i have been looking for a lower cost solution for my yogurt needs since i realized that my monthly spending on stoneyfield farms banilla yogurt (no that’s not a typo, it’s vanilla and banana) had gotten rather excessive. on a recent binge shopping spree to tj’s i decided i would try something new. i made a purchase of trader joe’s organic nonfat french vanilla yogurt (goddamn that’s a long name). to be objective i decided i would evaluate it on a couple of different levels: by itself and with granola. seeing as how the majority of us eat it with something i though this was beneficial.

popping the top: what i think most people forget is to give the whole thing a nice shake. you want to break up all that heavy stuff that settled on the bottom and mix it up without dirtying a spoon. the consistency is watery compared to non-organic varieties, but if you have been enjoying organic yogurt this is just the same thing we are used to. the color is pale white, as expected with no ‘vanilla flecks’ from a vanilla pod. overall: as expected, nothing to see here folks. move along.

taste (by itself): mostly faint. i really didn’t taste much of anything. certainly i didn’t taste any ’sting’ from the live cultures or any overwhelming vanilla flavor. as many products do, they overuse vanilla, but this was subtle. the mouth-feel was soft and dissolved pretty quickly. now before you say something, this is not a bad thing. having a faint flavor can be a good thing. see, i like granola. i like it so much in fact that i make my own. i have worked and tweaked the recipe to suit my tastes and i don’t want something overpowering my flavors that i have carefully constructed. if you compare it to a band: i want something that will play rhythm guitar. i already have granola which is playing solo guitar and doing vocals; i can’t have two lead singers and two solo guitars.

taste (with granola): now we’re talking. the texture of the granola played well with the yogurt without watering it down. it still maintained the crunchy texture. what i found most appealing was that the yogurt’s subtle vanilla flavor actually accented the flavors in the granola like toasted coconut, golden raisins and dried cherries. i was able to taste everything separately but the vanilla tied them all together. this was quite a winner in my opinion.

overall: i give the yogurt 8/10. the score would have been higher if the yogurt could have been eaten on its own, but because it needed other elements it loses a couple of points. the score would have been lower if it detracted from my granola, but since it boosted the flavors i had developed it gets a good score. i would get it again, but remember to grab some granola or at the very least some fresh fruit to add to yours. otherwise don’t hold me responsible if you are less than impressed by this product.