November Goodies Box - Goodies.co Wins Again

The November Goodies.co box came today - and it has some interesting things - and a lot of them!  Plus a bonus for first subscribers! 

This is the Entertaining made Simple box.  Interesting concept - the idea, I suppose, is that it is things to try that you might have on hand or purchase to impress your guests (or at least please them) without having to go through a lot of work.  With that in mind, that is how I will judge them.

Up First - Biscoff Spread!  What? Interestingly enough, a kind of nutella like thing - a european spread made of cookies and stuff, designed to spread on bread, toast, etc.  Have to try it tomorrow.

Next up, something familar - white cheddar popcorn, from Oogie's Gourmet Popcorn..  Now, I was not impressed this was in the box.  Popped popcorn?  Really?  However....It tastes good.  A little stale, sure, but great taste and not oversalted.  If I saw this in the store, I might buy it.  I would buy it.  Crazy.  I already want back to the bag twice while tasting other items.

Now the next one does not really fit the box - Entertaining made Simple.  It is a chocolate souffle mix - sounds great.  Says it "Includes everything you need to make 2 perfect souffles"  Awesome.

Everything but...

1 Jumbo Egg (who even buys Jumbo Eggs?  I have to go buy a dozen to make two souffles?)

1/4 cup Unsalted Butter, softened, not melted (Not salted butter, unsalted)

Hand Mixer

Ice Cream Scooper

Ok, this is simple?  Everything included?

Bobbysue's Nuts is next - tiny bag.  Ugh.  Nuts with a mission.  Ugh - really?  Doesn't everyone?

However...they taste really good.  Slight sweet, slightly salty, slightly something else.  Ok, I will buy these.  Not sure I would share them however....

Next...Tea?  Pass.  Give it to the daughter.  Plus I am so done with all the seasonal flavored items.

 

This will be popular in the house - Dark Quinoa Organic Chocolate from Alter Eco (Eco, get it, not Ego, Eco.  Can I just say blech - I am so tired of that advertising schtick) - light crispy crunch as it is made with nutty toasted quinoa.  First smell - very cocoa rich.  And the taste - it's dark, bittersweet chocolate alright.  Plus, it is all those things good foodies are supposed to buy - Vegan, GMO free, soy free, organic, fair trade and carbon neutral.  And saving the Amazon.  If you like dark chocolate you will like this.

Final food item - Cracker Snack - American Vintage Wine Biscuits.  Very interesting.  Thick, kind of like a cookie.  But savory, not sweet.  And while they are not hot, you can tell they have some cayanne pepper in them on the back end.  I bet they would be great with cheese or humus.  I could see putting these out in place of some ritz crackers.

And finally...the bonus for original subscribers -


A 100% Organic Cotton Farmers Market Bag

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

I can't wait till I go to the Farmers Market with my Walmart Bag.....Really?  Think that will be a welcome sight?

Well, I will be proud to carry it.  Not sure my kids will want to be seen with me, but hey, it's a nice bag.

It's Goodies Time! Goodies.co, that is

The November box is here!  What will it contain?  Inquiring minds want to know!

My Goodies.co Box Has Been Shipped!

The October box was fun - we were anxiously waiting for Novembers box and I just got this email!

Dear David,

Your Goodies Co. Taster’s Box has shipped, and will be arriving on your doorstep soon. Here is your FedEX Smart Post tracking information: 

Awesome!  I will see if I can do a google hangout when we open the next one!  I have to say - Walmart set the bar pretty high with the first box.  I hope that they exceed my expectations!

Review of Goodies.co October Surprise Box - Does Walmart Have a Winner?

Just to ruin the suspense, right off, yes, Walmart has a winner.  It was great fun getting a box of surprises.  We opened it together, and even did an unboxing video.  For those not aware, Walmart has started Goodies.co, which sends out samples to members who pony up $7.  You are then asked to rate the products and provide reviews.  For whatever reason, I cannot log in on the site, so here are our comments.

Of course, however, we had not done the taste test yet.  So, here are the results.  You should note that the survey was of four adults, no children.  Ages were 49, 49, 21 and 19, so consider that, if you will.

