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Kcal 51 Fat 3.7g Carbs 5.4g (per truffle)Happy Valentines Day all! It's only right I review some red coloured truffles on a day like today :D
If you were reading the site at the back end of last year, you may remember that I wrote a review on some Espresso truffles made by a company called Booja-Booja. Those truffles were gifted to me by a work colleague who has an intolerance to dairy products, and she claimed that they were the best chocolates around for people with her dietary restrictions (See the review HERE). Well they turned out to be pretty good, and one very positive write up later I was approached by Booja-Booja via twitter to see if I would like to try some more of their range!? Of course I had no second thoughts about this, and just a few days later I found myself testing out a sample of their Raspberry fresh truffles.
You may be thinking that the packaging shot of todays review is a little on the small side, but I have purposely done this to give you some sense of scale. The box these truffles arrived in was tiny, though it contained 100.0g of product and eight inner truffles - perhaps the company ethos stretches as far as responsible packaging too? The smallness of the box made the on-pack details that little bit more hard to read, and the truffles lacked the miniature paper cup cake holders (making them more messy), but the presentation was still on the whole pretty good. Opening the box up I was pleased with the daintiness of the opening mechanism, however I was a little disappointed that the truffles only offered a meagre set of cocoa scents.
Wasting little time it wasn't long after opening these truffles that I dug straight in. Just as with the Espresso chocolates I tried in December these Raspberry truffles were coated with a thick layer of cocoa powder that straight away created a dry texture sensation in my mouth. Letting the piece melt on my tongue the truffle very quickly got up to temperature and it wasn't long before I was being treated to a glorious cooling sensation as the middle constituents began to melt. After lavishing in the full on texture party being created by the truffle the next immediate thing of note were the delicious flavours and subsequent taste that was developing. As established by the cocoa powder exterior, a raw chocolateyness was an ever present, delivering the oh so ever important chocolate flavour hit. However, in truth the chocolate was the back burner of the experience, as it was the explosion of rich, earthy red fruit berry tones that really grabbed hold of my attention. The taste created was fresh, real and even ended with a terrific hint of coconut to further develop the flavour journey that extra step further.
Overall it does appear that I have stumbled across a brand with a winning combination of good ethics and fantastic chocolates. To be totally honest with you these weren't THE BEST truffles I have ever tried in my life, but at the same time they were very very good. In my last Booja-Booja review readers questioned the legitimacy of Booja-Booja's award winning claims. After doing a little research (via the leaflet they sent me haha!) I can confirm that several of their range won awards in the 'Natural & Organic Awards 2008' (these Raspberry ones won 'Best Organic Food Product!). After tasting these I can only add my own big seal of approval - these were some exceptional fruity truffles that I cherished from the very first to the last one in the pack. I'm not saying the raspberry flavouring will be to every ones taste, but for those that fancy these I can offer nothing but my glowing recommendation. Booja-Booja are going to be a brand to watch out for in 2011, I got a feeling there are great things to come for these guys.
7.9 out of 10
Posts
63 comments:
Fab! I've got to get some! ;-)
I know you say they aren't the best truffles mate, but personally I think they are some of the coolest you have posted recently. You don't see anyone like Thorntons or Hotel Chocolat making them like this.
Happy Valentines day Mr Jim. Keep going with your fantastic work on this site. I still read you everyday.
Maggs x
It's nice to see you return to a review from a smaller company after the last few days. Even Hotel Chocolat seem a bit like one of those big corporation companies. It's all to easy to forget there are small players like BB in existence.
Oh dammit these would have been perfect for my partner. She loves anything raspberry flavoured and would have enjoyed the quirkyness of these kind of truffles. Oh well, I will save them for a time when I need to buy her chocs again.
For a minute I thought you had reviewed their champagne flavoured truffles and was expecting a 9/10.
I know you have a soft spot for them even though you don't like the grog. As you can tell I very much recommend them, I have vast experience ;)
Don't you feel bad taking samples off a small company like Booja? I would have thought that at times like these they could do with all the sales they could make.
