DegustaBox UK January 2017 Subscription Box Review

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DegustaBox UK is a monthly subscription box that brings your favorite food and snacks to your doorstep. The subscription costs £12.99 per month and you’ll get a box filled with 10-15 products and goodies! This box is always filled full with so many goodies and new things to try.

 

DEAL: Get your first box for £4.99! Just use this link, or code P50LO.

In the US but just looking for fun? Use this link to get your first US box for 50% off!

This box is really decorated inside and out. While the outside has little food items on it, the inside is full of bright green words. Plastic wrap and brown butcher paper keep all the contents safe.


Unsurprisingly, January’s Degustabox comes with an array of items perfect for the health-conscious consumer looking to recover from a December of over-indulging. An information sheet provides details for most of the items.

Quinoa Mothergrain (£2.49, about $3.10)  is ready-cooked Organic and Fairtrade mix of pearl quinoa with split peas which can be eaten hot or cold. The product is also gluten-free and vegan. Unfortunately, I wasn’t crazy about this. I liked the addition of split peas, but overall the quinoa was rather bland and not nearly as tasty as plain stuff I cook at home from dry. Without some sort of seasoning or flavor to make it special, I don’t see the value in this product when quinoa is so easy and cheap to cook.

The box included two cans of Aspire Drinks (£1.45, about $1.80) in Cranberry and Mango Lemonade. These sugar-free, calorie-free energy drinks pack lots of vitamins along with green tea extract (EGCG) to contribute to fat reduction. I was looking forward to trying these, but they fell flat for me. The drinks had a strong artificial flavor and aftertaste which I just did not enjoy. They are also high in caffeine, which may be why my head felt like it was spinning after drinking a quarter of the can!

Finn Crisp Snacks (£1.89, about $2.35) are little triangles of crispy whole grain rye topped with seeds and sea salt. The snacks are high in fiber and low in fat.

They definitely taste healthy, in a good way! I liked the earthy, yeasty taste of rye and the nuttyness from the sesame seeds and linseeds. The box came with several recipes for dips, but I think these would taste delicious with simple hummus or even peanut butter.

Natvia (£4.99, about $6.25) is a zero calorie sweetener based on stevia and erythritol. It is 100% naturally sources, contains no aspartame, saccharine, artificial colors or flavors. It is also fructose free and suitable for diabetics and vegetarians.  The thing that struck me about this product was that it has a 1:1 sweetness comparison with sugar, meaning that you can bake with it and it won’t throw off the ingredient ratios in your recipes. I tried it in my coffee and found it to be sweet without a discernable aftertaste.

The box comes with one bottle of Protein Boost (£1.29, about $1.60) in either strawberry or chocolate flavor. I received strawberry. This drink packs 20g of protein into each bottle! My husband tried this after his workout in place of his usual protein shake and liked it. It tastes just like strawberry milk.

The box includes a 100% voucher for a 450g tub of gourmet yogurt by The Collective (£2.00, about $2.50). I am a huge fan of this yogurt brand and eat it regularly. There are a variety of flavors with a double layer of fresh fruit compote. I actually love their ‘straight up’ plain yogurt best, but every flavor I have tried (coffee, lemon, passion fruit, wild blueberry, mango, Russian fudge… can you tell I’m a fan?) is utterly delicious. I love that the fruit flavors are tart and not sugary sweet like real yogurt should be!

This new version of Fruitella (£1.25, about $1.55) has 30% less sugar, no sweeteners, and is made with fruit juice and natural flavors and colorings. These chewy little strawberry sweets are delightful. They taste fresh, not artificial or cloyingly sweet.

Yushois Snapea Rice Sticks (£1.79, about $2.25) are a savory baked snack made from green peas and rice.


With 3g of fiber and 4g of protein per serving, they are a healthy alternative to crisps. I enjoyed the light and crisp texture. The coconut & chili flavor was really nice – you could really taste the coconut but the chili was very mild.

Crabbie’s Scottish Raspberry Alcoholic Ginger Beer (£1.39, about $1.75) is a vibrant pink drink (the color matches the can). Light, refreshing and bubbly with a burst of raspberry and tiny hint of ginger.

My box contained smoky bacon flavored Popchips (£1.99, about $2.50). These are a potato-based crisp that is popped not fried, so they have 50% less fat than regular fried crisps.

The smoky bacon flavor was strong, really smoky and kind of spicy. I enjoy the lightness of Popchips, but this flavor wasn’t my favorite, only because I have a personal aversion to meat-flavored crisps.

I received two 8g packets of The Chia Co Chia Shots (66p, about $0.80), one with black and one with white seeds.  In case you’ve been living under a rock, chia seeds are a nutrious little seed full of fibre, omega 3 and protein.  You can use them in smoothies, on top of cereal, or even as an egg substitute in baking.  The box came with recipes for a chia cranberry peanut butter slice and chia mocha, both of which sound delicious!

My box was missing the Propercorn Crunch Corn listed on the item list but contained a few other items which were not listed. Chosan by Nature Hibiscus Drink with Fiery Ginger (price not specified) is an intriguing 100% organic drink with a delicate botanical flavor and a hint of ginger.  The ingredients are simple: water, sugar, hibiscus extract and ginger extract.  It has no preservatives or artificial additives, and it certainly tastes that way, with a clean and dry flavor that is refreshing yet sweet. I really enjoyed this delicious product and would certainly buy it again.

Little’s Natural Island Coconut Infused instant Coffee (price not specified) has an absolutely lush aroma, bursting with tropical coconut! It makes a decent cup of instant coffee, with a sweetness and coconutyness that is not overwhelming.

The box included a Hot Chocolate Coin from Pip’s Real Hot Chocolate Co. (price not specified), an artisan maker based in Wales.

Normally when making hot chocolate I would warm the milk first, then pour over the chocolate to melt it. This time I followed the package instructions of heating the coin and cold milk together at the same time on the hob, which meant that it took quite a bit of patience and stirring to get the chocolate to melt (actually, it never fully melted). The hot chocolate was very nice though, rich with the taste of real chocolate.

Have you tried DegustaBox?

Visit DegustaBox UK to subscribe or find out more!

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