Levels Nutrition Grass Fed 100% Whey Protein, No Hormones, Unflavored, 5LB

Very tasty and works well in a protein smoothie.

I received this today (the unflavored whey) and tried it right away. I put it in hot tea. Very disappointed!! It did not mix well at all. I finally had it mixed somewhat decently and tried it. The taste is not acceptable.I tried to return it and was told I couldn’t. I feel very ripped off. This product is approximately $90.00 - expensive! - and now I have to throw it away. Because I can’t return it? Money down the drain. I wish I would have purchased the vanilla flavor at Costco (much cheaper there by the way) because at least Costco would have let me return it.If this company believes in their product so much they should refund me in full for being unhappy. Otherwise they are not very reputable.This will be going in the trash. And I will be buying another product from a different company.I will update this to let you know whether I receive a refund in full. Not holding my breath.Update on 4/27:Changed from a 1-star to a 4-star review. I gave this a better try using it in smoothies. It works well for this when blending it in a blender. However I do not think you could use this in a jar and shake it for a smoothie. It just doesn’t blend up that well and needs a powerful blender to do the trick. Also - and this is important - if you are buying strictly to use in your coffee or tea, I wouldn’t buy this. If you want the full protein benefits of a full scoop, this does not work in a hot beverage. It doesn’t dissipate like some powders do.For the good news, as I said, this absolutely works in my smoothies. I have to assume anyone buying this wants unflavored. This is that powder. If you want your smoothie to be a bit sweeter add nicely ripened bananas. Also, I added some maple syrup. Very good! Extremely filling! Which is great. I think you will be happy if you are buying this to use in smoothies. I can’t comment on how it works in oatmeal as I haven’t tried that yet, but I think it would work well. And give that needed protein boost.So sorry for my first 1-star rating! That was pre-mature and unfair. But I do stand by my opinion not to buy this if “strictly” using in hot beverages. I think it will be a disappointment. However, consider buying it and making smoothies with it. I made a very large smoothie with 2 scoops of the powder and two bananas, 1 T of Maple syrup, 1 tsp. of vanilla and 2/3 cup of high quality plain Greek yogurt. I then divided this evenly for two servings for two days. This helps make it not so time intensive to do daily. The banana got a little brown the second day, but who cares! Tasted just as good. If you like things a bit sweeter you could always use 2T Maple syrup. Or just make sure the bananas are nice and ripe. Mine weren’t as ripe as they could have been.

First I will state problematic facts about the product’s labeling that I arrived at after purchasing this product and tasting it (which raised eyebrows), followed by my qualitative assessment.Truth in labeling?:1. Questionable amount of stated protein: Label says this is a whey concentrate, yet it states each serving is 86.7% protein (=26g-protein/30g-serving), which is a percentage of protein more likely to be found in a whey isolate with no additives (ex. NOW whey isolate, unflavored 25g/28g= 89.3% protein/serving).2. Questionable label claim of being undenatured: similarly, undenatured means as much of the raw whey material (its “nature”) has been retained vs. removed, which necessarily reduces the percentage of a serving that is protein (ex. Well Wisdom Vital Whey, natural/no-additives is 16g/20g= 80% protein, NAKED WHEY Undenatured 100% Grass Fed Whey is 25g/30g= 83.3%).3. Erroneous Label: says "AMINO ACIDS PER SERVING" totals 28.6g (see sum below), yet Nutrition Facts says "Protein 26g" in "Serving size 1 Scoop (30g)". So the former is really a listing amino acid totals as if the whole 30g serving were 100% protein; clearly erroneous since the sum should total to 26g of the 30g total as stated (if that can be believed to begin with per the above).Sum of amino acids from label (copy to calculator if want to check it)*: 28.6g =(1719+675+2940+1048+4988+609+513+272+1302+3298+2778+730+901+2247+1660+1767+579+864+1284)-272-1302.*Note: must subtract back off "HYDDROXYPROLINE 272" and "ISOLEUCINE 1302" since they are already included as components of "VALINE" and "LEUCINE" respectively.Qualitative assessment: The color of this product is slightly yellowish, and unlike a natural non-denatured whey protein which is more like the color of milk (white; duh) and has a tendency to pack like snow underfoot and thus also not mix well, this Levels product seems like it is a high percentage of something else... In fact it has a strong smell and taste very similar to soy lecithin. Go to your local health store and pick up a bag of soy lecithin granules and run them through your coffee grinder, then add a dusting of whey concentrate and I would guess you have duplicated the Levels formula.Suffice it to say that I would assert you would do much better looking elsewhere, unless you like the taste of lecithin vs. being interested in a true undenatured whey or a whey isolate (totally different products).Update: I uploaded a picture comparing Levels (on the left) and Muscle Feast Hormone Free Grass Fed Unflavored Whey Protein Isolate for comparison. Which one has color more like a milk based product and which one is more yellow like lecithin granules? Granted, the one on the right is a whey isolate, but I have never seen any whey powder as lecithin yellow as this Levels ... whatever it is.

Its an excellent protein power . . . but in the past year, its also gone from 80 dollars to 130 dollars for the 5lb container.

I'm so bummed. This was supposed to be a replacement for sports research whey isolate. But my bad, I was overwhelmed during prime day, and got this due to it being 5 lbs vs 2lb SR. Also, what's crazy is that last time I purchased SR protein (which is better than this) I got it for around $37, and now, DURING PRIME DAY it was marked UP (but they made it seem like it was discounted, just marked the price up and discounted it, I'm not stupid lol.) I've noticed they do this on many items, I'm a frequent Amazon shopper, I'm here almost rveryday lmao sad to admit, I know! But I've noticed these things every prime day 100% however there are many items that DO go on sale (like skincare, which is controversial for being fake.)This is for: people who are specifically looking for protein concentrate. No added D3 in this. Mixes alright for being concentrate. It's less foamy than isolate. This also seems less processed and I say this only due to the fact that it's more like a very pale cream yellow color. It's definitely got more of a taste and aroma of... Cow whey haha. I take my protein usually just with water ice and sometimes mix in a pre workout. With SR it was a white cream colored powder with almost no smell and taste, and in the glass, isolate looks clearer than concentrate. Taste and smell of this would be masked nearly completely if you added it to something. But I still take this with water, no issue. The only issue is that this makes me queezy sometimes, I feel like it sits in my stomach longer. And it does, because... it's concentrate, but I believe it has its benefits over isolate as well. Like this is more nutritious and keeps you fuller longer. I will keep this for evening use (really good for your hormones and muscle recovery overnight.) there's also the whole debate with grass fed having more heavy metals? Idk. This is a QUALITY PRODUCT but isolate works better for my needs during the day. PS don't forget your fiber lol!!!! Don't forget to fuel your body with nutrients💩If you're looking for a good micronized creatine I attached a pic and to compare, I think it's the best value to quality! Please don't raise the prices!!!🙏🏼