I say this everyday but these are the best chocolates you have reviewed all year. The melt, the raspberry, the company ... they all sound rather perfect to me. I wish you had given them a better score than 7. If you read through the review it sounds like you wanted to give them higher than you did.
Rxxx
Get the champagne and banana truffles reviewed mate. These guys are obviously very good.
Jim on days like birthdays and valentines do people expect to get expensive chocolates off you? Lol I would if you I knew you and what you did.
These are going to be perfect for a future gift for this person I just started working with. She has to eat a gluten free diet and she is always getting upset at all the chocolatey treats I bring in to the office that she cant eat.
I'm sure she would be ecstatic if I bought here some of these. Thank you for the review Jim. This one was even more useful than normal =]
Cool review mate. I wouldn't be seen dead buying these cause they are a bit girly. Thats not to say I wouldn't pinch a few if my sis was to buy them or something though lol.
Happy Valentines Jim you lovely chocolate man :-)
You must be such an amazing person to be a recipient off. You must pick the best chocs lol.
Dx
Whenever I see companies like this I always think they are shooting themselves in the foot. Only a really small amount of people here in the UK are actually coleaics (sp?). Making such a niche product is so stupid for a small company - it just limits who you can sell to.
Jim what did you buy your valentine? A life supply of chocolates LMAO :)
Hey Jim,
Lol my footie predictions were off weren't they (lol saw your response).
Even the mose diehard Pool fan wont be able to deny that was a good goal from Fat boy. I think Gerrard has saw goals equally as important and spectacular though :P
I dont think these truffles would be something I would buy. Lol I dont need them cause of my diet and I dont like fruit chocolates. Lol that sorta tells you I could do without.
Cheers
N
Fab review J. Has anyone elses Thorntons shop recently been developed into a new shop called 'so cocoa'? My local one recently has and it now sells all sorts of different brands (+ Thorntons still). Booja Booja are one of the people they now stock, next time I'm in there I will see how much they are selling them for and maybe give them a go.
Sorry but these aren't my sort of thing im afraid. The company sound cool and I would love to support them. They just dont seem like they make any sort of flavours I would be interested in. Coffee and raspberry dont appeal lol.
These dont come cheap you know. The cheapest price I can find for these is £5.10, that is a hell of a price to pay for a bunch of truffles that im not sure I would like. They should lower their prices.
Nice one Jimbob. I prefer the reviews of these smaller companies. The big cheeses get enough exposure from other means. Its all about giving these smaller guys a voice.
Why do these guys not sell direct from their website? Talk about being small time.
I thought you had gone back to your old ways of just writing about chocolates from cadburys and nestle so today is a nice surprise.
I do like seeing what you have to say about the new chocolate bars we are getting but I equally enjoy the posts where I haven't seen or heard of the chocolate before like today. I think its just nice seeing things I wouldn't have ever got know about without you.
How do they create the red centres if they don't use any artifical ingrdients? Is it really just the raspberries that do that? They must have a lot of fruit in them if they can make them go that colour.
Hi Jim. I do remember seeing your review of the coffee ones before but I thought I would wait to see what your second review would say about them before I took them seriously. They have some amazing sounding truffles dont they. http://www.boojabooja.com/chocolate_truffles.asp
Get involved with the banana ones next time ;)
Lol yet another one to add to my list of chocolates that I need to try. I swear I spend way to much money on chocolate these days. Its all your fault Jim. I wouldnt know about half this stuff if I didn't read this site.
No chocolates or cards for me yet :( The postmen didn't have anything for me. Oh how depressing.
This is the best review in ages. Seeing the new kit kats and stuff has been fun but its the weirder truffles that I'm more interested in. Thanks for the review J,
Happy VDx
My Jim what cutie truffles you have yourself there ;) Were these what you gave your valentines?
Unless Booja start making normal truffles to go alongside these specialist ones I can't see them making it big time like Hotel Chocolat have done now.
Its one thing to make these sort of truffles for people that have the dietary requirements, but if you become known for just being for those type of people it is a quick way to shoehorn yourself into being a niche brand that normal people wont think 'is for them'.
