Someone at Oreo has a weakness for chocolate, and we are reaping the benefits. Earlier this year, we saw the releases of Brookie-O, Chocolate Hazelnut, and Java Chip Oreo, and when the news of Limited Edition Salted Caramel Brownie Oreos broke earlier this month, another chocolate offering from the brand still felt like a welcome surprise.
Although Oreo is no stranger to caramel and brownie flavors (see: Salted Caramel Oreo Thins, Brownie Batter Oreo, and the aforementioned Brookie-O variety), this is Oreo’s first attempt at a salt-dusted chocolate wafer cookie. Two kinds of creme (brownie and caramel-flavored layers) complete the sandwich.
Mere days after the product announcement spread over social media, Limited Edition Salted Caramel Brownie Oreo Cookies graced my shopping cart. Why was I thrilled to give these a try?
A. Despite accusations of overstaying its welcome as a fad flavor, salted caramel remains among my favorites.
B. I enjoyed the Brookie-Os and need some brownie creme back in my life.
C. The promise of a new Oreo flavor hitting store shelves periodically halts my desire to escape society and live in the woods as an urban legend slash bog witch.
D. I’ll take any possible opportunity to reinforce that “caramel” has three syllables.
E. All of the above
(If you guessed E, you are correct. Have an Oreo!)
With these reasons in mind, the Salted Caramel Brownie Oreo mostly satisfies.
First, adding salt to the outside of the cookie is truly an inspired choice. Biting into the sandwich yields a pleasant experience, much like eating a sea salt caramel or any other salt-topped sweet: a strong saltiness hits the mouth first, but quickly melts into and enhances the sweetness of the other flavors.
Unfortunately, the Oreo’s caramel creme layer needs more help than the salt can give. Besides a delicate brown sugar vibe, it doesn’t offer a ton of flavor. A hint of browned butter flavor would have gone a long way to recreate the taste of salt’s tri-syllabic life partner. Swapping the caramel creme entirely for a dot of sticky caramel sauce would have been an interesting choice too. (Maybe two novelties — real caramel and a salted cookie — would have been too much excitement for one launch?)
Happily, each Double Stuf-size cookie contains proportionally more brownie creme. It definitely overshadows the caramel layer — but that’s for the best. The brownie creme is rich and fudgy, just like the batter I make sure to salvage from the bottom of my mixing bowl, and works well with the salt.
Overall, these Limited Edition Salted Caramel Brownies feature a successful salty hit, but it is hard to overlook the imperfect caramel creme. If you purchase them, take a bite of the entire sandwich for a sweet-and-salty chocolate experience that includes — if you pay attention — a whisper of caramel. If you insist on twisting open your Oreo cookies to indulge in the creme first, you might become salty yourself.
Purchased Price: $3.79
Size: 12.2 oz (345 g) package
Purchased at: Wegmans
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (per 2 cookies) 140 calories, 6 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 150 milligrams of sodium, 20 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 13 grams of sugar, and 1 gram of protein.
Maybe they could have put some extra salt in the caramel itself instead of just relying on the cookie; I assume they did/do that with the Salted Caramel Thins, especially if this flavor is the first to have salt in the cookie. Also, to recreate the dessert (though unlike the picture on the package), shouldn’t there be more brownie creme than caramel, as the latter is a topping?
Thanks for the review.
This flavor needed more pop from both creams. I agree put the salt in the caramel because the density was lacking. Its an ok oreo. Worth a grab, but not worth a rebuy IMO
Sums it up pretty well.
They could had used real caramel than just caramel creme. Change things up.
Grabbed these this past weekend and I thought they were pretty decent. I liked the addition of the salt to the cookie and I enjoyed the flavor overall, but I am a big fan of salty/sweet. I thought it was as good or better than some of the others they have put out lately, although I haven’t tried all of them. Nabisco’s output of Oreo flavors usually outpaces my purchasing frequency of Oreos and so I grab the ones that seem interesting to me and let the others go.
I didn’t like this at all. It had a coffee flavor to it, and as someone who doesn’t like coffee, this didn’t do it for me at all