Chocolates Are Us - Ginger Brittle product reviews

After having tried the Chocolates Are Us Coconut Rough I was excited to receive another bag of their amazing goodies in my latest review parcel. I have to admit though, I didn't request the ginger brittle initially as I can be a bit hit and miss with ginger. If it is a very strong ginger I am not usually a big fan, but after reading some of the reviews that have come before mine I decided that it may be nicer than I first thought and it was worth giving it a try.

The packaging of the Chocolates Are Us products are very simple. They are inside a foil bag that has a clear window on the front. I like this as it shows the product and just how much is in there. It is honest - there is no hiding behind packaging or glorified photos of their product. The only issue I had with this particular variety is that seeing it in the window made it appear very very sticky and much of the ginger was all through the inside of the bag. I am not a fan of touching things that can be sticky and gooey so I was a little hesitant upon opening the bag. However, as long as I searched for the chocolate outer of a piece, my fingers managed to stay reasonably sitcky free! It was hard however to separate the different pieces as they had moulded altogether as one.

Upon opening the packet I was met with the smell of chocolate. This was quite surprising as usually the smell of ginger over takes things, so it made me realise that they may not be as strongly ginger flavoured as I first thought. I managed to pull out one piece for me and one piece for my husband and we both tried it. I was pleasantly surprised. The flavour of the ginger was very very subtle, and reminded me of a weak tasting ginger nut. For me this was perfect. However, if you are a ginger lover this might be a bit of a disappointment. The flavour of the chocolate was nice and complemented the ginger well. The only part I didn't like was the chewiness of the brittle. However, it is fitting in with what the product is. I just made sure to be careful as I didn't want to lose a filling!

While the coconut rough will always be a winner for me, this flavour was quite pleasant and I would certainly eat it again. These chocolates would make great gifts for Christmas coming up too.

I may of said this before in my review of Chocolate Are Us Cashew Brittle but I love a good brittle it takes me back to my childhood as something you ate with grandparents as a child. Ginger is one of my favourite combinations with sweet foods I am a huge fan I always loved crystalized ginger as a child and ginger nut biscuits and still do.

Every christmas my nana makes homemade rocky road and while she has to make a batch for the children minus the ginger I request mine with ginger pieces. I do think you either like sweet ginger or you don't and for my children it's a don't like which worked well for me as I loved this and really did not want to share anyway. These were the perfect combination of sticky, sweet, crunchy, goodness and that warmth that the ginger adds makes them quite a warm comforting treat food I found it far too easy to sit in front of the TV with the bag endulging myself.

It is hard to choose a favourite out of the two Chocolates Are Us varities as they are both so incredibly amazing but my gosh that ginger is just such a winner. Huge fan of the Ginger Brittle myself and would love to buy myself more they are a little expensive than what I would normally spend on myself for a sweet treat but well worth it for the quality of flavour and taste. A great sophisticated chocolate product that is very moreish and very very yummy.

If you ever wondered what crunch, gooey and amazingly tasty ginger goodness tasted like then these are a must try. The perfect mix between chocolate and the gooey ginger filling and the amount of chews it tastes to eat each bite and the gooey ginger filling that gets left in your mouth makes you want to eat another one straight away. These chocolate bite sizes heaven snacks are off the hook. I feel in love with these and would definitely enjoy many more in the weeks ahead. My partner on the other hand did not like them that much. He said they were too strong and gooey and you have to chew for ever to make it end.

I disagree with him on that, so I got my mum to try them who is not a massive fan of ginger and she really enjoyed the chocolate ginger brittle snack. She thought the flavours were amazing and she loved the texture so much. I guess it is personal preference if you like gooey chewy snacks or not.

I really liked the clear window packet so you can see what is inside. I could see all the gooey ginger filling on the packet. I did not find them sticky even though I thought it would be by looking at them. One thing that stood out on the packet straight away for me was that I knew it was kiwi made by the pohutukawa flower on the design. I like eaten New Zealand made foods and I liked that it mentioned Whitianga NZ on the label. For the price they would be a luxury snack more so a craving snack as it would not be a every week snack for me. But I will be buying these again, as the taste outweighs the price.

I love sweet ginger foods. As a child Mum had to hide the crystalised ginger from me as I would eat it all. My husband knows that the thing I always want from the bakery is a ginger crunch. My girls (7 and 9) are not big ginger fans so I was surprised when my eldest chose it from the box of review goodies as our supper treat. I even asked her to read what it was as I was sure she thought it was a caramel treat. I would have said it was caramel myself if I had been given it without a label.