Four of us tried all six products.  We then scored them on a 1-5 scale, with 1 being "More, right now" and 5 being "I would rather eat grass".  I then added the scores each item got, then divided by the number of voters.  This gave us a composite score of the participants.  Very scientific.  Your results may vary. Some of the items got consistent scores, some scoring was widely divergent.  From the worst to best....

Juicefuls - 4.3 - Very divergent scoring - a 2, 3, 4 and 5.  Some felt they were far better than your average fruit gummy, others not impressed. You will either like these, or not.

Mayesa - 4 - Super divergent - 5, 5 and 2.  Very polarizing product.  Do not expect this to taste like chocolate milk.  Very strong seasoning.  We theorize that if you like soy milk, you will like this.  If you like real milk, then not so much.

Smartfood Selects Cinnamon Brown Sugar  Popped Chips - 3.3 - Pretty consistent 3, 3, 3 and a 1.  A common comment was like Cinnamon Crunch Cereal, but good tasting.  This is the opposite of the Mayesa - very mild flavors.







Dang  Toasted Coconut Chips - 2 - Everyone liked these, just some more than others.  Scores were 3, 2, 2 and a 1.  These were good on their own, and would be good with other things, like ice cream or nutella.  Interestingly enough, this was a kickstarter project.

Brownie Brittle Chocolate Chip - 1.5 - Now we are getting into what we really liked - a 1, 1, 1 and a 3.  They are advertised as the crispy corner of a brownie pan, and that is what they are like.  Very sweet.

Nutella & Go! - 1.25 - Well, duh.  Top scores - 1, 1, 1 and a 2 (the 2 only because the reviewer felt that Nutella is not new and exciting, just simply exciting.  We have been eating it for 40 years





Overall, it was not just the food products that made this fun - also the event - we waited for the box, the box had to sit on the counter till I came home, then we all opened it together and tried it.  It was an event - we had fun with it and argued over our views.  I (we) look forward to the next box.  For $7, it was great fun.

Unboxing Video of Goodies.co October Surprise Box - Does Walmart Have a Winner?

I received my first Goodies.co box  So I YouTubed the unboxing!

I used my Acer A100 tablet - it worked ok. I did it in 5meg quality, which means the file is 185 megs.  Next time - VGA quality.

Next time - perhaps a live stream from Google Hangout!

Coming soon - a review of the products!

My Walmart (err Goodies.co) box is shipping (soon)

Just got my email -

Hi David,
We just wanted to let you know your credit card has been charged for this month's Taster's Box service. Here is a summary of this month's order:
Order #1158930      October Taster's Box        Processing

I am looking forward to receiving it and doing a "un-boxing" video.  Marjorie suggests I live stream the event.

What is Goodies.co?  Click the link.  And they are on facebook - i am actually doing this as much for the marketing experience as the food.

However, they did say that they have charged me, but I might not receive the stuff for 2-3 weeks.  What?

Goodies.co - WalMart's latest Food Lab experience

Why yes, I did just become a "founding" member at Goodies.co, which is a WalMart effort at....perhaps developing their own shop at home, mail delivery service?  I don't know.  But for $7 a month, they promise me a box of goodies.  Ok, I am game.  Expect to see an un-boxing video!

From their website -


Each month, you will be sent an assortment of 5-8 trial-size to full-size food and beverage items. All items are selected by the Goodies Company team, customers do not select items that will be included in the subscription box.

Goodies Company requests information from customers, including food preferences, in order to evolve the Goodies product offering. While customers do tell us preferences and allergens as part of the sign-up process, we expect all customers to review labeling of food products before consuming.

As of today, all Goodies food items are vegetarian friendly.

All potential Goodies Co. products are first screened by participants in our Tasting Lab. The Tasting Lab attempts to match customers to products, and records detailed reactions and reviews to potential products. Those products that score the highest are invited to be in a Goodies Co. Taster’s Box.

We look for over 40 unique attributes when reviewing potential products, including organic, artisan, non-GMO, and many more. Our food partners range from some of the largest purveyors in the world, to brand new artisan brands.