Sprecher Beer Flavoured Kettle Chips Review

I was so pleased to hear the news that CyberCandy are now selling unique potato crisps from around the world. Unusual crisps are one of the first items, along with chocolate and candy, that I bring back from my travels - and I'm guessing I'm not the only one. These Sprecher Beer Flavoured Kettle Chips are certainly a very fascinating product and I couldn't wait to give them try.

Sprecher is a Wisconsin USA based independent brewery that is famous, not only for it's high quality beers, but also for their extensive range of sodas; from the classic Root Beer to the finest Cherry Cola and lots more inbetween.

Even though I'm not a big beer drinker, it's obvious that beer and potato crisps are a perfect snack match. Whether it's a beer or a soda, most people like to drink something fizzy with their salty snacks! With these Sprecher Beer Flavoured Kettle Chips you get that flavour of having a beer with your crisps without actually having a beer - or any alcohol. The only way this could be matched is by making a beer that tastes like potato crisps, but that wouldn't be half as appealing!

These crisps are traditional kettle chips, meaning they are slow cooked in kettles to give them a distinctive crunch and texture. They've been flavoured with a dried beer extract, which is essentially a dehydrated beer - the Sprecher Special Amber beer to be exact. The beer flavour is described as a "hint of Sprecher" on the packet, and even though it's quite subtle, the crisps have an unmistakable beer taste. They are also quite sweet crisps, with honey notes, that give these a perfect sweet & salty balance. This combines with the malty and beer flavoured undertones to create a very delicious and distinctive flavour.

CyberCandy kindly sent me this product for an honest review but all views expressed are my own.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Sprecher Beer Flavoured Kettle Chips

RATING: 8.5 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.
Nutrition: 250 calories, 2g protein, 26g carbs (3g sugars), 16g fat.
Vegetarian: Appear to be suitable for vegetarians.
Price: £1.39 for 50g bag.

Cadbury Black Forest Review (CyberCandy)

This Cadbury Dairy Milk Black Forest from New Zealand (and made in Australia) was very kindly sent to me by CyberCandy for review. I don't know about you but when I see the words "black forest" I instantly think of the classic cake; the black forest gateau. This chocolate bar certainly shares one thing with the cake of the same name, and that's cherries! The Dairy Milk Black Forest is described as "milk chocolate with dark chocolate biscuit pieces and cherry flavoured jellies".

It looks like a fairly standard Dairy Milk shape, with seven segments and the Cadbury logo on each. The dark biscuit pieces are clearly visible through the chocolate.

When I first cut through the bar I was met with lots of the biscuit pieces, which are very generously distributed. The biscuit doesn't have a "dark chocolate" flavour as such, it mainly adds a lovely crunchiness and extra sweetness.

As I cut through the next segment of the chocolate, I was greeted with the sight above! Great big cherry sweeties within the chocolate! The cherry jellies are so large and bright it's amazing how they can hide amongst the other ingredients. They may not have been visible from the outside of this particular chocolate bar but they're definitely the star of the show! The sweet cherry flavour within them is delicious, and they have a firm chewy texture that's a bit like jelly beans.

If you've ever tried Australian/NZ Dairy Milk chocolate then you'll know that it tastes slightly different to British Dairy Milk. The recipe used for this Black Forest bar has 26% cocoa solids and 28% milk solids. It's still unmistakeably Cadbury's but to me it tastes a bit creamier and has a stronger cocoa flavour. It's the perfect smooth base for the added biscuit and cherry ingredients. I really enjoyed this bar and I loved the fact that it has it all going on - crunchy, chewy, fruity and chocolately!

Cybercandy kindly sent me this product for an honest review but all views expressed are my own.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Cadbury Black Forest

RATING: 8 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.
Purchased: Available from CyberCandy. 
Nutrition: 228 calories, 3.2g protein, 27.4g carbs (24.3g sugars), 11.6g fat
Price: £1.65

Wilton Macaroon and Caffreys Macaroon Review (CyberCandy)

CyberCandy kindly sent me these two Macaroon bars to do one of my favourite kind of reviews - a comparison! I never knew that these kind of "candy macaroon" bars even existed, let alone there being two rival brands: Wilton and Caffreys. These Irish bars both have very similar packaging with very simple designs and retro style paper wrappers. These are obviously both nostalgic bars with long histories. I'm not even going to enter the debate of which one was produced first, but if anyone wants to add to the history of these bars then please leave a comment below!

