Packet #84 - Burt's Guinness Crisps

Temple Bar. Those two words are enough to send a shudder through any sensible Irish person. It's grand during daylight hours but come nightfall it's home to over priced pints, plastic leprechauns and really, really drunk people. Unfortunately for this crisp lover, he found himself stuck in this particular honey-pot just last Saturday. Thankfully I survived and came away with a bag of crisps I've wanted for ages.

So Guinness is delicious and crisps are delicious but can the two work together? The answer is yes, they most definitely can. The crisps look dark and moreish and might put some people off but don't be foolish get stuck in and try them. They're tangy and sweet at the start but the flavour lingers with a kick of bitterness towards the end. The usual excellent crunchiness of Burts crisps carries through leaving you wanting to munch away as loud as possible.


I've just realised that this is my first review of the year, that's just not good enough. I promise to get my act in order and I've plenty of crisps lined up to review in the coming weeks. If anything I think we all owe a tip of the cap to Temple Bar for getting me off my arse and reviewing. Well either that or it was the Guinness.

Deano.

Packet #83 - Walkers Cheese And Onion

England. Home of many celebrities, footballers, and celebrity footballers. In this country (Ireland), sure we have a couple of celebrities, Cathryn Thomas and Alan Cantwell immediately spring to mind. But many of our dearest celebrities are of the fictional kind, particularly the ones that appear on the front of Crisp packets. The chicken from Chick-a-Tees the Banshee from Banshee Bones, Sam Spud, Mr. Tayto and of course the fella on the front of Wheelies, naming but a few. But in England they've gone a step further and combined three of their favourite things -  Football, celebrity and crisps to create a non fictional character, Gary Lineker. Gary has been the face of England's most famous crisp brand for over forty years, and it was with these thoughts swirling around my busy mind that I picked up a 6 pack of Walkers C&O (cheese and onion) for the price of 1.37 (a price not to be scoffed at?). 

This is the kind of deal, that Tesco assured me was quite special, so I wasn't too disappointed to find the bag a little light on crisps - I knew what I was signing up for. One thing I noticed almost immediately was that Walkers had changed the shade of blue that the C&O come in, a darker shade which I think add a statesman like quality to the new bag. But it's what's in the bag that counts, as they say, and the crisps inside this particular bag are simply classic. Walkers have a very distinctive style of C&O, one that you simply won't find anywhere else. And I find them to be a joy, not too over powering and never claiming to be anything other then what they are. The texture is uniform across every crisp in the bag, just the right side of brittle. 

Yes, they may not be the most artisan of Crisps out there, they simply accompany your sandwich in a calm and dignified manner, much like Prince Phillip does when he travels the globe with our the Queen. 

Mark. 

Packet #82 - Caffrey's Mature Irish Cheese And Spring Onion

What would the world be without history? A confusing place. For starters we wouldn't know about any old wars -  they would just simply happen, then we'd forget about them, so we'd learn nothing about how to try and run a peaceful planet. Yes okay, the world isn't exactly peaceful, but most of us are giving peace a right good lash, which is great to see. What could of possibly brought on these historical whimsies? A packet of Crisps, of course! Caffrey's Mature Irish Cheese and Spring Onion, to be exact. 

Y'see, while rummaging through his grandfathers (legendary confectionary genius Thomas Caffrey) attic recently, Thomas' grandson came across an old recipe for Crisps. Why does this matter so much? Well, Thomas Caffrey is the man behind The Macaroon Bar, The Chocolate Snowball and the Big Time Bar, he basically made everything that's brilliant. And so, Thomas' grandson (yes, I don't know his name) went about making these crisps from an ancient recipe.

And they taste, delicious. From the moment I saw the massive moustache on the big bright red bag beaming at me from the crisp shelf in the newsagents I knew I was onto something quite special. The texture is a little lighter then similar crisps in this market (Keogh's and O'Donnell's) but this doesn't do these lads any diservice whatsoever. The flavour balance is just perfect and the spring onion adds a ever so delicious, but not overpowering, balance to the mature cheddar. Just how Thomas Caffrey knew how to balance these flavours perfectly, is well and truly beyond me, but then again most things are. 

Mark. 

