K-cup Reviews: Cafe Escapes Milk Chocolate Hot Cocoa

That's right.  Two in a row!  I don't normally drink 2 cups of hot chocolate on the same day, but I'll consider one my desert.  I also felt the need to do a back to back with the Grove Square because...well, you should know which one makes the better cocoa.

Outsides:  A standard K-cup making a slightly darker than normal hot cocoa.

Insides:  Ok, the Cafe Escapes Hot Chocolate is not quite as sweet as the Grove Square and a little more chocolaty, but it tastes like it has artificial sweeteners when I don't think it does.  It's more of an aftertaste but  you don't get that with normal hot cocoa.  This is a bit sad because it's actually pretty good until that.

Overall:  Honestly, what's wrong with just using your Keurig to brew 8 oz of water and mixing a packet of hot chocolate in it?  It's gonna be cheaper than this stuff.  It's gonna be better than this stuff.  So yeah, don't buy it.

My Rating:  Pass.  Here's the GM affiliated site:  Cafe Escapes

K-cup Reviews: Grove Square Milk Chocolate Hot Cocoa

I kinda think hot cocoa K-cups are a waste of money.  For one thing, it takes the same amount of time using an electric kettle as it does the Keurig.  Even a microwave takes what, a minute and a half.  And then really the only work you do is stir.  Now, I guess you can get these for the office for that one person who doesn't like coffee or for teh childrens, but to me, personal use of these seems a bit silly.

Outsides:  Your standard K-cup except it's brown!  It looks and smells like normal hot cocoa.

Insides:  Ok, this one isn't bad.  It's rich, chocolaty and sweet, plus it isn't too fake tasting.  From what I remember, this is better than the Cafe Escapes milk chocolate one (I'll review it next to make sure) in that it tastes like appropriate hot chocolate.

Overall:  If you feel like you need some hot chocolate, whether it be for your office or kids or even just something to pop in, this one's not a bad choice.  Plus it's cheaper than the Cafe Escapes.

My Rating:  Try it!  This brand's interesting in that it doesn't have a Green Mountain Affiliated site, but you can easily find them at Sams Club and here's the holiday pack on Amazon.

K-cup Review: Cafe Escapes Cafe Caramel

Sorry about the bad quality.  

Ok, lets get this straight.  I love caramel.  It's probably my favorite chocolate filling (assuming the chocolate isn't too sweet) and it's even good with tea!  There's nothing quite like pure sweetness and creaminess to end your day.  It's kinda nice thinking that there's an option using a Keurig, although the Cafe Escapes are obscenely expensive for instant coffee and hot chocolate (that's right, Keurig is obscenely expensive.  Who would have thunk it?).

Outsides:  Standard K-cup.  You'll smell the caramel when it brews and it looks more like hot chocolate than....I really have no idea if this is supposed to have coffee in it or not.

Insides:  It starts out good:  Sweet, creamy and not overpowering in flavor.  And then this weird aftertaste kicks in, probably because they use a non-dairy creamer (mixed with non-fat milk so screw you Lactose-intolerant people).  There's maybe a hint of instant coffee in here but this is probably good for non-coffee drinkers assuming you have no taste.  But man, that aftertaste.  It's not much but it kinda tastes like soap in your mouth.  You know what, this is awful.  It's creamy, I'll give it that.  But it's a little too sweet and just tastes so fake.  You could probably buy caramel-flavored hot chocolate that doesn't taste like drain cleaner instead.

Overall:  Sorry Cafe Escapes.  I appreciate your free samples but try making better products first.

My Rating:  Pass.  Here's the site:  Green Mountain's Cafe Escape Subsite.  

Hot Cocoa Time! Stephen's Candy Cane Cocoa Peppermint

What:  Hot cocoa with bits of candy cane in it.  A thing to note is that this candy cane is supposed to melt but will more likely end up sticking to anything and everything it touches from the mug to the spoon you mix it with.

Where:  USA

Why Should I Care:  Mint tends to be one of the more popular hot chocolate flavors and this one has little bits of candy mixed in the cocoa.  My mom got me a huge box of this stuff and I can tell you that it's great for company after a night of throwing snowballs or walking two miles in the opposite direction from the dorm (I will never trust that person with directions again).  But I have matured and tasted many more a hot cocoa so how will Stephen's hold up?

Packaging:  Foil bags.

Non-Taste Senses:  It's standard hot chocolate with a little bit of a pinkish tint.  There's also that hint of peppermint in the smell.

Taste:  Well, it's not as creamy as Land-o-Lakes, but it has a really strong minty candy cane taste.   It's sweet but not too sweet and another nice thing is surprisingly, it does mix well and doesn't leave as much of a cocoa residue as other brands.

Overview:  I think one of the nice things about getting close to the holidays are some of the limited edition flavors of food and this is no exception.

My Rating:  Try it!  Here's the site.  Something tells me that this is the uber-bulk pack, though.

Hot Cocoa Time! Land O Lakes Classic Dark

What:  Extra Chocolatey Hot Cocoa

Where:  USA

Why Should I Care:  The thing I've noticed about dark chocolate cocoa is that it generally has more cocoa with the same amount of sugar and cream.  I mean, dark chocolate is pretty much just more chocolate and less milk.  Anyway, this is usually my stand-by when I drink hot chocolate

Packaging:  Foil bag

Non-Taste Senses:  It's a little darker and grayer than your average cocoa and smells more chocolaty 

Taste:  Oh man, it's so chocolaty.  It still has the same creaminess of the other ones but with double the cocoa

Overall:  If you like chocolate, check this out.  If not, stay away from this.

My Rating:  Try it.

Hot Cocoa Time! Land O Lakes Chocolate Graham hot cocoa

What:  Graham Cracker Hot Cocoa?

Where:  USA

Why Should I Care:  I'm guessing this is supposed to taste like chocolate and wheat.  Also, this is theoretically the best cocoa for marshmallows.

Packaging:  Foil package

Non-taste Senses:  It looks like hot cocoa but it smells like...coconut?

Taste:  It tastes like chocolate with coconut too.  I dunno.  The hot cocoa portion of it is really rich and creamy but that added bit of coconut throws me off.  It's ok but it's not something I recommend to people.

Overall:  I've tried about 7 flavors of Land o Lakes and this one's my least favorite.  I'm pretty sure it's seasonal and that's how it should stay.

My Rating:  Pass.  This particular flavor is special edition so you're not going to find it on the site.

Hot Coco Time! Land O Lakes Chocolate Suprime

What:  Regular ol' hot cocoa

Where:  USA

Why Should I Care:  I honestly just felt like having some hot cocoa.  It IS that type of weather, plus hot cocoa's great for people who have major chocolate cravings.  Even it it's 150 calories per cup, that's better than 300 calories per bar (the excuses I make).  I also have a bunch of hot cocoa so I figured, why not!

Packaging:  Land O Lakes is nice and uses foil packages as opposed to paper.  Well, that's not so nice for the earth-loving hippies but whatever.

Non-Taste Senses:  It looks like normal hot cocoa and it smells like normal hot cocoa.

Taste:  I think the best thing about this brand is that they don't skimp on the (powdered) milk.  It's super creamy while still having a nice chocolaty flavor.  It's also nice and thick so it kinda fools you into thinking you're drinking milk instead of water.

Overall:  I like this brand.  It's rich, creamy and has everything you want in standard hot cocoa.  Check it out.

My Rating:  Try it!  Here's the site.