Wilton Macaroon Bar

I opened up the Wilton Macaroon Bar and it might sound ridiculous but I was actually surprised to see that this was a chocolate bar inside! The words "candy macaroon" had made me assume that these would be some kind of coconut cake bar. Instead it's a perfect small bar of flat chocolate with a ridged pattern on top.

Caffreys Macaroon

The Caffreys Macaroon had an almost identical appearance! The same thin bar of chocolate with the same ridged look. The Wilton bar was slightly smaller and thinner but that's the only real difference in terms of shape. They both had little visible pieces of coconut within the chocolate too and I could immediately smell the sweet coconut in both of them.

When it came to taste, however, there were a few notable differences. The Wilton Macaroon had very small pieces of coconut within it, making the chocolate mainly smooth in texture. The chocolate was super sweet and had a very subtle coconut taste. As a coconut fan I'd love a stronger flavour but it was still a very tasty little treat. I'd take this over a Bounty any day!

L: Caffreys            R: Wilton

The Caffrey's Macaroon had a slightly different texture to the chocolate. It was crunchier and seemed to have more pieces of toasted coconut within it. The chocolate tasted very similar to the Wilton, with a predominantly sweet flavour. The coconut flavour however, was a bit stronger throughout the bar so I would have to say this was my favourite of the two. They're both great bars though and definitely worth a try!

The Wilton Macaroon is available from CyberCandy for £0.75p and also comes in a Mint Crisp version. The Caffreys Macaroon is a bargain at only £0.49p. 

Cybercandy kindly sent me this product for an honest review and all views expressed are my own.

Cadbury Europe Summer Roll Review (Cybercandy)

This probably has the coolest name of any chocolate bar I've reviewed! It's a bar made by Cadbury New Zealand, perhaps somewhat confusingly, under the brand name Europe. The lovely people at Cybercandy very kindly sent me this bar to review. Now what does the name Summer Roll conjure up in your mind? If it's coconuts, peanuts and nougat then you're in luck!

The packaging has a clear "window" in it, which allows you to see the actual chocolate bar inside. It's a great feature and one that I would love to see on more chocolate bar packaging. But then again, I don't think many chocolate bars are as good looking as this one!

I keep calling this a chocolate bar but in reality the chocolate's contribution is minimal. It's predominantly a nutty nougat bar which is then covered with a coconut milk chocolate.

The bar is long and thin but quite tall. It's covered with coconut flakes, some of which are golden brown and toasted, some of which are white flakes. It looks fantastic and nothing like the horrible dessicated coconut that some desserts and confections are sprinkled with.

According to a recent tweet by Cybercandy, Kiwis love nougat (and marshmallow!). If anyone has any extra info on that - I'd love to hear it! The outer chocolate on this bar has a good texture and is dominated by the coconut flavour. There certainly won't be any complaints that this bar is not coconutty enough. The coconut flavour transcends the little coconut pieces and infiltrates the whole bar. It's just the kind of sweet coconut that I love too.

The nougat in the centre of this Summer Roll is not like the nougat we are used to finding in confectionery in the UK (I'm thinking mainly of Mars Bars and the like). It's more of a firm nougat that is quite hard to just bite straight into. I actually cut the bar up into a few smaller chunks which made it much easier to eat. Once in the mouth, the nougat is not too hard or crunchy. It's slightly chewy at first and then melts away perfectly easily and without any jaw workout.

Do you see a smiley face in the nougat or is it just me? The nougat itself is smooth, sweet and very nutty, with a lovely saltiness from the peanuts. I wasn't expecting a salty flavour but it's a very welcome one. It tastes like a peanut butter, nougat, coconut combination with all the flavours working together to create a little chewy slice of paradise. Roll on the summer!

Cybercandy kindly sent me this product for an honest review and all views expressed are my own. 

Grocery Gems Verdict: Europe Summer Roll

RATING: 8 out of 10.
Buy it again?: Absolutely.
Purchased: Available at Cybercandy.
Price: £1.49p.

Nestlé Galak Speculoos Review

I'm very excited about this review of the Nestlé Galak Speculoos bar from Belgium. Firstly, because the bar has been sent to me for review by Cybercandy, who have kindly invited me to be part of their Blogging Family. Anyone remember my epic Cybercandy haul which was one of my earliest posts? There have been a fair few Cybercandy hauls since then too! Secondly, I'm excited because this bar brings together white chocolate with one of my favourite types of biscuit: the Speculoos biscuit. My review of the Lotus Speculoos biscuit spread sums up my love of these deliciously spiced biscuits. They're a gorgeous combination of cinnamon spice and caramelised sugar - the perfect biscuit to enjoy with coffee. 

