I'm Kelvin Green. I draw, I write, I am physically grotesque, and my hair is stupid.
Tuesday, November 22, 2022
Mince Pie Fest 2022: Aldi Purewick?
The pastry on this unusual pie is very tough and I was unable to bite through it. The filling has a nice festive aroma, but the texture is all wrong and it is unpleasant to eat.
Basically inedible. 1 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
Labels:
mince pies,
MincePieFest,
MincePieFest 2022
Monday, November 21, 2022
Mince Pie Fest 2022: Iceland Luxury
"Luxury" doesn't mean what it used to.
The pastry has a good texture, soft with a bit of bite, and has a nice sweet taste, but is also a bit sickly. The fruity flavoursome filling -- ™ Stan Lee -- is tangy, but alas tips over into bitter, and an aftertaste that I can only describe as nasty.
This is a mince pie full of strong flavours, the problem being that they are all the wrong ones! 2 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
The pastry has a good texture, soft with a bit of bite, and has a nice sweet taste, but is also a bit sickly. The fruity flavoursome filling -- ™ Stan Lee -- is tangy, but alas tips over into bitter, and an aftertaste that I can only describe as nasty.
This is a mince pie full of strong flavours, the problem being that they are all the wrong ones! 2 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
Labels:
mince pies,
MincePieFest,
MincePieFest 2022
Sunday, November 20, 2022
Mince Pie Fest 2022: Iceland
Get ready, as we enter the Twilight Zone!
The pastry is firm, almost biscuity, with an aftertaste akin to shortbread. In general I'm not a fan of shortbread, but this isn't unpleasant. The filling is surprisingly rich and tasty for a "basic" pie, and borders on savoury.
This mince pie is weird. It's nothing like the sort of mince pie I prefer but even so I quite like it. I give it a surprising and self-questioning 3.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
The pastry is firm, almost biscuity, with an aftertaste akin to shortbread. In general I'm not a fan of shortbread, but this isn't unpleasant. The filling is surprisingly rich and tasty for a "basic" pie, and borders on savoury.
This mince pie is weird. It's nothing like the sort of mince pie I prefer but even so I quite like it. I give it a surprising and self-questioning 3.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
Labels:
mince pies,
MincePieFest,
MincePieFest 2022
Saturday, November 19, 2022
Mince Pie Fest 2022: Holly Lane (Aldi in Disguise)
The pastry has a nice texture but is a bit dry, chalky even, and there is a lot of sugar on top. "A light dusting" my foot! The filling is not unpleasant, but lacks a strong and distinctive flavour and fails to overcome the sweetness of all that sugar.
These remind me of the Tesco pies from day one. Not bad, not great, perfect for an office party or a festive funeral.
These pies are 66p cheaper than their "special" cousins, and a whole 0.5 better. You do the maths. (I don't know what that means.)
3 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
Labels:
mince pies,
MincePieFest,
MincePieFest 2022
Friday, November 18, 2022
Mince Pie Fest 2022: Aldi Specially Selected
These mince pies are the second-best, according to this nonsense article at The Grauniad. We will see about that.
The pastry is a touch too firm, bordering on tough, and while it has a pleasant sweet taste, it is a bit sickly.
The filling alas, is weak, with none of the brandy, cider, and port promised on the box, and almost no flavour at all.
The Guardian is wrong. Again. 2.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
The pastry is a touch too firm, bordering on tough, and while it has a pleasant sweet taste, it is a bit sickly.
The filling alas, is weak, with none of the brandy, cider, and port promised on the box, and almost no flavour at all.
The Guardian is wrong. Again. 2.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
Labels:
mince pies,
MincePieFest,
MincePieFest 2022
Thursday, November 17, 2022
Mince Pie Fest 2022: Greggs
Ah, Greggs, the titan of the British high street! I don't tend to review "fresh" mince pies, but I was in the area anyway so...
The pastry has little taste, and what there is, is of cardboard, but it does have a pleasant firm texture with a bit of crumble.
Unlike many pies, there's no hint of alcohol to this one -- insert joke about the working classes and alcohol dependency here, if you're a bastard -- but it's still very tasty; it's rich and tangy and full of fruity flavour, and to be honest, you don't miss the booze.
Shame about the pastry though. 3.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
The pastry has little taste, and what there is, is of cardboard, but it does have a pleasant firm texture with a bit of crumble.
Unlike many pies, there's no hint of alcohol to this one -- insert joke about the working classes and alcohol dependency here, if you're a bastard -- but it's still very tasty; it's rich and tangy and full of fruity flavour, and to be honest, you don't miss the booze.
Shame about the pastry though. 3.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
Labels:
mince pies,
MincePieFest,
MincePieFest 2022
Monday, November 14, 2022
Mince Pie Fest 2022: COOP
These have a sweet pastry, not unlike that of their fancier cousins, but far softer, to the point that they tend to disintegrate in your hand as you bite. The filling is a little bland, but has a nice tangy aftertaste. As far as “cheap” pies go, these are pretty decent.
