Tesco Finest Christmas Pudding Flavour Crisps
150g, £1.25, tesco.com
Christmassy – a flavour you don’t normally taste on a crisp: cinnamon or cloves. The surprise was not welcome. I’m not sure I like them but let’s not assume I wouldn’t eat the whole packet.
★★
M&S Christmas Turkey Feast Snack Combo Mix
150g, £1.65, marksandspencer.com
A more regular flavour. Pretty delicious, but I’m not into all these different shapes. This wheel worries me, it feels like a child’s crisp.
★★★
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Croquette Monsieur Bites
£5.50 for 10, sainsburys.co.uk
Salt, meat and a cheesy surprise in the middle. If I went to a party that had these, I’d stand by the oven so I could eat them all first from the hot tray.
★★★★
Waitrose Christmas King Prawn Katsu Curry Melts
£7 for 12 (260g), waitrose.com
A breaded bauble. I like the curry in the middle. The prawny business is a little bit dry, but flavour is good.
★★★
Tesco Vegetable Samosas
£1.25 for 12, tesco.com
A good samosa. Little bit of spice. It’s not changing the world but it’s nice to have it. When things are more spiced, you can rely on some people at a party to not like that. So you can guarantee you’ll get five or six of these.
★★★
Tesco Finest Lobster Mac & Cheese Pots
£4.50 for 8, tesco.com
I love these and I will go through them. Then you realise, if you’re having nibbles, you’ve already eaten a bowl of pasta. That’s no bad thing. I’m taking a star off because you need a spoon.
★★★★
BEST BUY
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Crab Thermidor Crumpets
£6 for 10, sainsburys.co.uk
I’m seeing crumpet and I’m liking what I’m seeing. Mmm, a crabby pizza crumpet. Love the crab. Love the tomato flavour. Little bit of cheese. This is a real treat.
★★★★★
Extra Special Smoked Salmon Blinis With Truffle & Dill Flavour Soft Cheese
£6 for 8, 240g, asda.com
A classic little blini bad boy. I like the cream cheese – dilly as all hell. The blini is a little bit dry. Does exactly what it should.
★★★
Yorkshire Smokehouse Smoked Venison & Calvados Paté
180g, £7, booths.co.uk
This tastes like chicken or duck liver paté to me. You’re absolutely preaching to the converted with this stuff. That’s beautiful. I love it.
★★★★
TOP TASTE
Waitrose Christmas Vegan Layered Mushroom Parfait
80g, £4.50, waitrose.com
After Boxing Day, I’ll often stand at the fridge spooning out paté. Love this. Big mushroomy hit, herbs. A small pot, but absolutely delicious.
★★★★★
by Amazon Our Selection Smoked Salmon Slices
200g, £7, amazon.co.uk
A bit of light smoke. Softish, but there’s still a bit of bounce to it. I like a soft smoked salmon. Very nice.
★★★
Belvoir Farm Non-Alcoholic Yuzu & Lime Mojito
75cl, £2.95, belvoirfarm.co.uk
Punchy. It tastes like a fizzy lime you’d get at the pub when they really whack in the lime concentrate – that’s not necessarily an insult. Gets the taste buds going.
★★★
Asda Extra Special Blonde Chocolate Flavour Cream Liqueur
70cl, £8, groceries.asda.com
Obviously it’s delicious, but it will kill me one day. Not today. Start on this too early and the day will be a write off. I’d wait till 7pm.
★★★★
Coole Swan Superior Irish Cream Liqueur
70cl, £25, johnlewis.com
This one is a bit more alcohol forward. It’s still boozy cream, and you can’t argue with that. Compared to the sweetness of the first one, it’s a little harsher on the palate. I can feel it in my nose.
★★
M&S Marksologist Sloegroni
50cl, £18, marksandspencer.com
Delicious, quite fruity. Is this a kind of fortified wine? It’s lighter than some ports. Oh, it’s a negroni? I’m not usually a fan, but I could smash that.
★★★★
Ed Gamble is the co-host of Off Menu and Taskmaster The Podcast
