- and the name brand product? - Let's talk about that.

♪ (theme music) ♪

- Good Mythical Morning! - On a past episode of

Good Mythical Morning, we did the Walmart taste test. We tried to decipher

between Walmart brand imitation items and brand names, and today we're

going on a trip to Costco for some free samples!

Now, Costco is the second-largest retailer in America, third-largest

- retailer in the world… - You've been readin'.

…and they've got their own in-house brand called Kirkland.

- Signature. Kirkland Signature. - Kirkland Signature.

- Don't forget the Signature, Link. - Named after their headquarters in

- Kirkland, Washington. Holla holla holla! - Oh yeah. (laughing)

They are quoted was saying that they wanted to provide brand-name quality

at discounted prices. We will be the judge of that.

Literally, we will judge that. Let's play The Costco Taste Test Challenge!

Okay, so here's how this is gonna work. We'll be presented with each of the items.

One will be a Kirkland Signature brand, and the other is a name brand.

Of course, we don't know what that is. We get to sample those, and then we make

a decision at the same time, guessing which one is Kirkland Signature item.

And this is a competition, so whoever gets the most right at the end wins.

The loser has to drink a nasty smoothie concoction of all of the Kirkland brand

products mixed together while the winner gets to name that product...

And every generic product featured on Good Mythical Morning from here on out.

…after them. So for me, it would be "Link Value +."

And for me will be "Rhett Select." I hope I win, 'cause I love that.

- Here we go… - (Rhett & Link) Round One: Bacon!

All right, I love the way this is starting with some bacon.

Let's both the bacon from Cup A. I understand that...

- Whoa, I got a bacon imbalance. - …the Mythical Beasts now understand

which one is real and which one is generic.

- I restored the bacon balance. - I think they're both real bacons,

- but one is Kirkland. - (Rhett) Yeah, both real hog.

- (crunchy chewing) - Li'l cold.

- Pretty chewy. - Mm.

Right off the bat, I'm not feeling too great about this bacon.

(Rhett) I wouldn't put my signature on that.

- I'm rubbing it on myself right now. - Okay, let's go to uh, Level B.

- (rustling Styrofoam sound) - (Rhett) Uh oh.

- (crunchy chewing) - Mm! Clearly different bacon.

- A quantifiably different taste. - Better bacon.

- I don't know if it's better. - Wow.

- Mm, it's smokier. - Hm.

All right, let's vote. Put your hand over the Kirkland's cup in three… two… one.

- Oh, we disagree! - (Stevie) The correct answer is A!

- (correct ding) - Ah! I thought that Kirkland...

- I just wanted Kirkland a little credit. - This is better bacon. Let's press on.

(Rhett & Link) Round Two: Granola Bar!

Okay, now… I've eaten quite a few Quaker Oats granola bars in my life, so I feel

- like I can discern what they taste like. - Now, this cup has a hair in it.

- I'm gonna remove that. - You wanna sample from over here?

- Yeah. Mm, okay. - Smells like granola.

- Mushy. - (Rhett sniffs and exhales)

I usually eat granola while hiking, so I feel like I should get up and walk

- around a little bit. - I'm just gonna move my arms

like I'm hiking. I hike like this.

- Not really. Mhm, mhm. - It's got a very familiar granola taste.

- A little coconut-y accent. - (Rhett) Yeah.

- Now I'm going down in this one. - "Goin' down in this granola cup!"

- Has a different scent to it. - Yeah, definitely.

I immediately know which one is the higher quality one.

- I'm gonna put that back right there. - All right, out your hand over the

Kirkland cup in three… two… one. Clearly, this one is an inferior product.

- It is inferior. - (Stevie) The correct answer is B.

- Okay. (correct ding) All right. - Okay, there we go.

So we agreed in that one and uh… Okay, I'll take a drink. Let's move on.

(Rhett & Link) Round Three: Sports Drink!

Not just for gators anymore. Gatorade is for everybody. Or the Kirkland brand

might be, depending on which one tastes better. So we're both drinking A.

- Yeah. - I actually don't love orange Gatorade.

- Really? - I'm more of a lemon-lime man.

- You don't like red? - I don't like red either.

All right, here we go. This is a sweeter product.

- Definitely sweeter. - This is a softer product.

Sweeter and softer: just the way I like my drinks.

Okay, so are you sure that this isn't Gatorade versus Kool-Aid?

Because this one is Kool-Aid. And that one's Gatorade.

- Okay, okay. - I don't even… or maybe...

- Let's decide. Which one is the - I just gave you my answer.

