Options White Choc Berry (Morrisons) By @Cinabar

I may have said this before but I love this time of year for all the interesting hot chocolates that appear on the shelves. I adore the stuff and I am always happy to find new flavours. This time I picked up a limited edition from Options called White Choc Berry. As it is an Options drink it is instant and made with boiling water rather than hot milk, so as soon as I got home I filled the kettle.

I opened the tub and peeled away the foil to reveal a white powdered hot chocolate. The photo above shows the carton before I even put any in the mug, so yes, it really was that low down already. This always irritates me. Either fill the tub properly or make the tub smaller. It feels like I am being led to believe there is more product than there is and I do not enjoy paying for air. It is one of my pet hates.

I added three teaspoons of the White Choc Berry mix into a mug and topped it up with freshly boiled water. It immediately went pink. I was not expecting that but the colour shifted to a rosy berry shade that made me smile. I am easily won over by a novelty. I will say that unlike many other Options varieties this one was a bit more difficult to stir and I could not get rid of all the little bits on top no matter how much I mixed it.

On tasting it I realised I was not entirely sure which berries they were aiming for. There was a hint of strawberry and maybe a little raspberry. It tasted lovely but I think they missed a trick by not leaning into Christmas cranberry on the packaging. The flavour was sweet and fruity, which suits me, and the white chocolate added a soft creamy undertone. It is very easy drinking and very pleasant even if it did feel like a surprisingly summery flavour for this time of year.

Fish, Chips and Mushy Pea Stacks (Asda) By @Cinabar

December has a reputation for being peak picky-bits season. Supermarkets suddenly dedicate whole aisles to party food, and even if there’s no actual party happening, the snacks still find their way into the trolley. I fancied an easy dinner, something we could have with a bit of salad, so we went hunting for nibbles. Tempura prawns were an automatic yes, but these Fish, Chips and Mushy Pea Stacks caught my eye straight after. They were also part of a three-for-two offer which led to prawn lollipops sneaking in as well. I never say no to seafood.

The idea behind these stacks is simple but clever. They’re designed to pack the essentials of a fish and chip supper into a couple of bites. Each piece has a tiny battered fish topped with mushy peas and a single chip laid across the top. They look adorable, far more fun than I expected, and they cook quickly in the air fryer.

Once ready, the flavour hit was spot on. There’s a proper salt and vinegar punch that immediately gives fish and chip shop vibes. The fish is soft and flaky inside its crisp batter, and the mushy peas and chip finish the whole thing off perfectly. Yes, they’re a novelty, but they’re a novelty that delivers. They look great, they taste good, and they made a very easy dinner. These will definitely be a repeat buy for us.

Exhale - Ltd Ed Colombian Smooth Coffee Chocolate bar (Dark 76%) [@NLi10]

 I had my bi-monthly Exhale coffee delivery coming up so I added some festive treats for me.  A tiny £3 chocolate bar to review - and a £22 travel mug so I could save money in the long run by buying less out of house coffee.

 

Both look very deluxe and giftable - and the coffee is great too.

Here are all the facts! It's only 30g but it's pretty powerful so that's four sittings.

See - they sliced it up for you!

Although it didn't break that neatly, but it worked in principle.  The flavours are really balanced - the coffee and chocolate are both very present - the caffeine kick is really about an espresso level so don't give this to unsuspecting people!

The main event, and the thing I've been experimenting with all week, is the travel flask.  At only 300ml it's not designed to give you a days coffee unless you are like me and really don't drink that much.  What I have been doing is making one at 11 and then having 4 small drinks - all still hot - throughout the day.  

It has a double lid so you can drink the last little bit ok, and although it didn't keep warm overnight (6pm to 9am was too much for it) I think the 6 hours stated is very fair - you could probably tighten it or drop it in an insulating sleeve to extend that on hikes.

I'm still scared to put milk in these after some stinky flasks of youth, but for luxury black coffee (or maybe jasmine tea) it's really great!

(we aren't sponsored, but they still do a free trial so here is the link - not an affiliate one - it's just my favourite coffee right now).

Black Sheep Blitzen Festive Ruby Ale (Morrisons) By @SpectreUK

I found a few themed beers on the run up to Christmas. They were weirdly quite hidden under the checkout. Black Sheep Blitzen Festive Ruby Ale is my first Christmas beer of the year, and the black sheep on the front of the bottle is wearing a festive Christmas hat.

On opening the bottle there was a biscuit malt aroma, with a little burnt toast. On pouring, this 4% in volume Black Sheep Blitzen Festive Ruby Ale was nearly black in colour, and looked more like a porter or a stout. I've never seen a ruby ale that dark before.

On taste the initial flavour was burnt toast followed quickly by biscuit malt with a sweet caramel malt finish. There was a light herbal hops washing around and underneath all those malts. Black Sheep Blitzen Festive Ruby Ale was really flavoursome. I'm not sure it went so well with my sweet and sour chicken and noodles, but ho ho ho, Merry Christmas anyway.

Butterkist Cookies and Cream Toffee Popcorn (Tesco) By @Cinabar

We are all set for the Christmas films. There is a new blanket on the sofa, hot chocolate ready to go, and a bag of Cookies and Cream Toffee Popcorn from Butterkist waiting to be opened. I decided to get in early and try some before the film even started. First dibs felt essential with a new flavour like this.

The aroma when I opened the bag was lovely, warm and chocolatey. When I poured some out the pieces had a light chocolate tint, though it was obvious this was a flavoured coating rather than actual chocolate. The texture was exactly what you expect from Butterkist. There was a light crunch on the outside, then the soft but crisp popcorn underneath. They have nailed the balance. The familiar Butterkist toffee flavour still comes through strongly, but the added chocolate and cookie notes sit nicely on top. It tastes like a mix of classic cinema popcorn and a biscuit tin treat, and it works surprisingly well.

This is the sort of snack you can get through without realising how much you have eaten. Sweet, moreish, and ideal for a cosy evening in. They feel like a small twist on a favourite rather than something gimmicky, which makes them very easy to enjoy.

Now the only problem is choosing a film. Spectre insists Where Eagles Dare counts as a Christmas movie because it is always on at Christmas and there is snow. I remain unconvinced. Die Hard, however, is set at an office Christmas party so it definitely qualifies in my book.