I've been wanting to try this Belgian Nestlé Galak Speculoos ever since I saw it on the Cybercandy Facebook page. The "Nestlé Galak" brand is essentially another name for what we in the UK know as the Nestlé Milkybar. The idea of white chocolate and Speculoos combined is certainly one that I find very appealing!

The Nestlé Galak Speculoos is long and thin with six segmented pieces stamped with the Nestlé logo. It has a creamy colouring with visible biscuit flecks within the chocolate.

The Speculoos biscuit pieces are especially visible on the underside of the bar and consist of lots of small bits of biscuit and a few larger pieces. The bar has the sweet smell you would expect from a Nestlé white chocolate with a hint of the cinnamon biscuit too. The chocolate has the familiar Milkybar taste, which I'm not ashamed to admit I'm partial to anyway: it's creamy and sweet with just a hint of vanilla. The biscuit pieces are scattered throughout the chocolate and give the bar a slightly crunchy texture.

The biscuit pieces really do taste like Speculoos, with the distinctive caramelised sugar flavour and a hint of cinnamon coming through. Everyone in my family was eager to try a piece of this bar and it was shared out and eaten in record time. It's been one of the most popular bars I've tried out on my family because, without fail, everyone loved it - even my husband who is not a fan of white chocolate proclaimed it as delicious. It's a very sweet treat but one we all thoroughly enjoyed. I'll definitely be picking up some more of these, they cost 89p, which I think is a bargain for this gem.

The Nestlé Galak Speculoos are available to buy online at Cybercandy. Look out for another Cybercandy review coming up in the next few days!

Cybercandy kindly sent me this product for an honest review and all views expressed are my own. 

Grocery Gems Verdict: Nestlé Galak Speculoos

RATING: 8 out of 10.
Buy it again?: Absolutely.
Nutrition: 195 calories, 2.6g protein, 19.4g carbohydrates. 
Purchased: Available at Cybercandy.
Price: £0.89p.

Angry Birds Lagoon - Apple & Pear Drink (CyberCandy)

I recently reviewed the Angry Birds Space Comet cola and orange drink and found it to be a very tasty twist on a classic cola. I also bought another drink from the range - this Angry Birds Lagoon. It's not a cola this time, but an apple and pear fizzy drink. Originally made in Finland, these official Angry Birds drinks are available to buy from CyberCandy.

You can probably tell by now that we are a household of gaming fans, and yes, we do seem to have a rather large number of Angry Birds toys! I love the design of these cans; they are bold, fun and appealing, much like the gaming characters they represent. It turns out that the drink inside the can is colourful too, being a bright green shade.

The drink has a lovely taste too, the flavours are very fresh and light. There is a lovely burst of apple flavour at first which is sweetened by the subtle pear aftertaste. There is no sour edge to this drink, as I sometimes find with fizzy apple drinks, just a delicious fruitiness. Overall, this is a very refreshing drink, perfect for keeping hydrated during an epic Angry Birds playing session (is that just me?), and I will certainly be trying even more from this Angry Birds range.

There are four Angry Birds drinks available: tropical fruit flavoured ‘Angry Birds Tropic’, the mandarin and pineapple-flavoured ‘Angry Birds Paradise’, orange and cola flavoured ‘Angry Birds Space Comet’ and this apple and pear flavoured ‘Angry Birds Lagoon’.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Angry Birds Lagoon drink

RATING: 7 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Yes.
Nutrition (330ml can): 124 Calories.
Purchased: CyberCandy.
Price: £1.85p.

Other Angry Birds Reviews:
Angry Birds Space Comet cola
Angry Birds Gummy Sweets (Finland)
Angry Birds Ice Lollies (Portugal)

CyberCandy Takeout Box (Valentines Lovemix Version)

I recently blogged about the awesome US version CyberCandy Takeout Box and I mentioned that I had won a Valentines version in a Facebook competition - well look what arrived over the weekend! A gorgeous takeout style box filled with Valentines themed sweets - and it even comes with a pair of heart print chopsticks. Last time I gave the box a 10 out of 10 for the design alone and even though it's mathematically impossible, I want to rate this box even higher just because of the super cute chopsticks!

