New 2019 Snacks Part 3

It recently dawned on me that, from an variety perspective, 2019 hasn't featured a wide selection of articles for this site. Thus far everything has been either Japanese television or snack food reviews but when life is practically raining lemons it's time to take a lemonade bath... so long as that's not a sexual thing. Honestly though I wouldn't trade this current avalanche of edible goodies or colorful heroes for the world. Before we pour over more treasures from the grocery store I wanted to point out how few items revolved around Valentine's Day. Sure there were a couple like the previously reviewed Love Oreo but by and large it seems like companies are looking for other ways to expand beyond the usual seasonal fare. Hopefully this is a sign of interesting things to come throughout the coming months. Enough theorizing for now. Let's get on with the food.

Mini-Wheats Fruit Medley

Yet another emerging competitor in this years cereal wars Mini-Wheats Fruit Medley provides something for the more mature crowd. I must admit that after consuming countless bowls of sugary kids cereals encountering something this refined was downright refreshing. Granted I'm not a massive mini-wheats fan but the notion of blending peaches and pears into cereal earns my undivided attention.

It's not often that I mention the graphic design of food packaging yet for whatever reason this box is incredibly appealing. It's got just the right mixture of elements and colors to seem classy without feeling overstated. Wouldn't ya know that's the perfect way to present this goodness as the scent is likewise light and pleasant.

The eating experience shares many of the common pitfalls associated with this brand. It absorbs milk at an astonishing rate and this one oddly seems to have less frosting than other varieties. Even with such issues the flavor is delightful. It has just the right twinge of fruit to liven things up and trick you into almost feeling healthy. It may not be my usual sort of snack but I'm very much a fan of these. Wish they packed a little more flavor into each bite but for what's in here I give it a near perfect rating of four and a half outta five.

Redbull Peach Edition and Pear Edition

While never the biggest Redbull fan the company has occasionally released flavors I've fully enjoyed such as the recent winter edition. As that little wonder gained some traction for the brand I was more than willing to test out the newest duo of flavors that also use some of my faovirite fruits.

Popping open the Peach Edition released a stronger smell then Redbull usually offers. One that didn't totally smack of peach for that matter since this is also nectarine flavored. That carries on to the drinking portion and something just isn't quite right about it. Both fruits have solid flavors but the sweetness of Peach sort of takes away from the dank of nectarine and vice versa. Neither one wins out and subsequently neither do we. Also find it odd that while I can take down Monster and Rockstar without issue this stuff left me drained. The proper balance of sugar and energy mix is missing. It's not a terrible drink and those with a better tolerance for the brand may get more enjoyment from it. I'm going with a two since I love peach so much and this let me down.

In a more sensible world I would normally overlook any sugar-free Redbull since even their sugary drinks can be a bit bland. Seeing as we live in the excessive land of the U.S.A. Every gas station sells this stuff in paired deals so I brought home the sugar-free Pear Edition. Of all the strange things I ended up liking this more than it's peachy brother.

First off this one makes the wise choice of sticking to one fruit. It smells like a sort of pear-infused mineral water and that's pretty much how it tastes. The artificial sweeteners aren't too obvious and even the long-term effects were easier to deal with without the full dosage of sugar. I wouldn't drink it on a regular basis but it wasn't so bad. For normal folks I'd give it two and a half but for those more accustomed to diet drinks it's more like a solid three.

Oreo the Most Stuf

Oreo unleashed a wave of new variations recently ranging from the wonderful Carrot Cake to the odd Love cookies. By comparison the most stuf edition seems downright normal. The idea is simple enough with each cookie having more than three times the usual amount of cream. For those that combine double-stuff on a regular basis this may not sound like much but I assure you these are truly something to behold. Not only are they huge but having that much solid cream makes them very substantial. As evidence I should point out that we brought these home on a cold winter day and even after dipping it in freshly brewed coffee the interior was still cool.

Truth is most of you already know how much you'll enjoy this take on the classic snack. Some people prefer lots of cream while others don't. One unexpected perk here is that they're so over-the-top that one or two cookies can calm any craving. Not the best way to maintain your weight loss goals but it works. Gonna give these three and a half as they aren't so great that we have to keep em around but they are nice fun.

Oreo Dark Chocolate

Even more Oreo, pretty sure this is the last one for the time being. Dark chocolate may not sound like much of a shift but boy are these babies ever interesting. These are dark and dank in the best way possible, essentially serving as the grown-up version of the classic cookie. That darkness makes them more resistant to liquid as well so much that the cookie starts to dissolve before cream is even affected. The best way to take these on is milk. Usually I prefer coffee but that combination is very dark, almost like a sweet cigarette with my coffee.

