Bourbon Jaga Choco Yogurt Baked Potato Chips Review

Fro-yo girl here. Bourbon Jaga Choco Yogurt baked potato chips are imported from Japan. I found them at 168 Market in San Gabriel, CA, for $2.19.

One cup is 1.26 oz. Each cup has two servings. One serving is 100 calories with 6g fat, 10g sugar and 10g carbohydrates.

The potato chips are coated in a thin layer of yogurt chocolate. The coating is creamy and the chips are crunchy. The chips are ridged and puffy. The yogurt coating has that Yakult flavor that I’m not too fond of, and no chocolate flavor. It’s mostly sweet, with a bit of tang and salt. The flavor is interesting but I probably wouldn’t get these again. Yogurt and potato chips are a strange combination. I’d rather have savory yogurt flavored chips.

Ingredients: Vegetable oil, dried potato, starch, salt, sugar, lactose, whole milk powder, cocoa butter, defatted milk powder, whey powder, caramel powder, soya lecithin, flavor, citric acid, turmeric color, tocopherol, ascorbic acid, trehalose, water.

3 out of 5 stars.

* 168 MARKET: 933 E Las Tunas Dr., San Gabriel, CA 91776

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.

Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.

Yogurt in Japan

Fro-yo girl here. I recently visited Japan. Frozen yogurt is hard to find there, but yogurt is easier to find. Since I was busy eating soft cream, I wasn’t able to consume too much yogurt, but I did try a few yogurt products. I also spotted the yogurt shelf at a Japanese supermarket. Most of the brand names were in Japanese but I recognized a few brands: Morinaga, Dannon/Danone, and Meiji. The yogurt typically comes in small individual cups, to be eaten as snacks. It’s rare for Japanese to use yogurt in cooking. I didn’t see skyr or non-dairy yogurt. City-cost describes some of the leading Japanese yogurt brands.

Yakult, the fermented milk drink, was developed by Japanese scientist Dr. Minoru Shirota. The first bottle of Yakult was produced in 1935. Yakult claims to have billions of live and active bacteria of an exclusive probiotic strain, Lactobacillus casei Shirota.

The market leader in the Japanese yogurt market is a product called Meiji Bulgaria Yogurt. Meiji launched Japan’s first plain yogurt in 1971. They obtained naming rights from Bulgaria and released Meiji Bulgaria Yogurt in 1973. It took some time for the Japanese consumers to accept Meiji Bulgaria Yogurt, but they were won over by health benefit claims and the positioning as authentically Bulgarian. The company imported yogurt starter cultures from Bulgaria.

One tub of yogurt that I had in Japan had a Yakult like flavor. I also had a yogurt that tasted like plain yogurt. It wasn’t as thick as Greek yogurt but it wasn’t sweetened or Yakult like. The best yogurt product that I found was a thick yogurt drink from Azumino Winery in Nagano Prefecture. It’s made with raw milk from Azumino cows.

Yogurt art is also increasing in popularity in Japan. Japanese use plain yogurt “as a canvas to create pictures with fruits and sauces.” I’ve seen examples on Instagram. 

I visited Mitsuwa in San Gabriel, CA and they didn’t have any imported Japanese yogurt. The only yogurt brands they carried were Beijing Yogurt and Alove.

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.

Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.

Green Mountain Creamery Skyr Review

Fro-yo girl here. I was at Sprouts and decided to try Green Mountain Creamery’s Skyr yogurt. It was marked new. The retail price was $1.59 each and the sale price 5 for $5. The flavors are blended. My Sprouts was sold out of Strawberry Cream, but they had Vanilla Bean and Key Lime.

Available flavors: Strawberry Cream, Vanilla Bean, Salted Caramel, Key Lime, Plain

* Key Lime: Their key lime skyr had the usual key lime flavor. It was sweeter than I expected but had a nice tang. The texture was thick and creamy. I’m used to skyr having less sugar than Greek yogurt. I’m not sure how Green Mountain’s skyr is different from Greek yogurt. It seems too sweet for skyr.

* Vanilla Bean: It was nice to see the vanilla bean specks throughout the yogurt and to taste more vanilla than Green Mountain Creamery’s vanilla Greek yogurt. It was tangy but not sour and it had a hint of cream flavor. It was definitely richer than the Greek yogurt version, and better because it had more vanilla flavor. However, it was slightly chalky and pretty sweet for skyr (sweeter than Siggi’s). I also noticed they used thickeners: guar gum and corn starch. I prefer skyr made without thickeners.

Green Mountain Creamery Skyr is all natural, no RBST, gluten free, Grade-A strained, 3.5% milkfat, and has live and active cultures.

