How do you get started in the morning? I find myself grabbing a big cup of coffee every morning – regardless of what yummy energy drink treat i have waiting for me later on in the day. Sometimes the wait gets too much and I have to crack a can open early. For the last couple mornings I haven’t had to worry about where my morning jolt was coming from with Sturm foods exciting new caffeinated “morning spark” instant oatmeal.
They were kind enough to send me 2 different flavors to sample, a mixed berry and a cranberry apple. Although their site lists 80mg a pack of caffeine, their box listed it as 50. so at about half a cup of coffee I made them 2 at a time. Actually the blueberry was so good – I found a GREAT way to eat it, even though people looked at me funny. I poured coffee and milk into the blueberry, giving it an amazing brownish hue and tasting like a blueberry bran muffin. It like french fries and ice cream- don’t knock it till you tried it!
My only problem is they are not sold in my area. And I am almost out ( although i still would love to try out your other flavor wink wink) . At 3 bucks or so for a box of 8, these little packs should leave the competitors Quakering in their boots! Please Sturm Foods, put this product online, bring it west – something to help the jonesing masses and those not yet hooked on your oaty goodness!
Taste – Mixed Berry:10
Taste – cranberry 7
Go for the Mixed berry if you have the chance. Both are natural and healthy, but the berry seems to be everyone’s favorite. It is deep and hearty, and still sweet and delicious, not to mettion it has the detoxifying benefits of the acai berry. The cranberry one is not as sweet, and doesn’t have that same heartiness that the blueberry one did either. Not to mention, the berry fills the room with a great blueberryish – fruity smell, making all those around you envious for some of the goodness themselves. It was like making buttery popcorn – it was hard not to share. I was very very impressed with these, being very tasty while still being all natural and free of high fructose corn syrup. Just on taste alone, I would buy these over most of the other oatmeal in my grocery aisle.
Buzz/Nutrition:9
I was told and read on their site these have 80mg, but the box lists 50. I can tell you that 1 pack does not do much, but 2 will get you moving in a hurry! I also love that it has Yerba Mate, and their caffeine comes from guarana as opposed to lab made caffeine. This think is SOOO healthy! No High Fructose Corn Syrup, no scary chemicals – and it is Loaded with vitamins. This has calcuim, all the vitamin B and C, all the good you want from fiber, some have the acai and all at only 160mg per packet. Grab a couple of these, head out the door, and you can make it alert and ready to go within the first 15 minutes at work. With it actually did have 80 mg of caffeine in it, but with all the complex carbs and yerba mate I feel pretty raring to go a very short time after eating a bowl.
Packaging:7
It’s OK, albeit a too cartoony for my taste. Oatmeal is supposed to be healthy and still appeal to those with enough smarts to remember to eat breakfast. But since more teens are getting into the caffeine thing, they thought to dumb it does but reached too far. This is going way too over the top and misses the audience completely – going for the 8 year old crowd instead. The colors are great – the info is very helpful but lose the graffiti/saturday morning Nickelodeon cartoon lettering, will ya?