NEW! Milk Chocolate & Irish Cream Brownie Slices (M&S)

Last week I combatted the change in seasons by celebrating the fact that M&S have just launched new desserts into their menu collection. Whilst the giant macaroons might've been a little more style over substance, I looked forward to trying some of the other unusual additions.

I was in luck too - a couple of days ago I found the new Irish Cream Brownie slices emblazoned with that promising yellow reduced sticker. £1.90 for two wasn't too bad! They're currently £2.80 but will be £3.50 when full price. Ouch. 

"Layers of earl grey mousse and Irish cream mousse, chocolate sponge, chocolate brownie and milk chocolate."

They were an usual shape too, and although they were well protected in the wrapper, they were a pain in the bum to plate up as they had a tendency to fall over. Squish them onto the plate a little -like I did- though and they should stand proud. 

Shall we do this by layers? Ok then..

The top layer was jelly like, and offered little in the way of flavour. I assume it was simply there for decoration, and the gold sparkle was pretty. Beneath this was the first mousse layer - and it was scrummy. It was light, chocolatey and delivered an almighty Baileys-esque kick. For teetotal Bert this wasn't a good point, but I'd bought them because they were labelled as Irish cream and so I was happy to find that M&S had followed through on their promise. Simply put, it reminded me of Christmas.

Next up was a layer of dry, bland "sponge" cake. Again I assume it's only role was to break up the layers as it wasn't a substance that I'd want to eat on its own.  Another mousse layer followed - this time it was Earl Grey. Now I don't like Earl Grey tea - to me it's equivalent to drinking my nan's perfume- and had I have read the product description properly I think I wouldn't have actually bothered with this dessert. On its own I found it sickly and floral, but I bore with it in the hope that when it was combined with the other elements that it would transform into something magical... 

At the base was the brownie layer, which was perfectly moist and utterly chocolatey - exactly how a brownie should be. 

But what happens when you eat all the layers together? 

A journey of flavours. First the alcoholic heat greets your tastebuds, followed by the mellow chocolate and then that perfume-like Earl Grey. Damn that tea! Take out the bottom mousse M&S and you'd be on to a winner, but for me it's just too much. Too fussy, and too delicate. Give me the simple, scrummy (and cheaper) Banoffee Cheesecakes instead anyway. 

7/10. 

Orion Studentská Pečeť Duomix: Nestle's White & Milk Chocolate Bar with Peanuts, Raisins & Jelly

Last week I popped into one of Hereford's Eastern European Deli's, one that I don't often visit due to its location. In it I found a number of chocolate bars that I've not seen before, by a brand I'd also never come across - Orion. However, when I picked up one of the bars out of sheer curiosity (I hope you'll understand why) I soon discovered that Orion is a nestle brand. Ahhh. Now I didn't give into temptation at the time, but posted a couple of stories about the range on my instagram. Within minutes I was inundated with messages about how great the bars were. I was going to have to try this unusual chocolate...

At £1.29 for 180g the bar was excellent value too - at least I thought so until I realised it was a month out of date. Oh well, it wasn't about to kill me. The Reese's cups that were 15 months out of date didn't anyway. Not being able to speak Czech or Slovakian I'm afraid I couldn't be sure of what the bar entailed. Google translate (of Orion's website) paints a very odd picture... 

"DUOMIXCan not you decide if you have a taste for a white or milk STUDENT CARE? Duomix offers a bit of each variation, while the tongue dissolves so quickly that you want to taste another dice."

I was met with a very aesthetically pleasing bar when I retrieved it from is foil wrapping. Made primarily of white chocolate, each cube was topped with a milk chocolate topping, whilst the underside was heftily nobbled. I hadn't seen a bar this interesting for a long time -if ever. 

Unfortunately the quality of the white chocolate wasn't all that great. It tasted chalky and whilst I wasn't expecting the creaminess of luxury Belgian white chocolate, I did expect it to be on par with Nestle's Milkybar. The milk chocolate topping tasted more like a smooth praline to me. The hazelnut flavour came as a welcome surprise though and complimented the white chocolate beneath.

But what about the pieces within the bar I hear you ask? Each cube provides a different textural experience thanks to the the abundance of chopped peanuts, raisins and jelly beans. Both the peanuts and raisins worked well with the chocolate. The peanuts of course added salinity and crunch, whilst the raisins added moisture and a slight chew. 

