Ashleys Turkish Delight Thins

Posted by in Chocolate Reviews on April 13 2010 | Leave A Comment
Ashley's Turkish Delight Thins

As I was passing through my local Foodland the other day, these caught my eye. Partly because I saw my own name (admittedly, with the alternate spelling, but nevertheless) – and partly because of the magic words: “Turkish Delight”.

I haven’t heard of Ashley’s chocolates before. Checking the pack shows an ingredients list in 9 languages – and it turns out that the manufacturer is in Birmingham. It seems reasonable, then, to assume these are going to be available in about ¾ of the whole wide world. Which, as we’ll see in a moment, is a shame. I also did some searching to try and locate the manufacturer, and this turns out to be pretty much an impossible task – all we have to go on is Birmingham, and a UK postal code. No web site, and Mr Google turns out to be of no assistance at all. Nor does the UK White Pages. Curioser and curioser.

Anyhow – beyond the sleuthing, I was itching to try these and see if they are as good as some of the other TD’s I’ve sampled before. Or perhaps, just see how they compare to a Fry’s (Cadbury).

Cutting and removing the cellophane from the box had me off to a good start – a big strong whiff of rosewater. MMmmmmmm! This should be OK then. How wrong I was.

Ashley's Turkish Delight Thins

On the inside, we find a very pale chocolate. I suppose I should have read the back of the pack, had I done so I may well have left these on the shelf: sugar, hydrogenated vegetable oil, glucose syrup, whey powder, water, cocoa powder… somewhere in there is flavour. OH. DEAR. The chocolate, as you can see from the picture above, has a slightly spotty, gritty appearance – as though there are tiny white specs in it. Weird. And it is compounded using cocoa powder. Not chocolate at all then. The “flavour” is unspecified, so is the cocoa percentage.

These smelled sweet. And taste of nothing much apart from sweet. That big fat whiff of rosewater – I think that was the flavour escaping, and once gone there was none left. Oldest son does not like Turkish Delight – on the grounds there is no flavour I got him to try one of these. His verdict: Meh. The Lady of the House says: Way too sweet. No flavour.

The pack claims “serving per pack: 4” in the nutrition panel. How anyone could eat more than one of these is beyond me. Way too sweet. Low quality chocolate. No flavour. Yuk.

Now I see why the manufacturer can’t be located. These are not good. I don’t think we will be able to eat the rest. If you come across these and you like sweet and bland – buy a shopping trolley full. Otherwise, don’t bother.

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Comments On This Post

  1. Dom (Chocablog Staff)

    I wonder if they’re the same as these:
    https://www.chocablog.com/reviews/tesco-turkish-delight-thins/

    – a rebadged version of a horrible own-brand supermarket product.

  2. Ashleigh

    Could well be. I’d be really interested in the manufacturer location from your Tesco box – which I’d guess is now long gone.

    Like you, I can’t face the thought of eating any more of these. I think they will be heading into the compost bin in the garden.

    • Sandra

      I live in Portugal. Bought an Ashley’s covered Brazils here in a UK product shop at Christmas. They are disgusting and we have thrown them away. They break every trading standard rule I should think – photo is of whole brazils covered in Chocolate. – reality is ‘bits’ covered in a disgusting cocoa mess. I’m looking for somewhere to complain but Trading Standards won’t entertain anyone living abroad.
      Address given is ‘Made in the UK’ Coventry Road Birmingham B25 8HE Also, it says ‘imported from Australia’on the box. So which is right? The address in Australia comes back to a warehouse unit hire place!!!!

      • Ashleigh

        They are made in the UK. You probably had packaging for the Australian market where the Australian importer address needs to be shown.

        As far as I can tell they are made here:
        http://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/ltd/walkers-chocolates. This is the only chocolate maker with that UK postcode.

        • Sandra

          Just to let you know I have had a great result from Birmingham City Council who inspect the factory so at least we know the product is safe. They are also going to address whether or not the info given on the pack is misleading. I’m actually very impressed – I thought I would get fobbed off!

  3. Oh dear and they sounded so promising. I liked the idea of a cross between after eight and turkish delight.

  4. Natalie

    I had the same experience but with speckled eggs. They are disgusting.

    I was actually looking to amil the company about them and stumbled upon this.

    I suppose there is no point then?

  5. klabby

    Ashleigh’s is the worst chocolate I know of… for some reason shops here in South Africa are full of it. I have no idea who keeps buying enough of the stuff to keep them in business!

  6. Dr. Samuel Kunder

    I came across Ashleys Turkish delight lately and found it very different from anything I’ve tasted before. It reminded me of the ‘Gulkhand’ made in India, it’s a sweet sugary syrup with rose petals. Someone should try putting ‘Gulkhand’ into chocolates. I couldn’t thank them either like everyone else, it’s surprising not to have a website in this day and age.

  7. David

    Absolute garbage of the first order. I would not feed this crap to my pet gecko.

