This is my first time ever writing a review on a food item but I felt I had to this time given how good it was. I tried these sardines for the first time and was blown away by how amazingly delicious they are. Small sardines, in a double layer with a smooth and creamy, not-fishy flavor and the perfect light hint of smoke. Even the olive oil had a great flavor.

Given their less intense flavor these are the perfect sardines even for those who don't generally care for them.

Small, full fish with no broken pieces, well packed and easy to open can.

These were great. I had a can of these when they came in today, and they were better than what I'm used to in the supermarkets. Then again it's been a while since I've bought sardines in the supermarket but yeah. I'm on a nutritional ketosis style of eating (keto), and these work nicely as a snack. They do have a high amount of salt in them, which isn't bad for me since I need more salt. (Arizona, sweat, keto diet, adds up)
Anyway, long story short is I'm definitely keeping these as my defacto brand to get.

Sardines are one of those foods that you either love them or you hate them. I love sardines, and Crown Prince are in my opinion the best tasting on the market. My local supermarket stopped carrying them, so I'm now ordering them by the case on Amazon. These are the best sardines around! Unlike some brands, these are very small and are packed in a double layer. I've been eating them for lunch on crackers and just love them! If you like sardines, you won't be disappointed in these.

I bought this after being very satisfied with the "natural" version of Crown Prince Two Layer Brisling Sardines in the tan colored box. I figured this product in the red box, lacking the nonspecific "natural" moniker, might be the same, for a few dollars cheaper by the dozen cans. My last case of the tan box and red box tasted a bit different, but I can't say for sure if it was a batch-to-batch variation or if it was intentional by Crown Prince. The tan box "natural" sardines had noticeably more smoky flavor than the red box sardines. Both boxes claim "naturally wood smoked", but the sardines in the red box I bought have less smoky flavor. Both products had delicious, small, attractive, headless sardines slathered in oil that I drained off to the best of my ability before eating. The fish are good quality as is the BPA-free packaging. There are about 14 sardines per can, with most of the skin and tail intact. I slightly prefer the ones in the tan box based on flavor. These are good quality sardines that claim to be wild-caught and sustainable.

Edit Feb, 2018: Bought this item again and it no longer claims "BPA Free" on the label (top right corner of the front now has a "NON GMO Project VERIFIED label) but now reads on one side panel "WARNING: Contains Chemicals Known To California To Cause Birth Defects, Reproductive Harm." My guess is they added BPA back to the packaging (which might not be a big deal unless you cook your sardines in the can)

OK low sodium option for Brisling Sardine lovers but you are better off getting the product packed in Spring Water. I've been eating Sardines for a few years now and I prefer Brisling Sardines from Crown Prince or King Oscar. I used to buy them locally but I don't have the same choices available these days. I've been consuming more and more Sardines and Kipper Snacks so I decided to search out lower sodium options for both. I found these Crown Prince Natural Kipper Snacks - Low in Sodium, 3.25 Ounce Cans (Pack of 18) as my low sodium choice for Kipper Snacks.

My Sardine search turned up this product packed in Soybean Oil and these Crown Prince Natural One Layer Brisling Sardines in Spring Water, 3.75-Ounce Cans (Pack of 12). I remember seeing Sardines packed in Soy Oil in the past wondering WHY? I'm perfectly happy with extra virgin olive oil and I like the taste. The ONLY reason I decided to try the soy oil product is because I assumed I might not like the other Sardines packed in spring water. Boy, was I wrong. I really like the taste of the sardines packed in spring water and they have 90mg Sodium vs 125mg Sodium found in these Sardines packed in soy oil. I really don't like the taste of the soy oil sardines so it is a win-win the product that tastes best (Spring Water) is lower in sodium as well. I don't need to compromise on taste to reduce my sodium intake. Another bonus is I can drain the spring water can directly into the sink and not have to mess with our "grease can" like I do with (these) sardines packed in oil.

I prefer the taste of the sardines packed in Spring Water but these sardines in Soybean Oil are still low in sodium. I couldn't even find a low sodium product from King Oscar. Both of their products that claim no sodium added, one packed in spring water AND their sardines packed in soybean oil have 200mg of Sodium.