Those jelly beans though. They're the main reason I don't buy the Cadbury Marvellous Creation bars. Jelly in chocolate just doesn't work for me, and seems to be a cheap filler to bring down the cost of production. I find that they're obtrusive little pests that offer little in the way of flavour but seem to wedge themselves frustratingly between teeth. Perhaps that's just me though. 

All of my complaints make it sound like I didn't enjoy this chocolate bar, when it some strange way I did. There's a certain charm to it - perhaps because it's so unusual, or maybe it's because it didn't leave me out of pocket. I wouldn't rush to buy it again, but If you spot it and fancy something completely alternative to what we've got in the UK then give it a go! 

6/10

NEW! KitKat Chunky NY Cheesecake (Tesco)

It's been just over a year since we last had a new flavour to the KitKat chunky range. Have you tried the Cookie Dough version? I must admit that I wasn't taken with it. In fact I haven't bothered buying it since that review. The KitKat peanut butter bites were a pleasant surprise however, so I tried to hold back my preconceptions and get excited when I saw that Nestle had released NY Cheesecake Chunkys. The new KitKats are currently stocked in Tesco and are part of their very handy 3 for £1.20 mix and match chocolate bar offer (or else they're 60p each). 

"Crispy wafer with a New York Cheesecake flavour topping (19%) covered with milk chocolate (60%)."

As normal, the Chunky comprised of three segments. Within these segments were the bottom layers of wafer topped with that "New York Cheesecake" layer. Now I've only recently mentioned by ambiguity towards NY cheesecake, and it's lack of identifiable flavour. Was this going to be just another cover up from Nestle, another marketing ploy for what was essentially a pretty dull vanilla topping?

Well kind of. It was vanilla-ry but there was a slight sour tang to it that I've not tasted on any KitKat before. I mean, it wasn't groundbreaking and it certainly didn't make me squeal with delight, but it wasn't resigned to the bin either. The ingredients list includes "powdered soft cheese", so there is some authenticity to the title, but without any hint of biscuit (digestive, graham cracker or otherwise) can it really be labelled as cheesecake? In any case, the topping worked fairly well with the standard KitKat milk chocolate and wafer layers; i.e. it didn't jar, but didn't provide something entirely new or interesting either.

If you're intrigued by the bar then please do give it a go, at least there's no new product premium to pay -as is so often the case nowadays- and it's inoffensive. As the Cookie Dough before it, I probably won't bother with it again though -  I'd much rather the double caramel, peanut butter or white chocolate KitKats. Well actually, I'd rather that Nestle brought over the Raspberry Cheesecake Duo KitKats that our Australian cousins are lucky enough to have - of which you can read Nat's review here.

7/10

NEW! Cadbury Dairy Milk Mint Oreo 41g Bar (Tesco)

I don't think that any of us have quite got over the atrocious "peanut butter" Oreo Dairy Milk; It was an absolute insult to us nut butter lovers. I even refused to buy the mint version of the Oreo Dairy Milk on the back of my disgust, despite reading raring reviews on it, and enjoying the actual biscuit mint flavoured Oreos. I also didn't fancy buying a 100g mint chocolate bar when I'm not the biggest mint chocolate fan. Sometimes the combination reminds me all too much of toothpaste, and other times it's the refreshing hit that I crave. Kind of like Mars bars - I just have to be in the mood. So when I found this single serving 41g bar in Tesco last week, I put my reservations to one side and took a punt on the minty, biscuity, Cadbury chocolate bar. 

"Milk chocolate with a mint flavoured filling (36%) and biscuit pieces (14%)."

I still expect to see the old cube shaped segments when opening a bar of Dairy Milk. Do you experience the same thought, or am I just getting older (back-in-the-good-old-days-esque). I was pleased however to find that each bubble contained a generous amount of filling, which was a less ludicrous shade of green than mint Aero, and jam packed full of cookie pieces.

The overall flavour was pretty good. As per the Oreos, the mint was well balanced - not knocking into Aquafresh territory but standing it's own against the milk chocolate and cookie biscuit pieces. As for the chocolate, it's been so long since I last bought a Dairy Milk that I can't acurately comment on whether it's the same stuff used in the unadulterated bars. All I can say was that it had that undeniable Cadbury taste.

