August 21st: Nestle Choco Crossies

Kcal 501 Fat 26.9g Fat(sats) 14.2g Carbs 57.2g (per 100.0g)

No sooner had I finished my review of the Cadbury Clusters last month, Dean-German-Grocery offered me the chance of trying a very similar product that Nestle produce over in Germany. These Neslte Choco Crossies came billed as 'crispy clusters containing milk chocolate, corn flakes and almonds'. Although I guess not directly comparable I thought it would be interesting to see how the nut focus of the Nestle product and the raisin focus of the Cadbury one compared.

Dean-German-Grocery sent me a 200.0g box that contained two separate packets. Although I managed to slightly damage my box (see above!) I liked the presentation and thought that the on pack illustrations gave a good indication of what to expect from the product. The clusters themselves were well sized and thankfully lacked the dusty complexion that the Cadbury Clusters had. I guess this was chiefly down to the foil packets in which they were held - they not only did a great job at maintaining the look of the pieces but also managed to retain a wonderful nutty chocolaty aroma.

Despite Nestle products being made worldwide they manage to keep a very consistent taste to their milk chocolate no matter where production takes place. The milk chocolate that coated these clusters had the very familiar sweet milk flavours which delivered a mild yet adequate cocoa flavour hit. Surprisingly one of the best things I liked about these clusters were the flavours I got from the corn cereal as the flakes brought a very moreish salty element to the taste in addition to the fantastic crunchy texture they added. Although only containing 4% almonds the nuts really contributed and delivered some delicious buttery nut notes to the taste. On the box the serving suggestion was 4 clusters at a time (20.0g) - I tended to eat about 6-8 which I thought provided a decent snack!

Overall these managed to impress me far more than the Cadbury Clusters as they frankly were just executed a lot better. All round it just seemed like they were the better product - they were presented nicely, looked and smelt fresh, they tasted better and overall just provided a lot more satisfaction. I guess people who don't like almonds will probably want to stay clear of these, though apart from that I can think of few other reasons why you wouldn't want to try them. These Nestle Choco Crossies are never going to set any fires alight, but they are a tasty treat nonetheless and better than your average snacking option.

8.0 out of 10

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