Your ViewsKeep your e-mails pouring in, it's good to know that there are lots of you out there with views and opinions. To help you work out what is what, are now little icons to help you see biscuit related themes. And now you can see at a glance which are the most contested subjects via this graph (requires Flash 6.0 plugin). Please keep your mails coming in to nicey@nicecupofteaandasitdown.com | If you like, you can use this search thingy to find stuff that matches with any of the icons you pick, or use the fantastic free text search, Yay! | Your e-Mails |
Huw Davies |
Hello again
After having a nice, but rather rushed sit down, cup of Assam tea and a whole pack of Jaffa Cake Mini Rolls, I can categorically state they they are, indeed, without a shadow of a doubt, cakes. But, why the original Jaffa Cake wasn't just rolled up into a 'roll' to make a completley new and exiting cake is beyond me.
I think there is something very sinister about Mcvities turning everything we once held dear to our hearts, the very basis of our societies, our nice sit downs and cups of tea.. into Mini Rolls. I think this matter should be turned over to trading standards immediatley. The Mini Roll is slowly taking over. I bet within six months to a year, Jaffa Cakes will be phased out, to be replaced by evil, inferior, Jaffa flavoured Mini Rolls. I for one mourn the fat cattedness of McVities. May their 'lets turn every bloody thing into a mini roll' philosophy burn in the fiery gingernut pits of Hades.
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Nicey replies: Don't worry Huw the Mini Roll is a spent force, peaking over twenty five years ago in mid 70's when it enjoyed a high status along with many other now dated products such as Angel Delight and Surprise freeze dried peas. Many still dabble in the format, but the nation has moved on.
What worries me more is the tinkering that McVities are under taking with their product range as a whole. Last week I was forced to buy HobNobs in some kind of elaborate Pringles alike resealable cannister, at a price which was surely inflated due to the pointless cannister. I have no desire to add to the rubbish to be bulldozed in a land fill with a stupid little cannister thing. That's what a biscuit tin is for!
To make matters worse a friend bought me a packet of Mini Hobnobs so I could assess the biscuits as sweets thing. The little packet contained 8 mini Hobnobs each with a diameter of approx 34mm as opposed to 67 for the full size. After a some quick calculations it transpires that these wretched little biscuit-ettes were over twice as expensive as even their canister brethren.
So what's happening here? we are all being taken for a ride as United Biscuits try and wring out more cash from us using their well loved brands that were established via the honest and noble medium of a the packet of biscuits. This is short term gain but long term folly, as I fear the brands themselves will loose their sense of connection to people, which begins at a young age. The younger members of the NiceCupOfTeaAndASitDown staff won't be raised on Mini-Hobnobs or those from a stupid cannister that's for sure. So what value is that brand going to be to them in 15 years time? Not much. |
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Toby Robertson |
at last, a biscuit site with a degree of proffesionalism, sincerity, and a ruthless commitment to the biscuit enthusiasts we all consider ourselves to be, it has long been a dream of mine to find a biscuit forum with balls, not afraid to out the biscuit fraudsters no matter who they work for, just one question, what is your stand on the whole jaffa cake debate, and should it get a mention on this site? I myself consider the jaffa cake to be just that- A CAKE, and although they are very tasty, with great texture, they DO NOT belong in the biscuit catergory...any other readers out there want to enter the debate?? any chaps keep up the good work, and having just discovered the site, i feel like i've just been reunited with a long lost oven baked brother
Cheers Toby |
Nicey replies: Toby,
Simple they are cakes, small ones but cakes none the less. Check out the links along the top of the page 'Cake' and 'Biscuits', for my opinion and that of the Irish Inland revenue. |
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Mr Hands |
Easy Nice,
Mr Hands here. Despite feeling it necessary to tell you about my last sit down of epic proportions, the three hour munchathon I finished last night really took the biscuit. All 20 of them.
I am currently working in California and so I have had the chance to sample many cookies (very big biscuits) such as Mrs Fields. However, my girlfriend found a shop called Trader Joe's yesterday and she managed to find what can only be described as a loaf of cookies on the "star buy" rack.
Strangely, on the same day, I managed to come accross a small shop in the middle of nowhere that sold British goods. I came out of there with several varieties of Mr Kipling cakes including some quite intriguing mini-battenburgs.
The tea, biscuit and cake onslaught that occurred last night will be remembered as a milestone in my relationship with my girlfriend as there was a moment that occurred at about the time that she was trying to eat a jaffa cake in one side of her mouth and a mini-battenberg in the other and seeing if she could let tea pass between them without any of the flavours mixing that I honestly thought that I could spend the rest of my life with this woman.
In short, the most important and remembarable sit down of my life, and the missus and I are already planning our next one, where we hope to include some home-made Rice-Krispie cakes and a generous helping of Abbey Crunch.
Have you had unexplainable emotions occur over tea drinking and biscuit munching? I just want to know if I am the only one.
Best Regards
Mr Hands
P.S I just want to say Happy Birthday to my sister Jenny. We had a cup of tea on your behalf last night!
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Nicey replies: Mr Hands,
Glad to hear that you are helping our American cousins appreciate the finer things in life. That's a lot of heavy cake action your indulging in there, but as it's between consenting adults that will probably be all right. Just be sure that you respect each others limits when experimenting with multiple cake techniques.
Some of the finest cups of tea I have had have been made on the tops of mountains on a meths stove fighting off sheep, who are trying to eat my digestives. A somewhat different experience to that of yours last night but both are valid.
Yes and Happy Birthday to Miss Hands. |
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Steve Cooper |
Nicey,
Great site and all but, after consuming most of a McVities Jamaica Cake with friend last night, I wanted to ask whether you'd be extending the series to cover the more 'civilized' end of the 'tea and dipping' spectrum?
Check out McVities' wrapper for their Jamaica Cake (modern, looks like a huge aero in a cake container) and then check out the packaging for a McVities Golden Syrup cake (classic, art deco, silvery - a touch of class that has been changed in nigh on 100 years).
I think you'll get where I'm coming from.
Cheers & respect
Steve
By the way, I don't mean EVERY cake - just the ones you'd put out in slices on a nice tray by a warmed, bone china teapot at about 4pm every weekday... Mmmmmmmm
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Nicey replies: Our horizons most definitely extend to cake, as stated in our mission statement. Those McVities cakes you mention are indeed inspirational.
We are quite keen of the Lemon iced madeira cake, as seen in Tescos and Waitrose. Maybe I could fit "cake of the month" into my hectic schedule. |
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Chris Holdsworth |
hello there,
there's this sort of factory-shop-for-biscuits place in this town in scotland.
i've been to scotland a few times and each time i go here to get the nicest biscuits ever. they are fresh, cooked on the premises, and amazingly tasty. they even have gypsy creams. yum. they also sell nice cake and gingerbread and other fondant fancys.
if you are ever in the castle douglas area of scotland, i reckon u should go there.
http://www.castledouglas.net/irvings/
chen |
Nicey replies: Yep, sounds very useful, I've committed that to memory. It didn't say on the web page but if they were to do big mugs of tea as well, I think people could go there for a weeks holiday, and camp in the car park. |
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