Trader Joe's Reduced Guilt Woven Wheats Wafers--revisited

As I mentioned in a previous post, I was interested in comparing these against brand-name Triscuits. So a couple of weeks after that post was written, I did just that. I bought another box of TJ's knockoff, plus one box each of original Triscuits and their reduced-fat version. When Nina was next over for dinner, our appetizer was some nice gruyere cheese with a few of each of the three crackers. There was no blinding; we knew exactly which crackers were which. But the results were so clear and definitive that I can't imagine that doing the taste-test blind would have made any difference. 

First, the TJ's crackers had the same stale taste that we had noticed in the first box, so I have to conclude that it wasn't a one-off problem. 

Second, the reduced-fat Triscuits were much tastier than TJ's, and the regular Triscuits were much better than the reduced-fat ones. Neither comparison was even close. 

Is the reduction in fat content worth the reduction in taste? Not to me. But you can look at the nutritional information and judge for yourself: 

Will I buy it again? 

No. The stale taste in two out of two boxes was enough to put me off of them. But the side-by-side comparison seals the deal. These are hugely inferior to the name-brand product. In my experience, that is not usually the case with TJ's products, but it is unquestionably so here. This second box is going back to the store for a refund, while I happily nom on both versions of Triscuit.