syrup, marshmallow cream cold foam, milk chocolate drizzle, and graham cracker topping in and on my tall order, none of it was enough to overcome the three pumps of chai. With every sip, the chai’s spices dominated everything else, like that friend who puts on too much perfume or cologne for a dinner.

Everything on top looks quite sweet-tooth-satisfying, but doesn’t do much to enhance the chai flavor, and that’s two-ply-toilet-paper-getting-misaligned-frustrating. I thought the chocolate sauce would be a welcome addition, but I couldn’t detect it at all.

Even when mixed, the chai dominates.

Even after mixing the toppings into the drink, they didn’t make much of a difference. If anything, the marshmallow notes maybe made the chai slightly sweeter. Stirring things together also created a new problem — all the graham cracker crumbs sank to the bottom and became mostly trapped by the ice.

The barista who made my drink wrote “yum” on the cup, and I’m not going to disagree with her. I’m a chai guy, after all. But it tasted too similar to a regular chai to justify the “S’mores” in the product’s name. So I guess my S’mores Season is off to a shaky start.

Purchased Price: $5.95
Size: Tall
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (Tall) 280 calories, 10 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 35 milligrams of cholesterol, 95 milligrams of sodium, 40 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 37 grams of sugar, 6 grams of protein, and 45 milligrams of caffeine.

REVIEW: Lindt Tokyo Style Matcha Strawberry Bar

Not Dubai-chocolate.

If grocery store shelves are any indication, the Dubai chocolate craze is still going strong: the combination of creamy, crunchy, and visually striking is too compelling to go away overnight. But if your layover in Dubai has lasted a little too long, Lindt can place another stamp in your culinary passport. Its new Tokyo Style Matcha Strawberry bar utilizes a similar formula that supported Dubai chocolate’s success—but with a vibrant flavor profile that pays homage to Japanese tea culture.

The bar consists of a white chocolate base infused with matcha, finely ground green tea known for its earthy flavor. Matcha also boosts the filling, which includes freeze-dried strawberries and genmai, which is roasted brown rice commonly blended with green tea.

So green

The chocolate bar is a beautiful spring green color with a fruity, slightly floral aroma. Matcha can be a polarizing flavor, and if the thought of the sometimes-grassy drink turns YOU green, this white chocolate will please your palate. The matcha flavor is not prominent; it seems to work backstage to tone down the white chocolate’s sweetness. The chocolate is smooth, gently sweet, and not overly rich, with a little strawberry essence and a whisper of earthy matcha in the finish.

Matcha middle

The green filling is an amalgamation of flavor and texture: matcha, freeze-dried strawberries, and brown rice (per the product description), as well as almond paste, almonds, kadayif, and hazelnuts (per the ingredients list).

It's not the prettiest.

Despite everything going on, the flavors don’t feel muddled. The strawberry flavor is deliciously bright, and the genmai is toasty, slightly nutty, and pops with crunch. The genmai is both a highlight and a detriment, because its deep roasted flavor can carry a burnt aftertaste. These textural components are held together by a thick, not-too-sweet matcha filling.

This is a strange comparison, but it’s the best I’ve got. This chocolate bar reminds me of Special K with Red Berries cereal, re-envisioned as an elegant Swiss chocolate bar: light sweetness, toasty crunch, and berries. Just add matcha milk. I wonder if the Lindt chocolatiers pair that cereal with their morning matcha lattes.

Compared to Lindt’s Dubai chocolate bar, the Tokyo Style Matcha Strawberry bar is more intentionally designed and successful in its inventive, balanced flavor profile. For both bars (and most similar varieties of trendy chocolate), price will always be a contested factor. Despite my slight preference for the Tokyo Style Bar, I’m still not convinced that either bar’s ingredients, thin layer of filling, and overall size warrant the hefty price tag. Call me cheap, but I factored my doubt into my overall rating.

You'll be spending a lot of green to eat this green bar.

Tea drinkers who love bitter, grassy notes should seek satisfaction from their favorite café, but fans of sweet confections should try Lindt’s Tokyo Style Matcha Strawberry bar. If you enjoy Dubai chocolate but are ready for a change, the product is a sweet, green alternative with a bright berry flavor and interesting genmai crunch. Maybe that ubiquitous pistachio-and-chocolate combination has finally met its matcha.

Purchased Price: $14.99
Purchased at: Target
Size: 5.1 oz (145 g) bar
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (per 2 pieces, or 1/5 bar) 150 calories, 10 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 40 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 14 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Juice Monster Strawberry Lemonade Energy Drink

Red white and blue can

Monster Energy’s Strawberry Lemonade Juice has a pleasant pink color, which is the perfect hue to represent my adoration for it. Or maybe that fondness was caused by the chilled liquid making these hot summer days a little more tolerable.

Here’s what the can says about the flavor:

12 score and 10 years ago our great nation was born. Now, we celebrate with our limited-edition Juice Monster Strawberry Lemonade! It’s like an AP Honors U.S. History book packed onto a can. Not a tiny Euro can…an American size 16 oz. can! Bursting with real juice, perfectly tart lemonade, and the sweet taste of strawberries, plus a full load of our energy blend. Happy Birthday, America!

Someone drew them.

Yes, the flavor honors our nation’s 250th birthday. It does it so with a can adorned with red, white, blue, stars, eagles, monster trucks, American flags, what appears to be George Washington’s head on He-Man’s body mounted on a motorcycle, and an Uncle Sam who looks like Colonel Sanders in witness protection. I’m not sure what strawberry lemonade has to do with the birth of our country, and no one has ever said, “As American as strawberry lemonade,” but I’m not going to complain because it’s a delicious way to celebrate America and summer.

Pink!

I’ve had strawberry lemonades that had such a strong strawberry flavor that the lemonade got lost, but this one has the right balance between the berry and citrus. There’s a slight sourness, but it’s not enough to make me pucker. Much like red, white, and blue make for a great flag, being sweet, flavorful, and refreshing make for a great beverage, and this drink is all three.

Like many Juice Monster drinks, this has only five percent juice. But if I saw this at a kid’s lemonade stand that was next to a competing lemonade stand selling regular lemonade, its 160 milligrams of caffeine would convince me to pick up a can. Sorry, kid.

I’m not sure whether Monster’s Strawberry Lemonade Energy Juice is a one-time thing or something that’ll return someday. But I hope it comes back, because I’m tickled pink by it.

Purchased Price: $3.75
Size: 16 fl oz can
Purchased at: 7-Eleven
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 200 calories, 0 grams of fat, 170 milligrams of sodium, 51 grams of carbohydrates, 47 grams of sugar (including 47 grams of added sugar), 0 grams of protein, and 160 milligrams of caffeine.

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