Fanta Pear (Local Shop) By @Cinabar

I came across this bottle in a local off licence we had only popped into once before. Last time we barely looked around, but it turns out they stock all sorts of interesting drinks and snacks. There were plenty of imports on the shelves, although I am fairly sure this Fanta Pear is actually a UK release. It was certainly new to me. This one is the full sugar version, which will please anyone who dislikes artificial sweeteners sneaking into everything.

I chilled it as soon as I got home because fruit flavours always taste better cold. When I opened it I expected something bold, maybe even a pear drops style hit, but the flavour is nowhere near that intense. It has a gentle fruity taste that feels quite natural and it is far lighter than I expected. Shloer does a pear drink that comes across as a bit grown up and almost sparkling wine like in its strength. Fanta Pear sits on the opposite end of the scale. It is soft, sweet and easy going, with a delicate flavour that never becomes overwhelming.

I liked it, although it would not be my first choice next time. It is pleasant enough, but I found myself wanting a lot more pear in the mix.

Alpro Barista Cinnamon Roll (Ocado) By @cinabar

American style coffee creamers are a thing. You can buy liquid ones, powders or even foam versions that add proper flavour to your coffee. Here we can buy Coffee Mate, but nothing that really brings a flavour with it. That is why I picked up this carton of Alpro Barista Cinnamon Roll. I have no issues with dairy, I just wanted to flavour my coffee with cinnamon, my favourite spice.

I made myself a big mug of coffee and added a generous slug of Alpro Barista Cinnamon Roll. It mixed easily and the colour lightened just as it would if you added a similar amount of regular milk.

I took a sip and it was lovely. It was creamy with a gentle cake and cinnamon taste. It was not very sweet and as I do not add sugar to coffee it felt as if a teaspoon of sugar might make this pop even more, but I am not going down that route. My sweet tooth already gets enough attention.

The drink was soothing and tasty and I am looking forward to finishing the rest of the carton. I am just hoping I do not accidentally add it to a cup of English Breakfast.

Webbs Garden Centre Cafe - Tea & Cake (or Mocha & Scones) [@NLi10]

 We decided to be brave and venture to the large garden centre metropolis complex that is Webbs near Bromsgrove

 They have santas and trees galore, and all the 'you shouldn't have' presents you require - but importantly they also have a cafe.

I had a Mocha & a Scone, and my partner had a roulade and a tea.

And they were both very large portions!

As it was the end of the day the fresh scones were a little drier than I'd have liked, but the fresh cream and the fruit certainly lifted it up.  If I'd thought about the amount of sweetness here I probably should have got a darker drink, but the Mocha did the job of warming me up and giving me the energy to go round the other half of the store.

We mostly bought presents for people's pets and a few posh snacks & smellies to add to the list.  It's a great place to get ideas at least - and it did make me feel a tiny bit more Christmassy.

Squashies Drumstick Cherry Cola (Morrisons) By @SpectreUK

I am not a big fan of cherries. I am not even a fan of cherry flavoured drinks, or most cherry sweets, but I do like fizzy cherry cola bottles. These Squashies Drumstick Cherry Cola are a new addition to the Drumstick range. I do like most flavours of Squashies, so I can't see this going too wrong. Or can I?

On opening the packet there was a strong cherry cola aroma from the pink and brown Squashies inside. These Squashies Drumstick Cherry Cola taste a little like cherry flavoured peppery aniseed. I liked aniseed when I was a child, and I like pepper on my dinner, but not flavoured with cherry. I decided I'd give these a miss, I'm afraid.

Information on the bag; The 140g bag contained 356 calories per 100g, with 0.2g of fat, 63g of sugar and 0.07g of salt. Please see photograph for the ingredients.

Speculoos Wafer Rolls (M&S) By @Cinabar

These are another of the interesting goodies I picked up from a small M&S at a service station. My whole basket was impulse buys, but you never know you need new biscuits until you see them. I love speculoos, the little spiced biscuits and pretty much every combination of that flavour. Winter spices like cinnamon are my absolute favourite.

