If something must be sweetened, I prefer it to just be with plain old sugar--organic if possible and all that good stuff. I can tolerate stevia in very small doses, but it tends to be overpowering and can easily ruin the flavor of things. Other sweeteners make me sick, so I avoid them, period.

But what I don't get is why food companies seem to think everything MUST be sweet. I got some kind of fancy-pants electrolyte drink, "no added sugar", supposed to be watermelon lime flavor, all organic and non-GMO etc etc. It has stevia in it. I figured a small amount wouldn't be too bad, but this stuff is GROSS. I can't taste anything but that bland sort of watery sweetness that stevia always brings, and there was so much of it. I barely got a hint of the intended flavor at all underneath all the freaking stevia taste. It didn't need to be that sweet. In fact, it didn't really need to be sweetened at all. It had natural fruit flavors and coconut water in it; why the hell ruin it with stevia? I am upsetti in my spaghetti and this purchase I regretti. >:^(

But if it's not stevia, there's always some kind of sweetener added, even when something says "no added sugar". I have long ago given up hope that seeing that label will mean I'm getting something that doesn't just taste like pure sugar, but no. Usually it just means either an artificial sweetener or something like stevia has been used instead of the sugar. As if it's really that much better.

Rant aside, I wanna know: am I the only one who doesn't like things to be that sweet? Furthermore, what do you prefer your stuff sweetened with?

I’ve never tried stevia until I ordered tea from David’s teas, and I didn’t know they are notorious for presweetening their blends with stevia. I like sweet stuff... but omg, that taste is just not the same as sugar. I also like organic honey.

@Laufeia: I like bold flavors, but some people really overdo it. Same with spicy/hot stuff; if I can't taste my food for all the spice, you've gone too far!

@koneko: Man I wish I could afford Whole Foods. I've been once when I couldn't find what I needed at the "normal" grocery store and it was amazing. But damn everything there costs like 3x as much.

@Tsundererra: It's really not the same; idk how some people claim they can't tell the difference. Honey is p good, but I'm picky about it.

@Totalanimefan: Exactly. And I have Crohn's, so I avoid most non-sugar sweeteners anyway. Stevia is one of the few that don't bother me, but it tastes awful.

@Count Trashula: oh man it’s rough living in America with that. Good luck. :(

I tried a lot of those false sweeteners, and they either made me sick or tasted like crap. So now I’m back down to unbleached natural sugar in small amounts. Or honey, depending on what is being prepared. Oh, well. XD