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.

M&S Food Honey Nut Corn Flakes (that happen to be crunchy) [@NLi10]

 I love Kellogg's breakfast cereals, but occasionally you feel like trying something new - and we know M&S make quality products so why not give these a try?

I mean - they have all the words from Crunchy Nut Cornflakes - lets see what is in there

Similar stuff - just a less flashy box - more for an older person like me.

They are smaller, and the crunch of a dry one isn't that dissimilar to the real thing.

Add some (almond) milk and away we go!

Initially flavours are fine, not quite as sweet - and lacks one or two of the flavour layers.  But - like most non kellogs cereals the flavours do not stay around and the milk steals them.  This means as you slowly eat, the flavours change - but it's a pleasure all the way through.

The texture is not perfect, they've made them a little harder to avoid sogginess, and thats a fine trade off.

Overall - a win - if these are cheaper or you want something a little less sweet then it's a great choice.

I prefer to mix Crunchy with Regular cornflakes to achieve that older taste balance (then add bluberries when in season to spice it up) but that's a little more advanced.  In the above I added bite with some store brand mixed berry wheats.

Yum!

Hungry Boar - Loaded BBQ Sticklers (Tesco) By @SpectreUK

I always find Biltong and Beef Jerky kind of tough to eat. I'm hoping these new Hungry Boar - Loaded BBQ Sticklers will be a little easier on my old teeth.

As I'm getting older it's taking longer and getting harder to keep my exercise up and heal from injuries. It helps to add the correct amount of protein in my regular diet and balancing calories to help me heal. Most adults need 50 to 55g of protein a day. A packet of these Hungry Boar - Loaded BBQ Sticklers has only 9g of protein in it for 207 calories. Bit of a kicker when I can have a protein yogurt for 18g of protein for 92 calories.

On opening the packet, these Hungry Boar - Loaded BBQ Sticklers had a strong pork barbecue aroma. On biting in I could see the stuffed pork inside. The texture of these Sticklers was pretty soft and easy to chew. On taste there was a strong lightly spiced pork barbecue flavour. I found them very tasty and moreish, and they went very well with my Tomato Ketchup crisp sandwich for lunch.

Information on the packet; The 50g bag contained 415 calories per 100g, with 31g of fat, 7.5g of sugar, 18g of protein, and 3g of salt.

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.