Very Berry Cheerios

Name: Very Berry Cheerios
Variation: Cheerios
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: With "the taste of real berries in every bite", these Cheerios are pink with visible bits of fruit mashed into them. Surprisingly, it's not that generic, amalgamated "berry" flavor you usually get in these cereals - you can detect individual notes of strawberries and raspberries. It's good in milk; more refreshing and not quite as dry as Blueberry Cheerios.

Honestly, I wasn't expecting to like it, but I'm impressed with how pleasant and fruity it is, even without adding fresh fruit to it. I tried adding strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries, but there was too much going on in the bowl. You're better off sticking with just strawberries; or you could try supplementing the included flavors with something that's missing - like banana. But even without add-ins, I can recommend it.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Blue, speckled, and very fruity.

Blueberry Cheerios

Name: Blueberry Cheerios
Variation: Cheerios
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Isn't it interesting how much trouble we have making truly blue foods? These blueberry Cheerios are more purple. They smell and taste distinctly of blueberry, but are very dry - they don't have the sweet, juicy bite that real blueberries have. Although the milk helps to add a cool, refreshing note to the flavor. It's definitely improved by adding fresh blueberries (maybe even enough to raise its rating by one bowl, but how often am I going to make that effort?). Not being a blueberry cereal fanatic (Boo Berry has marshmallows, and I'm not even very fond of that cereal), I'd honestly rather have a box of Strawberry Banana Cheerios. But your opinion may differ.

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: Berry blue.

Apple Jacks

Name: Apple Jacks
Variation: n/a
Manufacturer: Kellogg's

Review: Having recently had both Apple Cinnamon Cheerios and TMNT Mutant Mayhem, I think I can say with confidence that I don't dislike cinnamon and apples as a cereal flavor. So if I'm not especially fond of Apple Jacks, it can only be because Kellogg's formula is too bland. Which is saying something, given that Cheerios is more or less the General Mills cereal with the blandest reputation (although I'll concede that if you branch out from the original flavor, there's a lot of value to discover).

Apple Jacks aren't as soft as Cheerios - the texture is more akin to Froot Loops (which makes sense). I don't dislike the mouthfeel, but the taste is just too subtle. It's not sweet enough, and there's too much of that base corn flavor (in comparison, Cheerios is an oat-based cereal). I'm gonna have to say, it's not for me. But throw in some marshmallows, and I'm game.

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: Actually pretty sweet.

Apple Cinnamon Cheerios

Name: Apple Cinnamon Cheerios
Variation: Cheerios
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: I feel like "apple" is maybe a bit of an underrated fruit flavor in cereals. You've got the citrus family, and you've got the berry family, and then you have apple just sitting out there all alone. And it's not like apples aren't popular.

Anyway, apple cinnamon is definitely an improvement over just cinnamon. That sweet, fruity taste gives the cereal more of an actual flavor. And while I said that TMNT Mutant Mayhem tastes like applesauce in cereal form, I feel like this cereal tastes more like whole apples. As far as Cheerios flavors go, it's pretty good.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Sweet and apple-y.

Honey Nut Cheerios Minis

Name: Honey Nut Cheerios Minis
Variation: Honey Nut Cheerios
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Didn't I tell you we'd be seeing this cereal before long? So far, all the Minis cereals have been in the form of puffs (with only Lucky Charms standing out, with its mini marshmallows); despite being nothing more than a smaller version of the regular cereal (unlike Cinnamon Toast Crunch, which changed size and shape), these Minis are unique in that they come in the form of shrunken loops. And they are predictably adorable.

How does it taste? Just as you would expect. The only difference is that the smaller loops give it a different mouthfeel, and absorb the milk faster. It's softer, and not as crunchy, with more of a continuous texture, as opposed to being distinct bites of flavor. In graphical terms, a higher resolution yields a smoother picture. But in terms of taste, I feel like there's less character. It's a cute novelty, but I still prefer the original size.

Rating: 🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Tastes of sweet, nutty honey.

Now, will we ever see Cookie Crisp Minis? I doubt it, just going by how rarely Cookie Crisp entertains novelty concepts (last year's Guardians of the Galaxy promotion was a rare exception). But I hope so! I'll be keeping my eyes open.