Seriously - just how cute is this box? I think I'm in love!

The CyberCandy Takeout Box is a really adorable idea, it's been modelled on American style Chinese takeout boxes, complete with little wire handles and lots of bright images printed on the outside (that look like they really do belong on a Chinese take out box).

Dig straight in and practise those chopstick skills!! Once again the inside of the box is crammed full of sweets but this time they are all "love" themed. There is a great mix of alphabets, rings, and white chocolate jazzies - and of course lots of hearts and kisses!

I much prefer the sweets in this selection to the US version I had last time, they are all enjoyable to eat and were a hit with my whole family.

Oh and did I mention how cute the whole thing is? Being filled with Valentines themed sweets makes the CyberCandy Takeout Box even more adorable! And yes I do realise just how many times I've used the words cute and adorable in this review!

Big Sister and Little Sister

The CyberCandy Takeout Box comes in three different versions - US candy, UK sweets and this Valentines Lovemix. There are also different sizes available - the Lovemix version comes in a smaller box, which is still a generous size and a good price too. I still have the larger box from my last purchase - there's no way I'm throwing these takeout boxes out!

Many thanks to CyberCandy for running this fab competition with such an awesome prize!

Grocery Gems Verdict: CyberCandy Takeout box (Valentines Lovemix)

RATING: 10 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Absolutely.
Purchased: Only available at CyberCandy.
Price: £2.69.

3 Musketeers Coconut Review (CyberCandy)

My husband picked up this imported chocolate bar from CyberCandy, knowing that I love most coconut flavoured bars (apart from Bounty, but more about that later!). I've never actually had a regular 3 Musketeers let alone a flavoured version so I was intrigued to give it a try.

The 3 Musketeers Coconut comes in two separate pieces, a feature that always appeals to me. I don't always want to finish a chocolate bar in one go and this is perfect for that! As soon as I unwrapped the chocolate the sweet coconut smell was full of promise. The wrapper describes it as a "chocolate coconut flavoured centre" but I would have assumed the coconut was also in the outer chocolate as the scrumptious coconut smell was so prevalent.

I wasn't sure what the "chocolate coconut flavoured centre" would be like but I suspected it might be a Bounty type filling. I was very happy to discover that in fact this bar has a whipped centre. The texture and taste of the filling is just like a Milky Way, which is not too surprising seeing as both bars are made by Mars, but with the added benefit of a sweet coconut flavour. What you have here is essentially a coconut Milky Way - and I thought it was just delicious. The coconut flavour is just as strong as the tempting scent suggested and it combines perfectly with the fluffy nougat.

Tthe filling is of course extremely sweet, but because of the it's whipped nature, it's also a very "light" experience at the same time. The outer chocolate is quite bland, which means the whole bar is dominated by the inner filling. A bit more balance from the chocolate would have improved the overall flavour but, even without that, it was a very enjoyable bar, and one that I can imagine buying again. Yes, it's a very simple confection but it's one that I found very appealing. Another bonus is that there are only 180 calories for the whole bar, that's just 90 calories in each segment. It's also advertised as having 40% less fat that standard chocolate bars.

 Grocery Gems Verdict: 3 Musketeers Coconut

RATING: 8 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Definitely.
Nutrition (per 42.2g bar): 180 calories. 1g protein, 32g carbohydrates, 6g fat.
Purchased: CyberCandy.
Price (each 160g bag): £1.55.

A quick note on the whole "Bounty" thing. How can I love coconut but dislike Bounty bars? It's mainly because of the gritty texture of the centre. I like coconut as a flavour in chocolate and cakes but that doesn't mean I want to eat a sugary mass of coconut on it's own (I'm ignoring the thin chocolate covering). I'm only mentioning that because my husband also bought me another coconut bar called Mounds. 

Again I wasn't sure what to expect but even though I like the packaging, and especially the coconut instead of an O, I was again suspicious that this would be too similar to a Bounty. 

 

Unfortunately for me it's basically an American version of a Bounty bar, so not something I could enjoy. However I thought it was worth a quick mention here and if you're a fan of sugary coconut then it's definitely worth a try!

Angry Birds Space Comet - Orange Cola Drink (Cybercandy)

This range of Angry Birds Cola is so popular in it's native Finland, that it's even started to win the "cola wars" there, outselling the more popular brands of cola. Is this because the Angry Birds are so popular or is it because the drink just tastes better than rival colas?