3.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
3.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
Labels:
mince pies,
MincePieFest,
MincePieFest 2022
Sunday, November 13, 2022
(Turn) Limit Break
Stuart and I played another game of Stargrave Notromunda this week at the Dice Saloon; our rival crews entered an abandoned high-tech factory -- loot rolls after the skirmish indicated that the place only produced pistols, much to our disappointment -- and things got very ugly indeed!
Stuart's crew escaped with two bits of loot -- pistols, obviously -- while Fateweaver Duu'ey and his inscrutable space elves only managed to get one crate... of pistols. On the other hand, the aliens only took two casualties while Stuart's band of pirates and mutants lost seven (!) members. Duu'ey himself was reduced to only two hit points and was lucky to survive, not least because the factory's half-functional security robot was stomping around nearby, making an I-have-a-machine-gun-ho-ho-ho nuisance of itself.
We are both very much enjoyingStargrave Notromunda but we have yet to complete a full game, always with at least two turns to go when a member of the Dice Saloon team politely suggests we stop so they can close up and go home. I'm not sure what's taking us so long as it's a simple enough game, and crews are limited to about ten models, but we are only managing about three or four turns in three hours and we haven't achieved either of the game end conditions -- all loot recovered, or only one crew left on the table -- so far. I don't remember us having this problem in Mordheim Frostgrave.
I assume we're doing something wrong, because the game's author Joseph A. McCullough hasn't included any way of resolving a "time out" situation, which suggests it never occurred during playtesting.
Here's one potential resolution. I'll put it to Stuart next time we play:
If a game runs out of time, then a crew scores any loot that was extracted, as normal, plus any loot that is held or controlled by a crew member that is not in combat. Any loot that is "loose" or contested by a rival within 1", or is held by a crew member in combat, is lost. Any loot that has not been unlocked is also lost.
This is more or less what we decided after the game anyway, but I feel better having it written down. Er, typed out.
Is anyone else out there playingStargrave Notromunda? Have you had the same problem? How have you solved it?
Stuart's crew escaped with two bits of loot -- pistols, obviously -- while Fateweaver Duu'ey and his inscrutable space elves only managed to get one crate... of pistols. On the other hand, the aliens only took two casualties while Stuart's band of pirates and mutants lost seven (!) members. Duu'ey himself was reduced to only two hit points and was lucky to survive, not least because the factory's half-functional security robot was stomping around nearby, making an I-have-a-machine-gun-ho-ho-ho nuisance of itself.
We are both very much enjoying
I assume we're doing something wrong, because the game's author Joseph A. McCullough hasn't included any way of resolving a "time out" situation, which suggests it never occurred during playtesting.
Here's one potential resolution. I'll put it to Stuart next time we play:
If a game runs out of time, then a crew scores any loot that was extracted, as normal, plus any loot that is held or controlled by a crew member that is not in combat. Any loot that is "loose" or contested by a rival within 1", or is held by a crew member in combat, is lost. Any loot that has not been unlocked is also lost.
This is more or less what we decided after the game anyway, but I feel better having it written down. Er, typed out.
Is anyone else out there playing
Labels:
Dice Saloon,
Notromunda,
Stargrave
Saturday, November 12, 2022
Mince Pie Fest 2022: COOP Irresistible
2021’s champions return, but recipes and tastes change (and so must I), so will they be as good in 2022? Let’s find out!
The pastry is sweet and light and perfectly balanced between firm and soft. Inside, there’s a hearty, fruity filling, with warm waves of spicy booze. These pies feel like they warm you up even if they haven’t been heated. Sorcery!
Maybe the filling is a tad too chewy, possibly, a bit, but to be honest, I’m picking for nits at this stage. These are great mince pies.
4.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
The pastry is sweet and light and perfectly balanced between firm and soft. Inside, there’s a hearty, fruity filling, with warm waves of spicy booze. These pies feel like they warm you up even if they haven’t been heated. Sorcery!
Maybe the filling is a tad too chewy, possibly, a bit, but to be honest, I’m picking for nits at this stage. These are great mince pies.
4.5 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
Labels:
mince pies,
MincePieFest,
MincePieFest 2022
Friday, November 11, 2022
Mince Pie Fest 2022: Tesco Finest
These pies have a gorgeous soft, crumbly, sweet pastry. I adore it. It's the very definition of "scrumptious." Probably.
On the other hand, the filling is a bit bland at first, but then there’s a secondary wave of tangy, rich, almost umami, flavour that comes in and saves the day.
These are good, strong pies. In fact, I’d say they are mighty fine(st)!
Ahem.
4 out of 5.
#MincePieFest2022 #MincePieADay #mincetagram
Labels:
mince pies,
MincePieFest,
MincePieFest 2022
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