Grooves - Zesty Cheddar Ranch and Sharp White Cheddar

So I bought the Zesty Cheddar Ranch Grooves first.  When I initially opened the box I was greeted with an almost chemical-y smell.  The crackers were not to my liking.  There was something off, I couldn't figure out if it was the cracker (made partially with rice flour), or the seasoning.  So I went out and got a box of the Sharp White Cheddar.  These were much better.  It was obvious that the Cheddar Ranch seasoning is what I didn't like.  The crackers are lighter, crispier, and crunchier than the regular Cheez-Its.  Since the Sharp White Cheddar flavoring is much lighter than the Cheddar Ranch, you can taste the cracker more fully.  I like these crispy crackers.  It's too bad the Cheddar Ranch isn't better; I won't buy that again.  But I suppose the White Cheddar will do well as a stand-in to one of the many white-cheese Cheez-Its.

Snack Mix Cheddar & BBQ

Oooh, a new snack mix!  Can it dare to compare with Double Cheese?  Unfortunately, no. Cheese Crackers, Mini Pretzels, Bread Slices, Wheat Squares, and Pretzel Sticks.  So let me see if I understand this correctly.  Take the Snack Mix, get rid of the rice balls, add some barbecue seasoning and you're done?  Seems pretty lame.  Sure it tastes ok, but there's nothing in here that makes me want to buy it. Instead of removing snacks, why don't you add a new one specifically for the BBQ flavor?  C'mon Cheez-It, we all know you can put together a good snack mix.  So why don't you go out and try to best yourself, instead of making a lame attempt to merely monetize your existing snack offerings?  I'll give it a 6 for taste, but a D for effort.

Snack Mix

Cheez-it Crackers, Wheat Squares, Pretzel Sticks, Bread Slices, Pretzel Twists, and Rice Balls.  Those are the snacks in this mix.  I realized the other day I had ignored Snack Mix, and so I decided to rectify that wrong. But on the other hand, why bother with Snack Mix when there's Double Cheese?  Since I have zero self-control when a box of Double Cheese is around, at times I will buy Snack Mix just to feed that jones.  Wheat squares and double-pretzels I do not crave.  Extra pretzels are like peanuts in a nut mix, the bottom of the snack barrel.  But still, this is tasty enough to grace my desk from time to time, and I finished off a box just now.  I do appreciate its mediocrity.

Provolone

The march through the mellow white cheeses continues.  This is cheesier than Mozzarella, which is better.  It also has a smokey flavor, which is nice, similar to the smoked cheddar.  I suppose this is the best of the solo white crackers so far, which, at best, is meh.  A little smoke does not carry this far enough to compete with the Italian Four Cheese.  6 out of 10.

Italian Four Cheese

This is like the white Cheddar Jack.  Cheesy and good.  Not at all like Mozzarella.  The ingredients has six cheeses listed - white cheddar, monterey jack, romano, parmesan, mozzarella, and asiago.  I guess that's four Italians, and two non-Italians, hence the name.  I'll give this a 7, and rank it just above Parmesan & Garlic.

Mozzarella

It is creamy and mild.  This cracker achieves what it aspires to be, which is bland.  Meh.  Decent, better than swiss, but won't stand out in the crowd.
6 out of 10
Jan 3 2013 - Update, dropping this to a 5.  Don't see why I'd buy this one again, too many better options out there.

Snack Mix - Double Cheese

Cheetos! Holy crap is this good. But also super-salty. Good Cheez-its, bread slices, pretzels, and cheetos. Awesome. Unfortunately, I ate this box way too fast. Too good for it's own good. And way too salty. I still feel dehydrated a day after emptying the box.
10 out of 10!