Not Snow Impressed (Cadbury Snowbites)

Member Name: zoe_page_1

Product:	Cadbury Snowbites
Date:	24/10/09 (108 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The chocolate centre is ok

Disadvantages: Messy to eat, shells that splinter

I first saw these in August in my local Co-op but refused to buy anything Christmassy at that point, even though I did want to try them. I caved, a few weeks later, at Cadbury World on the assumption that since we were close to the factory it was ok to buy things pre-season as they would understandably be making them then.

Snowbites are a new version of an old idea: chocolate covered in a crispy shell. Think Smarties, M&Ms, Minstrels, Milky Bar Moments, Mini Eggs, Cadbury Shots... In this case the chocolate is shaped into small round balls, not flatter ovals like Minstrels or M&Ms. The shell is white and dusted with white too, which sounds odd but works when you see them. It's supposed to look all festive and like a snowball.

You'd think, with such a tried and tested format, they couldn't mess these up, but I was still rather unimpressed by the final result. For one thing, they're messy to eat. The whole point of covering a chocolate centre with a crispy shell is to stop it melting in your hand, and while it's true you don't end up with chocolate on your fingers eating these, the 'snow' gets everywhere, making your hands more powdery than Tara Palmer-Tomkinson's nostrils.

The texture of these is a bit strange too. On the one hand, they have a large amount of chocolate in them compared to some other versions, and this chocolate is undeniably Cadburys. It tastes like Dairy Milk (Fair Trade or not) though because of the shape and the coating, it somehow does not appear as creamy as usual. On the other hand, the shells are really rather peculiar. They are chewy and crunchy and even a little grainy - really not an appealing mixture in a chocolate treat. The shell part also has a rather funny and artificial after taste that put me off these.
The thing I disliked the most, though, was the way the shells can sometimes splinter as you bite into them, leaving you with sharp shards - they may only be tiny but they can be quite painful if one hits your gums at the wrong angle.

I can see why, around Christmas, these might be a fun thing to put out in a bowl among other snacks, but for eating as a chocolate treat I would not recommend them as they are nothing too special and you have to be careful how you eat them. They also lose marks for only coming in a big (100g) bag, not in individual servings. I get satisfaction from eating something up entirely, and therefore prefer single-serve packs. Unless you have someone to share with then and there, you're in trouble. The packaging is not re-sealable nor is it easy to open - the bag rips, but not neatly.

Each bag has 485 calories and 22g fat, so unless you're on a serious pig out it really is too big to eat in one go. They recommend it as two 240 calorie servings (hmmm...something doesn't add up there with the maths) but mine lasted more like three servings, the upside of careful chewing being that a handful of these does last a little bit longer than some chocolates.

Overall I thought these were a bit ordinary in terms of taste, and a bit messy in terms of design, so will not be buying them again. If you're not put off, though, you can find them all over at the moment, including quite cheap in some pound shops.

Suitable for vegetarians, and lasting well into next year in case you're one of those strange people who can stretch out your Christmas chocolate until Easter.

This year, the Cadbury Christmas range which includes these Snow Bites is supporting the Make a Wish foundation, though aside from the logo on the packaging, there is no information about how much (if anything) is being donated as a result of your purchase. Find out more here:

http://www.cadburymakeawish.org/

Summary: A Christmas gimmick I won't bother with a second time