The cookie pieces were wonderful. They were the only aspect that I enjoyed in the [don't make me say it again] "peanut butter" Oreo bar, and they worked well once more - but this time the filling around the biscuit didn't grate on me. They were perfectly crunchy and added welcome texture, as well as a touch of added flavour depth from the cocoa which had the added bonus of breaking up all the sweetness. 

Then it dawned on me. I know why I was enjoying the bar so much. It reminded me of Viscount biscuits. Do they even still exist? As a child they were the holy grail of party food, I guess because they were the closest snack one could get to the Christmas luxury biscuit selection boxes*. Talking of which, If you didn't grab the foil covered ones first, there's something wrong with you.

Next time I'm craving mint chocolate, I'll probably choose this bar over an Aero. Cadbury's milk chocolate might've gone downhill, but it still beats Nestle's every time. 

8/10

Ritter Sport Honey Salt Almonds Milk Chocolate

I fully acknowledge that I am exceedingly late to the Ritter Sport party. In fact I'm more than a little bit embarrassed to admit that this Honey Salted Almonds bar was the first I've tried from their range. I wasn't actually out to buy chocolate, but was in the local corner shop buying vegetables when it called to me. That's what I like to refer to as balanced shopping. I have seen this bar in Waitrose however, and Ritter Sport is widely available now, so should you read this review and decide to buy it (if you haven't already) then I'm sure you won't have any problems finding it.

"Milk chocolate with roasted, salted almonds with a honey flavoured coating (25%)."

It's strange. Ever since I reviewed that Muller Goes Nuts corner I've been craving caramelised almonds. I've also moaned about the lack of almondy chocolate bars in the U.K so I hoped Ritter Sport would hit the spot!

The chocolate was rich, more so than the standard U.K bars, but I had predicted as much considering the cocoa content -30% cocoa solids. It melted fairly slowly too, with a creaminess that I've come to expect from Belgian chocolates (I guess Ritter Sport is closer to the country than us Brits). 

As for those almonds, they were sizeable and crunchy. Although the size of the nuts may feel overbearing for some, I liked the fact that they hadn't been chopped up beyond recognition. There was a slight honey note that came through, and I was left wondering whether Maple syrup would have worked even better. Aren't I a pernickety sod? 

The other aspect that slightly bothered me was the lack of salinity. I adored the larger rock salt crystals that adorn the Grown Up Chocolate Company's salted caramel cups, and found that this bar could've done with a similarly obvious salty boost. The salinity was there, but it was just on the weaker side. 

I'd happily buy this bar again, however I'm now keen to try the Cornflake and Rum & Raisin Ritter Sport bars. Which flavour is your favourite?

8/10

Magnum Double Raspberry (Tesco)

This weekend I stayed with my sister and we found ourselves craving some proper comfort food. Both of us were super-achey (she’s training for the Cardiff Half Marathon) and I’d started phase two of the Crusader Strength Program*. We needed stuffed crust cheese pizza and ice cream. But what ice cream to have? Lou, like me, has a strong love for all things Black Forest (I think we’ve got our grandma’s Xmas roulade to thank for that) and so it didn’t surprise me that she was drawn to the new double raspberry Magnums whilst we were on our junk food hunt in Tesco.

I was unimpressed with Magnum’s 2017 flavours when they were announced earlier this year. Double raspberry? Double coconut? Meh. As you might’ve gathered I’m not Magnum’s biggest fan, but I wasn’t about to argue with my sister! 

"Raspberry ice cream with a chocolate flavour coating (8%), raspberry sauce (19%) and milk chocolate (24%)."

The ice sticks have a similar layout to the Double Peanut Butter Magnums; i.e. the ice cream resides in the centre, surrounded by a chocolate layer, then a sauce, all coated in milk chocolate. 

Biting into the stick revealed the tetralogy of distinct layers. The ice cream in the middle had a pleasant berry flavour, but you'd be hard pressed to ascertain that it was raspberry and not strawberry. This might sound like a complaint, but I was fond of the seemingly discontinued white raspberry Magnums, and so did enjoy the ice cream. 

