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Back in October 2010 I posted a news article from The Grocer magazine which talked about GU's portfolio expansion with them launching a range of Cookies (See HERE). Described as adding 'some adult appeal to a category dominated by own-label and confectionery brands, such as Rolo and Smarties', I thought this sounded like a half decent idea, however I was then disappointed to read they were only going to be made available in Asda - Boo!!!
Just last week though, low and behold I found both these Caramel & Milk Chocolate and Ultimate Chocolate GU cookies gracing the shelves of my local Tesco - one came only assume that this exclusivity to Asda was just for a few months only. Anyway, £2.00 of my cash bought me a pack of two different flavours - my thoughts on them are below.
GU Cookies Milk Chocolate & Caramel
Kcal ??? Fat ??? Fat(sats) ??? Carbs ???'American-style cookies with chunks of chocolate and caramel'
These were the first I sampled out of the two and I was loving the fresh cookie and toffee smells that emanated from the bag when I opened it. Aesthetically the cookies were a touch pale, possibly a little under baked, but they were still pretty impressive and looked to have a decent amount of caramel and milk chocolate pieces dispersed throughout.
Texture wise these were very decent cookies and had a delightful fresh softness that yielded instantly and melted like butter in the mouth. A consequence of the cookie softness was that the flavour longevity wasn't particularly long lasting, though the limited time they did last in the mouth the flavours generated were altogether very pleasant. The base flavour generation of the cookie was predominantly dominated by a buttery shortbread biscuit taste that was enhanced by the slightest of salty hints. Where present the chocolate and caramel chunks added further interest to the experience, offering bursts of cocoa and brown sugar toffee suggestions. A whole cookie was a satisfying snack, but I was expecting that given it's size.
8.0 out of 10
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GU Cookies Ultimate Chocolate
Kcal ??? Fat ??? Fat(sats) ??? Carbs ???'American-style cookies with chunks of rich chocolate'
Judging by the limited stock left on the shelf at the time, it would appear that these Ultimate Chocolate cookies were the better selling variant out of the two. In proposition and looks I personally thought they were the less appealing out of the two I'm showing you today. Don't get me wrong the cookies still smelt gorgeous and looked appealing, however I was disappointed to see that GU hadn't chosen to use two different chocolate types (e.g. milk chocolate base, white chocolate chunks etc), which I think would have made them look even more attractive.
When it came to the taste test the cookies were every bit as soft as the caramel variant, and additionally had even larger chocolate chunks to add weight to the light, crumbly cookie base. As promised on the front of pack, the chocolate taste was indeed rich, and took hold of the buttery, shortbread flavours a little more than the caramel cookies. The chocolate flavour hit was delivered with a keen sharpness and in a more satisfying sustained manner, but the flavour progression was perhaps a little limited and in need of an added x-factor like say a nut, to make it truly special.
8.1 out of 10
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Overall I thought these were very decent cookies but I wouldn't say they were quite there in regards to being rated as highly as the likes of Heavenly Cakes. One thing I do know for sure is that they were more to my liking than than usual supermarket own brand offerings, which I tend to find overly sugar laden and sickly. Judging by the taste I would suggest that the quality of ingredients is far superior to the supermarket cookies - I guess this is reflected in the price. Neither of these were by any means perfect, but I would buy them again and would happily suggest you guys give them a try.
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47 comments:
Lol I'm sorry have I logged on the Cakes Mission or something? Where are the chocolate reviews :)
J/k mate. These look well nice
These look impressive I likey. I think I will put in a special request with mummsy next time she goes to Tesco, lol I avoid going myself at all costs.
Rxxx
Gu are so under rated. I have tried several of their desserts now and each and every one of them has been v v nice.
Have you thought of ever doing any reviews of their desserts? I can recommend their chocolate cheesecakes and melt in the middle puddings. I couldn't tell you which is better, but give me either and I'm a happy girl.
Cracking review Jim I had no idea GU had started making these for Tesco now aswell.
I remember you telling us about these before but I seem to remember you saying they were only being baked at Asda. Because I dont have an Asda around me I didn't give them a second thought, so it doubley good news to me that a) they are good and b) they now get made in tesco. I will have to check out the bakery next time im in there.
I had these a few months ago and didn't like them as much as you did. The ones I bought were like rock hard, more biscuits that cookies I tell you. I think the quality of them depends a lot on how they get baked in the store. The caramel cookie in your picture looks so much paler than the one I had.
In the pack I bought they were seriously golden in colour, they must of had longer in the oven or something. I thought they were pretty average tbh.
Wicked review Jim. I will have to get some of these.
