Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The offer said, Free Sample of Kind Dark Chocolate Nuts and Sea Salt bar, 1.4 Ounce, so I clicked on it, wondering if it was truly a freebie. It wasn't but I ordered a couple of them anyway. More on this "free sample" offer later, but how good are they? Subjective Taste Test: Perhaps this is a little unfair as I've tested the KIND Dark Chocolate Nuts and Sea Salt bar before. Bought a couple of them at a local store some time ago and found that they were a good snack alternative to my regular Clif Bar Energy Bars when out cycling. And followers of his show will already know that Dr. Oz, recommended KIND and keeps some in his briefcase at all times. As far as taste goes, these are good, nice and chewy with a decent nut flavor, and the dark chocolate is not sickeningly sweet as one will find with some products. I have a thing for sea salt, and the combination of that with the nuts and dark chocolate works... and they don't leave a bad artificial aftertaste. Nutrition Stats: Checked the KIND site and found the following ingredients were listed for this product: Mixed nuts (almonds, peanuts, cashews, walnuts), chicory root fiber, honey, palm kernel oil, sugar, crisp rice, cocoa powder, non GMO glucose, sea salt, soy lecithin, milk powder, vanilla extract. Vitamins and Minerals: Vitamin A (0% DV), Vitamin C (0% DV), Calcium (6% DV), Iron (8% DV).Vitamin E (25% DV), Vitamin B1 (4% DV), Vitamin B2 (8% DV), Vitamin B3 (8% DV), Vitamin B6 (2% DV), Folate (4% DV), Phosphorus (10% DV), Magnesium (15% DV), Zinc (6%). > Serving Size: 1 Bar (40g) > Calories: 200 > Fat Calories: 140 > Total Fat: 15g > Saturated Fat: 3.5g > Trans Fat: 0g > Cholesterol: 0mg > Sodium: 125mg > Potassium: 210mg > Total Carb: 16g > Dietary Fiber: 7g > Sugars: 5g > Protein: 6g The Offer as Posted Here: At the time of this review, the title for this product is: "Free Sample of Kind Dark Chocolate Nuts and Sea Salt bar, 1.4 Ounce." It had shown up this way when I had done a quick search for sea salt, and it looked interesting with that title. But they weren't free, so I figured that I had just missed some special deal. They were being sold by Amazon LLC for $1.49 each at the time, with free two-day shipping for Amazon Prime members, and since I've tried them before, picked up a couple of them. Now I see that the original Amazon deal is gone, and has been replaced by a third party offer. At the time of this review, they are being sold for "$1.59 + $5.95 Est. shipping" and available at an external website. That comes to $7.54 per bar. So much for the "free sample" being offered here. This deal reminded me of something else. Do you remember Vince Shlomi, also known as the "ShamWow Guy" and the one in the Slap Chop infomercials that we used to see? Television's fastest talker used his double entendre signature line "You're gonna love my nuts!" so often that people bought the product... often to their dismay. I like the KIND bars as noted above, but with the deal being currently offered here, it's reminiscent of that one from the "ShamWow Guy" a bit too much. There is another deal here on Amazon for KIND Nuts & Spices, Dark Chocolate Nuts & Sea Salt, 12-Count Bars which is far better; just do the math, as it comes out quite reasonably if you want a dozen. They have been endorsed by Al Roker, Dr. Oz and other nutrition folks, but luckily we don't hear them saying "You're gonna love my nuts" on their television segments. 9/23/2012