Heaven in a bag! (Mars Galaxy Minstrels)

Member Name: lyndsey1989

Product:	Mars Galaxy Minstrels
Date:	18/09/09 (92 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Taste, Texture

Disadvantages: VERY moreish - you find yourself eating more and more!

I am a huge fan of Minstrels and recently, I just cant stop buying them! They currently come in 3 differently sized bags, a 42g bag which retails at around 45p, a 170g bag for sharing which costs around £1.75 or a new larger sized share pack which weighs 290g and retails at around £2.65. Currently, they are also available in large tubes ready for christmas, these weigh 126g and retail between £1 and £1.50 in most stores. Tescos currently have a couple of offers on minstrels, up until 6th October you can buy 2 170g sized bags (or others of the mars range eg. m and m's, maltesers, revels) for £3.00, saving you around 50p. Tesco also have a '3 for £3.50 deal' on their tubed sweets up until 22nd September.

No matter how you buy your minstrels, the packaging is always very similar. The main colour of the wrapping is a deep chcolately brown colour which gradually turns into a lighter brown towards the top. There are pictures of the sweet on the wrapping and how this looks depends on the size of the packet. The Galaxy logo sits predominantly in the upper left hand corner and Minstels is written in a deep brown in the middle. I think that Minstrels have quite a classy look about them and compared to Mars'/Galaxys similar offerings they look much less fun.

Minstrels themselves are a circular sweet. They are just under an inch in diameter and probably just under a centimetre tall at their widest point. Basically, they are Galaxy chocolate covered in a crisp sugar shell so they could be seen as the adult alternative to Smarties, however, I think they taste very different. When you bite into a Minstrel you are greeted by a swarm of creamy chocolate and a good portion size of shell which complements the chocolate really well. The shell is quite thin and crispy and tastes very sugary, it provides a really good texture in your mouth and when you bite it it tends to shatter, however you are not left with tiny bits stuck in your teeth! The chocolate is rich, creamy and smooth. It melts in the mouth easily and feels really soft on your tongue. I find that Minstrels are far easier to eat than a regular bar of Galaxy chocolate and they are much more moreish. They leave a lovely taste and feel in your mouth and do not leave you gasping for a drink as some chocolates do.

As I'm sure you can imagine, Minstrels are not the best snack for your waistline, especially as they are so moreish (I can happily eat my way through a large bag!). Per 100g (just over half of a share size bag) contains 503 calories, 69.1g sugar, 22.2g fat (12.9g saturates) and 0.2g salt. Alternatively, you can opt for a smaller size bag which contains about half of these figures!

I really love Minstrels and they are probably one of my favourite chocolates. At the moment I seem to be picking these over everything else in the shop everytime I buy chocolate! I find them really easy to eat and love the taste and texture of them. If you haven't already tried these I would recommend you to as they are heaven in a bag! However, I would say only to eat them as an occasional treat as they are quite bad for your waistline!

Summary: Great for a treat