I used to buy packs of cookies from Morrisons all the time but I just got so bored of the flavours that they had. I remember their white chocolate ones being the nicest out of all of them, I used to buy them most the time and the milk chocolate ones when they had run out. If I ever see these I will at least think about trying them if they aren't mega expensive.
Thanks for the cool review Jim, nice pics again by the way. You have been out doing yourself this year with them.
I know we should expect chocolate reviews cause of the site but are you going to be doing any reviews of lower calorie things?
Cakes and cookies aren't what we all want to be seeing at the moment lol. As nice as they look I would appreciate a review of some super low cal chocolate if you can find one :) my cravings are like in overdrive having read this now :P
Awesome those caramel cookies look amaze. The only thing I think is a bit crap is that you only get two cookies.
Its a pretty big thing considering you can get 5 or 6 of the bog standard normal supermarket cookies for the same money. These will have to be pretty special too justify that.
Overall I thought these were very decent cookies but I wouldn't say they were quite there in regards to being rated as highly as the likes of Heavenly Cakes
Dont get me wrong I love Heavenly C's but I think it is unfair to compare the two of them.
Neither of these were by any means perfect, but I would buy them again and would happily suggest you guys give them a try.
What is this? You insist I have to try them???? Well ok if you are insisting I do so :-) I blame you for my fatness young man.
Damn you. I'm annoyed to see these have scored well. Midweek my mum bought two packs of the caramel ones but my brothers got at them before I had the chance to grab one myself. Grrr I will have to ask her to buy them again. Top review mate.
Jim I don't suppose you remember if it said these were safe for people with nut allergens do you?
I think these would be the perfect treat for my kids considering the packet contains two. I hate having to buy the big packs because I never want them to eat them all, its not good for them. I had to buy them these rolo doughnuts this weekend and they ate two each the greedy guts. If you could tell me about the nut content that would be good.
Sorry for the hassle.
I think GU overprice their desserts so much. We only ever buy them if we see them reduced or are on a deal. At their normal price they are just too expensive.
Hey,
can I put a request in please. I see you have two of the three tubs they do but IMO you haven't done a review of the best ones yet. The other ones are these chocolate cake bites, you should review them ASAP, trust me you wont regret it.
Tut tut standards are slipping on this blog.
You missed out the third flavour! And you claim to be thorough.
Best cookies ever = the toblerone ones you get in Sainsburys.
Get your people on the case Jim. You defo need to be trying them if you are doing cookie reviews now.
Before I start being nice to you about another proper good review Jim I have to start with my comments on the match yesterday.
WHAT THE HELL WAS HOWARD WEBB DOING!???? ARGH it makes me so angry, he completely ruined the match for everyone. Not only did he get the penalty decision wrong, but he also unfairly sent Gerrard off. Is he on the Man U payroll or something? What a complete joke. Looking on the brightside at least we now have a competent guy at the helm. Good riddance WOY.
Lol rant over. Well done on another entertaining post. Once again you have my breakfast toast looking rather sad :(
As nice as these look I'm going to have to do a Richard and complain about them being excessively priced.
The basic economics of being able to buy 5 for the price of 2 of these doesn't carry with me. Sorry.
It just seems like a pretty straight forward decision. Do you want to pay a quid for 5 or a quid for 2. Simple answer isnt it lol.
Are we ever going to get any hot chocolate reviews? I have put the request in on the correct page.
Its so cold =) warm me up jim.
Boooooo this is not what I wanted to see at the start of my first diet week LMAO. Before you start I know it's my own fault for logging on the site I was only playing with you.
If I had the choice between these two I would defo be trying out the double chocolate ones first. They look ten times more exciting than the caramels. I think we should get you checked out for caramel bias Jim. I think just the word instantly makes you give things higher scores than things that dont. You are like me with white chocolate :)
Dx
Oh yes I will be giving both of these bad boys a try. GU are on the most exciting brands we have here in this country I think. The only thing that they make which aren't up to scratch are their normal chocolates. My friend got a pack of their truffles thinking they would be good but he said that they weren't that great. I found that surprising because all of the puddings I have ever had of theirs have been nothing other than delightful.
These cookies are next on my GU hit list now. Thanks for the review mate. A nice way to start the week.
Now if they had combined both varieties into one cookie - i.e. a chocolate biscuit with caramel and chocolate pieces - that could have made a seriously tempting cookie. But as it is, I just get the feeling that there are better cookies to be had.
For the first time in ages we differ in opinion on something Jim :) I thought the ultimate chocolate ones were the better out of these two when I tried them. I think someone might have made a good point above though. I think a lot of this would be down to how well they are baked. If one lot get left in the oven 5 minutes longer than the other flavour and become rock solid then they are going to immediatedly be at a disadvantage.
