SPOTTED – 2/5/2021

/ / Spotted on Shelves / 9 Comments

Here are some interesting new products found on store shelves by your fellow readers. If you’ve tried any of the products, share your thoughts about them in the comments.

Powerade Zero Sugar Watermelon Berry Sport Drink
Powerade Zero Sugar Watermelon Berry Sport Drink

(Spotted by Bob K at Giant Eagle.)

Kellogg s Club Crisps Sea Salt
Kellogg’s Club Crisps Sea Salt

(Spotted by Robbie at Walmart.)

Blue Bunny Bunny Tracks Load d Bars
Blue Bunny Bunny Tracks Load’d Bars
Blue Bunny Strawberry Shortcake Load d Bars
Blue Bunny Strawberry Shortcake Load’d Bars

(Spotted by Rachel C at Harmons.)

Ghost Sour Patch Kids Energy Drink Redberry and Blue Raspberry
Ghost Sour Patch Kids Energy Drink – Redberry and Blue Raspberry

(Spotted by Joseph R.)

Limited Edition Lady Gaga Oreo Cookies
Limited Edition Lady Gaga Oreo Cookies

Here’s what the full-size packaging looks like. We reviewed these, but they came in a convenient convenience store size. (Spotted by Robbie at Walmart.)

Limited Edition Doritos Taco Flavor Tortilla Chips 2021
Limited Edition Doritos Taco Flavor Tortilla Chips (2021)

The retro packaging is back again. (Spotted by Audrey A at 7-Eleven.)

Reign Inferno Watermelon Warlord Thermogenic Fuel
Reign Inferno Watermelon Warlord Thermogenic Fuel

(Spotted by @TheJoshCatlett at Schnucks.)

Ready to Drink Banana Soylent
Ready-to-Drink Banana Soylent

(Spotted by Jarred at Walmart.)

REVIEW: Kellogg’s Frosted Mini Wheats Cinnamon Roll Cereal

/ / Reviews / 2 Comments

Kellogg s Frosted Mini Wheats Cinnamon Roll Cereal Box

What is Kellogg’s Frosted Mini Wheats Cinnamon Roll Cereal?

It’s a cinnamon roll-flavored version of Kellogg’s Frosted Mini Wheats, which I’ve always thought looks like what children would use, frosting side down, in their dioramas to depict hay bales.

Kellogg s Frosted Mini Wheats Cinnamon Roll Cereal Flashback

This not Frosted Mini Wheats’ first cinnamon roll-deo when it comes to this flavor. There was Kellogg’s Frosted Mini-Wheats Cinnamon Roll Little Bites cereal back in 2012 when “Mini-Wheats” had a hyphen.

How is it?

Kellogg s Frosted Mini Wheats Cinnamon Roll Cereal Frosting

There’s real cinnamon baked into every cereal piece, but that one warm spice layer has to compete with ten crunchy, flavor-muting golden wheat layers. That ratio gives the cereal a mild cinnamon flavor.

Kellogg s Frosted Mini Wheats Cinnamon Roll Cereal Box Back

(Side note: I didn’t know Frosted Mini Wheats pieces have ten wheat layers until I read this box. An image on the box’s back shows the layers, but I couldn’t accurately determine the individual layers. So it’s the only back-of-the-cereal-box puzzle I’ve been unable to solve.)

Kellogg s Frosted Mini Wheats Cinnamon Roll Cereal Wet

While the cinnamon goodness is light when the cereal is eaten dry, it’s even more so after the wheat pillows get soaked with milk. The vanilla flavor from the Silk soy milk I use stands out more than the spice. As for the frosting, I was hoping it would have, perhaps, a slight cream cheese tang, but it tastes like the same stuff on all the other Frosted Mini Wheats.

Anything else you need to know?

A 25-biscuit serving has 47 grams of whole grain goodness and 7 grams of fiber. But you probably could’ve guessed that by looking at all ten whole grain layers.

Frosted Mini Wheats will NEVER be a beautiful cereal. Every single variety looks the same. Instagrammable? No. But, Instadigestable? Yes. Just kidding. It’s not at all Instadigestable because its fiber will slow down digestion.

Conclusion:

I loved the previously mentioned Kellogg’s Frosted Mini-Wheats Cinnamon Roll Little Bites, but I’m less enamored with this newer version. It’s an adequate dry snack, but not so much when eating it with milk.

