Chocolate Cheerios

Cheerios are a classic, despite being very plain.  Cheerios are so plain, overprotective mothers let their toddlers snack on Cheerios.  That said, almost everyone I've ever asked about it agrees that they almost always add something to their cheerios: sliced fruit, honey, or three table-spoons of pure cane sugar.  Well, General Mills understands, and since everything is better with chocolate, we now have Chocolate Cheerios.  

The Facts:

Ingredients: Whole Grain Corn, Sugar, Corn Meal, Corn Syrup, Whole Grain Oats, Canola and/or Rice Bran Oil, Cocoa Processed with Alali, Color Added, Salt, Dried Corn Syrup, Corn Bran, Barley Malt Extract, Trisodium Phosphate, Vanillin, Vitamin E (mixed tocopherols) and BHT Added to Preserve Freshness.

Notable Nutrition Info (per 3/4 cup dry): Calories: 100; Total Fat: 1g; Sodium: 170mg; Potassium: 60mg; Carbohydrates: 23g; Protein: 1g.  The complete Nutrition Facts can be found here.

So how was it?

Not bad.  This is definitely the standard Cheerios recipe mixed with some cocoa and a sugary glaze.  There are dark- and light-colored pieces, but trying each alone doesn't really reveal why since they all taste about the same.  The glaze gives the pieces a glossy sheen, also different from the matte tan of plain Cheerios.  The texture matches regular Cheerios, including the crunchiness that lasts most of the way through the bowl without becoming too mushy to finish.  The chocolate flavor is very light compared to other chocolate cereals like General Mills' Cocoa-Puffs. 

So was it worth it?

The chocolate is probably too light for kids, who would probably ask for the box with an orange cuckoo bird.  For adult palettes (the ones the box art seems marketed to), the lighter chocolate flavor doesn't overpower the oat and corn of the original Cheerio.  Still, like original Cheerios I don't think it's quite right alone; some sliced strawberries or a banana would perfectly top this off.   

Final Grade: B