Pining for a new taste? Try Christmas Tree flavour crisps!
THE snack business is competitive enough, and coming up with some new and exciting flavour in time for the Christmas market can’t be easy.
So perhaps Iceland can be forgiven for trying a little too hard with its latest offering … Christmas Tree Flavour Salted Crisps.
Broadcaster Jeremy Vine was among those who took to social media after they began appearing on shelves, simply captioning a picture of the packet: ‘Honestly.’
They are pitched as ‘pine salt flavour hand cooked potato crisps’ and the front of the £1 packet features a rather unappetising picture of tree foliage.
It is the most unusual flavour in a range that also includes ‘pigs in blankets’ and ‘lobster cocktail’ and it hasn’t gone down terribly well on social media.
In response to the tweet by Radio 2 host Vine, Gina Thomasson said: ‘How delicious! Tree flavoured crisps! Said no- one, ever’. Joel Taylor responded: ‘Fir goodness sake.’
However, Neil Nugent, head chef at Iceland, said: ‘At Iceland we are always evolving our product range to include the latest foods and trends. The Christmas Tree Crisps have a slight ready salted flavour with a hint of pine that creates a completely new combination.’
Commentators on online site ‘Kev’s Snack Reviews’ suggested the snack would ‘taste like potpourri’ or came with ‘a hint of air freshener’.
One reviewer described them as ‘a good crisp’, until the aftertaste kicked in. ‘They were honestly disgusting… the taste of wood had me retching,’ the reviewer said. Another needed ‘several gulps of tea’ to wash away the taste.
Attempts to create strange crisp flavours are nothing new. In previous years Asda came up with ‘shamrock and sour cream’ and Marks And Spencer offering a prosecco edition. Questionable flavours from other brands includes cinnamon bun, cheeseburger, whisky and haggis, and venison and cranberry.