DISCLOSURE: I received a free sample of the product. Doing so did not influence my review in any way.

Purchased Price: FREE
Size: 14.3 oz box
Purchased at: Received from Kellogg’s
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (25 biscuits w/o milk) 210 calories, 1 gram of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 10 milligrams of sodium, 50 grams of carbohydrates, 7 grams of fiber, 12 grams of sugar (including 12 grams of added sugar), and 5 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Good Humor Viennetta (2021)

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Good Humor Viennetta Box

What is the Good Humor Viennetta?

After an absence of almost 30 years, Good Humor has reintroduced the Vanilla Viennetta to American grocery store shelves. Back in the ’90s, you couldn’t watch an episode of Murphy Brown without seeing a commercial featuring a sophisticated dinner party with a Breyers Viennetta served in elegant crystal champagne coupes. It was the classy ice cream dessert for people who knew the difference between a champagne flute and champagne coupe.

How is it?

Good Humor Viennetta Whole

The rectangular ice cream cake looks exactly as I remember, with layered waves of ice cream interlaced with thin chocolate ribbons. I feel the chocolate crack as I slice into it and then lay a slice onto my plate. I’m impressed the thinness of the chocolate layers allows the portion to retain integrity.

Good Humor Viennetta Cross

I fondly remember the times my parents decided to get something a little special for dessert and picked up a Viennetta. Nostalgia firmly in place, I take a bite.

It’s ok.

Good Humor Viennetta Chocolate

The vanilla ice cream (frozen dairy dessert according to the packaging) is pleasingly light and soft, but has an unremarkable flavor. The thin chocolate layers provide a delicate texture to the dessert, but leaves a waxy residue in my mouth. Overall, this is a disappointment.

Anything else you need to know?

Here’s something I didn’t know until I watched an old Viennetta commercial on YouTube: this product used to be produced by Breyers, and was said to be made with premium ice cream, not the current frozen dairy dessert. Perhaps my memories aren’t at fault, and this version of Viennetta is a poor knockoff? Does this mean that my pair of light up sneakers really were just as cool as I remember?

Conclusion:

If nothing else, Good Humor’s Viennetta is a testament to marketing and design. At its core, the dessert is nothing more than mediocre ice cream laced with waxy chocolate ribbons. But it looks very fancy, and a very effective marketing campaign 30 years ago means there’s a generation of people who will want to try it.

Purchased Price: $5.49
Size: 21.9 fl oz (650 ml)
Purchased at: Pick ‘N Save
Rating: 4 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1/6 cake/54 grams) 130 calories, 7 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 15 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 11 grams of sugar (including 9 grams added sugars), and 1 gram of protein.

REVIEW: Monster Energy Ultra Gold

/ / Reviews / 3 Comments

Monster Energy Ultra Gold Can

What is the Monster Energy Ultra Gold?

It’s a sugar-free, golden pineapple-flavored energy drink that’s part of the popular Monster Energy Ultra line, which includes such flavors as Watermelon, Fiesta, Rosa, Paradise, Violet, Red, Blue, and Black.

How is it?

Well, I know people are going to disagree with me about this because I’ve had folks tell me that this is one of their favorite Monster Ultra varieties. It’s good, but not great because I wish the pineapple flavor was stronger.

Monster Energy Ultra Gold Closeup

The perfect example of the pineapple potency I wish Ultra Gold had is Pepsi Pineapple. It tastes like I climbed a pineapple tree with a tall glass of Pepsi, grabbed a fruit, sliced off its skin, and squeezed its flesh so that its juice flavored the cola.

I know some of you are going to say I’m completely wrong about the level of pineapple in this energy drink, much like many of you are going to say I’m completely wrong about pineapples growing on trees. But I can taste how it might be just right for others.

(Side note: I find it funny that pines are a type of tree and apples grow on trees, but pineapples grow on short plants.)

Anything else you need to know?

I know it’s just a color, but the Monster Energy Ultra Gold Energy Drink can is a pleasure to stare at. It’s a gorgeous gold. Also, when I look at it, I imagine it’s the result of C-3PO getting recycled.

