:Diablo Sugar Free Cappuccino & Cream Sweets (Sweets Without)

It's time for another review of a sugar-less sweet treat courtesy of Sweets Without. This time I was sent a pack of the :Diablo Cappuccino & Cream sweets. As a fan of the ALDI s/f coffee sweets I was really looking forward to trying :Diablo's version, which are sweetened with isomalt.

:Diablo instantly won extra points from the packaging. The biggest problem with ALDI's packs is that they often tip over in my handbag. I can testify to the fact that sweets are far less appetising when you have to pick lint off them. Instead the Diablo sweets are individually wrapped which makes them perfect for picking up a couple at a time to keep you going for a few hours. 

The sweets are also fairly large in size, a little bigger but a similar shape to Werthers Originals. The first flavour that greeted me was a milky, latte-esque flavour, which subsided fairly quickly to a buttery, toffee flavour with a hint of coffee. True to their name they're creamy little sweets, and more so than the ALDI versions.

However, there's another big bonus to the Diablo sweets though: their size and shape means that each pastille lasts an extraordinary amount of time. Normally I'm a boiled sweet cruncher; I get bored all too easily and end up giving into the temptation to put pressure on them and then they're gone before I know it. Each of the :Diablo sweets lasted a good seven or eight minutes before I crumbled -or should that say crunched? 

Whilst I think that ALDI deliver a more prominent coffee flavour with their sugar-free cappuccino sweets,, the size and packaging of these :Diablo sweets actually makes them a better option for me. They're a good option for those wanting a low-calorie sweet fix too, as each candy is only 12 calories. You can buy :Diablo Cappuccino & Cream sweets directly from Sweets Without for a reasonable £1.79 oer 75g bag here.

7/10 

NEW! McVities Milk Chocolate Cappuccino Digestive Thins (Tesco)

We've been moaning for years about the ever decreasing size of chocolate bars and snack packs. Walkers crisps, Mars bars, Magnums, Toblerone, Dairy Milk have all been shrunk recently and of course we all now expect the outcry that occurs every year when the Christmas chocolate tins come into Supermarkets inevitably smaller than the previous year's. Yet still there's a juxtaposition of interests going on. We complain and feel hard done by, conned by the greedy companies who have sneakily done away with a few grams here and there, yet eagerly jump on the "thin" bandwagon. I'm not exempt from this and often don't think twice about spending the same on bagel thins as I would on a pack of their chunkier brothers. We're strange creatures.

The thin trend is growing too, and what once only applied to the bakery section has now extended to the biscuit aisle. Oreo thins have recently arrived on British shores but Mcvities and Tesco* have also jumped aboard the bandwagon too.

I did think of two bonuses to McVities new range though:

1. They're coated, meaning there's surely a greater chocolate:biscuit ratio (always a win).

2. Smaller/thinner = I can eat even more biscuits!

Also, they've made this cappuccino version which is the real reason* I bought them when I finally spotted a box in Tesco for a rather expensive £1.69.

*well that and admittedly I'm a gluttonous chocoholic.

"Delightfully delicate cappuccino flavoured digestives covered in milk chocolate."

Crikey, they really do mean thin don't they? How they've even managed to make a biscuit that's not much wider than a sheet of paper I don't know!

I was impressed that despite their narrowness McVities have managed to imprint their logo and thin on the back (just in case you forget it's not a regular digestive of course). 

Are you a dunker? I can't help it, I just have to! So it's an odd experience, eating a biscuit so thin that you can't really dip it in your drink. Luckily despite its size the flavour still managed to shine through, offering a mocha mix of coffee in the biscuit itself and chocolate covering. The characteristic wheat-yness remained in the undertones and I realised that I was actually quite impressed!

They're delicious but not as satisfying as full size digestives, and so I find myself longing for non-thin cappuccino flavoured milk chocolate digestives... or better yet, white chocolate digestives. McVities are you reading this?

8/10

Intense Cappuccino Bar (M&S)

I was in M&S recently* when I spotted their chocolate truffle bars on a 2 for £1 offer. Normally I veer straight towards their scrummy peanut butter bar, but I was swayed by the idea of a good deal (they're normally 70p each) and the opportunity to try something I haven't tasted before. One of the bars I bought was this intense cappuccino bar, which appealed given my love of all things mocha.

"White and dark chocolate bar with a coffee mousse centre (57%), decorated with milk chocolate (7%)."

The bar's size didn't enter my mind when I bought it, however I was taken aback once I retrieved it from its wrapper. It was weeny! I mean, finger size...