I would love to see what they could do making normal truffles.
Jim you must have enjoyed that goal Wayne Rooney scored last weekend. Lol I have no clue about football but my dad wont stop talking about it, he is a man u fan to.
This is a lovely little review to read on a monday morning. I wish someone had sent me chocolates today :(
Hi Mate just seen you posted the hotel chocolat hot chocolate review :) Lol I will post my comments on them in a min but I had to tell you that these sounded cool aswell. Well done booja booja (I will buy some of your chocolate now).
Alun
The taste sounds amazing but just the look of these makes me cringe. Lol I get really funny with things that are coated in cocoa powder and the such. I don't know what it is about stuff that has powder on the outside but I just hate the way it feels.
It sends shivers right into my bones eugh.
Every year it amazes me how many idiots still buy in to Valentines Day.
I don't understand why people don't realise it is a day made up by companies as a total money spinner. How can people be so stupid?
That is a uber cute box that the chocs come in. Are you going to be gettin anything more from BoojaB or have you done all the good'uns?
Do you think these guys will ever make it big time Jim? By the looks of things they have some good truffles to offer people but I haven't ever seen or heard of them before. It must be satisfying for you to find little gems like them. They should do some advertising to make people know they exist.
@Harry Oh cheer up you miserable old sod. Its not like people spend through the nose on these things. Its sweet that people just want to show a little love every once and awhile. It sounds to me like someone just didn't get any cards :P
I agree with wit what most of the regulars are saying I also like these reviews about the small chocolate people of this world.
Its even better when they are British like Booja. It gives comfort to know there is a new generation of decent producers coming through the ranks.
I agree with wit what most of the regulars are saying I also like these reviews about the small chocolate people of this world.
Its even better when they are British like Booja. It gives comfort to know there is a new generation of decent producers coming through the ranks.
Yay its always nice to hear about a smaller UK chocolatier making some great chocolates. I guess having bloggers talk about their products is a great way of getting their name out there. Lol I doubt they have the millions of pounds like Mars and Nestle to spend on making tv adverts and the like.
Do they just allow you to talk about them like you think or do you have to say nice things?
I'm amazed so few people have heard of BB, theyve been around 12 years lol We first saw them years ago, I remember we sent some to my grandparents in Cyprus, must be at least 7 years ago. In fact two shops stock them here, an independant health food shop and a deli.
These do sound delicious, def my kinda thing!
@Graeme/Mark.. I think youre looking at these in the wrong way -although they cater for people with dietary requirements (which are growing all the time in the UK!) they are perfectly 'normal' chocolates. You'd not find them in special diets sections but the luxury section of a shop.
I think its a mistake to view these in the 'ooh these are for people with special diets I wont want them' kinda way.
These look for all the world like they are gonna be mega expensive and if Richard is correct then I wouldn't be wrong thinking that.
I don't mind paying a lot for chocolates but I just like knowing I am going to like them if I do have to pay a lot for them. I wish I could try a sample of these first.
Yummy these truffles do look pretty tasty. I can't think of anyone that makes decent raspberry truffles apart from the usual suspects like Hotel Chocolat and the like.
I would love to see some more from Booja Booja in the future.
Ooh raspberries & chocolate - these sound lovely Jim. I def want to try these! x
These sound lovely, and good on them for catering to people with dietary needs.
I'm loving raspberry things at the moment, recently I've been getting raspberry white hot chocolate from a coffee shop called Esquires. They used to do raspberry flavoured cream to top it off :p
Fab review matey. Well keen to try something from Boooja now. Nice work.
Hi All,
Thanks for engaging with the review as much as you have today. I know it is always appreciated by companies like Booja-Booja. I imagine they don't have the biggest budgets in the world for research and the like, so hearing anything from you guys is always valued.
Looking across your feedback it sounds like a lot of you want to see more reviews about smaller more unheard of chocolate producers. Let me see what I can do with that ;)
Questions & Comments ....
Henry - Sorry it came a bit late. Its a shame, I've had it parked for awhile now.