The raspberry sauce was sticky and oozed from between the chocolate layers. It was much thinner than the sauce in the double peanut butter Magnums, and I preferred it as such. Magnum have made it from raspberry puree, which was a wise idea as it gave the sauce a sharpness that counteracted the sweetness from the ice cream wonderfully. 

The milk chocolate coating was just as tasty as I'd hoped it would be. Magnum might've reduced the size of their lollies quite considerably in recent years but they don't seem to have messed with their chocolate. However, I can't help but think that this ice cream would have been really special had Magnum have opted for a white chocolate coating. I mean, white chocolate and raspberry were just meant to be together weren't they?

Thanks Lou bum to treating me to the Double Raspberry Magnum (especially as I've promised to not buy any more new ice cream until I've got my collection under control). 

8/10

 *please check it out if you fancy building some strength and muscle with an extensive full-body plan, I can’t believe the changes I’ve seen in five weeks.

NEW! Cadbury Crunchy Melt Chocolate Centre Chocolate Chip Cookies (ASDA)

Christ that's some title! Is it awful that it bugs me that it would be perfectly alliterated if it wasn't for that damn melt? They'd better be melty.

I was actually on a mission to pick up (yet another) pack of the new banoffee caramel digestives (our fifth packet so far) when I spotted these new cookies. I haven't given in to the new wafer based 'Roundies' yet, but filled cookies? Count me in.

At £1 per pack they didn't seem to bad value either, and I was torn between the trio of options: chocolate centre, soft cookie centre and double chocolate with a chocolate centre. I was tempted to buy all three, but then the rational side of my brain kicked in (there's a first time for everything) and I thought I'd try one first - I could always go back for the others after all. 

"Crunchy chocolate chip cookies with a soft melting centre."

The pack contained 6 cookies, and the inner plastic tray successfully kept them intact. Some of the cookies were more adorned than the others. I spotted the serving suggestion that they were 'even better warm' so tried one warm and one ambient. You know, for review purposes, because I'm good like that! 

The ambient cookie was far crisper than I imagined it to be. Crunchy is certainly right, although I must admit that I much prefer a soft, chewy cookie. I can't really complain about the texture though, seeing as they're marketed as 'crunchy melts'. It had an oily aftertaste to it too, and I can't say it was particularly enjoyable. As for those chocolatey chips, they were minute, and I can't even admit to tasting them.

But what about that chocolatey filling? I hear you ask. Well, the product description reads: "Biscuits with milk chocolate chips (15.4%)* and a filling (25.9%) with milk chocolate (4.5%)."

A filling with milk chocolate. Oh dear. That doesn't sound like a milk chocolate filling does it? 

It didn't taste much like one either. In fact it tasted hazelnutty to me, which is odd seeing as the ingredients list doesn't include any nuts. It wasn't particularly an issue as I love both hazelnuts and Nutella, but it didn't taste even remotely of Cadbury's chocolate. Hmm. 

Would they be better warm? 

The packet suggested microwaving it for between 10-12 seconds but warns not to heat for any longer. I don't have a digital timer on my microwave, so I obligingly counted to eleven elephants before retrieving my cookie and waiting the designated minute before munching. 

The centre was slightly better warm, but it didn't really improve the cookie at all. Meh. 

I shan't bother with the other cookies in this range. I feel like the Cadbury packaging is a clever ploy from Mondelez to lure us chocoholics to buy another one of their very mediocre products. These 'Crunchy Melts' are clearly made with cheap ingredients, and without the nostalgia factor that other mass-marketed biscuits have, they're nothing shy of a disappointment.

5/10

*My arse. 1.54% more like. 

Milka Cherry Creme (Polish Deli)

I was on an unsuccessful hunt for more of the Karmelove bars in our local Polish delis last week when I came across a couple of treats that did catch my eye. 

One of which was a spread version of the KarmelLove bars, which seeing as it's pretty much the equivalent of Caramac you can top your toast with, I feel it should really be renamed crack. If you see it, buy it*. We have an abundance of Easter European shops in Hereford and I've only found the one jar in one shop. It's also short dated, so I'm not sure if E.Wedel is still making it. The lack of availability is the only reason that I'm not doing a full review, but do let me know if you find it and try it! 