I recently reviewed some Angry Birds sweets, which were also manufactured in Finland. I was really impressed by them as they were tasty and not pumped full of artificial ingredients. I picked up this Angry Birds Space Comet which is described online as an orange flavoured cola. I've had vanilla, cherry and a lime flavoured cola, so an orange flavoured cola was something I simply had to try!

The cola is the dominant taste at first, it's a very sweet and light kind of cola - not too fizzy or strong. After that first flavour of cola it becomes more of a fizzy orangeade as the citrus flavour kicks in. It's zingy and fresh without being overpowering. I enjoyed the overall flavour combination, it's very unusual but it works well.

The real winner is the packaging, which is striking and fun. As you can see from the pictures, the Grocery Gems' household contains a few gamers and gaming related toys, so I am always attracted to video game themed grocery products. I also love buying crazy drinks from all around the world at Cybercandy, and this Angry Birds cola kills two (angry) birds with one stone(!) Even better, it has the added bonus of being quite tasty! Not something I can say about all the gamer themed drinks and grocery products I've tried.

There are four drinks available in this range: tropical fruit flavoured ‘Angry Birds Tropic’, the mandarin and pineapple-flavoured ‘Angry Birds Paradise’, the apple and pear flavoured ‘Angry Birds Lagoon’, and this orange and cola flavoured ‘Angry Birds Space Comet’.

Grocery Gems Verdict: Angry Birds Space Comet

RATING: 8.5 out of 10.
Buy them again?: I'd go for the Angry Birds Lagoon drink next.
Nutrition (330ml can): 111 Calories
Purchased: Cybercandy.
Price: £1.85p.

CyberCandy Takeout box (US Version)

Happy Chinese New Year everyone! The Year of the Snake is now upon us and I hope you all have a wonderful year to come. I've been saving this review for today as it seems the perfect time! Isn't this Takeout Box from CyberCandy adorable? I absolutely love the look of it and I've been hankering after one for a while. It's been modelled very cleverly on American style Chinese takeaout boxes, the kind that here in the UK we only get to see in movies. Our takeaway boxes are mostly just foil containers, which are probably better for keeping the food hot, but don't look as cute!

This is not just any takeout box - this one is filled to the brim with sweets, or I should say candy. CyberCandy do a few versions of these; there is a UK Pick n Mix version, which has classic British sweets. My husband, knowing how much I've wanted one of these boxes, bought me the new US Pick n Mix Takeout Candy Box a few weeks ago. As a recipient of this Takeout Candy Box I can state categorically that they make an amazing gift!

Inside there is an inner bag which has been jam packed full of very colourful candy.

Of course I emptied out the bag into the takeout box. Did I mention that the box also comes with a pair of chopsticks? Well, it does, so there's only one way to eat them - dig in!

I have always wanted to try a candy corn. A little dream has now been fulfilled. I don't know what I expected them to taste of but they are very sweet and had a slight toffee flavour. I have to admit I didn't like some of these American sweets (although I'm sure there are much nicer US candies out there for me to try). Some of them pretty much just tasted of sugar and a few were actually quite horrible. It was fun trying this box as a one off but I would definitely stick to the UK pick n mix version in the future - I know where I stand with foam bananas and cola bottles!

The box is a mixture of wrapped and loose sweets. Here are some of the wrapped sweets inside the box; black taffy, Tootsie Roll, Brach's Jelly Nougats and, rather randomly, a candy cane.

This is a small selection of the loose sweets; chicken feet (awesome!), conversation hearts, candy corn and one lone banana (I would have liked a lot more of these).

Also just in time for Valentines Day there is a gorgeous heart themed Valentines Lovemix Takeout box. It comes with a selection of heart shaped sweets and even has a pair of heart design chopsticks. There are still a few days left to order one if you are stuck for Valentines ideas. And if that wasn't brilliant enough, whilst checking out CyberCandy on Facebook to get a few details for this review, I was lucky enough to win one of these Valentines boxes in the Slot Machine competition! Check it out and give it a go!

Grocery Gems Verdict: CyberCandy Takeout box (US version)

RATING: 10 out of 10 for the Takeout box idea itself (7 out of 10 for the US candies).
Buy them again?: I'll try the UK Pick n Mix version next time.
Nutrition: No idea but I'd hazard a guess at high on the sugar front!
Purchased: CyberCandy.
Price: £5.50.