Dalton Cola soda: I spotted this intriguing bottle of cola on my colleague @sharingnicely's desk, but we noticed it was over a year expired. Still, the list of ingredients (which includes lemon, ginger, cinnamon, star anise, and lavender) was enticing enough that we gave it a taste. After chilling the beverage and sampling it, I found an expertly balanced cola with mild yet distinct floral and citric notes. The soda itself was slightly flat, but I'll attribute this to it being far past its intended shelf life... (read more)
dalstoncola cola drinks recommended ginger lemon citrus spiced daltoncola soda
Dominique Ansel Bakery Gingerbread Pinecone: I still haven't tried a cronut, but I have tried some of Dominique Ansel's desserts in the past, mostly through special events held at his New York West Village Kitchen location. While some were exceptional, namely a pea and carrot dessert modeled after a baby's first word, others have actually been quite bad (like the pie night a few years ago). There is a relatively short line at his first bakery and restaurant in Los Angeles at The Grove, so I opted for a seasonal treat: the gingerbread... (read more) 4.5/5.0
exceptional desserts cake ganache ginger spiced speculoos chocolate losangeles la dominiqueansel dominiqueanselbakery gingerbread pinecone 4.5
R.W. Knudsen spiced pear drink: While this juice consists predominantly of apple and pear juice from concentrate, the flavor is undeniably festive and perfect for the late fall. Spiced cinnamon and clove add to this well balanced drink, which is good hot or cold. Definitely on the sweet side, but I still enjoyed it. 4.0/5.0
rwknudsen spicedpear pear drink recommended drinks juice apple 4.0 spiced
Joia grapefruit, chamomile, and cardamom soda: A refreshing take on grapefruit soda that's nicely spiced and sweetened. Grapefruit flavor is prominent and concentrated. Fizz is substantial and lasting. 4.0/5.0
joia soda drinks grapefruit cardamom chamomile spiced 4.0 recommended
Trader Joe's speculoos cookies: Technically, I already reviewed this snack, but it was back in the day when I didn't give numerical scores. Speculoos is a type of spiced European biscuit commonly made with brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. The TJ's version is sweet and has a good level of spice. They make you feel like it's the holidays. Overall, a good value snack. 3.5/5.0
traderjoes speculoos cookies spiced belgium recommended 3.5 biscuits
Trader Joe's Pumpkin Pie Spiced Ginger Brew: While a seasonal pumpkin pie TJ's item is understandably out of place in the middle of Spring, I was lucky to get to try this item many months after it was on the shelves because a friend saved it for when I returned to the states. Being outside of the US last fall meant I missed the hit-or-miss frenzy of pumpkin flavored things at Trader Joe's. This bottle of pumpkin-pie spiced ginger brew looks substantial but actually only contains two servings and contains no actual pumpkin; instead, i... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended drinks traderjoes pumpkin pie spiced ginger brew 3.5