Here are the items I found in my first Degusta Box of the new decade:

Crafted By Cracker Drinks Co Blueberry and Blackberry Fruit Juice Drink

I have already tried the Mango and Passion Fruit version of this drink from my April 2019 Degusta Box, so it was interesting to find this variety in this month’s box. While I couldn’t taste any blackberry, I could mostly detect the apple (its main ingredient) and the blueberry flavours.

Rating: 8/10

Nestlé Kit Kat More and Yorkie More

I have previously tried these bars when I purchased them from GB Gifts and I like how each bar has additional bits added to them.

The Kit Kat More bar has a raspberry and hazelnut filling, which was reminiscent of the filling in Kit Kat Editions bars from the 2000s. Although the raspberry filling had a tangy and sweet flavour, it overpowered that of the hazelnuts and I think the hazelnuts were just there to give the bar an extra bit of texture.

The Yorkie More bar has oats, apple and cinnamon. The oats gave the bar a lovely crunch while there were balanced flavours of apple and cinnamon.

Degusta Box ran a competition in collaboration with Nestlé where it asked entrants to post pictures of themselves or their families and friends enjoying either the Kit Kat More bar or the Yorkie More bar on Instagram using the hashtag #Degustanestle. Each entrant got 10 Degustapoints added to their Degusta Box accounts (100 points will get them a free box) while Nestlé awarded the grand winner with a hamper full of Nestlé products. I entered the competition by uploading a picture of me showing what the inside of a Kit Kat Chunky More chunk looked like before devouring the bar, but I didn’t win unfortunately.

Rating: 8/10 for the Kit Kat More, 8.5/10 for the Yorkie More

Nescafé Gold Almond Latte

Whilst Veganuary was in full swing as I received the box, I was intrigued to see these sachets of Almond Latte in the box. There are also oat and coconut varieties available. Unfortunately I didn’t like the almond latte much because it tasted a bit “off” at first, but it had a very good coffee aftertaste. I have since ordered the coconut variety from Ocado because coconut milk is my ideal alternative to my usual skimmed cow’s milk and it is better than the almond version despite its rather unusual hint of sweetness.

Rating: 2/10 for the Almond Latte, 8/10 for the Coconut Latte

Prep Co. Thai Green Curry Rice & Quinoa

I like Thai green curry, so I was excited to find this in my box. Prep Co. is one of the newest brands I have come across in this month’s box alongside Wholesums, Chescots and Zest and they make healthy instant snacks based on dishes from around the world. Each pot is high in protein and fibre, has one portion of vegetables and is suitable for vegetarians. I prepared and ate my pot on a Sunday evening when I didn’t feel like full-on cooking due to a lack of sleep the night before. It was very fragrant, had a slightly higher ratio of rice to quinoa and a gentle burn of spices. The vegetables added some vibrancy and extra flavour to the pot.

The box came with a coupon that would give me £1.00 off a Prep Co. pot in Sainsbury’s. I will either buy the Thai Green Curry Rice & Quinoa one again or try the Mediterranean Couscous one.

Rating: 7.5/10

Wholesums Fresh Veg Popped Chips – salt of the earth

Usually when I hear the term veg chips, I think of vegetable crisps that contain beetroot and parsnip, both of which I don’t like. Upon finding these Wholesums in my box, I was more determined to try them because they are made from potato, carrot and peas, all of which I do like. I like how each chip came in a different colour so that I could easily tell which flavour was which. The potato ones tasted like ordinary salted potato crisps or chips while the carrot and pea ones were true to their flavours if they had a slightly sweet aftertaste. The chips as a whole were also a bit on the salty side.

Rating: 7.5/10

Whitworths Shots berry & white chocolate

I’m pretty sure I’ve tried these before I got them in my box. With just three elements of cranberries, raisins and Belgian white chocolate drops, this variety of Whitworths Shots is one of the most simple. The tart cranberries and the smooth white chocolate especially go together very well.

