So Good Barista soymilk

Bottom Line

Looks like So Good are trying to get into the coffee scene the way Vitasoy did with its "Vitasoy Cafe".

So I bought some yesterday to give it a go.
I got it for $2.19, on special. Normally $2.69, putting it right next to Vitasoy original.

Unlike the other soymilk from So Good this one is made from whole soybeans not the "soy protein isolate".  Good start!
Only 8% though, Vitasoy 17%, Bonsoy 14%.
Doesn't seem to be much filler and rubbish in it too.

Tasting out of the box cold it was a bit thin. Watery with a sweet chalk taste. Not very pleasant. It had a very strong drying effect on the insides of my mouth, a bit like tannin but closer to, I guess, talcum powder. Vitasoy has this effect too but no where near the same strength.

So how does it texture, "easy frothing blend" as claimed? Not bad, pretty good actually.
The end result is very white compared to Bonsoy or Vitasoy. Too white, like white chalk.
It bleeds more then Vitasoy or Boysoy in latte art and the white looks wrong to me.
Doesn't do well when heated more then it should over (over 55-60, although the package says 60-65 for best results).  The white looks ever more white and the soy separates a lot. While all soymilk doesn't like to be over heated this one seemed to hit a point and turn really bad.

Latte art and texturing is only a small thing. How does it taste?
Horrid. Really bad.
Like crushed chalk mixed with low grade white sugar and lots of water. The chalk taste comes out more and more the higher the temperature. Really bad on it's own and worse with coffee.

Avoid.
For use only on pesky, preaching, self righteous vegans.

RichardM

Well put. I haven't tried this one. The wife drinks Vitasoy Soy Milky, and it's drinkable. Whenever she goes to a cafe, she asks what brand of Soy they use. If they say So Good, her next question is "can I please see your tea selection".

beanflying

Thanks for the review, in spite of the local cost I think I will be sticking with Bonsoy for those who must. Vitasoy Red is the fall back currently.

askthecoffeeguy

it amazes me how companies can invest so much to get it so wrong - I mean seriously, who is their target audience and who is going to recommend this stuff? I'd expect to find it at a truck stop in the middle of nowhere - but i cant think of anyone who'd 'like' to drink it - and I think its fair to say that we've got the soy demographic fairly well covered at my joint With just a little bit more... how shall I put this... consultation with the end use, in conjunction with quality baristas, they could've come up with a product that embraced NO added sugar, and a higher whole soy bean component - instead Sanitarium do what they do best - add sugar to everything and water down the core ingredients to produce a product that I can only image would appeal to a dumbed-down demographic: supermarkets everywhere - there's your answer! Well I guess at least it shows the market penetration of the home coffee user in Australia - not sure what the numbers are but I hear domestic coffee machine sales are staggering compared to other countries At the end of the day consumers will vote with their feet, and presumably their mouths - I wonder how long it is until this 'specially tailored product' ends on the scrap heap? P