Nescafe Memento Review

I love my coffee. I mean I really, really, really love my coffee. If I could drink coffee all day and throughout the night and I'd be a happy little camper. Luckily my employer provides free coffee throughout the day so it saves on my pocketbook but I'm still a Starbucks girl at heart and it kills me to pay $5 for a SF VSG friendly foo-foo drink. Even their coffee pricing is getting outrageous. So when I heard a bunch of hub-bub about this new Starbucks - replacing product on the market from Nestle called Memento, I decided to request a free sample from Nestle and see for myself.


Nestle says:

 “Try an expertly crafted café beverage from NESCAFÉ® MEMENTO™ and enjoy coffee house quality flavor and foam that lasts until the final sip. Made with real coffee, milk and sugar, three enticing flavors await! Caramel Latte is a perfect blend of buttery caramel flavor, smooth coffee and pillowy froth – heaven for your taste buds! Cappucino – a top layer of frothy foam leads to a smooth creamy coffee – you’ll be licking your lips down to the last sip. Mocha – rich chocolate flavor and smooth coffee combine to create a delightfully indulgent chocolate lover’s dream.”

 

 

Let me start out by saying I'm not a fan of this product. Take that for what its worth but here are the reasons why -  

 

 

When I first got my sample pack in the first thing I noticed was the size. These things are HUGE in comparison to other prepackaged coffee-hot chocolate-thingys Ive seen before. It's as big as my measuring cup! It immediately reminded me of the Maxwell House International House Café tins where you have to scoop half the tin in one cup to get any decent flavor.

 

So I decided to measure.

 

 

There's almost 1/4 cup of powder in one packet! And lets face it, almost 2 ounces of powdered coffee, sugar, cream, and whatever hydrodextromextro stuff they put in there cant be good on the stats right? 

 

But they're only 100 calories you say?

 

Yes they only have 100 calories.

 

Yep.

 

100 calories.

 

Pretty good, right?

 

Until you see that the 1/4 cup of hydrodextromextro powder comes with a whopping  18-19 carbs and 12-14 grams of sugar. Per cup. Not so great now, huh? Especially for our sleeved and bariatric friends where carbs and sugars are the mortal enemy.

 

But how does it taste you ask?

 

Like weak coffee watered down with skim milk. Blech. My sample pack came with 2 flavors, Cappuccino and Caramel Latté. I had to sweeten them both and the Caramel Latte still tasted so bad that I didn't even finish the cup. I even went from 10oz of water to 8oz on the second cup to see if that helped. Sad to say it made no difference. I know people are raving about this stuff but it was a total miss with me. I will give it this, they got the frothy part right.

 

 

 

 

Now you're saying its not supposed to be healthy, its supposed to be a cheaper alternative to Starbucks. Cheaper, yes...about $.54 a serving - even less if you have a coupon - a box retails for $4.29 and each box comes with 8 gigantic packets. And if you are getting the full-flavored lattes from Starbucks then yes these stats are much better. But if you're like me and get the SF/FF versions then its about the same and price would be the only real difference.

 

 

Now for those of you who like the Peppermint Mocha drinks, I've created a most awesome recipe for even a fraction of the SF version. How? Its easy, you just need the following:

 

Coffee

Swiss Miss DIET Hot Cocoa packet (NOT the Sugar Free kind)

Individual serving of half and half cream

Equal or sweetener of choice (optional)

SF Peppermint coffee syrup (I use Target's brand/$3.99 bottle)

 

Mix and drink. You can adjust the amount of hot cocoa/syrup depending on your personal taste but if you're like me and have a big super gallon coffee tumbler and use the whole pack you're under 60 calories, 5 carbs and 2 sugars. And the cost is around $.60 a serving (including the cost of the syrup).

 

So while this was a bust for me, it was a valiant effort from Nestle. But I'll stick with my homemade version and pop for the good stuff on occasion. After all, there's nothing better than a great cup of professionally crafted coffee.

 

 

Don't take my word for it, this is my opinion and yours could be different. Click here for a free sample and tell me what you think!

 

 

Angry Orchard Hard Cider Review

I was recently contacted by Angry Orchard and offered the opportunity to try their product line. All my friends rave about this stuff so I was excited to give it a try. Unfortunately around the same time I received the sample I started having issues with my gallbladder and the doctor restricted me from all alcohol. Rather than let it go to waste, I let a co-worker and self proclaimed "tasty beverage connoisseur" have the honor of guinea pig and product reviewer.