You know what you have to do to sort this out dont you? Yep ....... you will have to eat them all over again to make doubly sure that your review is correct. Im sure that is going to be a real hardship for you lol. I demand you do it.
@Alex what are you talking about? What ones are the third flavour? Im sure Jim would have bought them if he knew about them dont you?
LOL sorry me again. I promise this is the last one.
@Nigel Off topic. Nigel I saw that football game (I never watch football) and I thought it was so boring. You must be very devoted to watch that every week.
Im blaming you for my excessive biscuit consumption today Jim. The day is only going to go one way when you start it off looking at a review like this.
Chocolate hobnobs all the way. Oh yes.
Jim if you are reviewing cookies I have to insist that you review the Tesco Finest chocolate shortbread. If I could see you review one thing this year that would be it. Please do it.
Im going to have to try these myself now since you are demanding second opinions.
I have this perception of GU that their products are always over expensive. I remember seeing some of their brownies selling once for like five pounds. Lol first impressions are everything aren't they, it must have left a subconcious impression on me to some extent. Oh well at least £1 for a bag of cookies is reasonable.
I need to start avoiding this website now I think. All I can think of is cookies and its only 9am :( I think its going to be a long day at the office for me today :( Boo.
@Robert - you agree with Jim if you prefer the Ultimate choc ones as he rated them higher :)
My sister bought a pack of the Ultimate Choc ones a few weeks ago in a very rare trip into Tesco.. she really liked them, I thought them ok but notthing all that special especially since you only get a measely two. I personally prefer Sainsbury's fresh bakery Taste The Difference Triple Choc Cookies, nice and soft and gooey and more interesting than these rather thin things. I also really like the Sainsbury's fresh bakery TTD White Choc & Rasperry and White Choc and Lemon.. they are both divine and beat these GU ones hands down IMO. They all cost £1.45 for 4 cookies I think it is although we usually buy them if theyre reduced lol so theyre better value for money and nicer I think.
If we are advising cookies for him to review I don't think we needn't look further than the smarties ones they bake instore in the supermarket.
They are so nice if you can get them whilst they are still warm from the oven. You get tons more than you do with these.
Meh the ultimate choc ones look nice but this is never the sort of thing that gets my excite.
I cant remember the last time I bought cookies like this. The closest thing I eat occasionally are bourbon creams lol.
Both types look very good. How big was a cookie?
I've tried one of these cookies (the butter scotch on the rocks - with pecans and honeycomb) a couple of days ago and found it quite nice.
Your reviews should start carrying health warnings man.
I just pigged out on half a pack of biscuits because of you.
The gym is a must now.
These sounds very nice indeed. I hear they also make some sour cherry ones, have you seen them Jim?
I always find the supermarket ones too sugary aswell, although the more luxury branded ones are a lot better. Morrisons 'The best' range are really good.
I'll have to try those ones Alan mentioned, they sound lovely. Last week I went on a rare trip to Sainsbury's and they have some great stuff, I'll definitely be going back.
Awesome review Jim. I would love to see a review of the cherry flavour if you can make it happen. Keep up the good work this year, the reviews have been as good as ever despite you saying you have been extra busy and stuff. Cheers matey.
These both look and sound good (though the caramel ones definitely do look a little on the pale side). I haven't spotted them but to be honest I don't often venture to that part of the aisle these days. I used to eat Asda's version of these all the time. Will have to look out for them and maybe pick up a bag or two to try them out. Thanks for the review.
@ phil, yeah I'd def give them a go, theyre very nice and I've found that even after a few days theyre still as nice or even better.. they don't go hard, just more chewy.
On the packet of these GU ones it says you can zap it in the microwave fro a few seconds to make it slightly gooey.. we didnt but it sounds an interesting idea!
my GU reccomedations are these:
Chocolate Banoffees, tortes and souffles. Give them some chances of a review.
My mum is obsessed with GU's Key Lime Pie puds. They say they are made by a company called FRU but im pretty sure they are the same people as gu.
http://www.mysupermarket.co.uk/sainsburys-price-comparison/Pies_And_Tarts/Fru_Intensely_Tangy_Key_Lime_Pies_2x85g.html
She loves them.
The cookies look nice enough but they are expensive for just two of them.
I'm more intrigued of hearing what you think of the Toblerone biscuits. Ive been munching my way through a monster sized one for weeks now.
I got given a gift pack of GU truffles for Christmas that had salted caramels, normal milk chocolate and dark chocolate truffles inside. I haven't opened it yet but I will send you some pictures of it if you like. I'm saving it for a rainy day when I have no choc lol.
@ Anon - FRU are indeed the same as GU - it says on the GU box FRU is Gu's fruity sister lol! in other words GU deals with chocolate, FRU with fruit haha bizarre isnt it!
