Food Reviews, Desolation Wilderness trip: Copper Canyon Mudslide from Packit Gourmet

Horchata 'n' Vodka

So when I think mudslide, I think of a creamy, kahlua-flavored, chocolatey, boozey, milkshake concoction, the kind of drink a 10 year old would come up with.

As such, it was with the slightest disappointment and some curiosity that I opened the packet for Copper Canyon Mudslides and smelled cinnamon and rice. This is no mudslide, it's horchata. Organic horchata actually, which is pretty cool, kudos to Packit Gourmet for making this one organic.


I got over my disappointment quickly. Dennis followed the preparation instructions, adding a few shots of vodka, and served the beverage alongside our samosas. This was a damn fine, damn tasty drink, with or without booze and would be very easy to replicate in the future (rice powder + sugar + xanthan gum + NF dry milk + cinnamon, basically).

It's worth mentioning that at this point, I'm getting pretty sold on bag-only prep. Super easy, no dishes. Not always practical when you're dehydrating ingredients (as opposed to freeze drying), but definitely something I'm going to keep in mind when I come up with recipes in the future.

Packit Gourmet Copper Canyon Mudslide

Flavor: 8.5/10

Ease at camp: 10/10

Price: $4.99
Would buy again: Yes

Best for: a celebratory cocktail to enjoy alongside a Mexican dinner

Praise: nom nom, love me some horchata. 

Criticism: not actually a mudslide. Little too sweet.

Cherry blossom-like wildflowers flourishing in patches of green high atop the Crystal Range

There's a vodka horchata on the other side. So keep going! (Crystal range, descending to Rockbound Valley)