The other product that got my attention was a cherry flavoured Milka bar, which was far more readily available. I first fell in love with Milka on holiday in turkey almost twenty years ago, but now it's pretty easy to get hold of (the only benefit of the Mondelez takeover I guess). Some of the funkier flavours are still resigned to the Polish delis however, but I found this 100g bar for a very reasonable 79p. Normally I prefer my fruits paired with white chocolate, but given my affinity towards anything Black Forest, I was happy to give it a go. 

The Milka bars, as you probably know, are a lot slimmer than the Cadbury large bars and so I wondered how they would fit the cherry within the squares.

Snapping it in half however revealed a generous jammy layer atop a Creme -all surrounded in the typical Milka alpine chocolate. The Cherry oozed, emitting a tangy, fruity scent. 

As expected, the Cherry jam was super sweet, but there was enough of it to pack a punch. The chocolate was also good and far silkier than Cadbury. As for the Creme, it reminded me of the vanilla mousse filling in Cadbury's seasonal products -such as the egg n spoon and Snowman. On its own or in small doses, it's fine, but combine it wish jam and creamy chocolate and you've got one sickly concoction. 

Normally I can eat 50g+ of chocolate without batting an eyelid but even I was struggling with the sweetness by the time I'd even eaten half of this bar. It's tasty, and one to try as it's so different to what the British mass market chocolate offers, but it probably should be eaten in smaller portions than I'm used to! 

7/10 

*this is the crack spread...

*Guest Review* Choc Affair! Raspberry & Rose White Chocolate (Online)

Today you've not just got my opinion to listen to, for I've called in the chocolate expert to help me with this review. You see, this rose bar was kindly sent to me by the wonderful Choc Affair, but as I mentioned in a previous review, I'm not a big fan of Rose flavours. 

"Ripe raspberries, touched with the exotic taste of Turkish nights, swirls of floral fruitiness linger on."

The bar was beautifully wrapped -as I've realised that Choc Affair's bars always are. The 100g bar was darker than your average high street milk, due to the high cocoa content. It also had a slight sheen to it, which I now recognise as the hallmark of high quality. 

Biting into the chocolate, I was greeted with a strong rose flavour. I tried to like it, really I did, but I just couldn't get my head around the taste. But I knew someone who did love rose.. would my good friend Nat over at lot-o-choc mind me sending her an open bar of chocolate....?

"Amy was kind enough to send me some of this bar, knowing that I loved rose flavoured things, well apart from Turkish Delight and rose creams, but that's another story. I'd sampled some of Choc Affair's bars at food shows etc before and remembered really enjoying what they had on offer, I was hoping I'd feel the same about this bar.
At 33.6% cocoa solids the milk chocolate is good quality, it has a gorgeously creamy, rich melt and eat and unlike white chocolate, which can be quite sickly when paired with rose, balances the flavours really well. The rose is most definitely the prominent flavour in this bar, it's safe to say if you don't enjoy rose you won't enjoy this, as although the title of "Raspberry & Rose" suggests that raspberry would be the dominant flavour, this certainly isn't the case. As the bar melts you're met with a subtle, sharp tang of raspberry but the main flavour is that of the sweet, floral rose which grows as the chocolate begins to melt. Personally I loved it and it's one of the nicest rose chocolate bars I've probably tried - thanks Amy!!'

Well there you have it! I'd like to say a huge thank you to Choc Affair for sending out this bar. If you're a rose fan and love the sound of this luxury, handmade chocolate then you can find it available to buy from their website for a very reasonable £2.75. The company have also just launched a brand spanking new line of chocolate buttons, which includes this flavour -so please do go and check them out! 

NEW! Gelatelli Master of Taste Pretty Peanut Butter Ice Cream (LIDL)

If you'll recall if you read my review of the Neo cones, I also picked up a peanut butter tub during American week at Lidl. It sounds a lot like Ben & Jerry's Peanut Butter Cup, but at £1.99 per 500ml is cheaper. After the disappointment of the Neo cones though I didn't hold out much hope that this would be a decent copycat.

"Peanut butter flavoured ice cream with peanut butter filled milk chocolate pieces (20%)."

