It’s always lovely to come across a new company making something that’s not only a little different but also delicious. Even better when that delicious chocolatey treat has a more sophisticated, darker sibling, May I present Skelligs’ Brandy Plums? Hand made with dark chocolate, these little morsels come in the same package as their milky brethren, finished with a different ribbon and a tag that tells you exactly what to expect.
“Succulent sun dried plums marinated in brandy and smothered in rich dark chocolate”
At this point you’re either salivating a little or totally uninterested. I’m sure you can guess which camp I fall into.
These were (if such a thing is possible) even more popular than the Baby Figs. Unanimously lauded by all who tried them, the combination of smooth, rich dark chocolate and brandy works amazingly well.
In keeping with the reputation the Irish have for loving the odd tipple, these chocs pack a pretty good alcoholic punch. As soon as you pop one in your mouth you know you’re going to get a proper hit of alcohol, and as the fumes waft up into your nose and you bite down, the creamy filling which surrounds the plum induces Homer Simpsonesque levels of uncontrollable salivation.
The soft, squishy plum at the heart of every chocolate is the final payoff. As the chocolate and cream melt away on your palate, you’re left with the plum as a finale. Soft, fruity and loaded with brandy, they bring the whole experience to a very satisfying conclusion indeed.
These are another inspired creation from a company who clearly spend time experimenting with new tastes and love what they produce. As previously mentioned, the Figs have won prizes. If anything, these plums ought to garner The Skelligs Chocolate Company more accolades. Well worth ordering as a treat for yourself or someone you really, really like. My only complaint would have to be that the box wasn’t big enough.
My daughter has been hassling me to buy these for ages because she loves the look of Ferrero Garden’s gorgeous pastel-and-foil colours which are clearly designed to appeal to the girlie lurking inside in all of us. These pretty little things tend to be more prolific during Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day, so that also gives you an idea as to who they’re supposed to appeal to.
Here in Australia in the 1970s, we had our tennis (and Wimbledon) hero, John Newcombe advertising ‘Claytons – the drink you’re having when you’re not having a drink’. It turns out that these Ferreros are the Claytons of the chocolate world. As Simon’s review of the pistachio ones stated the other day, these are, in fact, not chocolates at all, but, according to the description on the back of the box: ‘Crisp crème-filled confections.’ This was borne out when I unwrapped one of each type – no milk chocolate, but what appeared to be white chocolate and coconut on each one.
Hmmm. I wasn’t sure whether to be annoyed at the subterfuge or intrigued, so I dived in and tried all five flavours. These are almond, pistachio, forest fruits, hazelnut and coconut and all of them were superb with a subtle flavour that was easy to distinguish from each other. All of them were creamy and light, with a tiny crunch from the wafer that surrounds the white-chocolate-mousse-like filling. The main ingredients are sugar, vegetable fats, vegetable oil and whey powder. No wonder they tasted buttery… It was also interesting to discover that they contain ‘powdered fruits’ including Prickly Pear. Prickly Pear here in Australia is a noxious weed!
Despite the dodgy ingredients, complete lack of chocolate and the chicky-babe Nanna-in-Sequins appearance, even the man of our house – Love Chunks – enjoyed them and announced he’d be more than proud to be seen eating them in public.
We ate the entire Ferrero Garden box within a sitting, happy to find that eighteen divided into three perfectly. Sadly, there was only two forest fruit ‘crème filled confections’ in there – and they were my favourite – and four each of the others. Perhaps the ingredients (such as that essential pesky powdered Prickly Pear) are more expensive? But if this is not the case, if Simon can get his hands on an entire box devoted to the pistachio flavoured ones, why can’t we also get a whole box of the forest fruits? Please, Ferrero?
Another offering from Tesco’s pet Swiss chocolatier, and this time it’s a milk chocolate.
This one is made using Ghanaian Forastero Beans, and they give it a full-bodied, very smooth cocoa flavour. The bitterness level of the beans is relatively low, so they’re much more soothing and gentle on the palate and consequently what you get here is a lovely mouthfeel from the high cocoa content, a sumptuous creaminess, and a lovely smooth finish.
