Sainsbury's

Sxollie - Cripps Pink Cider

Hustling is not something we would normally advocate here at The Amazing Blog, however when an advertising campaign comes in which is structured around the very essence of a jolly good hustle, we sit up, keyboards poised and channel the inner opportunist. Sxollie is the brand, and their delicious cider is the product which takes no prisoners and proudly promotes a good down to earth hustle.

Now ‘sxollie’ is derived from the english word scallywag, the afrikaans word skorrie-morrie, the dutch word schoelje meaning rascal, and the yiddish word meaning jackal. Quite a heady mix to get our teeth into, but also a highly effective marketing tool to ensure we are sitting up and taking notice, especially since it forms the basis for the philosophy behind Sxollie Cider. ‘In a nutshell’, as they decree, the term Sxollie means ‘hustler’, and its composition is a barrelful of single varietal cider, backed up by the company’s rousing chorus that this is the best cider to come out of Africa.

The interesting part of this approach is that actually the taste of Sxollie is rather refined - elegant almost, which must derive from the Champagne yeasts which are used to ferment their carefully chosen apples from the Elgin orchards of Cape Town. Perhaps the harder edge synopsis of this drink comes from the urban jungle itself which forms an integral ingredient to the finished product? However, that final product is certainly one to take a chance on, as it celebrates with all it’s might it’s African heritage, right down to the pottery design mosaic ‘X’ sprawled across the bottle. We discovered the brand as they were the winners of the International Cider Challenge 2019. There is a trio in the range to try, although we were ONLY sent one bottle Cripps Pink (Pink Lady) - ahem, Sxollie we would have like to have tried more!

Sxollie is available from our high street supermarkets, Waitrose and Sainsburys across the country have them on their shelves, as well as many good independent outlets. Waitrose currently have a 330ml bottle on at £1.85, but if you get your skates on, Sainsbury's have an offer running with bottles priced at £1.60. As the ‘Sxollie philosophy’ tells us - “Pursue that glint in your eye … a little hustle goes a long way”!

 

SPAtopia London Argan Oil Bodycare

If you ask me, there is nothing better than to find good quality and affordable beauty products - many times we just forget or don't want to realise the amount of money we spend on just one face cleanser because of the rave reviews it gets. That's why at The Amazing Blog we're thrilled by this A-list beauty discovery - SPAtopia London has launched a fabulous Argan Oil Bodycare range. Their products are affordable and work wonders.

The SPAtopia London Argan Oil Bodycare consists of 5 products: Bath Relaxer, Body Butter, Body Oil, Body Wash and Body Scrub. At The Amazing Blog we've had the chance to try the latter two out. The Argan Oil Body Wash is very creamy and feels luxurious on the skin, it lathers easily and it's very moisturizing - a definite winner for those of you with dry or flaky skin. The Argan Oil Body Scrub is a rich cream with very small and rounded scrubbing bits that don't feel harsh on the skin at all. This scrub polishes and nourishes the skin effectively, leaving it smooth and silky soft.

Both products smell absolutely amazing, the whole range is enriched with essential oils of Lemon, Patchouli and Petitgrain. Argan Oil has been on trend for a while now in the beauty industry - it has great skincare benefits and it's exceptionally rich in Vitamin E and Omega Essential Fatty Acids, and therefore well known for its anti-ageing, moisturising and anti-oxidant properties.

At The Amazing Blog we love featuring good quality and affordable products, and the SPAtopia London Argan Oil Bodycare Range has fulfilled our high hopes. This fabulous and luxurious feeling range is widely available from Sainsbury's - the Body Scrub retails at £4.49 and the Body Wash at £3.49. You can't really go wrong.

