NEW! Jude's Chocolate with a Touch of Sea Salt Ice Cream Review (Waitrose)

Jude's is a company that is relatively new to me. If you'll remember I first came across them last year when I tried their peanut butter chocolate ripple ice cream, followed soon after by their undeniably smooth salted caramel flavour. One of the reasons I'd not bought their products was because of the price, and the other was the lack of 'extras' that Ben & Jerry's fill their tubs with. Whilst price still governs my purchases, I have discovered the undeniable quality of Jude's and so buy their tubs whenever I spot a good offer. Recently I received an email from the lovely Laura at Jude's, letting me know that they'd launched their highly anticipated chocolate and sea salt ice cream which I'd been waiting for since she teased me with a tip off following my last Jude's review. The only trouble was, they'd launched it solely into Waitrose, yet my local branch wasn't stocking their range at all! Humf. I might've grumbled a little bit. Fortunately last week the freezer stock in Waitrose transformed to make way for a whole host of extra ice cream brands - one of which was Jude's. There it was, the chocolate & sea salt ice cream! The 500ml tubs are priced at £3.98, but please read on to find out how you can try any of their range for just £2.

"Chocolate with a touch of sea salt is the latest flavour to join our stripy family! The combination of rich Colombian cacao with a delicate touch of sea salt makes for the most moreish after meal treat."

Just to remind you that you're also being charitable by eating ice cream..

Salted caramel has made its way into almost every food product feasible over the past few years, so is it now the turn of chocolate and sea salt?

The ice cream was a rich and dark coloured brown, the exact hue of milk chocolate. What I wasn't expecting was the sheer abundance of Belgian chocolate flakes that littered throughout. My scoop delved into the ice cream without a struggle, meaning that for once I could create respectable mounds.

Flavour-wise the chocolate was intense. It delivered a strong hit of cocoa whilst retaining a creaminess that took the edge off, pleasing my dark chocolate averse palate. The miniature chips melted in the mouth, which meant that for the most part they didn't add much texture. At first I didn't think I could taste the salt but then all of a sudden I came across a pocket with a punchy saline edge. The salty sweetness was pleasant, but it wasn't consistent. I'm still not sure if I'd have preferred the salinity to be maintained throughout or if some of the enjoyment came from the flavour changing with every mouthful.

I enjoyed the new Jude's flavour and it's a welcome addition to their collection. I tried the ice cream both in a cone and also served with a warm white chocolate Oatien 'brownie', which was just as good -if not better!

As promised, here's how you can try the Jude's ice cream range for £2 (until 9th March) as well as claim lots of free products!

1. Go into your App Store (on android or Apple)

2. Download Shopmium

3. Register (if you use the code AEAYEAKT you'll also be able to claim a free Lindt chocolate bar)

4. Buy Jude's and send Shopmium a photo of your receipt via the app. You'll then receive a refund for anything over £2 within 48hours!

9/10

P.S Ice cream queen One Treat has also reviewed Jude's new flavour, so please do go and take a look at her review if you require further convincing!

Holdsworth Truffles: Sea Salted Caramel & Marc De Champagne (Ocado)

My Dad, love him, has truly come up trumps when it comes to keeping me in a healthy supply of chocolate. For my birthday he bought me a huge hamper full of all sorts of goodies! Included were all sorts of foodstuffs that I've not tried before, many of which I've never seen before, and some of which will appear on the blog over the coming weeks. 

In the hamper were two boxes of truffles by luxury chocolatiers Holdsworth. Holdsworth isn't a company I've come across before, but a quick google search informs me that they're a family run business who specialise in luxury handmade chocolate. 

Their RRP certainly screams of premium quality, and my fellow bargain-hunting father was (quite rightly) pleased that he'd managed to find them reduced and hadn't stumped out the rather extortionate ticket price of £5.99 per 55g box. 

Milk Chocolate Sea Salt Caramel Truffles

The truffles' packaging, I'm sure you'll agree, is exquisitely beautiful. I love the attention to detail: the beautiful script and bird illustrations that gave the immediate impression that I was in for a treat. The luxuriousness didn't end there, as I unfurled the box, I uncovered the truffles wrapped in cellophane and nestled in bronze tissue paper. 

I was perhaps a little disappointed when realised that there were only 4 truffles in the box, which works out at £1.50 per chocolate. I can't recall ever having spent so much -per gram- on chocolate, and so I really hoped that they were worth the expense. 

Slicing the truffle in half revealed the gooey, gold coloured caramel within, which was runnier than expected. On to the tasting, and the chocolate was a pleasant milk chocolate, it was silky smooth, reminding me of Lindt. The centre however, lacked the saltiness of which it promised, and tasted remarkably similar to the Galaxy's caramel in yesterday's duet bar. I couldn't help but feel disgruntled by these truffles. Sure the tasted good, but they weren't exceptional, and I certainly wouldn't fork out £5.99 for them in future. 

5/10.

Milk Chocolate Mark De Champagne Truffles

Again, the packaging was rather special, akin to the sea salt truffles, except the box was a pretty pink. I uncovered 5 truffles, which looked remarkably similar to the first flavour, in fact anyone would be hard pressed in fact to tell the chocolates apart. Once sliced, the chocolatey filling was revealed. 

It seems irrelevant to comment on the casing as it was exactly the same milk chocolate as before. The truffle centre however was a thing of beauty. It was rich, moussey and delivered a delicate alcoholic flavour that was simply divine. This, folks, was a true luxury chocolate. Indeed it would be impossible to compare to anything on the high street -it's quality was evident, and I enjoyed every nibble.

8/10. 

Summary

I may not have been impressed by the sea salt, but the Mark De Champagne truffles were absolutely scrumptious. I've since discovered that Ocado stock 100g packs of both Holdsworth truffles for £6 each (or two for £10), so I recommend that if you've got some making up to do to that someone special, or you're after a decadent treat, the alcoholic chocolates might just hit the mark.