I vividly remember Slim Jim's unhinged, "Snap into a Slim Jim! Eat me!," commercials, but I cannot remember the last time I had a actual Slim Jim. I may buy jerky from time to time, but meat-based snacks normally don't appeal to me. The closest thing would be the Slim Jim themed milkshake from Wayback Burger that I reviewed in...2015!? Almost a decade ago?! It feels like it was only one or two years ago, but that tracks!
What made me gravitate towards these now? I'm a sucker for novelties. With Dr. Pepper winning me over with their Creamy Coconut flavor I figured, why not give this a try? Then I saw the pickle flavored one next to it and grabbed that too. Let's see what I think!
The Dr. Pepper option is Jack Link's branded, not an actual Slim Jim branded product, but they look nearly identical. The packaging functions the same, the meat sticks (is there a better way to describe them?) are the same color, size, and shape. But if I had to pick a superior option based on it's looks alone, Slim Jim is coming out on top. Their nutritional information is front and center, easy to find and read. While Jack Link's has theirs stretched alone the back-side of the design. It's clunky and hard to read for seemingly no reason.
As far as taste and flavor...
Dr. Pepper smells sweet, almost syrupy, and taking a bite I would initially describe it as juicy, but I do think it's more realistic to describe it as greasy. You have savory salty meat, with a sweet, slightly spiced and fruity glaze to it. The more you chew, the more savory it becomes. It's oddly satisfying, and while I can definitely sense the Dr. Pepper flavoring, it more-so comes across and a very sweet BBQ potato chip or sauce. I like it, more than I thought I would, but the greasy oily nature is a turnoff for me. I wouldn't buy it again, but I do think it's a product worth trying.
Next up, Dill Pickle. I know there are pickle lovers out there that go extreme, they want pickle shots, pickle chips, pickle ice cream...I am not one of those people. I like pickles a lot, but not that much. My pickle of choice is Claussen's. I like the garlicy punch with dill present but not in-your-face. When opened, this dill pickle flavoring is definitely in-your-face. Opened it smells like dill-heavy pickle brine. Which is great, right on target for what was promised. Taking a bite, the texture is notably softer than the Jack Link's brand, and it doesn't taste as intense as it smells, but there is still a healthy amount of Pickle in there.
If you love pickles, you'll love this. It's got more of a spicy kick at the end that gets you in the back of the throat, in a good way. I actually wish the Jack Link's version had the same spicy kick to offset the sweetness. Even though Dr. Pepper is more-so my personal preference, I actually ended up preferring this pickle flavor.
Slim Jim's Dill Pickle flavor is bright, spicy, savory, and tangy. Significantly more satisfying than the Jack Link's Dr. Pepper, and I'm not even a pickle-or-Slim-Jim-person. I imagine that if you really love either of those two things, this would be even more enjoyable. (Although I do feel like I have gnarly breath after eating these things, so be sure to keep gum at the ready.)
No comments:
Post a Comment