Lauren - Is grog, alcohol yes? My mother/sister are pretty partial to the odd champagne truffle. I will request them for them if you recommend.
Chris - No not really, especially if they offer. They get a good amount of exposure for just sending me a box of truffles don't you think!?
Rachel - The scoring chart never lies :D 7.9 is what they deserved :D
Golden - Haha! Most people don't know about my secret life as a chocolate blogger. My family do expect decent chocolates during the holidays though yes.
Sally - These sound like the perfect thing for your colleague. Glad to be of assistance.
Mark - I think Alan has hit the nail on the head. This is a product for everyone, but can also be eaten by people who need the dietary requirements. Booja-Booja don't position themselves as a niche brand at all.
Anon - What did I buy my Valentine? That would be telling ;) It wasn't chocolate.
Nigel - Wayne Rooney fat boy? I have plenty not so pleasant names for the guy but I wouldn't call him a porker. I think the goal has got a little too much fuss around it. It was good yes .... certainly not goal of the century though.
Peter - Not all of the ones round near me have been converted but yes one of them has. Like you say they sell tons of interesting smaller brands now. This is where I might have to go to see I meet the demands all you lot are giving me for seeing smaller UK brands.
Ben - They do have more flavours than coffee and raspberry. Check out their website.
Richard - Personally I think their pricing is sensible given the nature of the brand and what they offer. They are nearer the end of premium pricing but I think their products command the price point.
Nicholas - Noted chap.
Lucy - Nope, no artifical colourings here :D The redness is a pure result of the raspberry.
Colin - These banana ones seem universally popular. I will contact Booja and see if they want them reviewed.
Ashley - Don't blame me :D There are worse things to spend your money on.
Graeme - See what I said to Mark above. I think Alan is correct about you guys viewing these in the wrong light. Do you get what he means?
Yasmine - You must of had an experience with that sort of textured thing that you didn't like. It's funny how textures can evoke things in our mind that cause positive and negative reactions. Its especially odd when you can't recall why you have the complex isn't it.
Henry - I agree with you to an extent but it's just a bit of fun at the end of the day.
Annalise - This is all I have from them at the minute. Who knows what the future holds.
Joel - Yes I do think they will will achieve future growth. They have a unique and differentiated proposition with both their brands and products. It's all about raising awareness and getting people to try their products now. That is easier said then done in what is a pretty busy market.
Selina - Fair point but watch the language :D This is a family site afterall.
Darren - All reviews on this site are written with a free and open pen i.e. I can write whatever I like. I don't accept samples on any other basis.
Alan - 12 years isn't the longest chap. Not when you consider all the brands that have been around for 100 yrs+ etc. Have you tried these Raspberry ones chap? I think you hit the nail on the head with your points to Graeme and Mark.
Phil - Esquires? Why does that sound familiar to me? Are they a chain or a local shop? This could just be me on a random one.
Again thank you for your comments everyone. I have approached Booja about potentially providing you guys with some feedback of their own but I haven't heard back from them. Hopefully they will take me up on the offer.
There is one more review due up on Wednesday and then we have the awards appearing Friday/Saturday/Sunday! I thought I would leave it up for three days as it is a very long post. Any issues give me a shout guys.
JIM
Oh yes banana flambe truffles sound like my sort of thing. Make that review happen mate, hop to it :P
Alan Jim:
I see what you guys mean but BB are very overt with the non-dairy contents of their truffles. I just get the impression they are trying to appeal to those people too much and shouldn't take their eyes off appealing to a wider audience.
LOl this is the first time in ages I've seen somethin on here that I would love to try.
Somehow I managed to miss your first review with the coffee flavoured chocolates. I got a double review today lol :-)
Out of the two I would prefer the coffee though I would happily try them both out if you were to give me them.
Will they start selling their chocolates in bigger chain shops soon? They sound like they are on the verge of big things to me.
Forget the yucky banana ones Jim go for the champagne!!!
I've just seen the site update Jim. Any particular reason why we are getting the awards a day early? I'm not complaining, just curious to know.
