These days it seems like all cereal companies are trying to recreate chocolate bars in cereal form. Firstly, Nestle gave us Lion cereal, recently moving onto the transformation of the classic Toffee Crisp Bar into a breakfast cereal. The 'New' banner over the top of the box immediately drew my attention when faced with the daunting prospect of the cereal aisle in Tescos. However, I myself was a little cynical of Nestle's most recent conversion. Yes, it would be like Christmas come early for all Toffee Crisp fans if you could have your favourite chocolate bar in a different form morning, noon and night, but the cynic in me couldn't help but question exactly how does one turn a chocolate bar into a cereal? Therefore, my dear friend Holly took the plunge and bought me a box of Toffee Crisp Cereal on the basis that I would review it. So here it is...
What I couldn't help but ignore was the healthy stance that Nestle are trying to give this cereal. On the top of the box they claim that Toffee Crisp Cereal is a source of whole grain and provides 8 vitamins and minerals, among which is vitamin D. This may all be true, however, it seems like they have employed this technique to make mums, or dads (this is the 21st century) feel less guilty about giving their children a chocolate bar equivalent for breakfast. Personally I feel that there is nothing wrong with starting the day to a bowl of chocolatey goodness, I've been eating all sorts of cereals for the past 19 years and look at me now! But, if it does make you feel slightly better, then I guess you are having a chocolate cereal that is good for you, in a roundabout way. Nestle have just used their pre-existing Crunch cereal but given it a slightly chocolatey-toffee flavour and added a few extra toffee balls. It was my flatmate who drew my attention to the fact that they bare a slight resemblance to maggots, but don't let that put you off; the flavour is quite subtle so it's not too sickly. It also stays crisp for a good 10 minutes meaning that you can eat at a leisurely pace and could even watch the entire soap feature on ITV's This Morning!
Although I enjoyed my bowl of Toffee Crisp, I wouldn't say that it was the equivalent to the chocolate bar per-se. Maybe Nestle should rebrand this as a new cereal in itself, that way perhaps consumers would feel more inclined to try a cereal that isn't a derivative of a chocolate bar.
Here are my ratings for Toffee-Crisp Cereal:
Crunch Factor: 4.5/5
Flavour: 3.5/5
Aesthetics: 2.5/5
Filling: 3/5
Overall Rating: 3.5/5
Valentine's day is fast approaching and instead of heading out for a wonderfully romantic meal with my other half, this year I have turned to another love of mine, the love of cereal. It would only be fitting that on the most romantic day of the year, I chose one of my all time favourite cereals, Coco Pops, but this week I have decided to try something new. Yes, I have already tried and reviewed Kellogg's Coco Pops, gaining an overall score of 4/5, but I thought how would they compare to Morrison's own brand version or the chocolatey cereal, Choco Crackles?
The packaging of both cereals is very similar, each opting for a yellow background with brown writing accompanied by some sort of cereal critter. Kellogg's have stuck with the well known Coco the Monkey, gracing the boxes of Coco Pops since 1963, whereas Morrison's have created a 'Pac-Man-esque' Choco Crackle Monster. Nonetheless, when placed next to one another on the shelf, you could very easily reach for one and not the other by mistake. But how does the actual cereal compare? Choco Crackles are a lot crispier than Coco Pops. This is perhaps not so great initially, but it does mean that the cereal stays crunchier for longer. However, the actual flavour of the cereal contrasts dramatically. Coco Pops have a much more chocolatey and more enjoyable flavour. On a positive note, both cereals leave the milk tasting chocolatey at the end. For just an extra 70p, I, personally would always go for Kellogg's Coco Pops in the morning, however, if towards the end of the semester when my student loan is suffering from numerous tickets bought for fashion shows and balls, I would be perfectly happy eating Morrison's Choco Crackles as a substitute.
Here are my ratings for each cereal:
Kellogg's Coco Pops Morrison's Choco Crackles
Crunch Factor: 4/5 Crunch Factor: 4.5/5
Flavour: 4.5/5 Flavour: 3/5
Aesthetics: 3.5/5 Aesthetics: 2.5/5
Filling: 3.5/5 Filling: 3.5/5
Overall Rating: 4/5 Overall Rating: 3.5/5
This is my first post of 2014 and I can only apologise for letting the cereal world down. During my travels through the land of Koalas, Kangaroos and Kiwis I had only good intentions of trying some new and exciting foreign cereals, but unfortunately a lack of access to technologies such as wifi and a computer was sparse, meaning I was unable to share my findings with you. However, from this week onwards I promise I will return to my weekly blog posts, and may even try out some new features to the blog...
This week I decided to ease myself back into the 'real' world by choosing a cereal that is viewed as being relatively healthy. The box informed me that Mini Max is high in fibre, high in vitamins and iron and is a wholegrain, I couldn't think of a better way to start a day full of lectures and work.
Mini Max is basically a glorified version of Mini Shredded Wheats with a frosted coating, meaning you don't have to feel bad about adding copious spoonfuls of sugar. The cereal does go quite soggy, but it's not unbearable. In fact, this is somewhat of a welcome relief as it could be a bit dry without this added milk absorption. And at the end of your breakfast, you are left with a bowl of normal tasting milk, something I know many people prefer as opposed to the sweet tasting milk left behind by some other cereals.
Here are my ratings for Kellogg's Mini Max:
Crunch Factor: 2.5/5
Flavour: 3.5/5
Aesthetics: 3/5
Filling: 3.5/5
Overall Rating: 3.5/5
