Tag Archives: summer

Merrydown Medium Cider Review

Posted on by Abi

Having recently celebrated the Queen’s diamond jubilee and with the Olympics starting in July, there’s plenty of reasons to crack open a bottle of something bubbly at garden parties, picnics and BBQs. My husband is a fan of traditional ale, but I personally prefer a yummy cider or perry. That’s not to say that I’m not picky, there are far more bottles I reject than accept. Having had the opportunity to testdrive Merrydown Medium Cider I’m very pleased to report on my personal findings!

The Merrydown story began in 1946 when three friends turned their garage bound hobby into a business. The first batch of Merrydown was called apple wine and was pressed in a 300 year old oak cider press borrowed from a farmer. The current recipe is free from artificial sweeteners, colours and flavours.

From a visual perspective the cider is a light yellow tone, with sporadic bubbles floating to the surface. It’s not heavy on the fizz which I infinitely prefer, so many other makes seem to relie on fizziness to disguise less than perfect flavour.

Taste wise Merrydown is very refreshing, summery and fruity, so much so than I’ve been forced into that most woeful of situations, creating a fake word to sum the flavour up ‘Applely!’

Having received several bottles I’ve been handing it out to friends and family alike and have yet to find anyone who doesn’t rate it highly. It has a lighter quality than many ciders but with such a satisfying taste that it hardly fails to impress. It would cook beautifully, but while I kept vowing to use it in this way I have to admit that it didn’t hang around long enough. A full selection of complementary recipes is available on the Merrydown website.

The Apple flavour itself is somehow exceedingly British, there’s nothing sharp or pert about it. Just like Brtish Apples themselves it has a roundness that just rolls off the tongue. It would make a fabulous addition to a traditional summer picnic or garden party. At 7.5% it’s average in terms of alcohol content.

Would I recommend this product?

I would and I have been, it really has such a lovely flavour I don’t see how it can fail to win fans.

Could it be improved in anyway?

Not really, it’s perfect as it is. Maybe if it came with free bunting 😛

Details

For more variations, stockists and a selection of scrumptuous summer recipes visit the Merrydown website.

2 Comments (Leave a comment)

Boden Press Day Spring Summer 2012

Posted on by Abi

Last week I was lucky enough to be invited along to Boden’s Press Day, to preview the Spring Summer 2012 collection. You are probably all aware that as well as this blog, I also write for the Boden Community. If you’ve not taken a look at their site yet do pop across and check it out, there are many wonderful posts on a wide variety of subjects. For today though, here is a brief taster of what Boden has in store for us next year.

The upcoming collection has been inspired by world travel, even the board outside welcomed us in with a giant airmail letter! The whole room was festooned with maps, globes, signposts and doors. It was a visual treat before you even began to peruse the clothing.

There were three stories within the collection:

Globetrotter – a more subtle direction for Boden. The prints were delicate and refined, think of a gorgeous watercolour painting. There was a real touch of classic feminine glamour.

Breton Charm – I adored this collection of clothes, nautical inspired prints with a classic Britishness that was hard to resist. Perfect for a Spring picnic beside the lake, these clothes were wearable, classic and relaxed.

Secret Mediterranean – The holiday collection, beautiful vibrant colours that instantly transport you to a world of bright blue seas, golden suns and hours spent on the beach. The summer dresses really stole my heart here, easy, comfortable but with little touches that really made them stand out.

Even the men have been well catered for, here I am busy flicking through a lookbook and admiring some wonderful summer shirts.

If I had to pick one must have item, it would be this stunning Purple Satchel bag (also available in tan and red). Although it seems I wasn’t alone and everyone I encountered was coveting it too. I’m sure that’s a mark of good taste 🙂

The Mini Boden collection was absolutely stunning, I particularly liked the pieces that employed a mixture of applique and traditional print.

The Boden team are a really happy, helpful bunch and are genuinely enthused about this collection. They know the pieces well and really believe in the vision they are creating.

So whether you’re looking to be smart, casual, classic or bright, Boden has something for all the family next year. I already have a shopping list of must have pieces for all my family (it’s rather long), I’m genuinely very excited!

2 Comments (Leave a comment)

La Maison Du Chocolat Summer Collection Review

Posted on by Abi

After my recent visit to La Maison Du Chocolat in Piccadilly, I was fortunate to bring away a box of the new Summer Collection. Called ‘Chiberta’ it promises to take you on a tongue tingling ride to the Basque country in France. The birthplace of La Maison Du Chocolat founder Robert Linxe, it is also the first place in France that Cacao arrived in 1609. The collection is very beautifully designed with a wonderful watercolour painting of the Basque country adorning the box.

Each box of Chiberta contains 5 different varieties of chocolates. As I’m sure you can imagine it wasn’t much of a chore testing out the various flavours, but I shall do my best to describe each variety in detail.

First I tried the one and only Milk Chocolate in the box, called ‘Eztia’ it is a Milk Chocolate filled with a Basque Honey Ganache. Beautifully smooth milk chocolate covers a strong and intense honey ganache. The honey is thick whilst retaining movement, it made me think of a quality manuka honey. The honey flavour is heavy and rich with delicate floral tones. Somewhat reminiscent of a good Heather Honey.

Next in the box came ‘Txokolate Lluna’ a dark chocolate bonbon. The scent of this chocolate is heaven itself, the kind of amazing Cocoa scent that radiates from a luxurious cake batter before baking. The bonbon is rich with a lightly malty taste and intense smoky after tones. The taste lingers tantalisingly on your tongue.

‘Praline Macaron’ is next in line. An amazingly silky praline lies at the centre of this gorgeous bonbon with crunchy slivers of chocolate macaron. An intense chocolate tempered by the delightful crisp almond tones, not heavy but delicate and with a quality flavour.

‘Almond Paste with Patxaran’ this ganache chocolate tastes almost like the worlds most refined and delicate marzipan. Lightly touched by Patxaran liqueur (a liqueur of blackthorn berries macerated in anise alcohol) it leaves a delightful flavour upon your tongue. Despite being a part of the summer collection, this would be a wonderful flavour at Christmastime.

‘Espeletako Piperra’ instantly you are drawn into this bonbon by the delicate and soft Espelette chilli pepper. A sweetness radiates first, followed by a warm spicy after tone that will linger beautifully on your palate. The pepper serves to intensify and amplify the amazingly rich dark chocolate.

Would I recommend this product?

Without a doubt, it’s a wonderful collection. It would make a fantastic gift, but I doubt you’d be able to part with them. It’s been my favourite chocolate collection I have tried so far this year.

Can it be improved in anyway?

I will be very sad to see this collection go after the summer, I would love to see some of the chocolates become a permanent fixture at La Maison Du Chocolat.

Details

Available to purchase at boutiques and online at www.lamaisonduchocolat.co.uk.

Sizes:

Box of 10 Chocolates £12.00

Box of 30 Chocolates £33.00

Comments Off on La Maison Du Chocolat Summer Collection Review