This really is what milk chocolate should ALL be like.
As a long time convert to the Dark Side, I do tend to find most milk chocolate can be disappointing in it’s lack of complexity, but I’m delighted to report that Cocopia have come up with a blend which offers all the flavour you could hope for.
This is the sort of chocolate you’d buy as a treat for the kids and end up making regular trips to Tesco to buy for yourself – it’s THAT delicious. If only all UK manufacturers could offer this quality in their milk chocs, I’d be eating a lot more of the stuff.
For the price (£1.50) I’d have to say that it’s well worth the money. UK readers should make sure they check this one out as soon as they can. Highly recommended.
Holy f***! Everyone’s favourite sweary chef has a range of f***ing chocolates! But are they any f***ing good, or is Gordon Ramsay just cashing in on his f***ing name again? Let’s find out!
And let’s stop the f***ing swearing too. That could get quite irritating…
The box contains 16 milk, white and dark chocolates and my first reaction upon opening it was that it reminded me of a slightly cheaper version of the Lindt Precious Collection.
I guess the only thing for it is to give a quick opinion of each of the 8 chocolates (2 of each) in the box. So here goes…
Ecuadorian Chocolate Truffle
Single origin Ecuadorian Dark chocolate truffle decorated with gold leaf.
A strong, rich, dark chocolate with an equally rich, but soft centre. This is a pure chocolate hit, so definitely one for the real dark chocolate fans. Others might be put off a little by the lack of any other flavours. The gold leaf is a little of pointless and I would not have even noticed it if they hadn’t pointed it out.
Lime Parfait
White chocolate truffle with lime juice and vodka.
Smooth and creamy with a citrus edge. Not as jarring as some of the white chocolate / citrus combinations I’ve had before. The level of lime is just about right, but I’m not convinced there’s actually any vodka in it.
Strawberry Bombe
White chocolate truffle with concentrated strawberry juice and freeze dried strawberry.
I love freeze dried strawberry, and it goes really well with white chocolate. I think this could have had a little more of a “hit” to it, but it was still very nice.
Marc de Champagne Truffle
Belgian milk chocolate with Marc de Champagne truffle centre, coated in icing sugar.
Just the right mix of Champagne and chocolate flavours. Much preferred these over the Charbonnel et Walker Marc de Champagne Truffles ones I tried a while back.
Nut Cluster
Hazelnut praline & caramelised almond pieces in Belgian milk chocolate.
Creamy, nutty, soft and delicious. The caramelised almond pieces give a satisfying crunch to this delicious knobbly creation.
Salted Honeycomb Fudge
Butter Fudge in Belgian dark chocolate with honeycomb pieces.
I really enjoyed this one. All the flavours – (salt, fudge, honeycomb and dark chocolate) are distinguishable, but the whole thing works particularly well – and the honeycomb pieces give a similar satisfying crunch to the Nut Cluster.
Cappuccino Bruleé
Coffee truffle with Belgian dark chocolate.
My least favourite of the bunch. There’s something very odd about the coffee flavour here – it tastes something like instant coffee mixed with cigarette ash to me (or how I assume that would taste). Ick.
Pistachio Truffle
Belgian milk chocolate with white chocolate and pistachio centre.
This one was a little bland. There isn’t much of a pistachio flavour to it, or even much of a white chocolate taste. It’s sweet and soft, but that’s about all there is to say about it.
In summary, these are for the most part, pretty good. The main exception for me is the Cappuccino Bruleé, which didn’t really have any resemblance to any Cappuccino or Bruleé I’ve ever tasted.
Aside from that, they’re well made and well thought out. They’re not up to the quality of the Lindt offering though. The soft centres just aren’t quite soft enough and the flavours aren’t quite as exciting as they could be.
But I know there are many female Gordon Ramsay fans who would appreciate this simply for the name on the box. And while these are pretty decent chocolates, a large part of me thinks that anyone who would want to receive a gift branded “Gordon Ramsay” does not deserve to receive chocolates in the first place.