Very much like the Most Stuf installment you probably have a good idea how you'll feel about these. If you love dark chocolate these are probably a four out of five but for others it's likely closer to three and a half.

Cap'n Crunch's Chocolate Berry Crunch

Yet another new cereal, one of two from the Crunch brand. Chocolate Berry Crunch is right up there with the best snacks so far thanks to a combination of a sweet yet mellow flavor with the classic Crunch features like texture and a slightly greasy nature.

The berry part of this should be familiar to anyone as they're just red crunchberries but when paired with surprisingly light chocolate cereal bits everything starts to pop. It's a simple concept brought to life in expert fashion making it a bit sad that this is only a limited edition. Much as I love to heap praise on it I will admit it seems as if something is missing. Obviously it's nothing so large as to destroy the cereal but think of it this way. If the frontline of this snack wave includes the likes of Fruity Lucky Charms and Cheez-it Snap'd these are right behind them. Four and a half out of five.

Banana Cream Frosted Flakes

Yea even more cereal this time curtesy of tony the tiger. One of two recent additions to the line new Banana Cream frosted flakes seem like a bad idea on first inspection. The bright yellow box coupled with the brands history for being crazy sweet made me think of Runts in cereal form. The truth however is actually a decent snack that dares to do something different.

After opening the box you'll find standard looking frosted flakes with a smell like soy candles. The taste forgoes this weirdness and is really very pleasant and true to life. Unlike banana candy which is formulated to taste like different strain of the fruit than we're used too, these actually taste like an everyday curved nana. It even has that slight pottassium bent from the brown spots only sweater of course. Best of all the aftertaste while lengthy isn't revolting. A nice surprise and one I'd prefer to have stick around. If nothing else it proves Banana cereal can be done correctly. Easilly a four out of five.

Simply Smoothie Mixed Berry

You can probably guess from the very nature of these articles that I don't always eat healthy. That being said I do my best to make up for indulgences but I never get as much fruit as I'd like. That's largely due to me being a weirdo about texture which means smoothies should be right up my alley but that's never the case. Maybe I'm the only one that thinks this but for whatever reason smoothies never come out like a tasty mix of flavors. Instead all the fruits blend into one bland taste that's just disappointing. Ever willing to look for something that overcomes this problem brought me to the new line of Simply Smoothie drinks.

Simply brand is already a mainstay in this household thanks to better than average Orange Juice and delicious Limeade and it seems like they might have finally won me over regarding smoothies. Can't say anything about the other two flavors they have out right now but this actually tastes like mixed berries rather than fruity fiber. It's both sweeter and smoother than most smoothies I've encountered which is a definite plus for me though it begs the question of how these hold up on the healthy scale. Even so I'm willing to give this a solid four out of five.

Purple Cow Midnight Black Raspberry Ice Cream

Time for a regional item as Meijer's Purple Cow brand has brought out some new ice cream varieties perfect for us crazy Michigan folk who come in from the cold craving frozen dairy products. I've spent many nights complaining about the lack of true variety in the ice cream world as so many large brands stick to fairly safe flavors. As you might imagine the notion of black raspberry with blackberry swirl and chocolate pieces called to me like a seductive siren.

The black raspberry portion itself tastes like a component of Superman (or Scooperman) Ice cream though that's usually a form of cherry. As that is also a regional favorite some of of may have zero clue what I'm talking about but, trust me, it's good. Also I don't want to discuss Superman as I'll then have to somehow explain Blue Moon ice cream. The blackberry swirl is a smooth gel that doesn't interfere with the texture as it blends quite well. Finally those chocolate bits set the whole thing off while giving the flavor and texture some real depth.

Meijer has a tendency to do some downright senseless things in their stores but their food line often provides some solid treats. I'm happy to say they've got a real winner here, perfect for a cold night and I'm sure it'd pair excellently with cake. Really hope this flavor expands to a year round effort or some other smart company makes it more widely available. Think I'm gonna give this a perfect score of five.

And with that I'm starting to catch up on these new foods. Don't get me wrong. There's still enough out there for a few more updates but it finally feels like I can slow down and not worry about these items pushing each-other out of the nearby tiny stores. Going back to my introduction I do plan on getting some other topics running again. I say that knowing full well there's a new Sentai show to talk about starting tomorrow (slaps head). I'm feeling excited though. A lot of odd recent life events seem to be tapering off so there will be more time to get things taken care of. That's a topic for another day though. It's Saturday which means it's time to reward oneself with scary movies. Just remember to get a good snack for the occasion. I'm thinking of classic British tea time fare and Hammer flicks.