One serving of Vanilla Bean Skyr has 160 calories, 4g total fat, 16g total carbohydrates, 12g total sugars and 13g protein. Compared to their Greek yogurt, it has a little more protein, more fat (whole vs. nonfat milk), and a little more sugar.

Ingredients (vanilla bean): Pasteurized whole milk, cane sugar, non-GMO corn starch, pectin, natural flavors, vanilla extract, guar gum, vanilla beans, live active cultures

3.5 out of 5 stars

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.

Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.

New Pinkberry Summer Flavor, Passion Mango Frozen Yogurt

Fro-yo girl here. I was pleasantly surprised to find the new Pinkberry summer flavor, Passion Mango, on day one of the launch, June 22. I don’t believe that any new toppings were added to complement the new flavor but Pinkberry does recommend topping Passion Mango with mango and honey almond granola.

* Passion Mango frozen yogurt: I was pleasantly surprised by how tangy it was. It wasn’t as sweet as I feared because of the tanginess of the passionfruit. I have mixed feelings about mango because mango froyo tends to be quite sweet, even when it’s tart based. Passionfruit isn’t my favorite fruit either. I could taste mango and passionfruit, so the flavor was a success. However, it wasn’t refreshing and it didn’t have a clean finish. The texture was silky, smooth and not heavy or dense. It wasn't creamy or icy but somewhere in between. Recommended toppings: Raspberries, organic gummi bears.

Passion Mango frozen yogurt will be available at participating US Pinkberry stores until August 9, 2018.

P.S. Pinkberry is sponsoring a contest. The grand prize is a trip to the London premiere of Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.

Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.

Fermented Milk (aka, Yogurt) in China

Fro-yo girl here. During a recent layover at Shanghai Pudong International Airport, I spotted some local Chinese yogurt products. I noticed that they call yogurt fermented milk on the packaging. Some of the yogurt products looked like drinks and others were served in cups.

The fermented milk at Starbucks seemed like a safe choice and I could read the packaging.

* Granola & flavored fermented milk mixed strawberry flavor (20 yuan, approximately $3.15 US dollars): The packaging looked nice. The granola was packaged separately and stored in a clear compartment above the cup of yogurt. The yogurt didn’t look pink/strawberry flavored but there were strawberry chunks in the white yogurt. The texture was creamy but not as thick as Greek yogurt. It must not have been strained? The yogurt was tangy but not very tangy. The strawberry flavor wasn’t strong since there only some strawberry pieces. It was different than what we have in the US but still pretty good. It seems to have live and active cultures.

Milk was very expensive and rationed in China before the 1980s. Therefore, milk consumption was very low. Soy milk was consumed instead.

However, dairy milk consumption is on the rise in China and China is now the third largest producer of milk in the world. The Chinese Nutrition Society recommends that Chinese increase their dairy consumption, so there is growing interesting in cheese, milk, and yogurt. Yogurt sales recently overtook milk sales in the country. Prices of milk and dairy products are still high but milk and dairy products are perceived as healthy.

Ethnic minorities in Mongolia and the surrounding areas have been fermenting milk since ancient times. The dairy milk was obtained from mares, sheep, yaks, camels, and goats. Beijing yogurt is a traditional fermented milk drink made by heating milk and adding sugar to it. I’ve had Beijing yogurt in the US, where you can find more than one brand in Chinese supermarkets. 

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.

Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.

White Moustache Yogurt Review

Fro-yo girl here. I remember hearing about White Moustache Yogurt years ago but it was only sold in New York, so I didn’t think that I could easily try it. White Moustache Yogurt was founded by Homa Dashtaki and her father when they lived in Southern California and sold Persian yogurt at farmers markets. The family left California because regulations made it nearly impossible for them to legally sell yogurt. They settled in Brooklyn in 2013 and gained a following for their handmade, small batch yogurt made using Persian techniques and no machines. But regulations said that the yogurt could only be sold in New York.

Then Eataly opened in Los Angeles. They started carrying White Moustache Yogurt. How? By making it on site (at Eataly) in Los Angeles. I’m not sure who makes the yogurt in Brooklyn now (probably family members and/ or employees) but Homa Dashtaki has returned to LA. It sounds like the freshest yogurt that I can get on the market. It doesn’t even have to be delivered.

They make Persian yogurt, Greek yogurt, probiotic whey tonics, Kurdish labneh, and probiotic pops.

What is Persian style yogurt? It’s not strained, so it isn’t as thick as Greek yogurt. White Moustache says “it has a saucy consistency perfect for eating with sweet or savory preparations” while Greek yogurt is “smooth and creamy thick, sweet yogurt.” The yogurt is $7.80 (no tax is added).