You should have given us more of a chance to ask our boyfriends and husbands for these Jim, I would love to have got these yesterday :(
Lol I shouldn't be complaining, I still got a very nice box of chocolates made by Tesco of all people. That may sound like a cheap cop out but I just looked them up and they are as expensive as a few of the branded boxes. Bless him, my husband didn't do badly. The flowers he got me were beautiful.
These so called reviews look more and more like product placement each day. What a joke this site is becoming.
Was wondering the other day whether we'd see anything else from these guys. It's safe to say that their name stuck in my head. I think the little box looks cute & each truffle looks tempting. I'm glad to read that the first truffles weren't a fluke and these are also pretty good. This company is definitely one I'll keep an eye out for. Thanks for the review.
Yeah I think they are a chain Jim, kinda like Starbucks.
I have a new recomendation for you to review - Almondy D'aim tarta. They're really really tasty :p They're in the frozen dessert section of supermarkets.
Justin - I will see what I can can do.
Mark - It's only mentioned on the packaging in an understated manner. I think we have to just disagree on this one :D
Stu - Why not request a few things chap? I would love to cover more stuff you like.
Sean - I have no idea. They are already selling in some well know outlets.
Anon - I will try both at some point I hope.
David - I want people to be able to discuss the awards. I think there will be some good debate on them.
Sue - I'm glad to hear you liked your presents. We are still yet to hear from 'Maltesers Sally' as to what she got haha :D
Anon - Product placement? Hardly!!!
Ria - I would definitely keep an eye out for Booja Booja if I were you. I think they have a big future ahead of them :D
Phil - I know what you are talking about. I have come across it a few times already. Once I get room in my freezer I will give it a try one day.
Thanks everyone
JIM
Hi everyone
Jim's invited us to respond to some of your comments so here we are...
Firstly, it's great to read so much feedback from you all, it's really interesting to hear your comments - good and bad - so thank you for your interest and thanks Jim for sparking such a lot of fascinating conversation! We're obviously delighted Jim enjoyed our chocolates so much and it seems like our Champagne Truffles and Cognac Banana Truffles need to be next under the spotlight so we'll see what we can do with those...
OK, so to answer some of your questions:
Impartiality:
Jim's answered this one but just to confirm we have absolutely no control or say over what he writes. We send him a box of chocolates and wait to read the blog along with everyone else.
The 'special diet' debate:
We do cater for people wanting 'free from' foods but it is very much our aim to create products that are enjoyed on their own merit and hold their own against other 'gourmet' brands, while also being free from dairy and gluten. Our priority is to make chocolates and 'ice cream' that are truly delicious by anyone's standards but that are as kind to the world as possible and as accessible as possible. That's why we are organic and why we don't use any animal products.
You might be surprised just how many coeliacs and dairy-intolerant people there are out there too - it's not such a small minority, in fact just about everyone seems to know someone who falls into one of those categories. We're not trying to make products exclusively for them, we just don't want to exclude them from enjoying totally sumptuous chocolate truffles. Our motto says it all really: 'everyone needs a little Booja-Booja now and then'.
Our products are sold purely for their taste/luxury value in several 'fine food' outlets including Harrods, Harvey Nics and Selfridges, so they're not always deemed 'special diet' foods.
Why we don't sell from our website or in big chain stores?
Of course we'd love as many people as possible to buy our products but we also believe in suppoting independent retailers - the small shops, the gift shops, the farm shops, the health food shops that make our towns and villages special. We're not big fans of supermarkets because we like the 'human' touch of smaller shops and everything that goes with them. We do work with some larger retailers and you can buy our products from a variety of online shops too (there's a list on our website).
Who knows what the future may bring but running our own website shop just isn't a top priority for us right now.
How come the raspberry truffles are so red?
We use freeze-dried organic raspberries and they make up about 4% of the total ingredients of each truffle. That's it and it seems to work - no need for artificial colours or anything else.
Don't like coffee or raspberry?
