All in USA
Gorgeous from initial eye contact through to warm afterglow. Its unique and slightly earthy cocoa flavor combine with an organic creamline base to deliver an exceptional drinking experience that is meant to be savored, not swilled. Casual chocolate milk fans may lack the nuance (or desire) to give this the attention that it deserves. A wholly-satisfying experience that is highly congruent with Vermont's commitment to quality, locally-sourced agriproducts.
Deep, mature cocoa flavor delivered in the best way possible-- through a thin and endlessly creamy non-homogenized base that engages your tastebuds early and often throughout the 5-second joyride that is each sip. Uniquely delicious, and even uniquely striking in appearance-- the bright brown (almost reddish) coloration accurately foreshadows a powerfully novel cocoa experience, and the creamline signature dusty bubbles languishing on the surface uphold their promise to extend the flavor into the aftertaste and beyond. And by 'beyond'-- I'm still thinking about this stuff and it's been over a month since I've had it.
Thick and sweet with a prominent, medium cocoa flavor that arrives early and stays late-- with the oft-used 'melted chocolate ice cream' metaphor an appropriate one here. It's got a lot of what your typical chocolate milk fan seeks-- strong sweetness, cocoa prominence, and some textural heft-- its popularity in this area is no surprise.
Thick and sweet with a prominent, medium cocoa flavor that arrives early and stays late-- with the oft-used 'melted chocolate ice cream' metaphor an appropriate one here. It's got a lot of what your typical chocolate milk fan seeks-- strong sweetness, cocoa prominence, and some textural heft-- its popularity in this area is no surprise.
Wow- boldly malty, with a flavor that almost makes your mouth water upon initial contact. It's intentionally undersweet (33% less sugar) and much better for it! The sweet/salty balance is decidedly in favor of the latter, and I must say, each sip gets more interesting and enjoyable (and I liked the first one). Texture-wise, it's plenty beefy, carrying a bit of tactile grit likely from the cocoa, and the cream flavor is helped along by the salty snap. Uniqueness is fun-- this stuff is fun to drink, even for someone who has had over 1,800 chocolate milks to this point.
Gorgeously smooth and creamy texture that disperses perfectly upon each sip. The cocoa flavor is on the earthy side of malty-- a unique flavor that washes out quickly and leaves minimal baggage. Overall, a pleasantly balanced raw chocolate milk with the creamy base as its standout feature.
Powerfully sweet upfront, and it's a sweetness that lasts through to the end. It carries along a bright, medium cocoa flavor that is well balanced and strong enough to stand out from the sugary base. The sweetness feels heavy-handed, and I suspect that it's more of a 'feautre' than a 'bug' for most people-- but for me it's a tad distracting, as its other features are worthy of more of the limelight. Still, an objectively delicious treat will tickle your sweet tooth to a crying laughter.
Silky smooth texture and very lightly chocolaty with a cooked milk overtone-- pretty much standard fare for a lowfat, lactose free chocolate milk. It's inoffensive and unexciting. I feel like I've written this review a dozen times-- and it's those mid-bell curve, forgettable formulations that make review writing difficult. Gimme an 'A' or gimme an 'F' someone once said-- those are the fun reviews to write. This is a C at best.
In an attempt to remove some calories and all flavor, Nesquik Zero is a no-sugar added version of their already washed-out chocolate concoction. There's not much here-- the Sucralose & ace-K sweetener duo are pleasantly unobtrusive, and you're left with a lightly malty whimper of what may have been chocolate milk at one time. If this is what they were going for, they knocked it out of the park.
Brutally cloying, inauthentic-feeling sweetness clubs you upfront, and if you enjoy punishment and go back for a second sip, your (now lower) expectations will be met, and you will think to yourself "dammit, why did I buy a whole case of these without trying one first?". The sweeteners steer you far off course, though you can catch a glimpse of a cocoa flavor desperate to poke through. Like a half-dead skunk in the middle of the road-- it won't do either of you any good to get it to the other side. Texture-wise, it's fine given the 'recovery' genre, but a long ways from 'milky' or 'pleasant.' Try if you must, avoid if you can.