Yogurt flavors:

• Plain
• Orange blossom honey and walnuts 
• Sour cherry 
• Dates 

Some of the yogurt flavors like Summer Peaches, Quince, and King Mulberry are seasonal. Mulberry is in season right now.

The yogurt they make in New York is made with fresh whole milk from Hudson Valley Fresh, a dairy farmer partnership in NY. The yogurt they make in California is made with local Straus Creamery milk. The label says that the yogurt is made with“farm fresh milk, live cultures, and endless patience. Each jar is handmade and hand packed.”

* Sour cherry Greek yogurt: Sour cherry is one of my favorite flavors, so I had to get it. The yogurt is not blended. No nutritional information is provided. The ingredients are: cultured whole milk (pasteurized), compote (sour cherry, sugar). Very simple. The yogurt is thick, creamy and very smooth – it’s not heavy though it tastes a little like cream. The velvety smoothness is what really struck me. The flavor was sour since no sugar was added to yogurt itself. The compote had lots of cherry juice and quite a few whole cherries. The cherries were sweet, the juice was sweet but once mixed, the yogurt was pleasantly, mildly tangy. The cherries with the lightly sweetened yogurt were fantastic. At 8 oz it’s larger than the usual tub of yogurt (the typical size is 5 oz) and you get to keep the glass jar. It’s Noosa sized and that’s usually good enough for two servings for me. The plastic lid on top can easily be put back on for storage.

Get some! Get a few jars! The labneh with aleppo pepper and za'atar is calling my name.

5 out of 5 stars.

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl. 

* WHITE MOUSTACHE YOGURT AT EATALY: 10250 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles (Century City), CA 90067

Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.

Yogurtland’s New Flavors of Summer Launching on June 18

Fro-yo girl here. The day for the release of Yogurtland’s new summer flavors has finally arrived: Monday, June 18.

The wait felt so long! The new spring flavors were released on April 2, with no new flavors since then.

The “Flavors of Summer” are:

Blue Raspberry Sorbet flavored with Jolly Rancher: Yogurtland says, “This fruity, raspberry childhood favorite is sure to be a crowd pleaser! This non-dairy, bold, blue, frozen treat is made with REAL JOLLY RANCHER® Blue Raspberry!” It’s nonfat. The Jolly Blue Raspberry base has artificial flavors. While this flavor didn’t sound appealing to me, it wasn’t awful. It did taste like Jolly Rancher blue raspberry candies, but it wasn’t too intensely candy-like. I wouldn’t get it though, because it was too sweet and not natural. The Yogurtland manager liked it because it was refreshing. Recommended toppings: Fresh fruit, sour gummies.

Cookies & Crème Smores Frozen Yogurt: Yogurtland describes this flavor as, “Late summer nights were made for Cookies and Crème Smores! The delicious pairing of REAL Chocolate Cookies blended into sweet marshmallow yogurt will transport you to a warm summer night sitting around the camp fire!” It’s lowfat. Sadly, this flavor is also made with artificial flavors. Why, Yogurtland, why? However, I did think it was the best of the new summer flavors. The marshmallow muted the chocolate in a pleasant way. It was sweet, creamy, and didn’t taste like their other chocolate flavors. I didn’t detect graham crackers but I’m not sure they were in the mix. The yogurt was made with chocolate cookies. Recommended toppings: Keebler double fudge cookies, graham crackers, marshmallow sauce, chocolate chips.

When it comes to the new Butter Pecan Light Ice Cream, Yogurtland says, “Our Flavorologists took inspiration from a decadent summer essential and created for the first time in Yogurtland® history a reduced guilt Ice Cream treat! A de-LIGHT-ful combination of delicate, buttery cream and perfectly roasted pecans makes for a summer time favorite! Made with REAL Roasted Pecans! Note: Fat content has been reduced from 10% Fat to 4.8% Fat as compared to our Creamy Vanilla Ice Cream.” Butter pecan did seem less rich than the other Yogurtland ice cream flavors. It was pleasant and mild but the pecan/nutty flavor was very mild. It didn’t taste like vanilla ice cream but it wasn’t that nutty either. Recommended toppings: Almonds, Nilla wafers, toffee bits.

There were two new toppings: sour watermelon gummies and Keebler double fudge cookies. The Keebler sandwich cookies are adorable. They are plain sandwich cookies with fudge filling that feature different elves on one side and different sayings on the other side. There were no new cups or spoons.

Last summer, Yogurtland introduced 5 new summer flavors and two new spoons (the Joy promotion). This year there are have been fewer new flavors, new spoons, and promotions from Yogurtland. Sigh.

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.

Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.