Conclusion:

Monster Energy Ultra Gold smells divine, but its fruity flavor is too light to my liking. With that said, it’s still a tasty way to get 150 milligrams of caffeine into my bloodstream, and it’s good enough that I would repurchase it.

Purchased Price: More than one should pay on eBay
Size: 16 fl oz can
Purchased at: eBay
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 can) 10 calories, 0 grams of fat, 200 milligrams of sodium, 5 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of sugar, 2 grams of erythritol, 0 grams of protein, and 150 milligrams of caffeine.

REVIEW: Nestle Coffee mate New Winter 2021 Coffee Creamer Flavors

/ / Reviews / 10 Comments

Nestle Coffe mate Milk Chocolate M M s Creamer

For those of you who don’t follow coffee creamers, winter is usually the time of year when a slew of them are introduced. This winter, Nestle Coffee mate is offering nine new products, but I’m going to be focusing on three of them here, which I received from the brand.

Milk Chocolate M&M’s Creamer

I very much know what Milk Chocolate M&M’s taste like due to my insistence that Fun Size packs should only be eaten by pouring their entire contents into my mouth instead of consuming them one by one like a bird, if birds ate M&M’s. Even though it’s primarily milk chocolate, the classic candy has a distinct flavor.

So after going through half a bottle of Coffee mate’s Milk Chocolate M&M’s Creamer, I have to say I don’t taste the popular candy, whether it’s in coffee or poured straight into my mouth as if the bottle is my mama bird and I’m a baby bird waiting for sustenance to land into my mouth.

I mean, it’s definitely milk chocolatey, and it turns any coffee I make with it into a tasty mocha-flavored beverage. However, it’s hard to distinguish the creamer as an M&M’s product, making it a little disappointing.

Size: 32 fl oz bottle
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 tbsp) 35 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 5 milligrams of sodium, 5 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of sugar (includes 5 grams of added sugar), and 0 grams of protein.

Glazed Donut Creamer

Nestle Coffee mate Glazed Donut Creamer

The donut and coffee combo has been around as long as chocolate and peanut butter have been in each other’s business. So it’s not surprising to see Nestle attempt to recreate a donut’s flavor within a coffee creamer. However, I don’t think the brand accomplished that.

What I taste leans more towards birthday cake frosting than a glazed donut when I add it to my daily iced coffee and when I try it on its own. There aren’t any fried dough notes or anything that reminds me of a pastry.

This Coffee mate Glazed Donut Creamer is not what I was hoping for, but it’s serviceable. If you want to experience donuts and coffee, you’re going to have to do it the old fashioned way.

Size: 16 fl oz bottle
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 tbsp) 35 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 5 milligrams of sodium, 5 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of sugar (includes 5 grams of added sugar), and 0 grams of protein.

Oatmeal Creme Pie Creamer

Nestle Coffee mate Oatmeal Creme Pie Creamer

Full disclosure: I don’t think I’ve ever had a Little Debbie Oatmeal Creme Pie. Oh, I think I just heard and felt everyone’s collective gasp. Or it could’ve been the wind. But I know what oatmeal cookies taste like and, after licking so many white, creamy, and sugary things in my life, my worn down taste buds might have an idea of what the creme tastes like. So I think I know what flavors to expect in this coffee creamer.

And one of those is, and this will sound super weird or wrong, whole grain oats. I’ve had enough oat milk in my life to know what oats taste like in liquid form, and I swear I taste something like it in this. Speaking of oats in liquid form, I wonder how this would taste if it was Coffee mate Natural Bliss Oatmeal Creme Pie Oat Milk Creamer. Just something for you to think about, Nestle.

As for other cookie ingredients, I also taste cinnamon and brown sugar. Oh, I should mention this smells precisely like oatmeal cookies, and it’s magnificent. As for the creme, my taste buds didn’t notice anything that could be considered creme-flavored. But, now that I think about it, it would be difficult to detect among the other bolder flavors.

Out of the three varieties here, I think this one is the best and most accurate tasting. But I wish it didn’t come only in a 16-ounce bottle.

Size: 16 fl oz bottle
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 tbsp) 35 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 5 milligrams of sodium, 5 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of sugar (includes 5 grams of added sugar), and 0 grams of protein.

DISCLOSURE: I received free samples of the products. Thanks, Nestle! Doing so did not influence my review in any way.

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