We do make other flavours, our full range is:
Hazelnut Crunch
Around Midnight Espresso
Ginger Wine with stem ginger pieces
Cognac Banana
Champagne
Raspberry Ecuadorian
Dark Ecuadorian (plain dark, 100% raw cocoa!)
Plus we offer raw, organic Ecuadorian Cacao Nibs and Cacao Beans for the real chocolate connoiseur!
Hopefully that covers just about everything?!
Thanks again for taking such an interest in us and our products - to find out more about us just visit www.boojabooja.com (where you'll find lots of our stockists listed too) or email info@boojabooja.com
Hi everyone
Jim's invited us to respond to some of your comments so here we are...
Firstly, it's great to read so much feedback from you all, it's really interesting to hear your comments - good and bad - so thank you for your interest and thanks Jim for sparking such a lot of fascinating conversation! We're obviously delighted Jim enjoyed our chocolates so much and it seems like our Champagne Truffles and Cognac Banana Truffles need to be next under the spotlight so we'll see what we can do with those...
OK, so to answer some of your questions:
Impartiality:
Jim's answered this one but just to confirm we have absolutely no control or say over what he writes. We send him a box of chocolates and wait to read the blog along with everyone else.
The 'special diet' debate:
We do cater for people wanting 'free from' foods but it is very much our aim to create products that are enjoyed on their own merit and hold their own against other 'gourmet' brands, while also being free from dairy and gluten. Our priority is to make chocolates and 'ice cream' that are truly delicious by anyone's standards but that are as kind to the world as possible and as accessible as possible. That's why we are organic and why we don't use any animal products.
You might be surprised just how many coeliacs and dairy-intolerant people there are out there too - it's not such a small minority, in fact just about everyone seems to know someone who falls into one of those categories. We're not trying to make products exclusively for them, we just don't want to exclude them from enjoying totally sumptuous chocolate truffles. Our motto says it all really: 'everyone needs a little Booja-Booja now and then'.
Our products are sold purely for their taste/luxury value in several 'fine food' outlets including Harrods, Harvey Nics and Selfridges, so they're not always deemed 'special diet' foods.
Why we don't sell from our website or in big chain stores?
Of course we'd love as many people as possible to buy our products but we also believe in suppoting independent retailers - the small shops, the gift shops, the farm shops, the health food shops that make our towns and villages special. We're not big fans of supermarkets because we like the 'human' touch of smaller shops and everything that goes with them. We do work with some larger retailers and you can buy our products from a variety of online shops too (there's a list on our website).
Who knows what the future may bring but running our own website shop just isn't a top priority for us right now.
How come the raspberry truffles are so red?
We use freeze-dried organic raspberries and they make up about 4% of the total ingredients of each truffle. That's it and it seems to work - no need for artificial colours or anything else.
Don't like coffee or raspberry?
We do make other flavours, our full range is:
Hazelnut Crunch
Around Midnight Espresso
Ginger Wine with stem ginger pieces
Cognac Banana
Champagne
Raspberry Ecuadorian
Dark Ecuadorian (plain dark, 100% raw cocoa!)
Plus we offer raw, organic Ecuadorian Cacao Nibs and Cacao Beans for the real chocolate connoiseur!
Hopefully that covers just about everything?!
Thanks again for taking such an interest in us and our products - to find out more about us just visit www.boojabooja.com (where you'll find lots of our stockists listed too) or email info@boojabooja.com
Thanks so much, Booja Booja! Hmm...you say you make ice cream, too? :D
Booja Booja you are so cool for taking the time to come talk to us all directly. Thank you so much.
I would love to see your chocolates appear in some outlets near me, I will keep my fingers crossed I come across you very sooon. I think your whole setup sounds great and I love the fact you are so nice to people who have to eat restricted diets.
I wish you all the best in the future, you are one of the very few decent companies I think this world has now.
Rxxx
Jim please can you review these ones from the Booja list
Hazelnut Crunch
Ginger Wine with stem ginger pieces
Cognac Banana
Champagne
What a lovely little company for aknowledging us all. It makes me feel rather special :-)
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