The first thing I noticed was how solid the ice cream was. I mean I couldn't scoop it. Now to others that might sound like a problem, but I much prefer hard ice cream -it melts slower and therefore I can enjoy it for longer. Plus there's no need for the gym when you have a ten minute wrestle with a tub of ice cream! The second thought that struck me was the lack of peanut butter pieces. Where were the Reese's cups that I'd imagined? I mean the packaging didn't show cups, but it did say 'peanut butter coated chocolate' and everyone knows that means Reese's (or fake Reese's at least). 

The ice cream was delicious though; the robust nutty flavour shone through the creamy base, which is no doubt due to the high peanut content (13.6%). It was far richer than the Snickers ice cream, and its density meant that it tasted more luxurious than the Co-Op's tub. I was pleased to see that they hadn't included a caramel sauce to dilute the flavour either, I mean who puts peanut butter and caramel on toast? Jam yes. Caramel no. So why do so many companies insist on adding it to their ice creams? Hats off to Lidl, the ice cream itself was a very good Ben & Jerry's rip off, but let's talk about those chocolate cups...

When I posted the photo of my ice cream on instagram I was met with an instruction to buy another tub by someone who'd apparently had much more luck on the cup front than I had. My first portion hadn't heralded a single cup -only shards of chocolate- hence my aforementioned thoughts that maybe I'd come to the wrong conclusion about the chocolate pieces. So before I reviewed this, I had a second portion to see if I could find any of these promised cups. 

Digging down to the bottom of the tub I found one and a half mini cups. They were a similar size to the Reese's cups, and a fairly good imitation, which made me all the more gutted that I'd been so unfortunate regarding the amount my tub had in. It's a huge shame really, because this Gelatelli ice cream would be getting extremely good marks if it had contained more cups. 

Now It may sound a little redundant that I'm reviewing this ice cream when the supermarket won't be getting deliveries of it again anytime soon but when I popped into our local branch yesterday they still had plenty left, and even if your local store doesn't have any, I'm sure there'll be another American week in the future months. 

8/10 

NEW! Snickers Ice Cream Tubs (ASDA)

Remember a couple of weeks ago when I caved and bought the Mars ice cream tub? Well it didn't take long for me to return to ASDA on the pursuit of the Snickers tub. Normally I'm a Mars bar over Snickers girl, but I'd heard great things about the ice cream version and simply had to find out for myself what it was like! 

"Peanut (4%) dairy ice cream with milk chocolate coated peanuts (10%) and caramel (7.5%) and chocolate sauce (7.5%)."

The caramel sauce was instantly evident as soon as I removed the lid, and so was the softness of the ice cream. In fact I was patient enough to wait for the temperature outside to cool down last week before attempting to try the Snickers ice cream (just for info Ben & Jerry's Sofa So Good is sofa no good to scoop on the hottest days either, unless you fancy mousse).

I couldn't see a huge deal of the chocolate coated peanuts though, and felt a pang of disappointment at the lack of chocolate shards that made a surprise appearance in the Mars tub. I hadn't written this ice cream off just yet though... 

Kudos to Mars for using real peanuts in the ice cream (yep, I'm looking at you Mondelez), but unfortunately it wasn't as flavoursome as I'd hoped. There was a mild peanut taste but it certainly wasn't on par with Ben & Jerry's or the Co-Op. It was still enjoyable though, and despite the chocolate sauce being as lost in this pint as it had been in the Mars version, the caramel sauce made up for that. 

Oh there they were: the chocolate coated peanuts! Jackpot! They'd just been well hidden amid the ice cream, and actually there was an abundance of them. They were pretty smashing too, large in size and delivering the chocolatey hit that was missing from the sauce, as well as a textural contrast from the welcome crunch. 

Perhaps the link between ice cream and chocolate bar is on the tenuous side, given that there's no nougat in the ice cream and that the peanuts aren't chopped and are chocolate covered, but I don't mind that -like I say, I'm not a huge snickers fan anyway. Personally the Mars tub pips the Snickers to the top spot, but only just, and it's well worth a try whilst on offer for £2.

