Protein Supplement Review: PhD Nutrition Pharma Whey HT+

September 3, 2017
 |  22 Comments
PhD Nutrition Pharma Whey HT Review

This review is going to be my opinions that haven’t been influenced by the supplement company, I haven’t been paid to write it and so on. My review of PhD Pharma Whey HT+ will be structured according to the tablet of contents above.

History

The history of PhD Pharma Whey spans over a number of years. It was one of the first and part of the brands’ key line-up. PhD Nutrition being the side arm brand of Monster Supplements. The name of Pharma Whey HT has evolved over the years. Previously it was just called PhD Nutrition Pharma Whey, but now it has the extended name Pharma Whey HT+. The HT part referring presumably to the addition of hydrolysed whey. Although a basic whey protein powder supplement, it now is a blended supplement that includes three forms of protein; an isolate, concentrate and a hydrolysed isolate.

Nutritional Profile

In general, the nutrition profile of PhD Pharma Whey is good. The key statistics here being protein content, which sits at 74%. The carbohydrate and fat content coming in at 9.5% and 6% respectively. For a whey protein supplement, I would suggest that these values are slightly on the high side, however, they do aid mix ability and taste. It is worth noting that these are percentages and typically you will only be taking one (25g) or two (50g) scoops at any given time.

Packaging

Improved over time. Their packaging has come a long way over the years. I remember when it first came out the seals under the lid didn’t seem to stay on well and the lids themselves were cheap and flimsy and would often come off the tub if carried around in a bag or so! Now, however, the seals are much better, the adhesive used must be much stronger which gives confidence in a product that is meant to be of high quality. The tubs and lids also appear to be made of better plastic or the screw top more refined. I now am certain it won’t pop off when it is in my bag.

Label wise, this has obviously changed over time too. PhD’s branding has evolved and been tweaked to give it that more premium feel and to warrant a higher price tag.

Appearance

The looks of the protein powder is fairly standard to me. It is smooth, smells quite good, but certain flavours do smell sweet. You can definitely tell there is sugar within it. The colours are as you would expect with variations depending on the flavour.

Mix Ability

I tested it using milk and using water in a standard shaker and then a shaker with a mixing ball. In all cases they mixed well with no lumps. This will depend on how long you shake it for, how vigorously, the volume of liquid and the amount of protein powder and so on. But, all in all, mixes well in all scenarios for me.

Taste

I’ve bought and finished all bags/tubs of the following eight flavours:

  • Banana
    • Is as you would expect, however to me it is a very synthetic taste and fairly sweet, but that is just my opinion.
  • Cherry Bakewell
    • An unusual one as there really aren’t many supplement companies making their products in this flavour so it is difficult to give a comparison, however, I quite like it. It is different, sweet, but I couldn’t use it continually.
  • Chocolate Cookie
    • This is my favourite! It is exactly as the name suggests, chocolate and cookie. Good job PhD Nutrition! If you can’t decide what one to try first, opt for Chocolate Cookie.
  • Chocolate Mint
    • Is a very nice change, just think of an After Eight but with less dark chocolate.
  • Chocolate Orange
    • A weaker version of Terry’s Chocolate Orange.
  • Chocolate Peanut
    • An acquired taste but I would buy it again. If you like chocolate and peanuts, you should be safe with this flavour.
  • Strawberry
    • Just like a strawberry milkshake when you have it with milk or a thicker one with less water/more powder. Strawberry is my second favourite.
  • Vanilla
    • Depends if you like vanilla for a start. It is super sweet to the point of being sickly, so unless you have a very sweet tooth, avoid this for now.

To summarise the flavours in order of best to worst:

  1. Chocolate Cookie
  2. Strawberry
  3. Chocolate Peanut
  4. Chocolate Mint
  5. Chocolate Orange
  6. Cherry Bakewell
  7. Banana
  8. Vanilla

Price

The price obviously varies depending on where you buy it and deals on and so forth. Also, pay attention the pack size, at the moment there are three different sizes available: 908g, 2.25kg and 3.5kg. The 2.25kg is a tub and the 908g/3.5kg are in bag. The going rate for each (summer 2017) are as follows:

  • 908g at a price range of £19 – £25
  • 2.25kg at a price range of £37 – £45
  • 3.5kg at a price range of £52 – £57
PhD Pharma Whey 908g small bag

PhD Pharma Whey 908g small bag

PhD Nutrition Pharma Whey HT Review

My review of PhD Nutrition’s Pharma Whey HT+ protein supplement.

Pharma Whey 3.5kg large bag

Pharma Whey 3.5kg large bag

Naturally, the best value is in the 3.5kg bag, however, the other variations have their place. The 908g bag is handy for trying new flavours and carrying it around, whereas the 2.25kg tub can be useful for storing and is easier to ‘re-seal’, especially if only using is sporadically.

Comparisons

As mentioned previously, this supplement sits in the middle to upper range of the market. There are more expensive premium protein powders such as Optimum Nutrition’s Gold Standard Whey. It sits more in line with USN Pure Protein GF-1 as this too is a blended protein product with a similar price and variety of flavours to PhD Pharma Whey HT+.

Conclusions

PhD Pharma Whey HT+ is a good quality protein powder supplement with strong nutritional credentials, premium look and fell and is somewhat reasonably priced. The product will appeal to many users and I reckon it will be around for some time to come.

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