The Yogurt Project: Cabot Nonfat Black Cherry

This is my fourth yogurt trial so far...if you've read any of the others, you can skip right down to the "taste test" portion. If not, I've reprinted my intro below:

What's the deal with little cups of yogurt? Just a few years ago, fermented-dairy eaters had a choice between Dannon and Columbo. Remember Columbo? I didn't...I had to ask my coworker to help me come up with the name of "that other major yogurt company when we were growing up."

Now, I see customers standing dumbstruck before the yogurt shelf, not knowing whether to reach for full-fat sheeps' milk, low-fat cows' milk or even a soy.  So, I figure, it's time for a massive yogurt taste test. You ready?

If I were a purist I would taste only plain yogurt, but this is my game, and I don't wanna. So I'm going to do the best I can comparing different brands by eating their most enticing flavors.

Cabot Nonfat: Black Cherry

Cost: Around a buck

Packaging: Your standard, super-busy, kid-friendly, colorful yogurt container. The background is purple, the cherries are red, the wording is white and yellow, the Cabot logo is red, green and white. You get the idea. I don't find it that appealing, but my eyes gravitate towards it nonetheless. Like TV.

Nutrition Info: 8 oz. serving. 150 calories. 0% fat (DV). 0% fiber (DV).  21 g. sugar. 9 g. protein.  25% each: vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, vitamin D, vitamin E (DV).

Active Cultures: Acidophilus and Bifidus.

Appearance: Kind of blobby. The black cherries are mixed into the yogurt, so the product is pale purple with cherry chunks, and being non-fat, is thin enough that it was clearly squishing around in the package and climbing the sides of the container before I got around to opening it.

Aroma: Pleasant, but smells less like yogurt than it does like black cherry soda, which I admit that I'm partial to. Really, that's about all I can smell.

Mouthfeel: Thinner than the full-fat stuff or the skyr, but not watery. It's the consistency of all the yogurt I grew up eating. After swallowing, the yogurt seemed to leave a bit of a gritty feeling.

Taste: A little tangier than some of the other yogurts, this one gave me the slightest hint of shivers. There's a very slight bitter note, and less sweetness and fruitiness than I expected. The black cherry aroma seems to be stronger than the cherry flavor.

Notes: If you buy into the low-fat thing, which I emphatically don't, this could be considered one of the healthier products out there: It's low in calories and fat-free, with some added vitamins to pump up the nutritional profile. The mouthfeel is fine, although I wonder if the grittiness I noticed came from the modified cornstarch on the ingredient list. The flavor is o.k., too. But I'm not wild about it. I wouldn't choose to eat this for enjoyment. However, it is local.

Comments

[MistressMaeve]

Yum! Black cherry is my favorite flavor! Hey did you hear about the recall of Fat-free Blueberry Stonyfield yogurt? Apparently there might be glass particles in it. Yikes! Good thing I don't like blueberry.

[jvwalt]

Cabot's started making a line of Greek-style yogurt which is very good, but may not be widely available. The Shaw's around Montpelier give it a sliver of shelf space next to the regular Cabot's.

[Rae]

The Cabot greek style is great! Their dulce de leche flavor is our new favorite dessert. It has a pleasantly tangy flavor and thick texture.The only place I've been able to find it so far is, randomly, Greg's Meat Market in Middlebury.