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 |
Isobel Stevenson |
Dear N & W,
In reply to Kate's e-mail about the Pontardawe Festival, I would just like to mention, that the “Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down” zone was an absolutely fantastic idea! As a member of the backstage crew; this area was much appreciated by all who frequented it. Despite not being a stage hand this year, I still tried to get there when the mayhem abated and I had some time to my self. I was however disappointed that there were no chocolate malted milk biscuits. Maybe this is something you can sort out next year? The rich tea being the last biscuit to go has surprised me though, as I ate as may as I could! (It may have had something to do with the fact that I hadn't eaten properly for three days!) Hope the NCOTAASD zone makes a second appearance next year!
Isobel Stevenson - Craft Market Director of Gwyl Pontardawe Festival
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Nicey replies: Chocolate malted milk biscuits are terrific aren't they. Sorry did you want Kate to sort that out for next year or me? |
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Kate Strudwick |
Hello N & W,
You may be interested to hear of a controlled experiment conducted last weekend at the Pontardawe International Music Festival.
Over the period of the Festival an area of the Artists Reception tent was a dedicated “Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down” zone. This proved to be a runaway success, proving that the music business isn’t all about sex and drugs and rock ‘n roll. Anyway, imagine our amazement when the pinkie wafers were a clear first-choice favourite with a large proportion of our control group – even when included in a yummie selection containing fig rolls, jaffa cakes, jammie dodgers and other quality confectionery. As this is clearly an unexpected result, could it be that our control group of musicians, arty-farties and Festival crew was a flawed sample for this sort of specialised test? Last to go were the finger Rich Tea – despite being the most dunkable on offer. What do you make of this?
Kate |
Nicey replies: Well my first impressions are that the Pontardawe music festival is certainly a highlight in the tea and sit down calendar if not the music one. Sue Northcott mailed us to say that she knocked up a highly successful batch of Rice Krispie Cakes (Buns if your Irish) especially for the event.
As for Pink Wafers you are right to point out this unusual tendency. Perhaps it was a peer pressure thing with the most respected artist picking them first and causing a small and localised fad.
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Hiromi Miura |
Hello, All.
I'm from one of oriental land TOKYO JAPAN. Last winter, I visited London with my husband. Then I ate "Party Ring"(Fox's). How cute and colourful biscuit it is!
By the way ,we have a biscuit similar to Party Ring in Japan. That name is "DOUBUTSU YOUCH".
DOUBUTSU means ANIMAL, and I,m sorry, I do not know what YOUCH means in both of Japanese and English.
So this is animal shaped biscuit with colourful icing on the surface of each. Its colours is mainly white, pink, yellow, green. When I get this in the Japanese store, I never fail to choice a packet which has less white and full of pink icing.
Thank you.
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Nicey replies: Thank you Hiromi,
It's always lovely to find out about iced biscuits from around the world, as they are not as popular as once they were here. Good to see some doing well in Japan. |
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Jez Turner
Malted Milk Review |
Nicey,
This is just what we are going to eat now.
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Nicey replies: Good work, a very solid selection there. I had a nice sit down with the younger members of staff about 2pm too, taking a break from weeding the borders. We sheltered from the rain under the sun umbrella and all had cups of tea to wash down with the last of the French palets from holiday and couple of the BOTW.
Currently writing a new biscuit of the week which is turning into a mild rant about some of the less inspired bits of the French language. |
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Mrs Sarah Mint-Viscount
Kimberley and Chocolate Kimberley Review |
Dear Nicey (and Wifey, and NCOTAASD YMOS),
As I listened to Today FM's Ray D'arcy Show this morning, I was getting very engrossed in the debate that raged - a debate on the nomenclature of that delicious little delicacy which is made by mixing Rice Krispies with melted chocolate, and dividing the mixture out into little paper cases to set.
Now, the many NCOTAASD enthusiasts who don't live in Ireland can't have heard the show, so they won't know that the debate in question raged between those who insist that the perennial party favourite made from chocolate and Rice Krispies should be called Rice Krispie Cakes, and those who are adamant that they are, and always must, be called Rice Krispie Buns.
Guest host Jenny Kelly was very calmly handling the situation, as well she might, for she is usually the producer of the Ray D'arcy show, and the show regularly broadcasts very important and controversial debates such as these. But calm as she was, there was no doubt that this debate was getting heated - the emails and texts sent in by listeners were becoming more terse and aggressive by the minute.
Even without hearing this show, your NCOTAASD readers will readily understand how my enjoyment of this debate rose to all new levels, when none other than your good self was suddenly introduced to weigh in with your expert opinion. But I must say I was deeply surprised by the opinion you gave. Stating that you would call them Rice Krispie Cakes was bad enough, but to assert that you had never even heard of them being called Rice Krispie buns? It was almost too much to bear. And then, to my delight and relief, Jenny announced that the result of the poll was in, and that a resounding majority of the voters, well over 70%, agreed with me in calling them Rice Krispie Buns. Phew! I wasn't crazy after all.
Now, the British and the Irish are usually in full agreement on the subject of Tea, Biscuits and Cakes (or Buns, as the case may be). We're both in favour of them. Lots of Them. Lots and lots of them. But as you had never even heard of Rice Krispie Buns being called buns, and as they are buns to the majority of listeners to one of Ireland's most popular radio shows, I can only conclude that here is an issue which divides these two islands more than the Irish Sea divides us, and perhaps even more than the Jacob's Kimberley divides us.
In light of this, I wonder if we on the Emerald Isle deserve our to have our own icon on the NCOTAASD feedback section, as the French, Canadians and Aussies already do? After all we are the only nation to which you have ascribed a national gene allowing enjoyment of a particular biscuit (the aforementioned Kimberley). A little shamrock, perhaps, which would sit so nicely with the other icons, and make my heart swell with pride!
Mrs Sarah Mint-Viscount |
Nicey replies: Well yes I came to much the same conclusions in the news item I posted after the interview. Anyhow you're right the time has come for a proper Ireland icon. I'm normally fairly reticent about dishing out icons based purely on geopolitical boundries but as you all seem to have this weird rice krispie bun thing going on over there in addition to Kimberleys I think you've finally earned it (its a pity you had to mention the others as protocol dictates that they need to go up too (Also the Welsh will be after me again (...oh you left out the Kiwis))). |
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