Twelve flavors of GoGo Squeez applesauce, that is. Hit the break to see what this is all about and how YOU TOO can enter the lucrative applesauce-reviewing racket.
A little over a week ago on Twitter, something amazing happened. Mostly in jest, I tweeted about trying every flavor of GoGo Squeez, an applesauce brand, and rating the different flavors on this blog. Well, the GoGo Squeez account saw my tweet, seemed interested in that theoretical blog post, and contacted me directly. A few days later, a box of twelve applesauce pouches arrived on my doorstep. So, without further ado, my first sponsored (?) blog post: GoGo Squeez Applesauce.
Let's talk about this applesauce. I received a small box of it from a friend when I was recovering from dental surgery a few weekends ago - she gave me a care package of soups, Jell-O, and Go Go Squeez. GoGo Squeez comes in pouches, like a Capri Sun drink but with a nozzle at the top instead of a straw hole. No spoon, no mess, super easy to eat. It's a neat idea that totally works, and other applesauce companies have already mimicked the concept. Here's the Wikipedia article on GoGo Squeez and here's a link to the GoGo Squeez website. Those two URLs should provide whatever additional background information that I don't bring up here.
And here's a quick pic of the pouches in all their glory. Breathtaking.
Each GoGo Squeez flavor is typically made of apples, apple juice, and a few other appropriate fruits and juices. No artificial additives. The sugar level is also reasonable, at 11 to 13 grams per pouch. This sugar level isn't good for diabetics, but it's lower than most fruit snacks, with half the sugar content of a cup of fruit yogurt. (source). Overall it's a healthy snack made from natural ingredients, and they're delicious.
Now, the rest of this blog post is going to be ranking the twelve Natural flavors of GoGo Squeez. The applesauce line has three subdivisions, with Natural being their standard label, Organic being their 100% organic label, and Fast Fruit being larger pouches with flavors aimed at an older demographic. I'm only reviewing the twelve Natural ones because those were the ones sent to me, but they were so delicious that I might have to give Fast Fruit a shot in the near future. So here goes nothing.
GoGo Squeez Applesaunce Rankings
Final note: all of these applesauces are delicious. I may say some unappreciative things about the flavors lower in the rankings, but that's just because I liked other flavors better and I need to make the comparison clearer. None of these are bad, and if you absolutely love cherries then you would probably rank AppleCherry higher than I did! I'm only human, with my own sets of tastes and preferences. Now that that's settled, let's rank some applesauces.
12. AppleCherry
Very strong, distinctive cherry taste, but it sort of takes over the show. I wouldn't say it's sour or bitter, but it's so strong that I wish they had lowered the cherry:apple ratio a little bit.
11. AppleMandarin
A little too tart overall, especially in the aftertaste. I enjoy orange-flavored things in general, but this tastes more like applesauce with a strong orange aftertaste than something with mandarin in it.
10. AppleBerry
This applesauce contains apple, pomegranate, raspberry, and blackberry. It has the tartness that you would associate with raspberries, but it's a little overwhelming. Similar to the AppleCherry in that regard, but not as intense.
9. AppleMango
The mango taste is very evident in this flavor, but I feel that the two didn't harmonize quite as well as in some of my higher-ranking flavors. Still pretty tasty, though. I like mangoes okay, but they're not a particular favorite. Just like this applesauce.
8. AppleGrape
The grape taste is VERY strong, but sweet and delicious. Sweeter-tasting than most of the other flavors. Tastes like a dark grape juice, but I wish the apple was a little more easily detected.
7. ApplePear
You can taste the pear, but it's more subtle than most of the other flavors on this list. It's a little tart / tangy, but the tartness is milder than the AppleBerry or AppleMandarin flavors.
6. AppleApple
What can I say? The base apple flavor is good applesauce, with a good texture and good flavor. Good! I have it ranked in the middle because, well, some additives make it better and some make it worse? It kinda just worked out that way. Even when it's only apples it's quite yummy.
5. Gimme Five!
Contains apple, banana, mango, peach, and strawberry. The strawberry and apple seem to come out strongest of those five. Overall it's a reasonable balance of sweet and tart that I enjoyed quite a bit.
4. AppleStrawberry
Only a little sweeter-tasting than the AppleApple, but really good overall. Interestingly, the ingredient list indicates that there is banana and blackcurrant in this flavor. Go figure. Slight tartness in the aftertaste, just like eating a strawberry. No kidding.
3. ApplePeach
The peach flavor is understated at first and more obvious in the aftertaste. Not as sweet as the AppleStrawberry, but there's a subtle tartness that's juuuust right. Like Baby Bear's porridge.
2. AppleBanana
I love bananas, and I love this applesauce. The apple flavor hits a little stronger than the banana, but the two fruits complement each other very nicely. Very smooth combination. Interestingly, the list of ingredients also has lemon juice. Huh, okay. Didn't taste like lemon. Just like awesome.
1. AppleCinnamon
The problems with throwing cinnamon in things are that you can often feel the graininess of the cinnamon and sometimes the cinnamon flavor overwhelms everything else. Not in this case. The cinnamon stands out, but doesn't take over. Isn't grainy at all. Tastes strong and sweet without going too far in either category. Hey, it's a classic combination for a reason, right?
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So that's that! I can't say for sure if I'll be doing more snack reviews in the future, but I sure had fun writing this one! I have a bunch of other posts in the oven, and most of them are about videogames (surprising, I know). I'll have my next game review up in the next day or two.
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