Onbuy Mr Tubs Pork Crackling And Oldfields Cider Gift Set Review

Reviewed by Keith Mitchell

This is a gift set aimed toward Christmas at present, containing two 500ml bottles of Oldfields draft ciders, one traditional 4.8%, the other a 4.0% blend of cider with blackberry juice. It has three 55g tubs of pork crackling, one traditional, one honey roast and one salt and vinegar. The product arrived well packaged, in a sturdy presentation box. The packaging is recyclable. It had a form of bubble wrap inside to protect the bottles in transit. Fun message at the front of the box, “Snoutstanding”.

This is one of a range of pork crackling products from Mr Tubs, several accompanied by ciders or beers. The crackling is described as “premium double hand cooked, low carb, high protein pork crackling, made in Britain, with no allergens”. The rear of the box gives the lists of nutritional information and ingredients so you can check what you are eating, all very informative.

All three of the tubs contain traditional crackling which is crunchy and crisp with the slightly pork fat taste, well remembered by those of us who had a packet of pork scratchings with our pints at our locals. The honey roast is light in taste so that the crackling is not overwhelmed. The salt and vinegar, similar to crisps, is instantly noticeable, but again does not overpower the taste of the crackling. I would say that all three are suitable snacks to have alongside drinks as a change to the more traditional crisps, peanuts and crackers. The tubs are recyclable but have a good fitting lid which makes them very useful if kept. Eaten in conjunction with the excellent ciders was pleasurable. I think my favourite was the honey roast crackling as that seemed to go best with the original cider, whilst the original crackling went well with the berry cider. I thought the salt and vinegar crackling went well on its own so the sharpness did not distract from the cider.

The Oldfields Berry cider is really nice. It is a blend of Worcestershire apples and Herefordshire blackberry juice. It is clear with a bright colour. You get the aroma of apples and blackberries quite clearly when you open the bottle. I drank it as I was preparing dinner and found it had a very pleasant taste. Again it was not too sweet with that solid draft type taste. As it was getting warm I noticed that on the back of the box it said this was best served chilled or over ice. So I immediately added a couple of ice cubes rather than putting the drink in the fridge. WOW! that really made this cider stand out. The fruitiness of the berries and the crispness of the apples really became enhanced and made this an excellent drink. I would certainly agree that this particular cider is at its best chilled or over a small amount of ice (so as not to dilute it too much)

The Oldfields original Worcester cider has a strong apple smell you would associate with a good draft cider. It has a smooth clean taste, not too sweet, but with a decent kick to it. It is clear and with a lightness and not thick or heavy, making it a refreshing drink. This is made from a blend of four different types of apple, Dabinett, Harry Masters, Jersey and Yarlington Mill. I chilled this cider for a short while and found that drew out the apple flavours very well.

If someone had bought this for me for a Christmas present, or any other time for that matter, I would be very pleased. It is a nice combination of good quality products. I would give this as a present and be [pleased to receive it.

Rating: 5/5

RRP: £16.99  I would consider that a very reasonable price.

This can be purchase from Onbuy here