May 12, 2008
Skittles Chocolate Mix
It’s pretty hard to do chocolate wrong, but every once in a while I come across a product that messes up what you think would be pretty easy. Skittles Chocolate Mix is such a product. What works well with Skittles’ fruit flavors just doesn’t work for chocolate. The creaminess you expect in a chocolate candy is missing, probably because cocoa powder makes up less than 2% of the candy. Their chewy texture and excessive sweetness doesn’t go well with any of the five flavors – s’mores, vanilla, chocolate caramel, chocolate pudding, and brownie batter – each of which is very artificial tasting and not very appealing. If you want some chocolate candies, just buy some M&M’s. I don’t recommend wasting your money on Skittles Chocolate Mix.
Phoood rating: 
May 7, 2008
Häagen-Dazs Extra Rich Light Caramel Cone Ice Cream
I’ve been a huge fan of Häagen-Dazs Extra Rich Light ice cream ever since it was introduced and have given good reviews to two flavors in the past. Caramel Cone, however, is probably the best one that I’ve eaten. I love anything caramel, so it’s no surprise that I loved this ice cream. It’s made with caramel ice cream with caramel swirls and chocolate-covered cone pieces. The flavors come together perfectly, and there is a good amount of cone pieces (although more wouldn’t hurt). The texture is so creamy and luscious that it’s hard to believe that it has half the fat of regular Häagen-Dazs ice cream. This leads to a question that every ice cream lover must ask themselves: With the huge improvements in light ice cream in recent years, is there really any reason (other than pure gluttony) to eat regular ice cream anymore? I don’t think there is, as long as there are products as good as Häagen-Dazs Extra Rich Light.
Phoood rating: 
May 3, 2008
Phoood Fight!: Gatorade vs. PowerAde (Lemon-Lime)
This is an epic battle between the original thirst-quenching sports drink, Gatorade, versus a relative newcomer, PowerAde. I chose to compare the lemon-lime variety, mostly because I consider it the “classic” sports drink flavor. In fact, I’m so old that I can remember when the only Gatorade flavor was lemon-lime. After doing some afternoon work in our front yard, I was sweaty and thirsty. Both the Gatorade and PowerAde were very refreshing and really hit the spot. Comparing them side-by-side, I was amazed as how similar they were in color. I was even more surprised at how similar they tasted. Their lemon-lime flavors were virtually identical, but there was a slightly odd aftertaste to the Gatorade. This is nothing new, Gatorade has always tasted this way to me. PowerAde, on the other hand, tasted better from start to finish, with no funky aftertaste at all. This was a very close match, but PowerAde comes out on top for its superior taste.
Winner: PowerAde Lemon-Lime