  8. John Bedson

    Ashleys chocolate is the worst I have ever eaten in my life. I am going to demand a refund from the shop that sold me this crap.

  9. Ann

    I don’t normally buy any chocalate that isn’t a renouned brand and I never will again..this would have to be the worst and can’t even call it chocalate ever made!! Also tried to find on Google so that I could email company to tell them their Turkish Delights were disgraceful!!

    • Ashleigh

      I don’t know of an email address but you could write to Walkers Chocolates – see comments above for a link. Address:
      WALKERS HOUSE COVENTRY ROAD
      HAY MILLS
      BIRMINGHAM
      WEST MIDLANDS
      B25 8HE

      Not to be confused with Walkers Handmade Chocolates (as far as I can tell).

    • Lee Waters

      My Kids very “kindly” bought me 5 slabs of this crap for my birthday. Two had exceeded their sell-by date and the Turkish Delight variant actually had full blown mould growing on it. An absolute disgrace and they should be shut down.

  10. charles vincent

    in reply to various peoples comments ref.ASHLEYS CHOCOLATES or so called I have myself purchased a packet of ASHLEYS DARK MINTS 200g best before 31 may 2012 these also are the same packaging and address’s as ref ASHLEIGH PURCHASE.these so called chocolates are not dark as informed on the pack but milk choc. also they are disgusting and are only fit for the landfill refuge bin.these were purchased from the 99p store in BECCLES suffolk and contain no info that can be followed up as unable to find any website relating to same SO PLEASE TAKE NOTE ALL YOU CHOCOLATE LOVERS ALLOVER THE WORLD UNLESS YOU WANT RUBBISH TAKE CARE ALL.

  11. Dave

    Today from home bargains I bought a couple of 100g bars of Ashleys Turkish Delight Filled Bar for 39p each – I’d never heard of Ashleys before and the price was inline with the cheap chocolate you can buy.

    When I opened one I was surprised that that TD set in a chocolate mould, never bought like this that came in a mould. Tasting it at can see why, each piece just falls apart when you take it out of the mould – should of put it in the fridge

    So I tried searching for Ashleys see who they are and was brought here, read about the rubbish chocolate taste and looked at the packaging on mine which says “Chocolate Flavour Bar with a rose flavour jelly filling”

  12. Lisa

    I just bought 2 boxes of Ashleys mint thins from my local Kmart store in Australia as they were 75c. I have tried them before and thought, 75c, there not all bad. Apon opening my box of chocolates I got a wiff of an odd smell (can’t really pick the smell) but thought packaging most likely. I took a bite of one of the chocolates and had to spit it out. It tasted like detergent or cleaning products. I instantly felt sick and tried so hard to get rid of the taste out of my mouth. Eventually the taste subsided. I also asked my husband to try one and he also spat it out and he pretty much eats anything. We decided to open the other box in case the box was spoilt but the same taste. The expiry on the boxes are 30 September 2012 so there not out of date or anything. The boxes I have purchased in the past have never never tasted like this. I physically feel ill. I will be ringing kmart tommorrow to recomend they take the stock they have off the shelf.

    • Chistine

      Oh my Gosh Lisa the same sort of thing just happened to me! Just got some from Kmart though I didn’t even get to tasting them as when I opened the package the whole clear covering was covered in mould! And the chocolate inside had mould all over it too! I rang Kmart and they said they would replace it.. But ew no I dont want to go near the stuff!

      • Welcome to the club,

        I purchased two of these from Kmart Fountain Gate – Victoria, Australia and called back to complain.
        No way do I want a refund, but they DID say they’d be taking this ‘chocolate’ off their shelves

  13. Marian

    I agree this is the worst chocolate I tasted in my life, taste like pure fat with colorant ,I bought peanuts covered with “chocolate” yesterday, I eated some of it and put the rest in the bin as tasted like fat with sugar with no chocolate flavour at all , I was so let down that did want to send them an email I cant find their email adress

  14. Lee Waters

    My Kids very “kindly” bought me 5 slabs of this crap for my birthday. Two had exceeded their sell-by date and the Turkish Delight variant actually had full blown mould growing on it. An absolute disgrace and they should be shut down. K-Mart is doing thems elves a major dis-service here.

  15. Janet

    I bought Dark Chocolate Mints I only ate two and I can’t rid of the foul taste in my mouth. I can’t even print what my husband said about them. They are going back to the shop I bought them in even though its going to take a litre of petrol. I will tell them of all the comments on this page. I’m sure Cr*p may taste better.

  16. David

    We received as a thank-you gift two “Ashleys Turkish Delight Filled Bar’s” from a friend. The first bar we opened we found mould, assuming it was a one off we opened the second bar but only to find it was also mouldy & both bars still with 4 months left on the use-by-date (30 Sept 2012), they both even smelt like mould. Tried to find the company online, but only to draw a blank…? You have to ask yourself why products like this are aloud to be sold in Australia?

