Gluten-Free Vegan 101 Review - Gluten-Free Vegan Cheese (Nature & Moi)
From the pan to the pen, here is the Gluten-Free Vegan Baker's review of one of the current gluten-free vegan products available in Malaysia. This review is dedicated to all vegans in Malaysia and beyond who are also in a gluten-free diet. For the sake of all vegans, this review will make no reference or comparisons to non-vegan products.
Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheddar Cheese Slices
(Ingredients: water, coconut oil (21%), modified starch, salt, tricalcium citrate, vegan flavor, preservative: sorbic acid, color: beta carotene, paprika, B12 vitamin.)
Nature & Moi Dairy Free Original Cheese Slices
(Ingredients:
water, coconut oil (21%), modified starch, salt, tricalcium citrate,
vegan flavor, preservative: sorbic acid, color: beta carotene, B12 vitamin.)
Nature & Moi Dairy Free Mozzarella Cheese Slices
(Ingredients:
water, coconut oil (21%), modified starch, salt, tricalcium citrate,
vegan flavor, preservative: sorbic acid, color: beta carotene, B12 vitamin.)
Nature & Moi Dairy Free Vegan Classic Cheese (Grated)
(Ingredients: water, modified starch, coco oil (12%), vegetable protein, salt, vegetable fiber, vegan flavors, tara (caesalpinia seeds), calcium carbonate, preservative: sorbic acid, color: beta carotene, vitamin B12.)
Nature & Moi Dairy Free Smoked Cheese (Block)
(Ingredients: water, vegetable fat:
coconut (21%), modified starch, salt, tricalcium citrate, vegan flavor,
preservative: sorbic acid, color: beta carotene, B12 vitamin.)
Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheese is available in slices (Cheddar, Original & Mozzarella), grated (Cheddar, Tex Mex, Vegan Classic & Vegan Pizza) and block forms (Smoked & Chèvre).
Aroma & Taste: Finally, really great-tasting gluten-free vegan cheese products from France have made their way into Malaysia and into my life. I have tried and tested all of the Nature & Moi (Nature & Me) Dairy Free Cheese products currently available and I have to admit I absolutely love all of the products except for Nature & Moi Dairy Free Chèvre Cheese! First of all, I love and enjoy gluten-free vegan grilled cheese sandwiches and gluten-free vegan pasta so naturally I will always test these different cheese products by using them on these dishes. With Nature & Moi cheese products, the results are absolutely amazing. Except for Nature & Moi Dairy Free Chèvre Cheese, the rest of the cheese products have different intensities of aroma and flavor yet in general each product has a very smooth, buttery aroma and taste that is more than delicious. It is divine and that's the reason that it's currently number one on my list of favorite gluten-free vegan cheese. It has officially dethroned Follow Your Heart Pepper Jack Style Slices from the number one position. For my top favorites, I was pleasantly surprised to experience the more intense flavor that Nature & Moi Dairy Free Original Cheese Slices has over Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheddar Cheese Slices in spite of the Cheddar one having a darker color. Nature & Moi Dairy Free Vegan Classic Grated Cheese has a milder flavor that makes it versatile on many pasta dishes and even pizza. Nature & Moi Dairy Free Smoked Cheese closely resembled the smokey flavor of Follow Your Heart Smoked Gouda Style Slices.
Appearance & Texture: The Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheese Slices (Cheddar, Original and Mozzarella) were very creamy, firm yet easy to remove. All of the cheese products melted quickly and nicely and the block cheese were easy to slice. In addition to its outstanding features, one of the best qualities of the Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheese Products can be found in the packaging. Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheese uses resealable plastic containers which I find to be very smart and convenient especially for children and people on the go. The idea of the resealable plastic containers makes a lot of economic and practical sense and is very environmentally conscientious considering the current plastic problem affecting the global community today.
Price: Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheese is slightly more expensive than Simply Better Foods Vegan Soy Cheese but less expensive than Follow Your Heart Vegan Cheese.
Before I give my verdict, let me write about the reasons why I dislike Nature & Moi Dairy Free Chèvre Cheese.
Nature & Moi Dairy Free Chèvre (Goat) Cheese
(Ingredients: water, vegetable fat: coconut (21%), modified starch, salt, tricalcium citrate, vegan flavor, preservative: sorbic acid, color: beta carotene, B12 vitamin.)
There are two reasons why...
First of all, Nature & Moi Dairy Free Chèvre (Goat) Cheese has a very intense artificial aroma and taste that is sort of medicine-like. It's very off-putting and I didn't enjoy it at all. Second, I don't understand why companies that make vegan cheese would incorporate non-vegan images and words in their product labels and promotions. It baffles me why such companies would make vegan cheese and then use non-vegan elements on the products. In this case, Nature & Moi made a vegan cheese product and included the word goat on the label to indicate to the buyers that it has a goat cheese-like flavor. It's very confusing and quite annoying honestly. I don't understand why they would make vegan cheese that tastes like goat cheese. Obviously, this is part of a marketing tool to appeal to non-vegans and vegans who have eaten goat cheese. But how about the other consumers? Vegans who have never been non-vegans??? How about non-vegans who have never tried goat cheese? It makes no sense and is pointless to me at every level.
