Weather | Sports | Forums | Comics | Classifieds | Calendar | Movies

Nestle makes the very best cocoa

Those little packets of powdered chocolate mixed with hot water make a darn good cup of cocoa. In fact, our panelists preferred the water-based hot chocolates to the ones mixed with milk.

We sampled eight brands of powdered hot cocoa mixes and put Nestle at the top of the list with 48 out of 80 possible points.

Three of the four judges said they would buy Nestle's mixes ($1.59 for a box of 10 packets) because of the nice color, strong chocolate flavor and smooth texture.

One panelist said his cup of Nestle hot cocoa had "some frothing, good color" and a "great taste from beginning to end."

In second place, with 38 points, was Albertsons hot chocolate mix ($2.09 for a box of 10 packets).

Albertsons cocoa mixed up dark and full-flavored and it fooled one panelist who thought it was his favorite, Swiss Miss.

"Ah, this must be my girl from Switzerland," he said.

But, the Swiss Miss mix ($1.59 for a 10-pack) didn't make the top four.

Third place was a tie at 32 points between the Publix brand ($1.49 for 10 packages) and Ghirardelli mix ($5.82 for a 16-ounce can).

The Ghirardelli mix, which required hot milk rather than water, looked great but lacked taste, according to the judges.

Two judges said they would buy the Ghirardelli mix, describing the cocoa as "dark, milky and thick."

"I can't wait for fall," said one panelist after sipping the Ghirardelli.

The Publix brand scored well for color but lost points when it came to taste.

"Why, oh why, the watery taste," said one judge. "The Who has a song, I Won't Get Fooled Again."

Ovaltine ($2.99 for a 12-ounce can) was the other cocoa that mixed with milk. But only one of the four judges said he would buy that brand. "This has a nice Starbucks kind of foam and would drink very nicely in a cup with a handle," he said.

The others described the Ovaltine drink as disappointing.

"This could be cream of mushroom soup," said one.

Also tasted were: Kash n' Karry ($1.09 for 10 packets) and Perfect Cup (39 cents for individual 1.2-ounce packets).

Panelists were: Nan Jensen, home economist with Pinellas County Family and Consumer Sciences; personal chefs Julie Overton and Marc Easterman; and Times Taste Editor Janet Keeler. All products were tested blind.

Send suggestions for product testing to Taste section, St. Petersburg Times, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731 or e-mail them to krieta@sptimes.com Please put TEST SUGGESTION in the subject line.

No. 1: Nestle.

No. 2: Albertsons.

No. 3: (Tie) Publix, Ghirardelli.