Pop Some Nut Butter into Your Bag

Published on Friday, April 22, 2011, by James Norton / Edit Post

Justin's Nut Butter

Justin's Nut Butter

I Paid: 79 to 99 cents per 1.15-ounce envelope (prices may vary by region)

Taste: 5 stars

Marketing: 4 stars

Although Justin's Nut Butter comes in larger containers, the appeal of the 1.15-ounce-sized envelope is obvious: It's cute, it's portable, and it's novel. Small enough to fit in a purse or wallet should you want to be always prepared with a nut-based sandwich spread, each envelope contains peanut butter or a high-end take on peanut butter: A honey–peanut butter blend, maple-almond butter, chocolate-hazelnut butter, and chocolate peanut butter are among the offerings.

The charm stops when you open up the packets and squeeze the nut butter out onto your sandwich: Particularly with the chocolate-themed varieties, the experience may best be described as "biologically inspired." "Cleanup in aisle 2!" you may well think as a dark chunk slides goopily from the envelope onto your bread.

Then the charm starts again. The stuff is quite delicious across the board, from the pleasantly balanced and not oversweet honey–peanut butter to the chocolate-hazelnut spread that plays like a more restrained, more nut-forward Nutella. None of the spreads are too sweet, too smoky, too salty, or too nutty—they're all harmonious and tasty. That it takes two packets to make a properly substantial sandwich, and that you're paying up to $2 for the privilege (the hazelnut and almond butters cost me 99 cents a pop, the peanut butters 79 cents), could be a problem, but that's between you and your pocketbook. From a quality perspective, Justin's Nut Butter lives up to its gorgeous, minimalist packaging.

James Norton edits the Upper Midwestern food journal Heavy Table. He's also the coauthor of a book on Wisconsin's master cheesemakers. For his Supertaster Daily videos, he samples offerings from supermarket aisles and fast-food menus. (Click here to see all of James's previous Supertaster work.) You can follow him on Twitter and fan him on Facebook.

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POST A COMMENT |10 Comments

COMMENT

  • I tried the chocolate peanut butter (in a jar, not a packet) and I wasn't crazy about it at all - It may have been an "off" batch or something, but it almost tasted stale. It sounded so promising, but it's not for me!

  • eh anytime I read hazelnut and chocolate I think of nutella. This certainly wasn't. It's not bad, but I wasn't crazy about it.

  • let me solve your pouring out the packet problem right here....... you knead the packet. you know... like stirring a jar of natural peanut butter? just knead the packet.

  • Oddly named product...

  • Expensive and wasteful is in the eye of the beholder. As someone who has tried many ways to carry food around, beware the risk of leakage and electronics, clothing, books etc. I've damaged probably $1000 worth of school books in this fashion. The other user is someone with kids to keep a few of these in the car (I'm guessing these survive heat better than any open container), kayakers,...+READ

    Expensive and wasteful is in the eye of the beholder. As someone who has tried many ways to carry food around, beware the risk of leakage and electronics, clothing, books etc. I've damaged probably $1000 worth of school books in this fashion. The other user is someone with kids to keep a few of these in the car (I'm guessing these survive heat better than any open container), kayakers, weather-resistant needs. It's higher in packaging than necessary but so are granola bars - and if you want to try reusing a ziploc after putting 2 oz of chocolate-peanut-butter in it (repeatedly!) you're a better man than I.-COLLAPSE

  • you can find justin's at whole foods, at the very least.

  • Being in the Denver-Boulder area, I can get the stuff everywhere. But I don't. The plain version is just peanuts and oil. Like most organic PBs, it's got a tacky consistency and not enough peanut flavor precisely, I think, because it's only peanuts and oil, the latter diluting the flavor of the former somewhat. A little salt would go a long way.

    There's 2 cents for ya.

  • I love the concept, but don't these seem to be more than a little expensive and wasteful? Buy a container of the nut-butter of your choice (heck, even Justin's!), scoop out 2 tbs or so, place in a reusable container or even a zip-lock baggie, bring to work/school, enjoy. Would you buy a 16 oz jar of hazelnut butter (even really, really good hazelnut butter) for over $10.50? It looks like you can...+READ

    I love the concept, but don't these seem to be more than a little expensive and wasteful? Buy a container of the nut-butter of your choice (heck, even Justin's!), scoop out 2 tbs or so, place in a reusable container or even a zip-lock baggie, bring to work/school, enjoy. Would you buy a 16 oz jar of hazelnut butter (even really, really good hazelnut butter) for over $10.50? It looks like you can get a regular container of the good stuff for between 8 and 9 dollars in most high-end organic/healthy markets. Great marketing from the Justin's brand.-COLLAPSE

  • These sound great! Where can I buy them in the Boston area, or must I go to Amazon?

  • I wish the packets were easier to find. The jarred pb from Justin's is fairly easy to locate but packets are easier to score online than at retail shops which means an add'l s&h charge just for the handy packet convenience.