I decided to have one of these with an afternoon coffee. They are wafer rolls filled with speculoos spread and coated in milk chocolate. I opened the box and found a gold wrapper inside, very Marks and Spencer. I opened the wrapper and pulled out the tray and things became a bit more disappointing from there. There was only one layer of biscuits. They had even added a plastic stand to push the biscuits up past a space that would happily have held a second layer. It felt like a bit of a trick to make the box look more generous.

I broke one of the wafers in half and unlike the picture on the box there was air through the centre and the filling was not to the brim as shown.

I tried one and it was lovely. The wafer and the shape make for a good texture. The crunch of the wafer and the soft filling make them fun to eat. The spices shine through and the chocolate too and they are very enjoyable. I was just a little unimpressed by the single layer so I probably would not get them again.

Quality Street's Purple One, but as a Kripsy Kreme Doughnut [@NLi10]

 My partner bought me a Krispy Kreme doughnut, and peaking in the bag I thought it was a standard brown one - but no it's a Purple One - as in the Quality Street chocolate!

The colours are a lot more noticeable under the right lighting, and it certainly entices

Even Flo was excited by it.  Inside it has both the fluffy white filling and the heavy Nutella style filling which made a nice change.

These were originally for Halloween so you might not be able to find them now, but a whole Christmas selection box of Quality Street doughnuts would be great fun so I hope they do that.

Nestle Milky Bar Crispy Cookie (Morrisons) By @SpectreUK

It's no secret I love Nestle Milky Bar chocolate. It's possibly the first chocolate I tasted as a child. I used to have huge amounts of it, from big bars for birthdays and Christmas, to little bars for when I came home from school. I still eat Nestle Milky Bar chocolate now, as it's my favourite white chocolate.

These new Nestle Milky Bar Crispy Cookie buttons are bakery inspired. They are white chocolate buttons with chocolate biscuit pieces added to them. It sounds an ideal accompaniment for ice cream or a nice hot chocolate later this evening.

On first opening the bag, there were loads of chocolate nobbled white chocolate buttons inside. On first creamy crispy crunchy taste, there was the flavour of Nestle Milky Bar chocolate mixed with tiny crispy crunchy pieces of chocolate biscuit. They were very tasty indeed, and I enjoyed the rest with my chocolate ice cream after dinner.

Information on the packet; The 86g bag contained 155 calories per 12 pieces, with 8.7g of fat, 14.6g of sugar, 0.06g of salt. Please see photograph for the ingredients.

Maple Caramel Whips (Marks and Spencer) By @Cinabar

When your local Marks and Spencer closes, and you spot an M&S food hall on a road trip service station, what can you do but make a few impulse buys and stock up? These Maple Caramel Whips were part of my haul from a recent trip. I love a traditional Walnut Whip, but these have a festive twist that I couldn’t resist.

There are four whips in the box, each topped with green icing and sprinkles, giving them a very Christmasy feel. I took one out and bit the top off, it was crunchy, but not too hard, and perfectly sweet. The milk chocolate is thick and rich, with the usual lovely flavour. Inside, the whip is creamy and sweet, with a really nice layer of maple caramel that shines through. The caramel is dark and rich, with a subtle burnt edge that pairs beautifully with the sweet whip.

These are delightful, perfect as a stocking filler or for scoffing in front of the TV, which is exactly what will happen with these.

Cinnamon Knots (Morrisons) By @Cinabar

It is the season when the shelves fill with goodies flavoured with my favourite spice, cinnamon. I spotted these Cinnamon Knots in Morrisons and knew I had to pick them up. I also bought new hot chocolate and giant marshmallows. I may not love the cold weather, but this time of year certainly delivers on comforting treats. These Cinnamon Knots even reminded me of the Staffordshire knot, not sure they would hold together but they look very pretty.