But then, there is probably and possibly a good reason why they really really really had to make such vegan cheese with the word goat on it:
1) The founder of Nature & Moi has a favorite pet and it's a goat and the name is Chèvre and the founder is probably paying homage to this pet by putting its name on the product. This could be the reason.
Or...
2) There is a campaign by Nature & Moi to save goats because goats are probably facing extinction (which is not the vegans' fault by the way!) but which I am very happy to support and I'm sure all vegans will support such cause. This could be a possible reason.
Or...
3) There is a famous celebrity in France possibly an environmental activist who is vegan and with a literal head of a goat and is endorsing Nature & Moi products. Or... there is a famous cartoon or animated goat that is beloved by all in France and that its creator is endorsing Nature & Moi. Or... there is a real live goat in France that talks and is really famous in the internet. If this real live talking goat exists and there is a video somewhere in the internet, I have GOT to see it!!! (Please let this talking goat be real!!!) Funny... but this could be another reason.
Or...
4) Nature & Moi is a French company in France where goat cheese is a national pride and treasure and they probably had to have it all the time. Nature & Moi was probably mandated to create such product. In their lab, a conversation like this may have occurred... "Nous avons faire du fromage de chèvre végétarien. Pourquoi? Car nous sommes français! Ce n'est pas possible! Les végétariens sont allées nous détester! Le faites! Voilà!" (We have to make vegan goat cheese. Why? Because we are French! It's impossible! Vegans are going to hate us! Just do it! There you go!) (Is my French translation correct?)
Or...
5) While doing their taste test for their vegan cheese products, Nature & Moi received a demanding order from a group of vegan testers. "Les végétariens veulent autre chose. Nous avons le fromage parfait et ils veulent autre chose? J'en ai fini! Ces végétariens sont dificiles à contenter. Nous leurs donnons autre chose... Après, ils sont allées regretter ils ont demandé. Nous leurs donnons du fromage de chèvre végétarien." (The vegans want something else. We have the perfect cheese and they want something else? I've had it! These vegans are hard to please. We are giving them something else... After, they will regret they asked! We are giving them vegan goat cheese!)
Or...
6) There was a mistake in the labeling and someone comes rushing to the factory. "Mon Dieu! C'est une erreur! C'est fini. L'étiquette n'est pas pour le fromage. C'est pour le parfum! Le parfum de chèvre? Oui. C'est pour les testeurs végétariens!" (Oh my God! There's a mistake! It's finished. The label is not for the cheese. It's for the perfume! Goat perfume? Yes. It's for the vegan testers!)
If any of the above reasons is true, or probably and possibly all, then I would accept the existence of this vegan goat cheese. Until I know for sure, Nature & Moi Dairy Free Chèvre Cheese is getting a lot of criticisms from me just for using a non-vegan element in its brand. Since the product has already been made, I wish they can rename it to not appear like a vegan version of a non-vegan product. I don't consider Nature & Moi Dairy Free Chèvre Cheese a vegan version because its ingredients are totally vegan. For me, it's not a vegan version of any non-vegan cheese. Nature & Moi Dairy Free Chèvre Cheese is an original product with an awful taste and bad name. I wish they could have just named it Nature & Moi Dairy Free Vegan French Cheese. I would been intrigued and curious and would definitely still try it and not write any of these at all. A bad name goes a long way and goes on forever and affects everything... including the goat. As I wrote above, the taste is off-putting and medicine-like and since there's a word goat on the label I feel bad for goats everywhere. This product has used a goat reference and unfortunately, I don't think the reference is successful. If goats can react to this, they would probably be really enraged and livid and pissed off and say to Nature & Moi "Oh là là, vous nous donnez une mauvaise réputation!!! (Oh dear, you're giving us a bad name!)"
Verdict: First of all, Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheese is vegan and is registered by the Vegan Society. It is free from dairy, soy, gluten, lactose and palm oil, has reduced fat and is fortified with calcium and Vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 is essential for maintaining optimum health and since it's mostly found in animal products, vegans and vegetarians are at a higher risk for Vitamin B12 deficiency if they don't take it daily. It makes common sense to have many different sources of Vitamin B12 fortified foods in one's diet and Nature & Moi will make an excellent addition to my diet. Aside from its nutritional benefits, I find Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheese Products to be very promising and encouraging. It has a very refreshing approach in making gluten-free vegan cheese and obviously, Nature & Moi has been very thoughtful and conscientious in the process of making the cheese from the allergen-free ingredients to the eco-friendly packaging. However, in terms of names Nature & Moi uses for its different cheese flavors, there is clearly a lot of room for improvement. Some names are confusing and ambiguous like Original and Vegan Classic. Qu'est-ce que c'est original? Qu'est-ce que c'est vegan classic? As a vegan, I have no idea what Original cheese flavor is. I have no idea what Vegan Classic cheese flavor is. Gluten-free vegan cheese flavors can be named in different ways but the names must be unique and different yet clear and straightforward. Except for the names and the goat-flavor vegan cheese, Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheese is definitely a cut above the other gluten-free vegan cheese products like Follow Your Heart Vegan Cheese and Simply Better Foods Vegan Soy Cheese. I am thoroughly impressed and will absolutely make Nature & Moi Dairy Free Cheese part of my gluten-free vegan lifestyle. Nature & Moi is highly recommended!
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
The Gluten-Free Vegan Baker is based in Malaysia.
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