New Costa Coffee, Oat and Banana Smoothie

I've pretty much gone vegetarian nowadays and am always looking to go more plant based, eating very little dairy (bar the odd bit of cheese) and some free range eggs. Going dairy free at home is easy, almond milk completely replaces dairy milk for cereal and porridge and there's loads of other milks that work well in coffee - coconut and oat being favourites of mine.

Unfortunately when out and about, you're more restricted unless you have soy milk, which I'm not as keen on. Small independents often have coconut or almond milk lattes but the big chains like Costa are sorely lacking. However, maybe because it's January and people are looking for healthier options or because Costa are embracing dairy free but there is a new dairy free option using oat milk.

It's a nice clean simple mix of a shot of espresso, banana, oat milk , oats and honey - though I asked for mine without honey to make it vegan (and also reduce the sugar content). Although initially the staff seemed a bit confused on how to make it they got there in the end and I appreciated they took the time to make my order right despite asking for something new they probably hadn't made yet.

It's extra cold and iced which makes it really refreshing and the perfect consistency. It's thicker than a coffee but not smoothie thick which makes it relatively liquidy and refreshing. The oats are completely blitzed up so there's no rough or chunky bits and the flavour is spot on.

It's a fairly mild coffee hit with a bit of sweetness but you still get the natural roasted taste of the coffee. It's certainly a lot less sweet than a lot of the sugary rubbish Costa sell and I liked it for this. Definitely a drink I hope sticks around for longer than the new year.

Marks and Spencer Christmas Coffee Capsules

When it comes to Christmas, I'm pretty susceptible to any food or drink that promises a Christmas twist. Make it sound a bit festive and I'll buy it without questioning it. I love my Nespresso machine anyway and whilst the official Nespresso pods are the best, I've found the M&S compatible pods a reasonable substitute. Now Nespresso's Christmas offering has been stellar this year - Apple Strudel, Linzertorte and Sachertorte - all of which I found deliver the promised flavours.

This M&S Christmas pod doesn't specify any specific flavour but it's a mix of carefully selected beans from Ethioia, Brazil and Central America which they claim has a seasonal deep and dark flavour with hints of cocoa and clementine. At the very least the packaging is red and so are the pods.

I made my coffee as a lungo with a little steamed milk so this may have some impact on the flavour profile. It is quite a rich, dark coffee but I didn't find it overly strong or bitter but this may be due to the addition of a little frothed milk. It's very much a deep roast and I think as an espresso would be pretty strong - it's a lot richer than the average Nespresso pod but very satisfying.

I tried to get any hints of Christmas flavouring but couldn't really detect any. There was certainly no clementine although I could taste faint hints of a deep, dark cocoa, which worked well with the strength of the coffee. It's actually a very nice coffee pod -bold, full tasting and powerful but it's no really Christmassy as such. Arguably it works well with the cold weather and is very much a winter day coffee , great for a Christmas breakfast or a cold morning but don't expect anything overtly festive. It certainly doesn't have the promised flavour of the Nespresso seasonal editions.

A great coffee overall and one I enjoy drinking but just be aware it's not really Christmassy.

Price: £3
Bought at: Marks and Spencer

Score: 7/10

Starbucks Nespresso Pods - Guatemala Antigua Espresso

I absolutely love my Nespresso machine and its definitely one of my best purchases and gets a lot of use. I'm a bit of a coffee snob and nowadays only drink coffee shop coffee or pod coffee - definitely no instant coffee or those horrible instant cappuccino sachets. I pretty much only buy the Nespresso branded pods for my machine as any others I've tried that are compatible have never been as good. However, Starbucks have recently launched a range of Nespresso compatible pods and whilst I'm not saying Starbucks is the best coffee ever, I do like Starbucks and don't think it deserves the criticism it gets as I always enjoy any drink I get from there.

The box looks really smart with nice Starbucks branding on and opening it up, you get 10 attractively arranged pods. I was a little worried about how well the coffee would come out as I have found anything non-Nespresso doesn't flow quite as well in the machine. Even these did not flow out quite as well as the branded Nespresso pods but certainly wasn't a major issue with a lovely aroma and dark, rich colour as the coffee came out.

