The views expressed in this Opinion article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.
Eggnog is a holiday drink that only appears at Canadian grocery stores once a year and it's usually around Christmas time. But which brand has the best festive beverage?
In my 10 years in Canada, I have never tried eggnog before, so I thought the best way to give this beverage a fair test was to try all the ones available at grocery stores.
When I Googled what eggnog is exactly, the search engine stated that it's a rich, sweetened, dairy-based beverage traditionally made with milk, cream, sugar, egg yolks and whipped egg whites.
However, when I tasted each eggnog brand, I also detected hints of many different things like mint, cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg, which aren't ingredients in the traditional recipe.
Natrel, President's Choice, Silk and Farm Boy eggnog.Mira Nabulsi | Narcity
I knew that eggnog was thick, but I honestly had no idea it was this dense and that experience of drinking the beverage straight from a glass caught me off guard.
I set the off-putting experience aside as I powered through four different eggnog brands that I found at various Ontario grocery stores for the assignment. I bought Natrel, President's Choice, Silk and Farm Boy eggnogs and ranked them from worst to best. Here's how the taste test went.
Silk Festive Nog
Silk Festive Nog.
Silk has a dairy-free oat and coconut version of eggnog called "festive nog" and it's supposed to replicate the flavours and textures of the real thing but without the use of any dairy products.
The colour of the beverage was the whitest out of the brands, which made it more appealing and it has less of an aroma. However, when I sipped it, it didn't taste like all the other eggnogs.
The beverage was lighter in density compared to the rest and also tasted like nothing. Maybe, if I had mixed in some cinnamon and nutmeg, it would've made for a lovely holiday drink, but overall it's not eggnog and that's probably the point.
I will say the mix of oat and coconut milk made for a nice flavour that I haven't had before, so it might be worth mixing those into your coffee in the morning if alternative milk is your thing.
Price: $3.99
Score: 4/10
President's Choice Eggnog
President's Choice Eggnog
President's Choice's eggnog disappointed me, to be honest, and it might be because I expected it to be the best one, but it wasn't my favourite.
Typically, PC products have been winners for me in other taste tests because they master the item so well, like PC's decadent chocolate chip cookies and mac & cheese. Still, the eggnog category seems to be lacking a few things.
By no means am I an eggnog expert and this might be other people's favourite brand, but for me, it tasted and smelled quite sour.
The PC eggnog tasted minty, even though I couldn't see "mint" in the ingredients list, and it had hints of nutmeg. But the most overpowering taste in the beverage was the "touch of rum" that they included in the drink description.
Regardless, PC's eggnog tasted the most prominently spiced among the bunch, and for that reason, it dropped to the bottom of the list.
Price: $3.29
Score: 5/10
Farm Boy Organic Eggnog
Farm Boy Organic Eggnog
In my opinion, Farm Boy private label products are some of the best out there, mainly because they are fresh and taste better than other things I've had.
Farm Boy's products like frozen foods, hummus, tzatziki and popcorn are among my favourites, so I wasn't surprised that they'd have a private-label eggnog for Christmas. Naturally, it was so different from all the rest.
For starters, Farm Boy's Organic Eggnog is actually yellow, compared to the others that lean more towards the white side. The colour did make me feel nauseous at the thought of drinking it because it seemed like I was drinking pure eggs out of a glass bottle, but after trying it, I didn't mind the flavours and texture so much.
The eggnog wasn't so thick and had hints of cinnamon and vanilla, which I liked. But the reason this brand didn't win the challenge is because of a strong aftertaste that was not so pleasant, so it sits in second place.
Price: $5.99 plus $2 refundable bottle deposit.
Score: 6/10
Natrel Eggnog
Natrel Eggnog from Costco
I bought Natrel eggnog from Costco and it was the best one out of the bunch. Even though it's the most expensive one, it has the most volume and it was the best-tasting dairy product, so I think the price is worth it.
Natrel's eggnog from Costco Canada is 2 litres of thick and creamy off-white-coloured dairy beverage that smells like Christmas.
As dense as eggnog is, Natrel's version didn't have too many overpowering tastes like the others and it also had the most festive carton with an image of a beverage I would love to recreate.
This eggnog allows you to add things without fear of making it too spiced. So, if you like more cinnamon than nutmeg, you're more than OK with adjusting the taste in whatever way you'd like while still keeping the eggnog flavour intact.
Natrel eggnog is the winner of this taste test, mainly because the flavours were neutral enough that the buyer could easily pair it with anything they would like, including spices, rum or even coffee.
Price: $6.99
Score: 8/10
Now, you might've realized that none of these eggnogs get a 10/10 because, to be quite frank, I don't think I'll ever repurchase eggnog simply because I wouldn't say I liked the overall texture and taste.
I am aware that eggnog tastes better when mixed with something else, but to me, that's a red flag. I feel a good comparison to eggnog is the texture and density of milk and I love drinking milk. I can drink it out of a cup and sometimes prefer it over water, so for me not to like beverages like eggnog does come as a shock, but it's just too much.
Maybe if the egg-based beverage were less dense and more neutral in flavour, I wouldn't mind it, but for now, and for a very long time moving forward, eggnog beverages are a no for me.