Pepsi Gingerbread (Tesco) By @Cinabar

I couldn’t resist picking up this festive little bottle of Pepsi Gingerbread during a quick Tesco run. The packaging immediately caught my eye: a cute wrapper patterned like a Christmas jumper, hinting at the seasonal treat inside. The flavour is clearly Gingerbread, though amusingly it’s written subtly to the side, and it’s part of Pepsi’s zero sugar range.

I popped the bottle open at lunchtime, and it greeted me with a hefty fizz. I had to open it slowly to avoid a mini cola explosion, which I suspect was due to the bottle having been dropped at some point. Once settled, it was time for a taste.

I adore Christmas spices, but I tend to favour cinnamon over ginger, so I wasn’t expecting to fall for this drink. Yet, it was a delightful surprise. The cola blended perfectly with the sweet, treacle-like gingerbread flavour. There was plenty of ginger, but without the sharp heat, and that wonderful treacle note really brought out the festive spices.

It’s a unique twist on a classic soft drink and genuinely captures the essence of gingerbread. I loved it so much I’m already thinking about getting more. If you enjoy festive flavours, this Pepsi is definitely worth a try.

Dunkin’ Doughnuts Pistachio - from Iceland UK [@NLi10]

 While doing the shopping in Iceland I spotted these lovely doughnuts- and figured they would be worth the risk.

I couldn’t imagine how a cardboard box would keep them fresh by the tills - but I like pistachios so figured let’s have a go.

Sounds good.

Looks great! Smells enticing too.

Luna thinks so too. She may have nabbed a bit of the fondant.

The inner was gooey and nice, and the doughnut was surprisingly fresh and soft! A very enjoyable snack and really high quality 

Luna didn’t agree that the rest was for me…

I enjoyed it and I think I’ll try some more flavours if they keep doing these.

Greene King Rocking Rudolph Ale (Morrisons) By @SpectreUK

I am keeping the Christmas Ales flowing with this Rocking Rudolph. Brewed by Greene King, in Bury St. Edmond's, this 4.2% in volume ruby ale is described as malty and fruity, with a refreshing finish.

We had a voucher through the door from Uber Eats for 40% off the next five takeaways until the 23rd of December (using the code DEC40EATUK). So, I have curry and chips tonight, and probably four other takeaways next week of varying kinds.

On opening the bottle there was a beautiful beery malted barley aroma from this ruby red ale. Rocking Rudolph had an initial sweet biscuit malted barley flavour with light refreshing bitterness from herbal hops, followed by more sweet malts into the aftertaste. Yum. 

Merry Christmas.

Festive Gingerbread Flavour Hot Chocolate (Asda) By @Cinabar

I could not decide what hot chocolate to open tonight. It took longer than it should have, and the result is that there will probably be several hot chocolate reviews appearing here over the next week. After all that faffing, I settled on the Festive Gingerbread Flavour Hot Chocolate from Asda. It is one of their own brand options and it is designed to be made with hot milk, which already makes it feel a bit more indulgent.

I used three heaped teaspoons, poured over the hot milk and was pleased to see it blended smoothly straight away. No lumps, no gritty texture, nothing to fight against with the spoon. The drink looked rich and inviting, so I took a first sip and found it instantly comforting. The base is a soothing milk chocolate flavour, but the gingerbread twist is what makes it feel seasonal. It brings a sweet, treacle like warmth with it. The ginger is present but not fierce, more like the soft spice you get in a gingerbread biscuit rather than anything fiery. It adds character without overpowering the chocolate.

The drink is definitely on the sweet side, which suits me completely. If you prefer a strong ginger kick, this will feel gentle, but if you enjoy a cosy, pudding like hot chocolate, this fits the bill.

Next time I make it I plan to go all in with whipped cream, a mini gingerbread figure and maybe a few sprinkles for good measure. It feels like the sort of drink that deserves a bit of decoration. It is an easy festive treat and one I will happily have again.

KFC Christmas Dinner Tower Burger [@NLi10]

It's allegedly the most wonderful time of the year - the tabs have been knocked in on the KFC tower burger meaning another special version! 

Also I got a free wrap on the spin thing, but it was an odd small thing with plastic cheese and very little salad so I can see why people wouldn't claim those.

Chips still good though.

And here we have the main event, a lovingly over-cooked chicken and stuffing Christmas Dinner Tower burger!  One of the rare occasions I should have gone for the KFC gravy, but overall they tasted like they were supposed to - and the giant Lipton tea made up for the dryness.

Surprisingly I'd have this again, but I think there might be other festive things with the stuffing added to try instead.

Nestle Milkybar Chocolate Crumble (Tesco) By @SpectreUK

This is an interesting one. I love Nestle Milkybar, however this new Nestle Milkybar Chocolate Crumble is covered with Milkybar white chocolate, and has a creamy crumbly biscuit centre, with a milk chocolate base. I genuinely don't know how I feel about that. Don't get me wrong, it sounds great, but part of me may just wish the whole chocolate bar was Milkybar without the extra gubbins.

As you can see from the photograph, on opening this Nestle Milkybar Chocolate Crumble does indeed have a milk chocolate base, with a creamy crumbly biscuit centre. It tastes amazing, I have to admit it. It's easily one of the best combinations of white chocolate, biscuit and milk chocolate I've ever tasted. Although having said that, I can't recall many in the past.

There is the creaminess from the Milkybar coating, followed by the creamy crumbly biscuit, which provides a little body to this chocolate biscuit bar, and then the milk chocolate base adds further creamy chocolaty flavour. Nestle Milkybar Chocolate Crumble is a triumph really. I don't know what I was worried about.

Information on the wrapper: The 84g bar contains 92 calories per 2 pieces, with 5.4g of fat, 8.9g of sugar, 0.03g of salt. Please see photograph for the ingredients.

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.

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.

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.