Rating: Lay’s Smooth Ranch Dip

Appearance - Bright white with a heavy dotting of healthy dotting of herbs, which has an almost jello-like jiggle when the bowl is shifted. The ranch holds its shape well, which lends itself well to the idea that this is specifically a “dip” and not a “dressing.”

Aroma - Lower aroma out of the bowl, in the jar it has a prominent parmesan-y note, fading into a pleasant savory, funky cream smell, almost like a good alfredo sauce. A good whiff of garlic.

Taste - A brief, bright buttercream-y tang upfront that fades back towards the alfredo on the mid-to-late palate. Lingers with a pleasant garlic-y richness. There is not as much of a distinctly herbal quality as the appearance would allude to, possibly implying that older dried herbs were used, which leaves us with a not unpleasant but rather one-note umami flavor profile.

Texture - The dip does have a smooth texture as labeled, no graininess or grittiness here. It is thick and creamy, and clings well to the chips (we used Frito’s Scoops for the “on food” review to play into the dip angle, where the usual food component is a bagel pizza). The texture does lend itself strongly towards a denser “dip” character, almost like a spinach or artichoke dip, and is plainly meant for use with a vegetable tray, chips, etc.

Overall - This ranch would be best suited for its intended use as a veggie tray dip, as it is not particularly well-balanced and relies on the dipped product to bring the freshness and cut its inherent salt-y umami-ness. Use with other salty or richer flavors tends to overwhelm the palate and leave the eater feeling heavy

Rating - 6/10

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