Taste Test

The Fearless Flyer from Trader Joe’s arrived in the mailbox last week, and this time, rather than tossing it into the recycle bin, I read it. The copywriters are quite clever and make each of the entries intriguing enough that I made a decision: buy at least a dozen different items and taste test them.

The first step was reading the flyer, from Triple Ginger Brew through Gingerbread = Joyous Jubilation (which the flyer spelled with an extra I after the L). Along the way I found French Truffle Chevre, which was okay, but the overly strong taste of the cheese over-powered the milder taste of the MultiGrain Pita Bite Crackers that I really loved. I also tried Still the Best Thing Since Sliced Bree, which I featured on a toasted cheese and lunch meat sandwich, but it had far too much rind to deal with when compared with a simple round of bree. The Honey Walnut Fig Cream Cheese was delicious and deserves to be the featured spread on a cinnamon roll, not a spread on a savory cracker.

The tiny roll of Truffle Salami was far too expensive and too small. The delicious taste of the salami led to wanting to eat a lot more of it than was advisable at one sitting, and I suspect I’ll return for another tiny log of this product next time I’m in the neighborhood of a Trader Joe’s. I have yet to eat the Brie En Croute, the Scallops Wrapped in Bacon, and/or the Bite of Wellington. Eight, Actually, which is individual bites, rather than a roast or a slice of Wellington. The Porchetta Pork Roast is scheduled for dinner tonight, a somewhat small roast with a very robust price, so we better like it – a lot. The Petite Fig, Pear and Cranberry Tart is by far the best bite I’ve had, but then my favorite foods come from the bakery.

Jingle Jangle is a tin filled with an assortment of “things” that taste terrific bathed in chocolate, and it only makes an appearance during the holidays. Nestled next to that canister, I placed a 30-ounce tin of Toffee, which I probably could eat in one sitting. My daughter makes the best toffee I’ve ever eaten, but this toffee is almost as delicious as hers. I also bought a box of sea salt topped caramels, a holiday staple for a friend who enjoys getting a box for under her tree. Finally, I bought a snack bar called “This Cranberry Walks Into a Bar… .” It is no better nor worse than any other snack bar, but it’s only available during the holiday season due to the cranberry filling.

The result of my shopping spree and taste testing is that I don’t understand why so many people crowd their way through Trader Joe’s to snap up grocery items they could buy elsewhere at a lower price. Sure, there are organic and vegan and vegetarian items there that may not be readily available at more commercial markets, but are those products worth the Trader’s price? The store was packed with people snapping up the Fearless Flyer items, as well as baskets filled with other holiday goodies, and five lines worked quickly and efficiently to check out each patron with a personal greeting and a smile, which is not often the experience at other, larger markets. It was fun once, but my experience, as well as my taste-testing, will not lead me to drive out of my way to find a Trader Joe’s and make purchases unless it’s really something special, like the pork porchetta, that I want for a special occasion.