15 replies to this topic

[dieselpowered]

So I heard about this company, Wise Company, which makes outdoor meals. They offer free samples and I just got mine in the mail today. If they are good, may be a great option for food to throw in your bag.

[rizzo]

Interesting. Never heard of them. Just requested a sample, we'll see how that goes.

I literally LOL'd when I clicked "get a free sample" and there's a picture of a fat kid stuffing his face with a Wise Meal. Good times.

Edited by rizzo, 03 February 2012 - 06:17 PM.

[Watchdog]

Wise foods, they have been around, for a while. Their big thing is long term storage bucket foods. They have their 5 gallon squarish buckets. They carry them at Costco or Sams club, don't remember which one. I have tasted it at gunshows before, tastes like most Mountain house, Alpine Aire etc type stuff.

[Bounce]

I've got a two year old 75.00$ fucket Bucket. ordered it straight from JMB territory. ya'll pitch in and I'll open it at the next shoot.

oh yeah, they're at Costco

Edited by Bounce, 03 February 2012 - 10:52 PM.

[Bombguy]

My wife and I use them for some of our food storage stuff. They send these nifty little catalogs with all kinds of gay shit in them.

[Watchdog]

I requested the freebies, hopefully will get some new stuff to try. My only complaint with Wise foods especaially their buckets and emergency foods are the portions. A "serving" of some most of their food is 8 ounces prepared, and you are supposed to survive off 2 servings/day? Really??

Based on their own nutrional numbers a lunch and breakfast in most cases would net less then 700 calories for a day? Their "outdoor" meals are bigger with suggested 10oz portions which are more logical.

I just dislike that they sell it so that a person reads that they can buy a 240 serving bucket to support 4 adults for 30 days. That just isn't going to happen, 2 adults for 30 days sure, maybe. Be realistic or upfront and say something like additional food/calories will be needed to survive.

Interesting. Never heard of them. Just requested a sample, we'll see how that goes.

I literally LOL'd when I clicked "get a free sample" and there's a picture of a fat kid stuffing his face with a Wise Meal. Good times.

Maybe he is on the Wise Foods diet. He eats only their perscribed plan for a few months he will slim down. Even best option (3 servings/day) A quick scan I can't get over 800 calories total.

[dieselpowered]

So after our hike today I decided to give this product a try. The sample they sent me was the Pasta Alfredo. I prepared it just as I would if I were in the outdoors, two cups of boiling water, reseal bag, and let stand for twelve minutes.

I will be honest, I had prepared myself for the entree to be bland with a chalky texture, however, I really thought it had a great taste, noodles were tender and the sauce was creamy.

While the packaging did indicate two servings, I think (atleast for me) that it is a good size adult single portion.

I think I am going to load my pack with their 72 Hour Emergency Meal Kit, seems to be a decent deal for $34.50.

[rizzo]

Thanks for the info Mike. I've had more Mountain House than I care to remember, and the reason I don't really stock up on them is due to three factors:

1) They need too much water, and in AZ water is a premium. Eating them without water is not really an option, trust me on that.
2) They have a ton of sodium. Too much sodium, not enough calories.
3) Serving sizes are even realistic. I am not a big guy and I can eat two House House Pro-Packs without trying hard.

So I'm anxious to try this Wise meal, once I get it. Still uses too much water, in my opinion, but I'm interested to see how it tastes compared to Mountain House.

[John Kuhns]

I checked out the Wise meals and they have just as much sodium as Mouintain House. If / when water is a concern, hard to beat GI MREs.

[guardyan_angyl]

I checked out the Wise meals and they have just as much sodium as Mouintain House. If / when water is a concern, hard to beat GI MREs.

I have to agree with John here. I always throw one or two in my hunting pack when out in the hills. I rarely even heat them up and the taste isn't bad. Of course my taste buds could be biased from being forced to eat to many of them over the years!

[rizzo]

I checked out the Wise meals and they have just as much sodium as Mouintain House. If / when water is a concern, hard to beat GI MREs.

Roger that.

[rizzo]

Got my Wise meals in the mail. They sent me a few different ones, and since I was headed out backpacking last night, I grabbed this one.



When I opened the package, it smelled awful. No one else with me thought it smelled in the least bit appetizing, either, and I gotta say that kind of set the mood for how much my body actually wanted to ingest it at that point.

After cooking with 2 cups of water (more than Mountain House requires) it was ready to go. The servings on this Wise meal must be calculated the same as Mountain House meals, because "2 Servings" would have only been correct if we were talking about my kids. I ate it, and shared with a buddy to get his opinion. Both of us felt the same way - it was okay. Not awesome, not bad, but it will "build a turd" as my Dad often says. I seasoned it pretty heavily after a few bites to help my body get over that initial blast of stinky smell, and that made things better.

Overall, I'd say it's about as good as Mountain House, but still not as good as MREs.

Edited by rizzo, 18 February 2012 - 06:37 PM.

[Kevinjs1]

Got my Wise meals in the mail. They sent me a few different ones, and since I was headed out backpacking last night, I grabbed this one.



When I opened the package, it smelled awful. No one else with me thought it smelled in the least bit appetizing, either, and I gotta say that kind of set the mood for how much my body actually wanted to ingest it at that point.

After cooking with 2 cups of water (more than Mountain House requires) it was ready to go. The servings on this Wise meal must be calculated the same as Mountain House meals, because "2 Servings" would have only been correct if we were talking about my kids. I ate it, and shared with a buddy to get his opinion. Both of us felt the same way - it was okay. Not awesome, not bad, but it will "build a turd" as my Dad often says. I seasoned it pretty heavily after a few bites to help my body get over that initial blast of stinky smell, and that made things better.

Overall, I'd say it's about as good as Mountain House, but still not as good as MREs.

You just saved me some $$$. Gracias

[dieselpowered]

So Glen, that was the same sample I received...You did not care for the taste eh?

I wonder if I was just hungry and wanted something cause I thought it was actually pretty good. Sure it was not a Ruth's Chris steak, but I thought it was pretty decent for what it was.

I know everyone has different tastes, so I am glad that you chimed in!

[rizzo]

Don't get me wrong, Mike - it was decent food, which is typical of that style of backpacking food. I would eat it again if I had to. I got a few other meals from them, so I'll be trying those soon.

Did you notice the smell before you cooked it? That was what really turned me off.

[dieselpowered]

You

Did you notice the smell before you cooked it? That was what really turned me off.

Yes I did notice that...pretty strong scent, I will be interested in seeing if the others have that strong of a scent.