    Never will we buy or even accept an Ashley’s product again!

  17. Nigel

    Just bought some Ashleys Seashells from Home Bargains, the pictures on the outside of the pack look just like GuyLian Seashells but the contents couldn’t be more different and to round it off they also taste disgusting! If you like chocolate DO NOT BUY ASHLEYS

  18. Martin

    I have just had the great misfortune of sampling Ashleys Mint Thins. After a delicious Indian meakl it seemed appropriate at the time. At first the texture felt as if someone had covered Kendal Mint Cake in chocolate (chocolate my arse!). It got worse as the taste revealed in all its’ horror. At first we thought toothpaste, then gorgozola, I’ve never had cheese covered in chocolate before! Anyway, I never want to taste this shit again. I can’t get the taste of vomit from from my mouth! The only redeeming factor about this whole episode is that my girlfriend and I have been rolling with laughter at the other comments about it. Please never,ever consider buying anything from this company

  19. Jules

    Very amused at these comments, came here wondering where I could buy some more Ashleys Nut Clusters…
    Shortly before Netto sold theire UK stores – it would be just two years ago now – they had a pile of said NCs very cheap, so I bought a pack and was delighted at the peanut crumble covered in a chocolate-flavoured coating. Not very chocolately and not sold as choc, but I was delighted to get PN Crumble at the price and bought a few packs each visit – nobody else seemed to be buying them – and stashed them in the cellar
    Just got a pack out today, just what I fancied, and looked in vain for a BBE date, but they were unchanged from 2 years ago, sweet and peanutty. Yum 8-D

  20. David

    My wife has just been given Ashleys dark chocolate flavour mint sticks for her Birthday, she doesn’t eat dark chocolate or indeed mint, so I’ve had them, I’ve tried 3, absolutely disgusting, no mint taste at all and as for the chocolate, what a joke, I will be reporting them to Birmingham trading standards, if they dont require the pack it will be going into the bin.

  21. John

    I bought a packet of ‘Orange Thins’ . Being English chocolate I thought it would be good quality. Was I wrong. They are the worst tasting chocolates I have ever had. I’ve given them to my wormfarm. I hope they don’t hold it against me. Ashley’s, you have let England down.

  22. Anne Closter

    I am also very disappointed in Ashleys Mint Thins. They didn’t use to taste like this! It seems they have gone the way of many other favourite confections and the “all mighty dollar or pound has one out” for the sake of flavour. My 3 year old grandson loves chocolate. He cheekily took 3 or 4 mint thins out of the box, took a bite from one and said “I don’t like this” and into the bin it went. I think that is where the rest of the box belongs.

    Manufacturers – please take note as word of mouth & the internet, can spread across the world at an alarming rate. If you want your chocolates to sell, bring back the original flavour.

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  24. Akhona

    Blehhhhh got this as a birthday gift from my colleague. A couple of years ago another colleague would give me these for all my birthdays and they would sit in the cabinet for ages! Don’t know what to do with this new pack coz i can’t give rubbish to someone else. Wish they had bought me a cadbury’s slab instead…

  25. Lindsey

    Thanks for the review. My mum just bought a pack of Ashley’s Dark Chocolate Flavour Cherry Brandys. I have never tasted anything less like either cherry or brandy in my life, and no mention of either in the ingredients. If anything, they taste like banana. Which she hates. Oddly enough, I quite like them though! And at least they are in date and not mouldy, unlike some of the unfortunate folks above. Certainly not up to the usual high standard of British chocolate though! I don’t think I’ll bother with the brand in the future.

  26. Juliet

    How on earth are they still trading ? Similar to others experiences mint sticks no taste of mint and definitely the worst confectionary I have ever tasted. I will eat most things but these have to go in the bin !

  27. Teresa Cannon

    I was given a box of Ashleys Milk chocolate flavour Walnut Whirls. They are not at all pleasant. My daughter, who gave them to me was mortified, and suggested throwing the whole box away!

  28. Ernest Cutlefish

    I purchased a box of Dark Chocolate (FLAVOURED) Ginger. On opening the box, it contained a red sealed packet. When opening this up it revealed the contents of 4xLarge Milk Chocolate Flavoured Ginger. The balls were about the size of 2 Maltesers.??? Disgusting taste…..avoid this brand.

  29. Peter Woods

    Purchased a box of Turkish delight thins on Fiday 03/12/2021 from a local garden centre
    and it is the most DISGUSTING chocolate i have tasted. Too sweet with a powdery taste.

  30. Joan Baker

    I received the walnut whirls from my mother. Came in a mould that you had to pop out yourself, im still looking for the walnuts but there was this tasteless sticky substance in the centre! I believe the chocolate to be compound chocolate. Considering this thread started way back in 2010 im shocked they are still in business. Tried 2 of them and the rest in the bin!

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