Image courtesy of Angry Orchard

Angry Orchard just happens to be made by the fine folks at Boston Beer Company (the makers of Samuel Adams) and are naturally gluten free to boot! Their cider apples are specifically grown for cider-making and hand-selected for every batch. Cider apples are traditionally tart and bittersweet, often being described as "angry" - hence the name.  They vary in between 5% and 5.5% ABV and each bottle is around 200 calories.

As previously stated, I passed my 6 pack sampler onto my co-worker Steve and after a week of taste testing this is his (full, complete, and unedited) review:

Recently I was asked to try a few bottles of beer by a co-worker. I didn’t know whether I should be happy or slightly offended. I’m not an alcoholic but I am a beer enthusiast (I guess that’s what they call it now a days). Either way I enthusiastically agreed to be the taste tester and Angry Orchard Hard Cider is the flavor of the day!

            Angry Orchard has a rich history in Europe and in the United States. In Colonial times hard cider was the flavor of choice.  Like most beers, the process to make the different flavors of the hard cider is very complex, however, each flavor includes one very simple ingredient- Apples. I don’t know about you but I’m a sucker for apples.  When I was a kid anything with apples in it was pretty much the best thing ever. Apple juice, apple pie (McDonalds), apples and peanut butter; thus, Angry Orchard’s use of the apple is pretty genius.  In the 6 pack I received there were 3 different flavors to experience; Crisp Apple, Traditional Dry, and Apple Ginger. Each of these flavors offer a significantly different taste that would complement any beer enthusiast’s palette or introduce non beer drinkers to a great alternative to keep the party going.

            The Crisp apple flavor literally tastes like Apple Cider fresh from grandma’s own home brew. I’ve had my fair share of flavored beers ranging from pumpkin to strawberry but usually there’s a bit of a hoppy flavor. Angry Orchard’s Crisp Apple is very smooth with no hops flavor at all. This would be the perfect choice for anyone who doesn’t drink beer. You get the entire apple cider flavor with no kick from hops flavor.  The reason why there’s no hops flavor is because the master brewers at Angry Orchard don’t use hops. They let the flavors ferment over time and let the flavors infuse into themselves. It’s pure genius.

            The next flavor in the pack is called Traditional Dry. The Traditional Dry flavor is reminiscent of Old English brews. This flavor boasts a whopping 10 apple concoction infused with cinnamon and spices that gives it a spicy kick. This flavor is perfect for your Holiday dinner party.  It’s dry on flavor not as much juice as the Crisp Apple or Apple Ginger flavors but that’s ok a bite of a good steak or even a pork lion or roast would compliment this flavor just right.

            The last flavor is called Apple Ginger. This flavor is for the wine enthusiasts that love wine flavors such as Moscato or traditional white wines. There’s a slightly tart after taste due to the added ginger spice.  This flavor still goes down smooth. It’s a good middle of the road flavor in comparison to the Crisp Apple and Traditional Dry. It’s sweet like the Crisp Apple but has the spiciness and uses less apple juices to make of the flavor. As a matter of fact, this brew includes some aged wine included in its brewing process. It’s a very complex flavor and the only thing I have to say is that you have to try it for yourself.

I guess I like being a taste tester especially when it comes to flavorful beers. Angry Orchard offers great flavors for your self-proclaimed beer enthusiasts (like me) or the casual beer drinker who likes smooth sweet flavors. Even if you’ve never tasted beer in your life Angry Orchard would be the perfect place to start.  You get a sweet flavors and spices with a kick! No hops and no carbonation like other hard drinks on the market.

 

 

Image courtesy of Angry Orchard



Now the one thing Steve didn't mention was how great these guys mix with other spirits to create unique and tasty cocktails. You can find the entire list here.

 To learn more about Angry Orchard,

visit the orchard at: www.AngryOrchard.com

on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/AngryOrchard

and on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/AngryOrchard.

 

Please drink responsibly. Don't drink and drive. Must be over 21 to indulge.

 

**Review disclaimer - I was given a free 6 pack sampler to try and give an honest opinion about. I was not compensated in any way. The review was not altered in form to show favor towards the product**