Humf. I know my chocolate cravings are hard to fulfil, but this was taking the Micky! Still, the finger sliced cleanly in two, revealing all of the distinct layers. At least it was attractive.

Fortunately for those who enjoy a strong coffee hit, this bar delivers the intense cappuccino taste that it promises. The truffle-esque filling was soft and packed full of flavour, indeed slightly too much so for my personal latte/weak coffee preferences. Despite the presence of white chocolate, the bar wasn't particularly sweet, and I felt my taste buds longing for more chocolate to provide a more balanced mocha style flavour -silly really considering that the bar is called 'intense cappuccino' and not 'mocha latte'. I couldn't really taste the chocolate in all honesty, for it was almost completely overwhelmed the coffee flavour and just served as more of a vehicle for the mousse filling.

Im complaining, but I shouldn't be really. I imagine the Americano or Espresso lovers out there would really enjoy the bar, but it's not one that I would buy again. I hope the other bar I bought will be more my cup of tea. Or coffee, haha.

6/10

*recently-ish, it was a few weeks ago!

Limited Edition Cappuccino Twix (Home Bargains)

I've finally completed my Twix Trinity! If you've been reading this blog for a while, you may recall my New Year's Eve white chocolate Twix review, when I mentioned that I was desperate to try the fabled Cappuccino version. Well, the time has come my lovelies, because One Treat found the holy grail this week -in Home Bargains of all places! 

I'm not afraid to admit that the very next day I braved an hour of traffic (my city is infamous for it's ease to gridlock) just so that I could find one for myself. I searched the till-points -where One Treat found hers- but had no luck, so continued to trawl the aisles until I found a few tucked away amongst the Christmas (!) sweets. Priced at just 25p each, I thought I'd stock up and buy five... It wasn't until I got home that I realised that they were on offer -five for £1, bargain!  

I think these bars are German, although the packet also displays contact addresses for France, Belgium and the Netherlands, so who knows? For some reason, I stupidly expected them to be encased in white chocolate, but of course they've used the normal milk variety. I can't help but think it would have been nice if Mars had used white chocolate as it makes such a delicious pairing with coffee.

The fingers looked smaller than usual, although it's only 4g smaller than a UK bar, and might just be blamed on my consumption of multiple American chocolate bars recently. The biscuit snapped well, and the caramel was gloriously oozy and soft. 

The components all tasted the same as a standard British Twix, until -BAM!- I was hit with a pleasant coffee flavour. It's strength meant it lingered in the mouth and worked so well with each of the chocolate, biscuit and caramel layers. The bar was perfectly balanced with a taste reminiscent of Mocha. 

Yummy, yummy, yummy! I have no idea why this hasn't been released in the UK, after all recent reports show that we're tea drinkers in decline and spend more time in coffee shops than ever before. I'm so glad I bought so many, and I recommend that you hot-foot it over to your local Home Bargains store pronto and do the same before they disappear again!

Although the Cappuccino version doesn't beat the white chocolate or peanut butter editions it certainly sits as a worthy comrade in the Twix Trilogy!

Can you hear us Mars? Release it here too!

10/10

Cappuccino Popcorn Review & Portlebay Round-Up

Cappuccino Popcorn

I've made my way through the entire box now (thank you again Portlebay for the opportunity to sample your range!). The packet I saved until last was Cappuccino, a flavour I've been dying to try since I discovered the brand in September. It sounded so original, and I love coffee and coffee flavoured products -especially cake and chocolate!

I opened the bag, and was met with quite a mild coffee flavour. The corn was dusted with a dark brown powder, and as usual there were no un-popped kernels. Flavour-wise the popcorn wasn't as expected, the Crispy Bacon & Maple syrup actually has more of a sweet edge. The coffee didn't come through as strong as I'd have liked either- more latte than cappuccino.

Sorry Portlebay, I'm not as fussed on this variety- although that's probably a good thing because it's less widely available than most of the other flavours! 

6/10

Portlebay Round-Up

From left to right, I've ranked my favourite to least favourite Portlebay flavours. Overall I think their quality is astounding, and if you're after a healthy snack at a reasonable price you cant go far wrong with their products. 

Big love to Portlebay! 

Here are the links to my revews of their other flavours:
Cinnamon Swirl
Crispy Bacon & Maple Syrup
Wasabi & Sweet Ginger
Lemon Sherbet
Very Berry
Sweet & Salty 
Chilli & Lime