New Product Review:

Maple & Brown Sugar Life

Reviewed by Mr Breakfast on 4/24/2008

This is the best new Life Cereal since Cinnamon Life hit shelves in 1978.

In decades following 1978, Quaker has given us Baked Apple Life, Honey Graham Life, Vanilla Yogurt Life and a handful of other varieties. Some where alright. Most were pretty bland. But the one thing they all had in common - they all seemed like limited-edition cereals. They were little more than a temporary change of pace from the core line of Life and Cinnamon Life.

Maple & Brown Sugar Life isn't just another spin-off capitalizing on the flavor of the day. This new flavor feels like it was born to be part of Life Cereal. It's a distinct maple flavor that blends as well with milk as it does with the cereal pieces. While brown sugar isn't really noticeable as an identifiable flavor element, this cereal does have burnt brown sugar-esque sweetness that works well to support the maple flavor.

I wouldn't be surprised if a few cereal lovers find this cereal to be a tad too sweet. I had my bowl of Maple & Brown Sugar Life 20 minutes ago, and despite having a cup of coffee in the interim, I can still sense a sweet taste from the cereal in my mouth. Some people might like this. Other might not. I don't mind it.

It's a little disappointing to see sugar as the second ingredient on the ingredients list. However, this cereal has only 8 grams of sugars per 3/4 cup serving which isn't too bad in the overall scope of breakfast cereals.

Speaking of the ingredients list, I wonder if Quaker is trying to hide the sugar's dominance. The list is printed in black type on a dark brown background. I seriously had to take the box and look at it in bright sunlight in order to read it.

Other nutritional considerations: each 3/4 cup serving contains 120 calories, 1.5 grams of total fat with 0 saturated fat, 25 grams of carbs (with only 2 grams of dietary fiber) and 3 grams of protein. The first ingredient listed is whole grain oat flour.

Overall, I really enjoyed this cereal. My prediction is that Maple & Brown Sugar Life will be around for a long time.

The price we paid: $3.99