This is a medium roast with hints of cocoa and spice and it made a really gorgeous drink when I made as a latte, It's fairly strong with a deep and rich flavour that cuts through the latte's milk for a powerful, warm taste with the soft spice notes adding a delicious roasted taste. In all honesty it really did taste a bit like a real Starbucks latte.

I was really impressed with these pods and actually preferred them to a lot of the authentic Nespresso variants and I would definitely buy this one again as it's currently my favourite pod for my Nespresso machine.

Price; £3.00
Bought at: Tesco

Score: 8.5/10

Whittards Gingerbread Coffee Syrup

Too soon for something quite Christmassy? I love gingerbread and am already counting down the days until the gingerbread lattes grace the coffee shops again. However, on a recent trip to Whittards, amongst their other delights (they were sampling a peanut butter hot chocolate, which was amazing) I spied their own gingerbread coffee syrup.

At £4 a bottle it's not cheap and pricier than Monin but worth noting that this is the first coffee syrup I've seen that isn't made with sugar but with fruit extract instead (which yes is a form of sugar but at least a natural one). It's simply fruit extract, flavouring and concentrated lemon juice).

The golden glow of the bottle looks warming and wintery cosy alone but the smell when you open it, is even more beautiful. Spicy, sweet - it's smells like Christmas and made me excited for it already and cosy afternoons in front of the fire.

I added one spoon to my latte (with a little Nakd nibble on the side) and it was perfect - as good as any Costa gingerbread latte with a warming, rich spicy scent that added a touch of sweetness withot tasting too sugary or syrupy. It's warming and comforting and just an absolute treat. I might even try adding to porridge and seeing what that's like. My mouth is watering at the thought already. Worth every penny.

Price: £4.00
Bought at: Whittards
Nutrition per 10g: 29 calories, 5.6g sugars

Score: 9/10

Vita Coco Cafe Cafe Latte Review

I'm a bit of a coffee addict and can drink even in the summer but sometimes when it's really hot, you just can't face a hot drink and that's where a nice iced chilled latte comes in for me. Coconut water is another brilliant summer staple that's very cool and refreshing - combine the two and that's got to be a winner for me.

I've always bought Vita Coco but have until now only tried their fruited versions -combining coffee and coconut water whilst intriguing could also go horribly wrong and I struggled to imagine what this would taste like. Much as I love coconut water, I wanted an iced latte feel to this and wanted it to be like the nice chilled coffee drinks you can get.

The packaging as always with Vita Coco is just great. It stands out, is loud, colourful and reminds me of holidays. The 330ml cartons are always really nice to hold and drink from and perfect for carrying out and about whilst travelling. Opening it up it certainly smelt of coffee. The prime ingredient is coconut water at 53% followed by low fat milk (so this is one Vita Coco that isn't dairy free) and then a good shot of Espresso with 120mg of caffeine per carton. There is also a little added sugar just to balance out the acidity of the coffee.

Pouring it into a glass it doesn't look that attractive I'll admit. However, it tastes just lovely. The flavour was spot and tasted just like any other chilled coffee drink only a healthier one with considerably less sugar than the likes of Starbucks chilled drinks.

It has a lovely almost caramel sweetness that is quite faint and not sickly but works well against a very strong espresso hit. I drank this in the car on a hot morning and it was perfect giving me a cooling coffee boost.

Price: £1.89
Bought at: Ocado
Nutrition per 100ml:  29 calories, 0g fat, 0g sat fat, 6.3g sugars

Score: 8/10

The new flat white at Caffe Nero Review

Whilst I do quite like Caffe Nero as a coffee chain, I do find they seriously lag behind Costa and Starbucks when it comes to new products and innovation in coffee. I love having coffee out and regularly do so so am always on the look out for the next big thing. Independents and smaller business, particularly in London, are doing really interesting things, but even Starbucks and Costa are pushing the boat out. Starbucks have launched the honey blossom macchiatos and you can now get coconut milk lattes and Costa have launched a roasted almond cappuccino.

Caffe Nero always miss the boat on trends and their big new launch is….the flat white. Flat whites are everywhere now and I have been drinking them for years even in the likes of Costa. But it is also my favourite coffee so I was interested in seeing how Caffe Nero’s compared.