On the good side- it's nicely under-sweet, allowing a muddy, almost ashy cocoa flavor achieve some prominence. On the bad side-- everything else. It's sludgy, chalky, and under-salted. Again, I appreciate the sweetener restraint, but the flavor that is there rings of Stevia (Reb-M) which, like a zit on the end of your nose, is nearly impossible to hide. Taking nothing away from the keto-friendly, high-protein, grass-fed claims (which are great)-- I only review on taste and drinking experience, and both border on 'foul.'
Unsurprisingly thick and chalky, but surprisingly chocolaty-- and I must say, there's more of a salty hit which is rarely found in this recovery, protein-laden genre-- and I think it does the flavor and drinking experience some good. That said, it still compares poorly to your average, 1% lowfat chooclate milk, but it's noticeably a step up from your typical low-carb, high-protein gruel. "Indulgence" is definitely a stretch, but if we're speaking in relative terms, fine.
Beefy, starchy, chalky, and thankfully somewhat bland. The sweetener is fortunately less-aggressive than its sibling and while the chocolate flavor is entirely absent-- it's blander, and somehow more enjoyable for it. Texture-wise, this is a bad matchup for me-- the drying/chalkiness grinds your mouth to a screeching halt, you will feel like you could light a match off your tongue. Or really any surface that this stuff comes in contact with. I've had much worse tasting things in this genre, but the physical drinking experience of this is bottom-tier. Yuck.
Exceedingly thin cocoa presence, and very little flavor outside of the cloying, unnatural-feeling spike you get from the monk fruit juice concentrate (natural sweetener). The strange sweetness twang dominates the experience and remains into the aftertaste, paired with a textural astringency that plays chalkier than it should on the palate. I appreciate that it's lactose free, A2 beta casein protein, gluten free, lower sugar, higher protein-- but the flavor and drinking experience is severely lacking in the 'enjoyment' measures.
Lots of flavor in a small sip-- it's uniquely salty for the chocolate-mint genre, and it works for the most part though it may distract some out there with less of a personal affect for salt in chocolate milk. The mint presence is cooling and appropriately balanced with the chocolate, though I've had more authentic mint flavors in other milks. There's a slight medicinal quality to the mint-- it's more "Ben-Gay" than "Pepto-Bismol". Aftertaste-wise, your left with a slight cooling/mint essence and a pinch of salt on the tongue-- not off-putting, but noticeable and something that takes a few sips to get used to. Ultimately, comes off as a bit exaggerated in all respects, and would benefit from mild dilution.
Basically a slightly more chocolaty version of Yoo-hoo. It's watery, thin, smooth, and largely unsatisfying. I like the packaging, and I respect the fact that it's been an Indianapolis institution for more years than I've been on this planet. I just don't see what value it brings to the table outside of nostalgia.
Delicious and true-to-form cookies & cream flavor with a twinge of earthiness on the back end. I appreciate that it's opted for realism as opposed to a cartoonish representation of the C&C profile-- it's not heavy-handed on the sweetness and it's a slower burn of an experience rather than an upfront assault like so many have been.
Bright cocoa flavor with nice malty sharpness that peaks in the latter half of each sip. The medium viscosity feels solid and fully-burdened with flavor, and the salty-sweet balance leans slightly (and nicely) toward the former. Well above average in all respects, this won't disappoint from first eye contact to lasting afterglow.
So brown, that it's nearly an angry red color-- and so undersweet that it amplifies the interrobang-inducing, off-putting soy-adjacent (but not soy) flavor that, while unique, assertively legislates the case against novelty. Texture-wise, it's a mess of upfront anemia and back-end weight-lifting chalk.That said, this is at least 3 times more enjoyable than the first formulation I had a couple years ago-- but 3 times zero is still zero.
Slightly less sweet than expected, which affords the (very average) cocoa flavor to sparkle just a second longer than it otherwise would. It's fairly balanced, fairly boring, and overall, a gnat's ass on the good side of fair.