Rating: 8.5/10

Chescots Supergut Porridge Blackcurrant, Coconut & Chia

I haven’t had instant porridge in a pot for ages. Previous brands I had tried were Quaker Oat So Simple and MOMA. The first time I tried this porridge I added water from the kettle that had cooled down slightly after having boiled it for some tea and the porridge turned into a lovely shade of purple when I added the water. There was the tart taste of the blackcurrant and the crispness of the coconut. I ordered two further pots of this from Ocado so that I could try it again with freshly boiled water and as cold overnight oats-style porridge. The porridge was much better with freshly boiled water because it was thicker. I also enjoyed it as a cold overnight oats-style porridge with coconut milk.

Rating: 8/10

Kallø Organic Honey Rice & Corn Cakes

After having already tried the Kallø Belgian Milk Chocolate Rice Cake Minis in the July 2019 Degusta Box, I was pleased to find the Honey Rice & Corn Cakes in this month’s box. Like the Belgian Milk Chocolate Rice Cake Minis, these are also gluten free and suitable for vegetarians. Upon opening these, I was met with an aroma reminiscent of that of Honey Monster Wheat Puffs (formerly Sugar Puffs). I tried a bit of one cake on its own and I liked the taste of honey combined with the rice and corn. I then had two of these cakes with Sun-Pat Smooth Peanut Butter (also included in this month’s box, see below), but I found that the taste of the peanut butter masked the honey flavour of the cakes.

Rating: 8/10

Sun-Pat Smooth Peanut Butter

Sun-Pat is the leading brand of peanut butter I have eaten the most throughout my life, although more recently I have been buying Meridian peanut butter because it doesn’t contain palm oil. While it was good to receive the Sun-Pat Smooth Peanut Butter as a stand-by staple, I was originally misled by its ingredients because I thought it used peanut oil instead of palm oil; however, when I looked at the website’s FAQs, I saw that E471 was actually palm oil that was used in addition to peanut oil. Nevertheless, there is a statement on the website that says the palm oil is sustainable.

The boring stuff about Sun-Pat aside, I was reunited with its nutty taste with a slight salty hint. While I prefer crunchy peanut butter, I thought the smooth version spread on the Kallø Organic Honey Rice & Corn Cakes very well.

Rating: 9/10

Eat Natural Simply Vegan bar

I like to consume Eat Natural cereal bars every so often, especially the yoghurt coated apricot ones. This made an ideal snack in my agency’s office and although I was surprised to learn this bar contained chickpeas as I couldn’t taste them, I liked the coconut, the apricots and the peanuts as well as the dark chocolate on the bottom.

Rating: 8.5/10

Zest Vegan Basil Pesto

After having already tried a vegan version of a Sacla’ pesto from a previous Degusta Box, I was willing to give the Zest version a try. I first tried it with wholewheat tagliatelle, green vegetables and a vegetarian Parmesan alternative and it tasted like ordinary green pesto. This pesto uses cashew nuts instead of Parmesan cheese in order to make it vegan.

Rating: 8/10

Bounce Peanut Protein Energy Ball

I have heard of these Bounce Energy Balls for a long time and I tried one or something similar, but I wasn’t that keen on it because it had an overly eggy taste. The peanut variety was slightly better with its initial peanut hint and chewy texture, but there was a strong and indescribable aftertaste that I have detected in other high protein products before.

Rating: 7/10.

In conclusion, this was a very good first box of 2020. My favourite products were the Crafted By Cracker Drinks Co Blueberry and Blackberry Fruit Juice Drink; the Nestlé Kit Kat More and Yorkie More bars; the Whitworths Shots berry & white chocolate; the Chescots Supergut Porridge Blackcurrant, Coconut & Chia; the Kallø Organic Honey Rice & Corn Cakes; the Sun-Pat Smooth Peanut Butter; the Eat Natural Simply Vegan bar; and the Zest Vegan Basil Pesto. My least favourite product was the Nescafé Gold Almond Latte, so I hope I can pass the remaining sachets onto my mum for her to donate to her church.

Overall rating including that for the Nescafé Gold Coconut Latte: 106.5/140

Degusta Box U.K. website: https://www.degustabox.com/en/

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored blog post. All opinions expressed are my own.