Kir-- (spits) Sorry, spit… I just spit either Gatorade or Kirkland Signature

- all over something. - (Link and crew offscreen laughing)

- The Kirkland Signature: decide in - (Rhett & Link) three… two… one.

- Boom. The Kool-Aid-esque one. - (Stevie) The correct answer is B.

- (correct ding) - Yeah, I mean, I could...

- You know, all day long, all night long. - Yeah, this was so Gatorade-y.

- Right. - So Gatorade-y.

(Rhett & Link) Round Four: Aluminum Foil!

You can't really taste this one. Well, I guess you could. This is aluminum foil,

- or tin foil as we called it growing up. - There are people who are addicted to

chewing on tin foil. It's not good for your teeth, but they do it.

- (Rhett) Here, Link. (ripping) Have some A.

- Okay. - Have a little A.

Shiny on one side, duller on the other side, as expected.

- Tasteless. - It's actually not tasteless.

(Rhett) You should always eat aluminum foil like corn on the cob.

(foil crunching rapidly)

It's strangely satisfying to chew on tin foil,

- but don't do it kids! - I could do this all day.

- Bad for your teeth. - Okay. But it really is about

- the tensile strength. (rustling) - Oh yeah, (ripping) that's true.

- Let's move on to B. - You want half of the B?

- (Rhett) Gimme half of your B square. - Whoops. You get a lot of B.

All right, now this one right here: The shinier side is shinier,

- and the matte side is matte-ier. - (ripping) Whoa.

- (Rhett) I'm genuinely confused. - This one seems stronger.

- (Rhett) No, I ripped B really easily. - The mouth feel of B is thicker.

Oh, it's… whoa. Smells like an old woman's closet. (crunching)

This tastes like a more pure… like the periodic table excreted something.

(sputters) Okay, let's select the Kirkland Signature. Are you ready? In three...

- (Rhett & Link) Two… one. - That one.

- (Stevie) The correct answer is A. - (correct ding)

- Wow. - We're learning some stuff here, guys.

(Rhett & Link) Round Five: Hot Dog!

- Hot dogs! - All right, got a couple of hot dogs.

I actually had a hot dog last night, but it was not a Kirkland Signature and

it was not a ballpark hot dog, which is what the other one is.

Now, this is a smaller, more slender dog.

- Slender Dog: followup to Slender Man. - Now, I have been told

that Costco has a reputation for having a great hot dog.

Listen, I gotta say, I know a lot of people don't like hot dogs.

- I don't understand that. - (laughing)

I know they're made out of intestines, but I love all that.

All right, I'm going into B, here. Goin' down and pullin' out a little hot dog.

This smells like beef jerky. It's bigger. It's moister.

It's big and moist, and it tastes like… It tastes like it has real meat in it.

It tastes like Slim Jims. Like a big, moist Slim Jim.

Well, it's still a hot dog.

I would say these are equally good, but they are still very different.

- Very different. - All right, here we go.

The Kirkland brand with the hand in three… two… one… that one.

- Oh, we disagree. - (Stevie) The correct answer is B.

- Yeah! (correct ding) Tied it up! - Ooh!

(Rhett & Link) Round Six: Ice Cream.

Okay, you have eaten, I would say… 500 gallons more of ice cream in your life

- than I have… - (laughing) "More of ice cream."

…so you're at an advantage here. But I honestly feel like I can make a

determination about this without even tasting it. Just by looking at it.

Now, B is yellower.

(Rhett) And then A has like got little black flecks in it and it's very white.

(sniffs) Ice cream doesn't smell like anything, but it sure does taste good.

I think that's because it's so cold. Cold things don't smell.

Mm. All right, here we go. I'm a get some B in my tummy.

- Oh, now this is… wow, it's like… - You could seal a hole with this stuff.

- Well, I'm gonna tell ya. It tastes good. - (Rhett) It's still good, though!

- Mm. So this one's buttery. - (Rhett and crew offscreen laughing)

- Buttery and shellacing. - I think I might like this one better,

but I know which one it is.

Lemme go back here just 'cause I love ice cream.

Yeah, we might as well just finish it off. Gotta save some for that drink

- we're gonna make at the end. - Kirkland in three… two… one...

- Bam! Yep. - (Stevie) The correct answer is B.

- Yep. (correct ding) - Yeah, that one was easy.

- All right. But very tasty. Press on! - Yeah.

(Rhett & Link) Round Seven: Butter!

All right, time to get buttered up. We've got, uh...

