All tagged High Calcium

Shamrock Farms Reduced Fat Cookies 'n Cream Milk

Smooth and well balanced on all fronts-- delivering an accurate and tasty cookies & cream flavor. This has done well to keep the sweetness to a manageable level and not try to do 'too much'-- which a lot of chocolate-adjacent milks tend to do. I appreciate the competence and once again the balance-- I'm surprised that this is a limited edition by Shamrock Farms, as it ranks (to me) as one of the better offerings they've come up with to date.

Muscle Milk Pro Chocolate Peanut Butter

Not as thick or (fakely) sweet as the 'Knockout Chocolate' flavor-- but it still carries plenty of heft and an odd peanut-adjacent flavor that caused me to bristle at first, but subsequent sips beat my tastebuds into submission where it became palatable (but no more enjoyable). There was an element of 'stop resisting' [insert police brutality meme]. Nothing about the flavor or drinking experience approaches 'good' or even 'ok'. The aftertaste is an unpleasant continuation of its preceding sip; I would seriously struggle for motivation if this were my post-workout 'reward.' 

SlimFast High Protein Creamy Chocolate Shake

Disturbingly thick and chalky, with no positive flavor attributes and a sharp yet playful fake-sweetener twang to the uvula. Impressive enough stats-- 20g protein, 1g sugar, 5g fiber, etc.-- however, it's living proof that there's no biological 'free lunch' as the saying goes. Bad taste and a worse feel, this leans more 'appetite suppressant' than the intended 'meal replacement.'

Shamrock Farms Builder Max Chocolate Shake

Decidedly undersweet, and though it doesn't taste good per se, it's a bold and pleasant departure from its overly-cloying fakely sweet peers. On the texture side, it's what you think it is-- sludgy, chalky, chock full of protein isolate-- all things that veer strongly away from 'milky'. I am nonetheless impressed by the potability and restraint on the sweetening side. It's not good, but I must admit it's twice as good as I expected it to be.

Shamrock Farms Mocha Latte Rockin' Protein Energy

Fairly odd stuff, even for the chocolate-adjacent category. It's as though you spilled a cup of cornstarch in your hours-old mug of Folgers. Doesn't have a ton of flavor, but what's there is decidedly more coffee than cocoa. It's undersweet, undersalty, undercreamy, and overstarchy. On the plus side, you could probably use this as the goopy paste in your next paper maché project.

Nesquik Fudge Brownie Milk

Stronger and I daresay slightly more mature than the typical Nesquik chocolate milk profile, you can easily convince yourself that the 'fudge brownie' flavor is there and not just the old purple-clad 'double chocolate' Nesquik with a suggestive new name. The experience quickly rings hollow, however, since its lowfat milk base isn't capable of deft flavor extension beyond initial tastebud contact. Disturbing that they have to put "made with real milk" on the package-- feels like it's running without being chased-- only inviting more suspicion in the process. 

Splenda Milk Chocolate Shake

Densely sludgy with no recreational payoff-- it's as hard to recommend this stuff as it is to finish the 8 oz bottle. The dominant flavor isn't one of cocoa-- it's more of an 'old milk on the cusp of turning' fruitiness that is likely a product of its proprietary Splenda sucralose and allulose blend of sweeteners. That flavor carries on in the aftertaste, paired with a drying chalkiness that grinds your mouth to a halt. This might be your body's natural defense against taking another sip. Heed its warning.

Equate Chocolate Nutritional Shake

Thick, mildly grainy, chalky, and severely handcuffed by a strong, metallic flavor that hits in the back half of the sip. Fortunately it doesn't linger for very long, but when both the taste and texture are miles from decency (let alone perfection) it's hard to give this anything above a deuce.

Bored Cow Chocolate Milk

Tough to put into words, but think late-August seafood restaurant dumpster juice, without the intrigue. Solidly misses the mark on every facet of chocolate milk (except for a nice but unnaturally bright brown coloration). The flavor is a dull, non-sweet fruitiness with zero inkling of chocolate flavor, and the texture is an odd confluence of watery but chalky and sadly astringent during the remorseful afterglow. I applaud the concept. I dig the niche. I like the branding. Hate is a strong word. I absolutely hate the flavor and drinking experience.

HEB Mootopia Reduced Fat Chocolate Milk

Strong and quick pop of upfront sweetness that settles down with a cocoa dusting in the latter third of each sip. A strong saltiness both distracts from the chocolate flavor and likely obfuscates any would-be twang from the non-sugar sweeteners. In short, it's unique, and has a punchy flavor-- just not in the exact locations and proportions that you'd get in a top-tier chocolate milk.

Marcel's Kinera Chocolate Milk Beverage

Surprisingly flavorful and chocolaty for a shelf-stable, protein-fortified chocolate milk. Sure, there's some chalkiness from the protein concentrate, and sure, there's a slight but noticeable cooked milk flavor from the high-temp pasteurizing, but drinking this is decidedly more pleasure than pain, and compares very favorably to its typical 'recovery beverage' peer group. I get that a 5.0 isn't an impressive score, but for the genre, trust me- it is.

Premier Protein Chocolate Peanut Butter

Surprisingly palatable for 1g sugar and 30g protein-- the additional salt and peanut butter flavoring helps quite a bit and feels like 'success' despite a low overall rating compared with average chocolate milk. There's no getting rid of the vitamin-laden, metallic 'twang' that plagues these type of drinks, but at least it attempts to make it more pleasurable on its way down.

Country View Creamery Chocolate Milk

Pitch-perfect creamline body that dances beautifully along the palate, delivering a medium-to-malty cocoa flavor with a smooth buttery snap on the back end. Each sip gets better, and before you know it, you've cracked open the 2nd pint. Effortlessly delicious.

Bowl & Basket Lactose Free Lowfat Chocolate Milk

Attractive coffee-brown complexion, but the honeymoon wears thin rather quickly. It's immediately flavorful, which provides a little false hope that the remainder of the experience will follow suit. When the dust settles, your 'sweetness' itch has been adequately scratched, but the other elements (namely cocoa, cream) are largely missing, and foreboding sense of emptiness begins to set in.

Fairlife Reduced Fat Cookies N' Creme Milk

Very muted flavor-- has an almost diluted quality to it, and while it's largely unoffensive-- it's far from moving the needle in any positive direction. Initially smooth, it finishes with a chalky, drying lilt and predictably flat aftertaste. I'll concede that the packaging looks cool-- but if it's what's on the inside that counts, this doesn't belong among polite society.

Chobani Reduced Fat Lactose Free Chocolate Milk

Disturbingly thick, decidedly undersweet-- you almost have to chew it to get it down, which is a lot more work than the payoff is worth. I do appreciate the confidence to go low on the sugar, while not supplimenting with another kabuki sweetener. It's unique, and has a hefty protein kick, but the thickness-to-creaminess ratio is dissatisfyingly high, and I'm left with a dry mouth, full gut, and shattered dreams. Ok that's a bit dramatic.

Dorothy Lane Market Chocolate Milk

Excellently warm and buttery with a bright cocoa presence that is somehow both supported by and supporting the cream-- it just works well together. From first sip to the very last, it's consistently rewarding and should satisfy anyone's creamline chocolate milk craving with relative facility and grace.

Snowville Creamery Low Fat A2 Chocolate Milk

Intriguing combination of thin, undersweet, and strongly chocolaty, in a mature sense. It drinks easily, and is very enjoyable despite the obvious lack of a cream presence. It isn't watery, but feels that way physically, but ultimately does more with less-- I'm happy to make my way through a half gallon of this on most days.