The biscuit itself is not too hard, but the coating of cinnamon and sugar gives it a crunchy exterior, which makes for a fun texture. The flavour is gorgeous. They are buttery, sweet and full of cinnamon. It is a divine combination for a biscuit. They are very easy to snack on, and the sweet and spicy profile fits the season perfectly. The design is attractive enough to serve with a hot drink for guests, and on that note, they dunk well in a cuppa too. They hold their shape while keeping just enough of the crunchy coating.

I am biased because I love cinnamon, so it is no surprise that I absolutely adored these. The real miracle is that I did not finish the whole box in one go.

Jasmine Tea - Luxury Version [@NLi10]

 It seems that my usual Jasmine Teabags are not in the Uk at the moment as everywhere has run out!  I have resorted to buying the loose stuff and seeing what it's like

It comes in a pretty cylinder, very similar to the family-imported teas I have that are not Jasmine.

It's only 2% Jasmine, maybe I could have made this myself! Only 5g, and cover it to brew? Exotic.

All sealed to transport

Doesn't look like dust

And turns into proper leaves! I did wait for it to brew properly too - and it was decent, but not as easy as the teabags.  The hunt continues.

Crumbs Brewing Naan Laager (Ocado) By @SpectreUK

Food waste is a problem in the UK. Apparently nearly half the bread produced is wasted. Crumbs Brewing have created this 4.5% in volume Naan Laager in order to combat some of the food waste. Naan Laager is brewed with wonky unsold plain naan bread. This beer takes inspiration from the chef Hari Ghotra.

The Nigella seeds in the naan bread should help to produce a light spice to go well with a curry meal. I have a Lamb Rogan Josh with chips and Shish Kebab on the side tonight, whilst watching a Disney movie, The Three Musketeers.

On opening Naan Laager there was a light spiciness mixed with herbal hops, malted barley and a little malted wheat. Not too fizzy, on taste this beer had a refreshing spice to begin with mixed with herbal hops followed by sweetness from the malts. Very flavoursome indeed Naan Laager washed my favourite curry dinner down a treat. Perfect combination.

Kinder Surprise Father Christmas (Tesco) By @Cinabar

Kinder has gone full festive with these Father Christmas shaped Surprise chocolates, and I couldn’t resist picking one up. The wrapper looks brilliant, with Santa cheerfully holding a present, and the familiar Kinder Surprise branding hinting that there’s still a toy to build inside. I’m an adult on paper, but these things will always pull me in.

Once unwrapped, the chocolate itself was a bit of a let-down in terms of presentation. Under the Santa foil there was no detailed moulding, just a simple shape with the Kinder logo. It’s clearly the packaging doing the heavy lifting here. Still, the important part is the chocolate, and that was exactly as it should be. The classic mix of milk and white chocolate is ridiculously nostalgic, super sweet and creamy, and it instantly took me back to childhood.

Inside was the yellow capsule, and with it a little toy to assemble. Mine turned out to be a skiing reindeer that glows in the dark, and it even doubles as a Christmas tree ornament. Our tree isn’t up yet, but this might be the push I need.

A fun seasonal treat. Even if the chocolate isn’t as decorative as the wrapper suggests, the taste and the toy hit all the right notes for this time of year.

Wagamamas New Choices - Vegan Katsu Udon Noodles (plus chicken) + Sakura Lemonade [@NLi10]

 I'm not a huge fan of Wagamamas - locally in Birmingham there are indy versions with smaller queues right next door - but when out it's a reliable choice for decent food.

And when they add new exciting choices to the menu it's an easy compromise to go in and get well fed.

First up we have their Rose Petal & Cherry Blossom Lemonade (which is basically the Sakura Lemonade) - it's an odd mix of potent botanical flavours, but if you are after an exciting drink to sip then this is great fun.  The way the petals cling to the ice-cubes at the end is quite pretty too!

For main I had this crazy concoction of Katsu Udon.  The stuff on top is actually crispy sweet potato!

