As I've mentioned before, back when I was a field archaeologist I usually ate some kind of granola-type bar for breakfast and lunch on work days, since they were portable, required no preparation before eating, needed no utensils, and were easy to consume without touching them (by holding the outside wrapper carefully), especially useful when we were exhuming graves or digging privies without access to soap and water. Therefore, I have a long history with bars of this sort, and am eager to try out new ones. So when I saw these Bob's Red Mill bars, I bought some up immediately. I tried the following three flavors--peanut butter, banana and oats, peanut butter, coconut and oats, and peanut butter, jelly, and oats.
Lately, many of the brands and companies I've sampled and written about have little to no online presence, so finding out even basic details about them can be difficult. I didn't have this problem with Bob's Red Mill at all. In fact, the official company website almost provided too much information. (I know, I know, there's just no pleasing me!) If you're so inclined, you can find out quite a bit about the founder and his wife, down to family information and hobbies. (Such as that Bob likes hats and classic cars.) Anyway, I'll summarize the company's history a little. Bob and his wife Charlee Moore are the company's founders. Bob started out running gas stations in the Los Angeles, California area in the 1950's. After the last one failed, and a stint working as a tire salesman, the Moores bought a small goat farm. A close family member died prematurely from a heart attack. This in part inspired the Moores to start eating more healthily. And then in 1968 Bob read George Woodbury's book "John Goffe's Mill," which spurred Bob to create his own stone ground mill. (Stone grinding, instead of using metal rollers, is thought by some to produce healthier meal.) By 1978 the Moores started the company Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods, and they were now living in Oregon. At first they sold to a local grocery, but the business thrived, and expanded. Their annual sales by 1988 were an estimated $3,000,000. Alas, also in that year their original plant was burned down, an apparent attack by arsonists. New facilities were built, and the business grew once more. By 2005 their estimated annual sales were between $30,000,000 to $50,000,000. In 2010 Bob stepped down as the CEO, and the company itself was sold to the employees using stock transfers. Bob's Red Mill was also at the forefront of two movements--the gluten-free practice and using organic ingredients. (Not all their products are gluten-free, but a separate facility produces those that are.) They started making gluten-free options in 1991, and began using organic ingredients in 2005. Besides the bars I got, alternate Bob's Red Mill products include beans, cereals, seeds, flour/meals, nuts, crackers, spices, entrees, and cookbooks. Also some Paleo-diet options, see my post on December 13, 2015 for more about that practice. The company's products are sold throughout the U.S., Canada, parts of the Caribbean, Japan, and South Korea. As far as philanthropy goes, Bob's has contributed $5,000,000 to Oregon State University to study whole grains, and $1,000,000 to a school of naturopathy. On the down side, the pandemic evidently hit them hard--reportedly there was an outbreak in the late spring of 2020 that resulted in 19 COVID cases.
Bob's Red Mill, peanut butter, banana, and oats bar: The bar was rectangular, about 3.75 inches by 1.25 inches (or about 9.5 cm. by 3 cm.), and was a brown color with visible oat chunks. Weird. The texture was chewy, and a bit sticky. I tasted all three flavors at once, pretty strongly. Odd combo for me. I usually love peanut butter and oats, but not bananas. Overall it was better than I expected, but the bananas still took it down a notch. Alright, but not great.
Bob's Red Mill, peanut butter, coconut, and oats bar: This was the same size and shape as the previous--the only visual difference was that it was a lighter brown color. Same as before--I was able to taste all the flavors. Since I usually like coconut much better than banana, I enjoyed this one more. The texture was once again chewy and sticky. Decent.
Bob's Red Mill, peanut butter, jelly, and oats bar: Same size and shape as the others, only this time the hue was more of a reddish-brown, evidently from the jelly. However, for this bar the flavors weren't as strong and distinctive as the others. It wasn't as good as the one with coconut. Still okay, but not dazzling or anything. This was slightly surprising, since I normally like the peanut butter and jelly combination. I thought I would like this one the best. It did grow on me a little as I ate it, but it was still just mediocre.
Therefore, if you're looking to avoid gluten, and want to eat organic, these bars are probably a viable option. But if these things aren't necessary to you, there are many other grain bars that you will probably enjoy more, such as Clif Bars, Nature Valley, etc.
Finally, I took the opportunity to see if the book that originally inspired Bob Moore, "John Goffe's Mill," by George Woodbury, is currently available on Amazon. I'm happy to report that it is, but it's really expensive--the cheapest one I saw was $120, not including tax and shipping. So only for stone ground mill book die hards, I suppose. (It does have a rating of 4.7 out of 5, based on 4 reviews, if that helps anyone make a decision.)
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