Nice pictures. It's probably the closest I will get to these since I find most cookies have eggs, unlike biscuits :(
@Joel choc Hobnobs FTW :D lol@Nick that's funny, I used to claim football was the least boring sport, since no-one ever just stands around
@Ana gosh those look delicious @Alan thanks, I've been curious about FRU vs GU
I was interested seeing this:
http://www.talkingretail.com/products/product-news/cadbury-highlights-winter-campaign
Cadburys are going to spending loads of money advertising their hot chocolates. Whilst we are on the sbuject are we ever going to get hot chocolate reviews Jim?
Hi All,
Thanks once again to the wealth of comments on this review. I thought it might be a popular one considering the keeness people showed towards these cookies when I posted up the original press article about them.
If any more of you get around to trying them I would welcome your thoughts etc.
I know a few of you are taking the mick saying that I dont review chocolate anymore :D well what I say to that is that I'm reviewing what people are asking and requesting I do ... if you want me to review more chocolate bars then make sure you request them just as much as all these other things :D
Right on to the questions ....
Nick - Jim's Cake Mission doesn't quite have the same ring to it does it.
Kim - By the looks of it people wouldn't mind seeing me doing some reviews on the desserts. I will look in to it next time I'm in the supermarkets to see if they are suitable. I will update soon.
Adam - I agree the quality of these is very dependent on the person in charge getting them in and out of the oven. Simple things make all the difference.
Alicia - There will be a few product reviews of low cal/fat options coming up. Dont worry I have buckled due to demand :D
Katie - I never insisted anything. Ok go on then I insist you try these and tell me what you think.
Linda - Sorry I haven't got the bags leftover. I would imagine they would carry the warning because they are being cooked in the same place as other nut products. They would cover themselves because of that I think.
Anon - I will happily review those Chocolate Cake bites for you. All in good time. Please leave your name next time.
Alex - I didn't 'miss out' the third flavour. They simply didn't have them in stock.
Nigel - Haha that is one hell of a rant. I have no answers for your comments regarding Howard Webb or Steven Gerrard. Thanks for the nicer words about my review haha :D
Paul - I think the brand name and proposition to is supposed to justify the price over the supermarket own label cookies. They are at the expensive end of things aren't they.
Alison - I just finished my first hot chocolate review today. Don't worry they will be up on the site before you know it :D sit tight haha!
Robert - No time to redux review these I'm afraid. Too many chocolates and too little time :D I will let you guys add your two cents in to determine whether my opinion is valid or not.
Warren - I will try add the Tesco shortbread in to a forthcoming bits and bobs review. I will note that down somewhere so I remember next time I'm in there.
Alan - All these recommendations are giving me less and less excuses not to do a supermarket cookies superpost. Do you think that is what is being calledfor? I must say the sound of white chocolate and lemon sounds like a unique proposition. I haven't seen cookies like that before, I will look next time I'm in Sainsburys.
Ana - Where did you buy that from? Now those are some gourmet looking cookies! Very impressive indeed.
Andy - Sorry chap! A little more self control perhaps? :D
Phil - I was aware they made the cherry ones but I have never seen them I'm afraid. My local Tesco isn't the biggest one in the land and they tend to just make these two flavours by the looks of it. Are you not a frequent Sainsburys shopper then? I go to both them Tesco and Waitrose. I don't think I have even been to a Morrisons before ... there isn't one round near me.
Duncan - See above response to Phil.
Ria - Yeah I would love to hear your opinion on these so make sure you take a look at the bakery section next time you are in there. As per the review I would prioritise the Ultimate Chocolate ones first if I were you.
Alan - Indeed they do suggest a quick trip to the microwave. I should think it would have to be a very short one mind you ... dont go forgetting you put them in there or they could create a hell of a mess haha :D
Anon - FRU & GU are made by the same people.
Estelle - Intrigued by the Toblerone cookies eh!? Sounds like a request to me :D I will look in to it along with the other 100 requests :D
Emma - That would be interesting to see. Send us a link if you get a photo up.
Thea - Damn that isn't what you wanted to hear I guess. Unfortunately these didn't include an ingredients list so I can't confirm or unconfirm as to whether they do. You could always ask them on Twitter :D As much as I value Nick's opinions on chocolate I think we can safely say his football banter isnt as strong :D
Dan - Nice article chap. It's funny I was drinking a mug of Cadbury Highlights just a few hours ago. My reviews will be all the more relevant by the time they get posted.
Phew that was a lot of questions to respond to. Thanks again for all the comments, I love reading them all and the more opinions we get on these things the better. There is of course a new product being reviewed tomorrow - I hope you enjoy it. Before anyone says anything YES IT IS A CHOCOLATE BAR :D
JIM
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