Low Carb Foods Luo Han Guo Organic Cultivated Monk Fruit Extract Syrup Liquid | Low Calorie Sweetener | Zero Carbs | All-Natural | Paleo |Gluten Free | No Sugar | Diabetic Friendly

After using the TINY (0.21 ounces) of pure (uncut) Luo Han Guo 40% Mogrosides sweetener for a while and loving it despite its package size/cost, I thought I would look around for a better deal - I found and purchased Z Natural Foods "80% Mogrosides" Luo Han Guo Extract to compare sweetening power. Test Method: 0.15cc scoops of both powers were placed in shallow dishes. One Tablespoon of boiling water was added to each dish without additional agitation. After one minute, picture was taken, and after another minute both powders had completely dissolved and were tasted (via toothpick). This LC Foods 40% Concentrate was the clear winner at (very roughly) twice the sweetening power of the 80% Extract!The LC Foods version is an off white powder while the Z Natural version is a mustard yellow color - neither product has any unpleasant aftertaste, and both dissolve completely in liquids (albeit much more slowly than sugar). Since I purchased the LC Foods version first, I have had more time to "play" with it - I successfully got it to dissolve faster by combining with Erythritol granulated (1 teasp powder in 1/2 cup granules, processed to powder in coffee grinder) for a homemade Nectresse/Lakanto mixture just slightly less sweet than table sugar (measure for measure), and it seems to hold up well to heating without loosing sweetness. Note - there seem to be a number of different mogrosides in the monk fruit and it is thought that mogroside V has the greatest ability to sweeten. Regarding the differences in mogroside percentages between the two versions, perhaps the LC Foods version has a higher concentration of mogroside V than the Z Natural Foods version.Cost comparison: LC Foods version comes out to $83.24/ounce (incl shipping), while the Z Natural Foods version comes out to $15.25/ounce (incl shipping), but since it is only about half as sweet, the bang-for-your-buck cost should be doubled (yet still a better price than LC Foods). Will cross-post this review on the Z Natural Foods product as well. One star off for exorbitant price...

Re-Edited 7/16/19 to counter my 3/8/17 edit in which I said:"I am reducing my original 5-star rating to 3 stars due to the unbelievably expensive cost now that it is only available through Prime shipping. When I wrote the original review the shipping cost was "only" $7 on top of the product price which I believe was then about $12. However, ordering more than one container at a time only increased the shipping cost by $1 per each additional container. NOW there is no break for ordering more than one container at a time. Put two in your basket and your cost will be $40.20; three will total $60.30!!!"I am going to be changing Monk Fruit brands when I run out of my last container of this product which won't be for awhile and I will re-edit then."For everyone who is currently using Monk Fruit and for those who are thinking about it please read Baron's review linked below in my original post which explains why Monk Fruit's properties are not like sugar and multiplying the usage amount does not result in a corresponding increase in the level of sweetness like sugar does."[7/16/19 edit]LC Foods apparently heeded my shipping cost criticism and have dropped their experiment with Prime shipping in favor of going back to the $7 shipping plus $1 per container for each additional container beyond the first one in the order. Consequently I have restored my original 5-star rating and I will be returning to the LC Foods Lo Han Guo once I have run out of Smart Monk - 100% Monkfruit Extract, Non-Glycemic, Zero Calorie, Sugar-Free Monk Fruit Sweetener (30g) which I ordered in March as a replacement. I prefer LC Foods now that they have returned to their original shipping prices.Original review posted 6/10/17:As Nectresse® was disappearing from the market a couple years ago I began my Amazon hunt for another Monk Fruit replacement product. I tried several of the granulated products and was very disappointed with them. I was hesitant to try LC's Luo Han Guo because of the price per ounce and the high shipping cost that several reviewers have complained about, but I'm ecstatic I bit the bullet because this has been my go-to sweetener for almost a year now. Don't worry about the cost per ounce/gram of this tiny package because, used correctly, the cost per use is extremely low -- and that's what actually counts. I haven't tried cooking with it. My basic use is the morning 10 oz mug of coffee.For comparison purposes, my sweet tooth would have me putting 2-4 teaspoons of sugar in a 10 oz mug of coffee in the old days pre-Nectresse®. When I first started using LC Luo Han Guo I heeded other reviews and used a pinch (1/16 tsp) per mug and the little container lasted several months for not-quite-daily morning coffee which left it less sweet than 2 or 3 tsps of sugar but good enough. On my reorder of two containers I have started using a "dash" measure (1/12 tsp, not 1/8 tsp as some conversions show) [see laffin_boy's review on the  Norpro Mini Stainless Steel Measuring Spoons, Set of 5 (tad, dash, pinch, smidgen and drop)  listing in which he painstakingly actually measured the contents of each measuring spoon using scientific syringes and did the conversions].<https://smile.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R1A4KY7O2DDTDC/ref=cm_cr_dp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B0009X1P9S> The "dash" measure gives me a wholly satisfactory coffee sweetening experience. BTW, you can do what you want, but for me just dipping the tip of a regular teaspoon into the Luo Han Guo container as another reviewer has advised is not going to give a repeatable cup of coffee. The $3.90 price of these little measuring spoons is well worth it.Another review that is well worth reading is Baron's explanation of why doubling or tripling a measure of any Monk Fruit product does not result in an equal increase in sweetening effect simply because Monk Fruit doesn't behave that way. <https://amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/RYESNRB0MZAUD/ref=cm_cr_dp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00NAO9UTU>If you object to the $7 shipping price for one container of LC Luo Han Guo order more containers at a time. The shipping for each additional container is $1 per container. The listing doesn't say that but you can check it out for yourself by playing around with your cart before placing an order.

I am going to give this 4 stars, because as far as pure sugarless sweetener goes, this works. And it's concentrated without all the other additives, which may have other side effects (such as gas, bloating, indigestion). I have IBS, so I am very careful to read all the ingredients. The reason why I can't have stevia, xylitol, sugar alcohols, etc, etc.Because this product is so concentrated, you really need very little.But alas, this is not sugar, it has a bitter after taste, so don't put in too much. This is the best non-caloric natural sweetener on the market right now. I've tried them all.

I ran out some time ago and haven’t had the funds to reorder, and I can tell you that we miss it very much! We were mixing it in VG and using it to sweeten our ejuice, but as a Type 1 diabetic of 27 years, I intend to use it to sweeten everything that I would normally put sucralose in! This tastes better and is so much better for your body! I just wish you would offer it in larger sizes and lower the cost, especially the shipping cost!

Remember the Center For Children Who Can't Read Good And Wanna Learn To Do Other Stuff Good Too from Zoolander that needed to be 3 times bigger? This would fit in there quite well. It also has a bit of an aftertaste which makes everything it touches pretty awful.

I really think this is the best sweetness taste I have found! It only requires as midge to sweeten my tea or coffee. There is no aftertaste and so far no stomach problems... My only complaint is the cost of shipping this product. All it came in was a very oversized padded envelope and the container inside SO small! It does last, but please consider lowering the costs and more people will try it!

I cannot say this actually makes something sweet like sugar. It's a totally different taste. I did not like the after taste or the way it made my coffee taste. I gave it to a friend doing keto.