I wasn't surprised when Miss 9 took one bite and declared she didn't like it. "All the more for me," I thought, but no such luck. Her little sister loved it. The bottom and top layers were chocolate and in the middle was a caramelised ginger brittle.The ginger flavour was stronger than I expected but I loved it. I did find it a bit messy to eat with the gooey centre oozing out of the sides but that was the only thing I could fault. Now the packet is empty I can see some of the centre left behind. The resealable packet is a good idea for anyone but me. I am sure I would eat a whole packet in one sitting if there is no one begging me to share it with them.

I would be keen to try storing my next packet in the freezer to see how it affects the ginger filling. There is no debate about whether I will buy more, it is more a case of how much and who I will share it with. My Mum is an even bigger fan than I am so I will be adding some to her Christmas present. Since it is something different and look so appealing in the packet it is a great thing to add to a gift basket.

Of all the products I have tried in this range, this one is unique. It is not something you can eat while wearing your Sunday best because, believe me, if ever a confectionery item was designed for getting-down-and-dirty with, this has got to be the one. It ended up all over our hands, our faces, and some of our clothing - not to mention the floor! In fact, it reminded me of the Walt Disney classic where one of the characters - I think it was Donald Duck - said solemnly that the only way to eat watermelon is in the bath! So be warned. If you are with friends and family go for it and enjoy it. But it you are in polite company or just trying to make an impression, be forewarned. Cut the pieces as small as you can and provide a finger bowl. Or cake forks. Or baby wipes...

So if the product is so messy to eat and causes no end of potential embarrassment, why buy it? Because it is without doubt one of the most delicious sweets I have ever eaten. There is nothing brittle about it. It is soft toffee, dark designer chocolate, and ginger all mixed up in a decadent lump which is so yummy I would have finished the packet all by myself if I had not had some willing helpers. And thank goodness they were close friends because we were able to relax and make a mess without feeling guilty about it.

I will absolutely buy this product again - there is no question about that - and it would be for selected people only if I happen to feel like sharing. However, I might keep it in the fridge to see if that makes it slightly less sticky, at least until it gets to our mouths. There was nothing on the packet to indicate that it should be served chilled, but if I get some during summer months that might be a sensible thing to do. I also get ant invasions every so often, and I think that once they got a whiff of this product they would be in ant heaven.

The ginger content is generous and we all thought the balance of ingredients was perfect. You could taste the ginger, the chocolate, and the toffee separately; nothing overwhelmed anything else, and nobody broke a tooth so the individual items were not too chewy. Ideally I would serve it as an after dinner treat with an espresso and a few finger bowls. Altogether this is a delight to eat.

I've never had ginger brittle before. Well, I've never really had ginger products outside of ginger beer and ginger ale (which I enjoy). I have used it in cooking before, but not in quantities that have let the real ginger flavour come through. Thinking about it, I've also had a sweet chilli sauce with ginger, that I wasn't a huge fan of. So I've not been the biggest fan of ginger to begin with, but I was curious to give it a try.

I've had the product for a week, and am trying it for the first time now, as I write the review. One of the things that has made me hesitant (apart from not knowing whether I really enjoy the flavour of ginger or not) was the size of the chunks. The brittle has a very thick caramel texture to it, so the brittle maintains its shape a lot; either the pieces remain large, or the smaller pieces stick together. In fact, if I tipped the packet out onto the table, all 150g would come out stuck together. So this is a much messier product compared to others in the range.

The brittle is effectively some form of caramelised sugar combined with ginger, and a layer of dark chocolate on each side. This means that only two of the 6 sides of the brittle pieces are covered in chocolate, so the other 4 sides are sticky. the brittle has very much a toffee flavour and texture (unless like the granulated texture of the cashew brittle), with a varying ginger flavour to it. The ginger is a little bit inconsistently mixed through the brittle. Some patches have a subtle flavour, while others become much stronger.

I quite like the ginger flavour, though I prefer the more subtle moments over the stronger patches. My main concern with the product is the messiness of it. I'd much rather they had made the brittle with the ginger, breaking it and dipping the pieces in the chocolate so they were completely covered in chocolate, not just two sides. Obviously this would take more work, and would probably require the brittle to be chilled more so that it can be handled easily, but a full (albeit thinner) coating of chocolate would reduce the messiness and the overall appeal in my opinion.

This is definitely the strongest flavour of the varieties so far, but also the biggest mouthful to eat. The toffee consistency makes it very easy to get stuck in your teeth. So not something I will be eating too much of at a time. Something to have a piece of every now and then.