We nearly always buy Hy-Vee brand milk at the grocery store. We stay away from the more expensive stuff because, well, the Hy-Vee milk tastes just fine. Why pay more?
So it's only rarely that we purchase a different brand. We occasionally pick up a gallon of Viva from the convenience store around the corner, but only in a pinch. Personally I'm not a fan of Viva's taste. If I'm going to pay more for milk, I'd rather buy Robert's. Or at least that's what I used to think.
A couple weeks ago The Missus bought a gallon of Robert's milk. It was on sale or she had a coupon or something like that. It was ... well, it was most definitely not right. It wasn't spoiled so we didn't throw it out. It was still drinkable, just not ideal. We made our way through the gallon and passed it off as a fluke.
The next week The Missus came home with two gallons of Robert's. She was willing to give them a second (and third) chance. Good on her. Unfortunately, gallon number two was just as funky as gallon number one. At that point we decided we wouldn't be buying any more Robert's milk. But hey, we paid for it so we made our way through. Again, it wasn't spoiled, it just wasn't perfect. It tasted like something you'd get in a shady cafeteria.
Then I opened the third gallon. It just plain stunk. I took three steps over to the sink and dumped it out. It's official: no Robert's milk shall again enter 625 Elm Street. Note that all three gallons were no fewer than 7 days from their expiration date. All of the milk looked OK (no funny colors, no chunks), and all the containers were intact.
Have any of you had problems with Robert's milk lately?
Comments
See what your friends and neighbors have to say about this.
If you have problems with your milk. Take it back! That way the store can talk to the supplier and try to figure out what is going on. If you don’t want to buy it again, I totally don’t blame you—but communicate that to the store, so they know there is a problem that needs fixing.
Just my .02 cents
Take it back!
Well yes, that would have been the logical thing to do. And in fact we have done that many times with other products. Hy-Vee is great about dealing with product returns. I’m not sure why we didn’t do that this time around.
We’re Hy-Vee brand milk loyalists, too. And like you, we’ve bought Robert’s when there’s a great special or coupon. Can’t say we’ve ever noticed a problem, but we haven’t bought it all that recently, either.
I’ve had some funky milk over the past year, but I can’t recall if it was Roberts. It wasn’t bad per se, but it tasted sweet. Almost like the milk that’s left over in the bowl after you’ve eaten the Frosted Flakes. It was odd.
We’ve been buying Land O Lakes lately, and it’s not been bad. We’ve been doing so since it hit the market, and lately there have been some $1 off coupons. The bottles are frosted, which they claim is good for the milk, but it’s hard to just take a quick look to see how much is left in the gallon.
When I worked in grocery many years ago, the store brand and the Robert’s brand was the exact same milk in different packaging. Is that not the case with Hy Vee brand milk?
I had heard eons ago that Robert’s bottled Hy-Vee’s milk. I haven’t been able to figure out if that’s still true.
All milk tastes terrible.
Oh you are SO banned!
😉
I agree. I think all milk pretty much tastes the same, but not Roberts. It has a funky taste and it’s been that way for some time.
I’m not sure about the Lincoln-area Hy-Vee stores, but my wife recently started buying a local milk that she saw nearby on the shelves (can’t remember the brand name, sorry). They come in a glass bottle and it costs more to buy, but if you return the bottle when you buy a new one you get $2 off the cost of the new bottle. We’ve been doing it for several months, and with the $2 off we’ve been getting a half gallon of milk for around 50 cents.
Capital Obs, I can’t think of the brand, but I bet I know the one you’re talking about. Russ’s used to carry it. Came in regular, chocolate, strawberry, and I think Orange? I have a bunch of bottles I need to return but have hung onto for 2+ years because Russ’s stopped carrying it. I’ll have to check Hy-Vee.
Anyone tried Almond Milk? In reality it should probably be called almond juice I suppose 😊
I don’t care for soy milk, but really like almond milk ... give it a try! It comes in plain, chocolate, and vanilla. I recommend just going with the plain (lower calories than skim milk, less sugar ... only downside for some might be there’s less protein).
I recommend the Silk brand. It has a slight almond taste ... in cereal the taste (which I don’t mind) isn’t noticeable.
Love Silk. Drink it all the time.
I checked the fridge when I got home last night - the milk comes from Burbach’s Countryside Dairy, which is based in Hartington, NE. Good quality milk, bought locally? Call it a win.
Share your thoughts with the community.
Commenting is no longer permitted on this post.