7/10

Marabou Daim Milk Chocolate Rolls (IKEA)

Please reassure me that I'm not the only weirdo out there that gets more excited by the food hall in IKEA than the furniture? It's surely the treasure at the end of the trail, the reward for getting through the market hall without murdering a dawdler (or five). No trip is complete without picking up a pack of my beloved Kanelbullar. This time I pushed the boat out and decided to treat myself to two bags, before spotting the chocolate and biscuit samples. Oops. That'll be two bags of Kanelbullar, some ginger and almond biscuits and some Daim chocolate then. After indulging in the Lindt shop a couple of hours earlier. And I'd promised to not buy anymore chocolate. I'll say it again, oops. 

To be fair, having sampled both the chocolate and the biscuits, I knew I'd regret not buying either. I think the Daim chocolates were £1.50 for the two-pack but I can't be 100% sure, so don't shoot the messenger. For those of you who don't know, Marabou is owned by Mondelez (owners *read ruiners* of Cadbury) and is the equivalent brand in Sweden. Like Cadbury, Marabou has lengthy roots and was founded 101 years ago. 

One of the most appealing features of this chocolate was the design. Instead of your usual chunky bars, the chocolate came in rolo shaped morsels. I love being able to savour my chocolate, and often wish we had more single serving bags of bite sized chocolate, so the Marabou Daims suited me down to the ground. At 70g, they're on the generous size for an individual portion, but I'm a chocoholic so once again I found Marabou scoring brownie points -or should that be chocolate points? 

The chocolate was delicious. It's smooth and rich with an easy melt. There's a striking similarity between the Marabou and Dairy Milk of days gone by. The little studs of Daim were a wonderful, if not a slightly sickly, addition. The combination of toffee and chocolate was delicious though, and utterly moreish -especially given the sunken dome shapes. I'd devoured my first pack before really acknowledging it, and I'm grateful that I've got the other in my fridge to look forward to. It's better than the Cadbury Daim bar, and the rolls are well worth tracking down.

That's another IKEA staple added to the shopping list!

9/10 

Nellienoo Chocolate Malteser Malt Fudge (Online)

Do you remember me telling you about the subscription box company that celebrates the best of British independent confectioners? Well it's thanks to The Treat Collective that I came across Nellienoo fudge, and Nic's fabulous Caramac fudge (which you can find my Insta-review of here). As you can see, I was most impressed by it and so when Nic offered to send me a mystery pack of fudge this week I gladly accepted with due excitement. After all, who doesn't love a sweet surprise? 

I might've done (ok definitely did) a little jig around my kitchen when I came home to the Nellienoo parcel on Friday. Malteser fudge? My life is complete. Despite the fact that I was only home briefly before popping out for the evening I couldn't help packing a couple of pieces to take to the cinema with me. 

As with the Caramac flavour, the Malteser fudge was undeniably creamy. I hate grainy fudge (and find Scottish tablet unbearable) but this was completely smooth. In fact the fudge was more like a chocolate hybrid due to the satisfying melt that starts the minute you pop a piece in your mouth. As for the flavour, Nic has nailed that too, adding to the chocolate-fudge hybrid experience. It tasted exactly like Maltesers thanks to the malty undertone that fully complimented the chocolate flavour at the foreground. 

My one complaint about the Caramac fudge was the lack of topping, but each piece of this fudge had a single Malteser adoring it. I had wondered if they would manage to retain their crunchiness -no one wants soggy balls after all 🙈- but they were as crisp as ever, providing a wonderful textural contrast against the silken fudge. Perfection. 

If you've got a sweet tooth you must check out Nellienoo fudge's website and Facebook page. Nic's creations are all handmade, and she sells an ample selection of incredible looking fudge (all available for UK delivery). Thank you to Nic for sending me the Maltesers fudge to try. 

10/10 

That makes it a hat trick of full marks this week - this has to be some kind of blog record!

NEW! McVities Coffee Caramel Digestives (Sainsbury's)

Tomorrow will mark two months since  the two new McVities caramel digestive flavours were announced, and since then I've been on my longest and most frustrating snack hunt to date. It seems I'm not the only one who's been desperate to try the new biscuits, as many of you have got in touch, sharing my  disappointment. At long last though I have got my hands on both varieties though (you can read my review of the banoffee caramels here) thanks to the lovely Beth and her digestive-related determination. I'm just glad I'm not the only foodzilla out there! The new coffee caramels can be found at Sainsbury's now for a rather exorbitant £1.75 -which usually I wouldn't pay, but given the length of time I've been searching for them I could hardly leave them behind. According to Beth's email from McVities, they'll be stocked in ASDA from next week and Morrisons the week after. 