Packet #81 - Chitato Sapi Panggang

The world, in fairness, is absolutely huge. It consists of about 7 billion (and counting) humans. And is filled with many different religions, cultures and traditions. It was a mighty relief then when I reached the Indonesian Island of Bali to find that even the lovely Balinese people are fans of crisps. Big fans in fact, so upon arrival I bought a big bag of Chitato's Sapi Panggang (bbq beef) flavour and afew local beers. I felt that by buying such provincial refreshments I would look more like a local and not like a tourist. I can only imagine that it worked and other tourists looked on enviously at this native as he strode confidently to his sun lounger to read a copy of the new Danny Baker autobiography on his tablet computer.  

My main reason for picking up this particular bag was to do a direct comparison to the flavours we find on this Island (Ireland). I deduced from the packaging that these particular crisps would be very similar to McCoy's steak flavour both in terms in texture and flavour. I was not disappointed, these flavours are big and brash and not afraid to let you know they're around, they practically leap out at you the minute you have your first munch. Texture wise, they may be little less heavy and consistent then the classically chunky McCoy's, but then again, not many crisps are. They are more akin to the Hunk Dory I reckon. There's also the added bonus of a tiny hint of spice in the crisp which is a welcome addition to the taste. 

The Danny Baker autobiography is excellent,  and is available from bookshops and many online retailers. One of my highlights is a humorous and quite a poignent anecdote about Michael Jackson (he's dead).  

Mark. 

Packet #80 Spuds.ie Nude Crisps

There are few better things in life than running wild and nekkid now and again. The only disappointing element is the lack of a deserving snack to cap off your needless early morning exercise. But never fear, it's crisps to the rescue once again and this time their nude. That's right NUDE. The good folk at spuds.ie have taken rejected apples of the earth and added nothing but sunflower oil to highlight the humble taste of the potato.

Enough of the messing, are they tasty? Yes, yes they are. It's kind of like eating flat chips which have gone cold. Which I think is the point of the crisps, tasting the actual potato. They are made at the ever impressive Keoghs farm and carry that same distinctive crunch which we here at the blog love. I devoured the bag as you can see from the photo and think they would go superbly along side a big old sandwich. 

These crisps are all about highlighting the deliciousness of Irish potatoes and sustainability. There's loads of info on their website which can explain it better than I ever could but I particularly like that I can now chuck the empty bag in the compost heap. So I think the conclusion of this post is that crisps continue to be deadly, go eat some now and everything will be OK.

Deano.

Packet #79 Keogh's Roast Turkey & Secret Stuffing

This is my first post since August. I could say I was busy working or on holidays or looking for a new gaf but really and truly there's no excuse for it. I should be ashamed of myself. I'm not though, I've been off eating delicious, delicious crisps and that's what really matters.

So November is gas. You've got a mixture of people either overly excited for the Chrimbo, those who absolutely hate the mention of it and then the rest of us who don't really think about it all that much. And then you've got the clever clogs at Keoghs who plan ahead and bring out a seasonal celebration of crisps.

I must admit I was slightly sceptical about the flavour at first glance but then I remembered this was a pack of Keoghs and ripped them right open. The smell of a hearty roast full of spices and herbs walloped me in the nostrils and invited me to tuck in. The crunch is as fantastic and consistent as always and the flavour, well I think that deserves a sentence of its own. The turkey stands out at first but then you're hit by all of the flavoursome deliciousness of the secret stuffing piece by piece. It's as if umami is doing a little winter jig all over your tongue.

Now I've no idea what's in this secret stuffing but I do know this, I'll be sneaking up to Oldtown on Christmas Day for a good helping of it. Well actually I'll probably just fill my plate with these crisps rather than be an oddball stalker who gets arrested on Christmas.

Deano.

Packet #78 - Manora Fried Shrimp

On the 5th of October I started my year of travelling around the world. I right like crisps, and so do the blogaboutcrsips boys. So, I put 2 and 2 together and thought, I'll try crisps from all over the world and blog them. 

I'm currently in Thailand and so this is where my first blog comes from. We start with Manora Fried Shrimp. I was in abit of a fishy mood so opted for these. After getting smashed in the face with a waft of shrimp after opening the bag, I grabbed my first one and did some crunching. They look a lot like those peking cracker things Walkers did a while ago, they were quite moorish and that but after a while you get used to the flavour and there not as good. BUT, just when I was about to get bored, I felt something in the bag, pulled it out and it was a sachet of chilli paste! You put it on the crisp and your back in business with loads of flavour. 

I'd say its downfall is that there isn't enough chilli paste for the whole bag, so they got boring again. They'd be enjoyed the most if you dipped them in something.. Chilli paste, guacamole, milk. Whatever floats your boat.

Jack.