The One Trader Joe’s Item You Shouldn’t Buy

Snacks. Appetizers. Frozen meals. There are a lot of things we’d advocate buying from Trader Joe’s. The retailer is a veritable haven of delicious items and left-field goodies, the likes of which you wouldn’t find anywhere else. But that doesn’t mean it gets it right all the time. In fact, sometimes TJ’s gets it very, very wrong indeed – and when it does, its customers aren’t shy in the slightest about talking about it. 

Videos by Sporked

That very situation has just happened over on Reddit, with one item that should be a winner receiving some fairly disastrous reviews. Let’s check out what it is (mainly so you can avoid buying it, to be honest).

A Brew That’s Not Worth Buying

The item in question is…Trader Joe’s Simpler Times Lager. Billed by Trader Joe’s as an affordable beer, this lager may have price on its side – but if its customers’ opinions are anything to go by, its taste is lacking. And that’s putting it lightly. One Redditor who posed the question of what everyone else thinks of the beer said that it “has a metallic flavor, and honestly may kill my lust for beer and now I am involuntarily sober […] Why is this still being sold?” There is some, shall we say, colorful language that’s surrounding that quote. I’ll leave it to you to check it out. 

This person wasn’t the only person to take issue with Simpler Times Lager’s taste. “This beer is the worst,” said another comment, with someone else saying that even though they tried to save money where possible, they still wouldn’t buy it. Damning stuff. 

A Boozy Rollercoaster

The Reddit thread that exposed Simpler Times Lager’s flaws for all to see was also a magnet for some comments discussing other Trader Joe’s alcohols. And guess what? A lot of them aren’t great, so sayeth customers. “I had the same thought when I saw and bought their peach sour beer — very disappointing. Couldn’t even finish them,” said one person, with another chiming in in response, saying that it tasted like “straight up bile.” Now that’s a mental image we didn’t need today.

Also in the firing line was Trader Joe’s Vodka of the Gods, which one comment described as “dreadful.” Another person posited that maybe, just maybe, Trader Joe’s meant to call it “vodka of the dogs,” and there was just a spelling mistake made along the way. Now, we probably don’t think so. But it really does speak to the strength of feeling around these drinks, huh?