Quipu

Maizoro Cocoa Flakes

Overall Rating: 61

Well, here’s something different. In honour (ha) of the USAMCA (this really should be a song by the Village People) we present a Mexican kiddyrot cereal. Well, the price was right, anyway: $1.00 CAD per box.

Image from the Institute Collection

Appearance

What can you say about flakes? Well, what can you say that Kellogg’s hasn’t already appropriated for their current ad campaign, or that doesn’t violate this blogging system’s terms of use? These flakes are smaller than the norm (a problem in the manufacturing process?), which means less surface area on which the sugar can sit, which is not a good thing.* Their colour is an unfortunate unterderminate shade, more burnt sienna than chocolate. Given Mexico’s long and fabulous history with chocolate, this does not bode well.

Texture and Taste, Dry

Starts off rather well, with sugar readily apparent and a pleasant hint of cocoa. The smaller size of the flakes works to their advantage here, since they have just the right size and mass (they’re heavier than most flakes, and would be even without their sugar coating) for easy picking up from the bag or bowl. Unfortunately, the makers have chosen a most unfortunate artificial flavour in their attempt to boost the “chocolate” flavour, and Maizoro dry very quickly begins to taste like a particularly repellent cough syrup. The first mouthful is fine, but Sucrophile heartily recommends you stop there.

Texture and Taste, With Milk

The medicinal flavour is almost completely masked by the milk, which is good. But that leaves virtually no chocolate flavour, which is bad. But the flakes so massive they resist sogging for an incredible length of time, which is good. But because they are so massive, a bowl of this cereal is heavy enough to be used as a weapon in certain Asian martial arts, and that’s bad (except possibly for certain segments of the population, which we do not want to meet in dark alleys or even shopping malls). Your teeth and jaw muscles will certainly get a workout eating this. Of course, you can accomplish this by chewing the carpet, too.

Conclusion

This is a Man’s cereal, or at least it would be if it weren’t for the sissy sweet stuff. At best, Maizoro sends out mixed signals. This is just a poor cousin of Chockles, we’re afraid. [March 1993]

*We probably violated some scientific law about inverse square ratios or something here, when it comes to overall sugar density. We don’t want to hear about it.