Lavender Velvet Latte (Starbucks) By @Cinabar

We stopped for coffee at the motorway services during the Easter break, and as usual, I went for whatever the current ‘special’ drink was. I have to admit I was a bit surprised they’d gone with a floral flavour, but I ended up ordering the Lavender Velvet Latte. I like lavender, it makes a lovely soap or bubble bath, but it’s not something I usually go for in food.

I watched as the barista made my drink. The base coffee had lavender and vanilla syrup, and there was more lavender in the cold foam on top. I’m not usually a fan of drinks with a cold foam topping, but they seem to be popular at Starbucks, and I wanted to try it as it was intended.

When it arrived, I took a little sip of the foam and could definitely taste the lavender. The topping was cooler, of course, but the flavour itself was delicate and thankfully not overpowering. Once I got to the main part of the drink, the flavour was stronger and sweeter. I know Parma Violets are technically violet and not lavender, but it still reminded me of them.

There was a smoothness to it, probably from the vanilla or the oat milk, that helped balance the floral notes. Overall, the Lavender Velvet Latte was okay. It’s not too garish or strong, but now that I’ve tried it, I think once was enough.

Hoppy Easter Krispy Kreme Marshmallow Bunny Doughnuts [@NLi10]

 We were in the supermarket looking for toddler snacks with friends when I spotted these exciting easter variations on Krispy Kreme's.  The one on the right is just a chocolate bunny but the one on the left is excitingly bowling ball themed!

Ah no - that's a bunny, and its filled with Mallow - perfect!

They seem quite innocent and happy on the plate

until they notice the knife anyway

Look at all that lovely fluffy mallow.  It's not as thick as I expected but does stick to the doughnut.  It's kind of like a tea-cake mixed with a doughnut though which works well.  As long as you like sugar.

We visited the Bear cafe in Evesham a few days later and they put a bear in my coffee - what is it with food and putting animals in it?!

Happy Easter to all.

Crème Imperial Stout (Vault City Brewing) By @SpectreUK

It's Easter tomorrow and I'm looking forward to tucking into some chocolate eggs. My favourite snack this time of year is the Cadbury Crème Egg. This Crème Imperial Stout should wash down my Cadbury Crème Egg pudding a treat.

Produced by Vault City Brewing, at 14% in volume, this Crème Imperial Stout will certainly pack a punch. Served in a 330ml can there were malted barley, wheat and hops in the ingredients, as well as brown sugar, cholaca (liquid cocoa), and vanilla.

The back of the can stated this Crème Imperial Stout has a velvet texture, with flavours of chocolate and vanilla, and with the gooey flavour of a Cadbury Crème Egg, mixed with the caramelised sweetness of an Imperial Dessert Stout.

On opening the can there was the familiar aroma of Cadbury Crème Egg, sugar sweetness, creamy vanilla, and malted chocolate. This black Imperial Stout oozed into my glass. On taste Crème Imperial Stout certainly had the wow factor.

There was thick heady chocolatey goodness to begin with, cushioned with creaminess of vanilla, the mildest touch of herbal hops, followed by luscious malted chocolate into the aftertaste. Gorgeous. Happy Easter.

Rowntree’s Jelly-Tastic Mini Egg Bar (Ocado) By @Cinabar

I don’t really understand this bar of chocolate. I broke a piece off a moment ago and I’m still chewing. You shouldn’t have to chew the contents of a milk chocolate bar, right?

Let’s rewind. Here we have the Rowntree’s Jelly-Tastic Mini Egg Bar. The “mini egg” part is presumably an Easter nod, but these aren’t chocolate mini eggs, they’re jelly sweets. As we’re in the Easter holidays, with the big day fast approaching, it seemed appropriate to try some seasonal chocolate.

On opening the wrapper, the bar looked appealing, each segment neatly embossed with a design. I couldn’t see the jelly bits at first, so I broke off a piece to investigate. The chocolate is crammed with jelly sweets, which meant it didn’t snap cleanly along the segments. It’s messy to share, but credit where it’s due: there’s plenty of content.

Taste-wise, the chocolate is sweet and enjoyable. The jelly pieces (presumably egg-shaped) are fruity and pack a nice flavour hit, but they’re very chewy. Too chewy. The combination of smooth milk chocolate and rubbery jelly just didn’t work for me.

I like fruity jelly sweets. I like chocolate. But not necessarily together in the same mouthful. It’s great to see Rowntree’s pushing boundaries, but the texture clash lets this bar down. Softer sweets inside might have made all the difference.

Doughnut with fruit and meringue - Medicine Bakery Birmingham New St [@NLi10]

 My partner picked me up a treat from town while I was working from the New Street branch of the Medicine Bakery - a huge doughnut with the fresh meringue and fruit on top - a proper treat!

Look at that - it's so chunky!

It's not for cats - but you may have a look

Everything was so fresh that it demanded to be eaten right away - even though I think this would work best sliced in two and shared over coffee.

An absolute hit with the best versions of all the flavours involved - no wonder these sensations from Codsall have found success in town too!