Cheez-It Crunch – Sharp White Cheddar

You would think that being north of the border of the US would mean it would be easy to get snacks from them. Not the case. Not at all. Either you pay a premium in the form of duties and shipping, not to mention foreign exchange, or you drive down there to get them yourself. Either way, there’s a lot of snacks that aren’t nearly as accessible as they should be. I believe the proper idiom to describe the situation is “so close, yet so far”.

Sometimes, it’s just a matter of waiting, and being patient. Biding time and hoping for the best. Turns out this wait was a long one. For as long as I’ve been in existence, I’ve heard of the mythical product known as Cheez-Its, but never had the chance to try them. Thus is my lot in life, and alas not all of us can be born into regions that have them readily available. I’m not sure what happened, but after almost 70 years, The Kellogg company decided to release them and make them widely available in Canada.

Up until this point we of the frigid North have not had the luxury of trying said product, which is apparently tasty enough to be referenced so often in American media that even I wish they were easily accessible here. Up here the closest thing we get to a cheese cracker is Cheese Nibs and maybe Goldfish crackers if you really want to stretch it. But I’ve never really been a fan of either of those, as they tend to just be really dry and bland, and have cheese as the after taste.

You would think that after all that background, I would try the OG, the original flavour. Alas, it was sold out at the time of doing this review, so I have to settle for one of their new product lines. This particular one is branded as Crunch, or Grooves in the US. It’s supposed to be the crunchier, thinner version of the original cracker. I’ll get my hands on the OG one day, but for now, this will have to do.

I should also mention to anyone who is not familiar with these, that these are baked and not fried. This makes a big difference in the expectation of texture, so something to keep in mind. I chose white cheddar, because…sadly it was the only one I could find. White cheddar should be a safe choice though, right?

Not much to say, other than the packaging is very typical of cracker boxes. The pieces look to be a fairly standard square shape, with tiny holes in them. I imagine it’s so they bake evenly and they don’t explode in a mess of irregular, monstrous looking crackers. Not that I mind. I’m the kind of person who loves overcooked stuff. The crunchier the better.

The flavour of these is almost entirely from the seasoning. And boy is that seasoning strong. I’m used to white cheddar being a certain way, but this takes it to the max. I guess part of it is the “sharp” in the name, but it ends up tasting quite salty. So much so that I can only do a handful or two before grabbing for a cup of water and chugging it. My preference would have been something a little less “sharp” and mayhaps a bit mild, but there’s no denying that these are packed with flavour. I’m not sure if the actual cracker itself has any flavour, as once the seasoning passes I don’t taste much.

The texture is very firm, and indeed very crunchy by cracker standards. I guess because of the way it’s made, it’s not quite as puffy or crumbly as a normal cracker. These feel more condensed and packed together, so it’s more like biting into a tiny piece of toast that was compressed down. I’m pretty satisfied with how the crunch ends up. It’s satisfying but doesn’t feel TOO unhealthy. Fitting for a baked snack.

Overall I was pleasantly surprised by the texture and wouldn’t mind getting these again. It’s like a pleasant cross between a cracker and a baked chip, which I actually love. While I’m not sure I would get this exact flavour again, on account of how salty it felt, I would love to try the other flavours. Here’s to hoping I can get a box of the OG flavour next time though…