 

 

Fentiman's

On hot summer days, there's nothing better than sipping on a nice cold drink. Now, I know it's bad form to make generalisations, but I think I've found an exception to that rule. Fentimans has the most delicious range of (non-alcoholic) summer beverages. The Amazing Blog just can not get enough of their products, it's a mild obsession. These botanically brewed beverages (say that five times fast) are such a great alternative to the fizzy drinks from the corner shop. Even the bespoke bottles they come in are stylish. The method of botanically brewing is one of the things that sets Fentimans beverages apart from the rest. Through a mixture of roots and herbs, the beverages keep their natural and and tasty - the sedimentation which occurs from this process only serves to enhance all the flavours in the drinks and make sure that all the raw materials used in the process end up in the bottle. Fentimans have a great range of concoctions, including Curiosity Cola, Seville Orange Jigger, Ginger Beer, and Dandelion & Burdock. My personal favourite (it was a hard choice) is their Pink Lemonade, it's so cool and refreshing and absolutely perfect for a hot day. Fentimans have been making their carbonated beverages since 1905 and are still going strong to this day, once your try one of their drinks you'll understand why.

So grab yourself a few cool Fentimans this summer, you won't regret it! Fentimans is available online or at Waitrose, Sainsbury's and Tesco.

Black Garlic

Like most 20-somethings, I am borderline hopeless in the kitchen, so I'm always on the look out for ingredients that save me a job or make things that bit more painless. And The Amazing Blog has delivered a tasty little treat for you: Black Garlic. Now don't be frightened, even though it looks like one of your kitchen experiments gone wrong, it couldn't taste any farther from it. Everyone knows popping a bit of garlic onto chicken, into a sauce or with some vegetables makes everything taste better, but if you thought that before then Black Garlic will be your new kitchen holy grail. It's not supposed to replace regular garlic, as it's a completely different flavour sensation, it's soft and velvety and adds an amazing layer of flavour to whatever you put it in. In order to make Black Garlic,  a bulb is put through a heating and moisture process for several weeks, creating the intense flavour and colour. Black Garlic has almost twice the antioxidants of regular garlic and is low in fat and is first date safe, no garlic breath here! The great thing about Black Garlic is its versatility, their website even has recipes for you to try out and modify with your new favourite ingredient. So whether you're using it for a more traditional dish, or trying a more daring approach, some Black Garlic is the perfect complement to your meal.

Black Garlic is available for £1.40 in Waitrose, Sainsbury's, Tesco and a variety of independent food stores.

Byron Bay Cookies

Yesterday was, according to reports, the day that three-quarters of people broke their New Year’s Resolutions. So in addition to having to face the fact that it was a Monday, and indeed another gloomy start to another long week at work, it was also the day that greatest amount of resoluters were most likely to skip the gym, have a crafty fag or indulge in some forbidden chocolate. And while I may not have been a direct casualty of the curse of January 9th, having made specifically ‘vague’ resolutions, my ‘healthy eaten plan’ had certainly seen better days, particularly with the arrival of the deliciously decadent Byron Bay Cookies.

With a variety of flavours, including the mouth-watering White Choc Chunk & Macadamia Nut, Museli and Triple Choc Fudge they are the ultimate in indulgent treats and certainly not to be missed - diet or no diet!

In 1990, founders Maggi Miles and Gary Lines, inspired by the picturesque Byron Bay in Australia played around with ingredients to create the cookies that nowadays are sold all over the world. Since they found worldwide fame with their fabulous flavours, the company name officially changed to Byron Bay Cookie Company. They now bake over 50 million cookies a year that are sold in over 40 countries worldwide. In 2007 Byron Bay Cookie Company signed a deal with one of the UK most prestigious bakeries to produce the cookies in this country, which also meant they could be certified by The Vegetarian Society as they now contain only free range eggs. On their website you can also find their green creed: they now ship orders by sea rather than air and their packaging is bleach free and 100% recyclable, so all the more reason to treat yourself!

If your mouth is watering at the thought alone, you can find Byron Bay Cookies in a number of stores, including both Sainsbury’s and Selfridges. They are also available to buy at www.cookie.com.au. And you can follow them on both twitter and facebook, where you can find out more about this fabulous baker company including all their product flavours.