"Wheatmeal Biscuits with Coffee Flavour Caramel, Covered in Milk Chocolate."

The components bare striking resemblance to the Cappuccino Twix (which, FYI, have recently popped up again, this time in Poundland at 3 for £1). I must admit though that I was less impressed when I re-tried the Twix version recently though; the caramel just wasn't as coffee-y as I had originally thought. I found myself praying that McVities had done just as good a job with this new flavour as they had with the banoffee.

I knew I was on to a winner as soon as I opened the packet and was greeted with the scent of freshly made latte. I say latte because it wasn't knock-your-socks off espresso, but the aroma was still promising.

The second sign that led me to believe that the Coffee Caramel Digestives weren't going to disappoint occurred when I left a couple in the living room whilst I retrieved my mug of coffee from the kitchen and heard a clattering. I pegged it back around the corner, where I caught my dog red handed, guiltily nabbing the biscuits from the coffee table. He's seven years old and never stolen food before. Damn McVities, what have you done to Monty?

Oh boy. They nailed it. The sturdy, wheat biscuits were truly complimented by a caramel that delivered a coffee kick much stronger than the Twix. The nature of the caramel means that it's still very sweet, but the flavour is not hindered in any way. In fact it want until writing this that I realised that the biscuit wasn't coffee too, for the flavour had permeated throughout. The chocolate was good too, which has got me thinking: why aren't caramel mochas a thing? 

I loved the taste of the cappuccino thins when they launched at the beginning of the year, but wasn't happy with the thin nature. I'm all for a bit of biscuit chunk (and hence won't be reviewing the 'new' Maryland thins -they can bore off). These are far superior, and well worth a buy!

9/10

NEW! Mars Ice Cream Tubs (ASDA)

I wasn't too fussed on trying the new Mars ice cream tub when it first came out a couple of months ago. I mean, the ice cream bars are fabulous (albeit shockingly small) and I couldn't see the appeal of just eating the ice cream on its own. Surely nibbling the chocolate from around the bar whilst trying to stop yourself from getting covered in oozy caramel is the best thing about them, don't you agree? However, I happened to mention the new Mars and Snickers tubs in conversation with my sister though, who sounded much more excited by them. I then received report a week later from her that she's not only tried the Mars tub but had munched her way through three Mars pints since discovering them. That was it. I decided it was high time to get myself a tub. Like hell was I paying £3 though, instead I patiently waited for them to come back on offer, which they did this week -currently £2 per tub, exclusive to ASDA. 

"Dairy ice cream with caramel sauce (12%) and milk chocolate sauce (13%)."

The ice cream was on the soft side straight from the freezer, which makes it difficult to scoop on these hot summers days -not that I'm complaining about the weather, long may it last! I was over the moon when I spotted the large shards of chocolate that were embedded throughout though. Why, oh why, don't Mars highlight this in the tub's description?

Chocolate in the ice cream too? That makes it a winner for me! It reminded me of the new Magnum tubs, but with the addition of  both caramel and chocolate sauces. The second surprise came from the colour of the ice cream itself. I expected it to be creamy, but instead it was a very pale -almost malty- shade. 

Jeez. Whilst it wasn't comparable to Haagen-Dazs, Judes or Ben & Jerry's in terms of creaminess, it was reminiscent of summer days as a child: coming home from school and being given a Mars ice cream by my Gran, which always left me wanting more bars. It's like eating them mushed up, and in a waffle cone they were utterly delicious. The caramel sauce was more noticeable than the chocolate, but was as wonderful as I remembered it to be -sticky, sweet and toffee-like. Despite the shade of the ice cream, it didn't actually taste of chocolate, but I didn't really expect it to from the description on the pack, so I didn't feel disappointed. 

I've only got two real complaints:

1) How quickly the ice cream melted (you have too be quick with this one!)

and

2)  That the suggested serving size of 100ml (2 scoops) really isn't enough. 

Somehow this works better for me than the Magnum tubs, and I think I'll buy it over the Mars ice cream bars again -but only at £2 per tub. 

8/10