Caffe Nero always use 2 espresso shots in all their drinks so I thought they would deliver a decent flat white, which is a slightly stronger milky based coffee with less foam than a cappuccino. It is stretched for a drink creamier than a cappuccino  but less milky than a latte.

It looked good with an attractive slightly foamed top with a soft, creamy finish that hinted a t at a dark, rich coffee underneath. I always alternate spooning off and eating a little foam than sipping a bit of a coffee with a cappuccino, latte or flat white as it gives  you a good taste of the flavours.

The milk was the perfect consistency – a little air and a little bit of froth but one that was still fairly, thick and milky with a nice sweet finish. Sipping the drink this was a pretty good flat. It had a deep roasted, strong flavour that was perfectly balanced and made a little lighter by the smooth milk. The drink was also nice and hot – I hate tepid drinks and coffee!

Caffe Nero make a good flat white and this will become my regular order in their stores ongoing. However, Caffe Nero please start getting onto trends earlier!

Bought at: Caffe Nero

Score: 8/10

Nespresso Vanilla Amaretti Pods (Christmas Limited Edition 2015)

I'm still relativrly new to the Nespresso world, only having picked up a machine a few months ago. I adore my coffee so have been working my way through the various pods but this is my first experience of a Christmas limited edition. I absolutely adore any almondy and love amaretti and the existing vanilla flavoured Nespresso pods are my regular weekend latte so this was a no brainer for me.

Like all  Nespresso capsules, it's smartly and attractively packaged and I love the edition of Christmassy sparkles.

As soon as I the popped the capsule in the machine and started making the coffee, I could smell the delicious smell of amaretti, a warming almondy scent - a good start!

Like the vanilla pods, I prefer my flavoured coffee to be made as milky cappuccinos or lattes so I also used the Nespresso aeroccino to make my own amaretti latte - my very own take on Caffe Nero's seasonal latte from last year!

The drink was warm and comforting although the amaretti only comes through as an undertone with the vanilla flavour being more pronounced. However, it's great to have a flavoured coffee that doesn't involve the sugar or artificial sweetners you get in coffee shop sticky syrups. Whilst the regular vanilla pods are still my favourite flavoured pods, this made a lovely seasonal treat.

7.5/10

Little's Cafe Amaretto Flavour Instant Coffee

I'm probably a little bit of a coffee snob. If I can't have a properly made one from a coffee shop or one from my Tassimo machine, I tend not to bother. I don't drink it at work as I just don't drink instant.

This instant caught my eye however as it contained one of my favourite flavours: amaretto. The fact it's a small, independent company rather than from a big corporation also made me give it a go. And actually it's pretty nice for an instant.

Opening the jar, you instantly get lovely aromas of almond and a roasted nuttiness that is sweet and inviting. As an instant, it's pretty simple to use - just add boiling water to a spoonful and you're done. They recommend adding milk and I would agree. I like my coffee black and intense but milk seems appropriate here. It gives the coffee a lovely creamy caramel colour and makes it seem a bit more special.

In many ways it's similar to an amaretto latte but without the sugary, artificial syrup. The taste is mild and very smooth with no harshness at all. It's slightly sweet with a distinct, obvious amaretto flavour. It will never compete with a well made flat white but it's excellent instant with a lovely different taste.

Score: 8.5/10

Lidl De Luxe Hazelnut Coffee Syrup

I'm a huge coffee fan and am always trying to replicate authentic lattes and espressos at home. I love my Tassimo machine and always look to add a little continental sophistication to my coffees, often with an amaretti or tuile biscuit on the side.

When I saw these bottles of coffee syrup in Lidl, I knew I had to buy a bottle to replicate my beloved hazelnut lattes for a little indulgence at home. These 350ml bottles are a mere £1.49 and there's also vanilla and caramel versions too. This is great value. An entire bottle for less than the price of one hazelnut latte from Starbucks.

And this really is the same product. It has that lovely nutty, sweet smell you find in hazelnut lattes in coffee shops and it is the exact same taste as well. It's smooth, warming and comforting.

This really enhances my lattes at home and is something I will continue to look forward using as a weekend treat for lazy breakfasts.

Score: 8/10