Occasionally,
we will prepare a salad as a main course for dinner. Usually it is the Caesar,
cobb, or the family favorite, strawberry spinach salad with grilled chicken.
That salad includes baby spinach, sliced strawberries, gorgonzola cheese
crumbles, and finely chopped pecans. The dressing that ties it together is
typically a raspberry vinaigrette dressing. For years, our “go-to” dressing has
been the Aldi label Specialty Select brand. Unfortunately, that product at our
local Aldi has disappeared and has not returned. Finding an acceptable
replacement has not been easy. While my search at Meijer was useless, I did
manage to find a bottle of Margies Raspberry Vinaigrette dressing at Jewel.
Packaging/Nutrition
The twelve-ounce
sized salad dressing is in a clear small glass bottle with red and white label
through the middle. I have seen this label before as it has a popular line of
other syrups and marinades. The dressing has stamped expiration date and there
is nutritional information printed on backside. Ingredients include water,
grape juice concentrate, vinegar, raspberry puree, onion, oil and various
seasonings and flavors. A serving size is two tablespoons that yield a low 30
calories.
Price
The cost
of this bottle of Margies Vinaigrette dressing was $5.49 when I purchased it as
Jewel. A higher price then some of the mainstream salad dressing and
vinaigrette brands that hover in the four-dollar range.
Convenience
The
salad dressing is the most convenient part of the whole dinner or lunch salad
building process. Once the salad is assembled, I opened the lid, opened the seal,
and poured away onto the leafy greens. Once the bottle is started, you must
store in the refrigerator. The dressing does last quite a long time before the
expiration date rolls.
Taste/Texture
The consistency
of the dressing was pretty good. The dressing did not come off runny like a
juice or too thick like a syrup. For some reason, I associate Margies brand
with syrups, so I half expected this to pour like a fruit syrup. I was glad
that did not happen.
The
dressing yielded a fruity taste, but I struggled a little bit to pick up on the
true raspberry flavor. Maybe it was slightly hidden in the grape concentrate.
It did not hit the same home run as the previous Aldi Specialty Select raspberry
vinaigrette I yearned for.
Overall
Result
The
whole point of the experiment with this purchase was finding a decent
substitute to measure up to the discontinued Aldi label raspberry dressing; (at
least it is discontinued at my local Aldi). I thought the price was a little
high and found the flavor decent but not quite the same raspberry flavor as I
was accustomed to. In fairness, I have tried other raspberry vinaigrettes that
from the likes of Kens, Wishbone, and the Target label. This one has been the
closest to replacing the Aldi label, but I will continue my search. I would
rate this a fair buy.