- Really? - …some B-bars here and

we've got some A-bars here. Um, okay. First of all,

I don't typically eat butter like this. Second observation, I don't typically

eat butter like this and then turn around and eat more butter.

- Yeah, not a typical meal. - Totally new territory.

Now, you should smell it, just like we did the ice cream.

- Not much of an anything smell. - A little bit of a butter smell.

Now we should eat it.

- Mm. I love butter, too. - You know, I thought that the

ice cream was buttery before, but now it turns out that this is buttery.

I wasn't even evaluating. I was just enjoying it.

Uh… That wasn't bad, guys. Now, this one's whiter.

(Rhett) Really?

Little hard to bite. Is that good or bad?

I'm surprised at the ease with which I'm able to eat this butter.

- (Rhett and crew offscreen laughing) - Absolutely NO difference.

I feel that there is a difference. I feel that one of them, I will not say which one,

- is a little buttery-er. - Really?

- Mhm. - All right.

Kirkland Signature in three… two… one...

- All right. - (Stevie) The correct answer is B.

- Yes! (correct ding) - Aw! You were blind!

- No, no, no! Dude, listen! - Okay, you move ahead.

The Kirkland-- the uh, Challenge butter, it was a little easier mouth feel.

And it had a little bit buttery after taste.

Mm. That's quite a discerning palette you've got there, Rhett.

- Let's keep this train rolling. - (Rhett & Link) Round Eight: Blue Jeans.

Okay, we have put on the jeans. I have chosen the lighter version,

- and Rhett has chosen the darker version. - I'm like, I completely match!

I look like I should work somewhere.

(Link) Now, we've cut off the brand name or whatever that would be.

(coughs) Now, yours are dad jeans. Mine are like grandad jeans.

- (Link) Look at this. - (crew offscreen laughing)

- (Rhett) I've gotta say - (Link) I've got a painter hoop.

I almost feel like… these are so much more comfortable than those tight jeans

we wear. I feel like I could compete in something.

- (crew offscreen laughing) - Like a ugly pants contest?

Okay, now let me examine yours over here. What do you put in that pocket, sir?

- Uh, my paint scraper. - (Rhett) So one of these is a Wrangler.

To me, I think that's what does it for me.

(Link) Lemme look at yours. Now, yours are really trying.

(Rhett) Do I look like Brett Favre?

Mine aren't bad. Mine look like something the president would wear, like,

"I'm President. I've got on jeans that aren't really cool, but uh...

- they're not that bad." - (Link) All right.

(Link) Put your hand over the Kirkland generic jeans in three… two… one...

- Yours! - (Stevie) The correct answer is Rhett's.

- (correct ding) Yes! - Those are Wranglers?!

(Link) These are Wranglers! They've got a paint thing.

(Rhett) Wrangler, what are you thinking?!

- They're Wrangler grandaddy jeans. - Kirkland is awesome!

You know what? I'm keeping these on. I got room to grow!

All right, we're tied going into the final round!

(Rhett & Link) Round Nine: Cooking Spray!

All right: final round. And to determine the winner, we have, uh (laughing)

- two different size canola oil? - (sniffing) I just smelled the top.

- How does it smell? - Plastic-y.

- Oh yeah? This one smells like tape, too. - We're tied, and so if...

there would be a winner and a loser, but if we tie at the end of this round,

then we both have to drink the concoction, and we both get to put our names

- together to name it. - Okay. So let's start with A.

- I think shake it off. - You want me to spray it into your mouth?

- Yeah. - (squrting)

Ugh. It's like paint! That's not paint, is it?

- (Rhett and crew offscreen laughing) - What color's in my mouth?

- (gasps) Red! No. - Ooh, I just started to get

a butter taste, but it tasted like paint for a good, long while.

- (squirting) - Oh!

- (laughing) It's bad. - (Rhett in a high voice) Woo!

I don't think this is the intended use.

- (fluid sloshing inside) - Lot more in this one.

Lemme do that. (puckers lips) No man needs to do that to himself.

- (squirting) Oh, it's a di-- - (crew offscreen) Ew!

- (Rhett) It's got a better cap. - (Rhett and crew offscreen laughing)

- (coughs) It's like glue or something. - Spray me.

- (vigorous squirting) - (Link and crew offscreen laughing)

- How is it? - Ugh! That IS paint!

- (squirting) - Man, I hate to think I put this on stuff.

How much is too much? (laughing) We're gonna find out in a second.

- (everyone on and offscreen laughing) - Okay, pick the Kirkland Signature

- in three… two… one… - Oh, we tied!

- (Stevie) The correct answer is B. - (correct ding)