I've had a chance to taste official Soylent and compare it to my diy. It was very different from what I expected. So many of the reviews I've read emphasized some negative aspect of Soylent, the grittiness, the lingering film, etc. I didn't experience any of that.
I think that most people have been missing what's really there. Soylent is perfect or just about as perfect as I could imagine it being at this point. It is so uniform in flavor, texture, smell, and color. I think this surprised me the most. There are no competing aspects.
The flavor is subtle, but more importantly, it's one flavor. There is the slightest hint of fish oil taste which will probably be changed in some future variation. There aren't several competing flavors in the mix. It just tastes good, not too strong, just right.
The texture is excellent. There is a creaminess that's hard to explain. Once mixed, it looks like a thin liquid, about the consistency of milk, but it has a creamy texture that seems thicker than the actual mix. Hard to explain, but it's very satisfying. There is a slight grit from the rice protein, but it is smooth and provides a contrasting mouth feel that my brain likes. I need that sensory experience to have a variety of complementary textures.
The smell is light and milky. In fact, I think this is where the "malt" aspect comes from. There is a maltiness in the smell more than the taste. I think that's why it seems to have a hint of malty flavor. Again, it's very pleasant.
It looks great, too. The color is pleasing and even. I keep coming back to this evenness. The real genius I'm experiencing is how well it all blends together, that perfect uniformity. Nothing sticks out. It is easy to drink, and I doubt I'll ever get tired of it.
I had Soylent for breakfast, and I decided to compare it to my diy at lunch. Here's where things got weird.
I had Soylent first for lunch then my diy. My first taste of my diy was almost foul. The flavors and smells were so pungent that I didn't want to finish it. I hadn't noticed how off it was before. It seemed like there were so many different things competing against each other. It was too strong, the texture too clumpy, the smell was wrong, the mouth feel was flat. Compared to the refined elegance of Soylent my diy was rough. The multiple textures didn't blend well, and there were just too many smells from multiple ingredients that didn't exactly work together.
This is when I finally realized the genius of Soylent. So much work must have gone into taking off the sharp edges of all the ingredients, getting everything to work together in such a way that one thing cancelled out another. It reminds me of the way noise-cancelling technology works, using opposing frequencies to cancel each other out. All that remains is a smooth, pleasant mixture that's easy to mix and consume.
I know there's a lot here. I'm just kind of letting the thoughts spill out as I try to explain what I've experienced. My simple review is that Soylent is great, and it is truly enjoyable to drink. My brain just lit up as I was drinking it for the first time. I was rather a chatty person all morning, too. I just had that little extra spark. Soylent is everything I'd hoped for and then some. I can't wait to have it at my disposal every day. As for my diy, I honestly am going to have to force it down in the meantime. I may not succeed. I was totally shocked. I wouldn't have believed that the diy would be so easily displaced.
To everyone at Rosa Labs, know that I think you have created something extraordinary that truly has risen to another class since its origins. I now have something great to look forward to.