The Udon was great as usual, with the katsu in the name presumably actually the kare sauce at the bottom. But - I did add the optional Chicken (default vegan meal here) so I did get a Katsu or Cutlet in my food 

Here the flavours were far too muted, I needed excitement so added a dash of soy sauce, but I think some kind of chilli flake or maybe even fresh ones was needed to make this pop. That said - it's pretty unique and decently filling so maybe I'd just add the chilli oil next time and give it a good mix.

Overall Wagamamas continues to impress me in that they provide a very acessible gateway to fusion Asian food across the UK, but if I'm in town I'm still going to choose Mt Fuji, or The Brummie Noodle Company over them for the authentic experience (even if it does mean missing out on the ace sweet potato noodle things here!)

McVitie’s Jaffa Cakes Yuzu Lemon (Tesco) By @SpectreUK

I like McVitie's Jaffa Cakes. I've tried a few different flavours, but the original Jaffa Cakes are my favourites. These new Japanese inspired McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Yuzu Lemon may change my mind. Instead of tangy orange Jaffa Cakes, these should be zingy lemon. I'm not expecting anything super face twistingly sour, but I am expecting a Lemon flavour, not orange and nothing too weird in between.

 

On first opening the packet, there was a lemon aroma from the Jaffa Cakes inside. Good start. On first soft chocolatey jelly cake taste, there was the usual dark chocolate flavour from the coating, with a tart lemon flavour from the jelly inside, and then the usual cake taste. These McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Yuzu Lemon weren't too strong on the lemon flavour, in fact a little more subtle than I preferred. So, I guess my favourite is still the original orange Jaffa Cakes.

Information on the box; There were 10 Jaffa Cakes in the box at 41 calories per cake, with 0.9g of fat, 5.4g of sugar, and 0.03g of salt. Please the ingredients

Doritos Gingerbread Edition (Tesco) By @Cinabar

This is the time of year when the shelves start to fill up with seasonal snacks. Peppermint, cinnamon and gingerbread always make an appearance, and now Doritos have joined in with their own Gingerbread edition. It is an unexpected choice for a tortilla chip and I was curious to see how they would work.

We opened the bag during a film night and tipped some into bowls. Spectre asked if I wanted cream, which made me pause. I had to check whether he meant sour cream dip or sweet spray cream. He admitted he had not thought that through at all and it suddenly raised the question of what these were meant to be. I decided the only way to find out was to taste one. They were sweet. I still turned down the cream as that felt a step too far.

The flavour turned out to be rather nice. They are sweet, but not too much. The ginger is the best part and brings a lovely warmth. They actually worked well as a film snack and filled the role of a shared bowl of popcorn. They are still Doritos though, and the texture feels like the kind that normally ends up under melted cheese or loaded with guacamole, so this sweet version is a novelty. Even so they are very enjoyable and worth picking up if you fancy something a bit different for the festive season.

Chunk Belgian Chocolate with Popping Candy (Morrisons) By @Cinabar

This bar arrived as part of an online grocery order delivered last Friday, the day of the storm. All our groceries were very wet, and this bar, with its paper wrapper, got a bit damp. That’s why it doesn’t look perfect in the picture. Thankfully, apart from the heavy rain, we weren’t too badly affected at home. The chocolate itself is sealed in foil, so the main part stayed completely dry.

The bar doesn’t seem to have much branding, it’s simply called CHUNK. The size and bright, colourful wrapper give off a Tony’s Chocolonely vibe, and it looks like a nice, big chunky bar. The filling is playful: popping candy, rainbow sprinkles, and chocolate beans, which sounds really fun. I love popping candy, it always makes me smile. While it doesn’t add flavour, it’s a playful touch.

When I opened the bar, the chocolate had easy-to-share pieces that were still big and chunky. The sprinkles and chocolate beans added pops of colour and texture, making it crunchy and fun to eat. The chocolate itself is good quality Belgian chocolate, with the cocoa flavour shining through. The popping candy was mild, giving just a little tingle, but I’d have added more!

I’m looking forward to seeing what other flavours appear in this new CHUNK range, as this bar is a delightful addition.

