Tamar Valley No Fat (Sugar Free) Greek Yoghurt

We are lucky that there are so many different types of yoghurt available in the supermarkets these days - ranging from natural unflavoured yoghurt to extremely thick and creamy fruit Greek yoghurt, and now also available in dairy free yoghurt made from ingredients such as coconut milk. 

However the downside to the amount of choices available is that it becomes very tricky in terms of knowing which ones to choose from when you're trying to watch what you put into yourself. Don't get me wrong, there are moments when I love the full fat, sugar-laden yoghurts (and yes they are an absolute treat - great example is the Gippsland Blood Orange and Mango Yoghurt - I will write a full review on the the Gippsland range at a later stage!), but for a healthy lifestyle, I wouldn't recommend eating this on a daily basis (no, I'm not a nutritionist or a dietician, but I'm just trying to use a bit of common sense here). Today, I will review one of the newer releases on the market: Tasmanian Tamar Valley Greek Yoghurt Style Yoghurt (No Added Sugar) Range.

The first thing that caught my attention is Low Fat Greek Yoghurt (I do like my Greek yoghurts as they are generally thick and creamy in texture, and higher in protein content). Some of the flavours are sold individually, but I have decided to trial the large bulk pack with 6 flavours: strawberry, mixed berry, passionfruit, mango, citrus cheesecake flavoured (interesting choice!) and raspberry. The next catcher however is the NO ADDED SUGAR in blue which surprised me. The next step naturally then is to look at the nutritional value: I normally have a very quick glimpse through these nutritional facts (and I’ve listed what the average content is per serving, i.e. 1 pack, of these yoghurts):

• Protein = 7g
• Fat = 2.4g
• Carbohydrate = 10g (sugars 9g from fruit and milk I assume)
• Sodium = 80mg
• Calcium 220mg (approximately 27% RDI)

After a quick review of the values, down to the ingredients list - yes, they do use flavouring agents (not a big fan, but never mind), thickening agent (using tapioca - it is gelatine free), a sweetener (I knew it! with the code 955 which is sucralose) and live cultures (I generally do like to know what the live cultures are, but unfortunately not listed here). This yoghurt would be suitable for coeliacs (as it is gluten free). 

I have currently trialled the strawberry and passionfruit thus far (another 4 more to go). How these differ from other yoghurts on the market is that the fruit sits at the top (many of other competitors have the fruit sitting at the bottom, e.g. the 0% to 2% fat Chobani fruit yoghurt range) - I do like this as it is easier to stir. In terms of texture, it is very smooth and creamy as a Greek yoghurt should be. The addition of the sweetener does remove the tartness of the yoghurt and fortunately, the metallic taste of the sweetener (experienced by some people) is not evident here. The fruit topping is generous enough to flavour the whole yoghurt. The website for the company is currently under construction: http://www.tamarvalleydairy.com.au 

Overall verdict: not bad; a light-style Greek yoghurt. I purchased this range at Woolworths in South Australia (the other bulk pack contains slightly different flavours but they are the sugar-ladened versions). Give it a try and I would love to know your thoughts.