Jammie Dodgers Mango & Passionfruit (or UmBongo) [@NLi10]

 It's time for this week's new Jammie Dodgers flavour - and its Mango & Passionfruit!  To anyone my age this means only one thing - Um Bongo - the totally tropical drink of childhood - recreated in biscuit form as drinks aren't allowed to have excess sugar in (unless it's coffee).

I mean - these biscuits aren't the same as they used to be either - but I think that's more cost savings than health concerns.

They do look pretty though - didn't used to get this kind of definition when we were kids!

The biscuits lack the bite of the olden days too.  But - the flavour of the jam is the reason that we are here and it's a good one.  I suspect this one will stay around a while as it works a lot better than most of the non-red versions of these.  A hit!

The Best Apple Crumble Mince Pies (Morrisons) By @SpectreUK

I do love mince pie season. I remember a year or so back when we reviewed every mince pie on the market and rated them. Ah, good times.

We try to have mince pies every weekend. They go especially well with rum and lemonade, or mead, and after a cheese and cold meats, and French Bread meal.

These Morrisons The Best Apple Crumble Mince Pies are short crust pastry filled with apple, caramel and vine fruit, topped with all butter crumble. On first bite I noticed the crumble on the top falls off quite a lot. There was sweet apple to start with as the pastry melted in my mouth. Then there was a mincemeat vine fruit flavour and sweet caramel to finish. This was a mouthwatering mince pie indeed. Yum.

Information on the box: 4 x Mince Pies at 176 calories per pie, with 5.7g of fat, 16g of sugar, and 0.28g of salt. Please see photograph for the ingredients.

Margarita Pizza Puffs (Tesco) by @Cinabar

Our Tesco Express does not seem fully committed to the idea of new Christmas snacks yet. They have some lovely seasonal products in stock, but they are hidden right at the top of the shelves rather than being proudly on display. Once Halloween has passed I am quite happy for Christmas goodies to be out, but for now I am having to keep my eyes open.

These Margarita Pizza Puffs do not sound especially festive, but the design on the bags place them firmly in the new Christmas range. We had them on a film night and watched Fantasia on Disney to mark the eighty fifth anniversary of the film yesterday. I poured some into a bowl and could not believe the size. They are enormous. I was expecting something Wotsits sized but these are huge and tower over everything. They do look great in bowls though.

I gave one a try and the first thing that hit me was the crunch. It is spectacular. They are super crisp to start and then soften a little. I love the texture on these giants.

The flavour is spot on. There is plenty of tomato, a good hint of cheese and lots of Italian herbs. Spectre thought there was a touch of pesto too. They are undeniably Italian and wonderfully seasoned. I loved them and we will definitely pick them up again well before Christmas. As for Fantasia, there was not as much Mickey as I expected, but the film is full of imagination and very clearly was ahead of its time.

KFC Stranger Things Burger of Redness [@NLi10]

 All the fast food places are on themed promotions in the UK at the moment.  McDonlds has their terrible international menu, but KFC have the TV show that thinks it's a movie - Stranger Things.

I've never seen the show as we didn't have Netflix when it came out, and now - well there is just so much content out there - We'll get around to it.  I played red-box D&D in the actual 80s so I mean I've basically lived through it.

Here we have the nice KFC chips, and the tea as the drink because the sugar rules are different here.

But - what's in the box?

It's a burger - but red - and at KFC where the burgers are the least exciting menu option.  It's not even upside down, which would have been a fun thing to do.

What's the burger?

Sticky red chicken! The sauce has a really odd consistency like it's all cornflour or something.  The chicken was the normal decent chicken, and the spicy sauce added to it nicely.  It's a faff to eat though and I'd rather have just dipped the chicken into the sauce.  The slaw was fine too.

The red burger is more off-putting than a feature, but it does look fun.

Overall this is a fine meal - but a little pricey at £11 for a large- but I'd consider having this again unlike the McDonalds Canadian burger.  The wrap of the day with the nice chips and the ice-tea is still probably preferable and cheaper too.