Calendar makers, be warned. Your products have been scrutinised like never before. Tugboat owners and London live-aboard family Kate Carpenter (interior designer), Adrian Priestman (architect), their boys Falco (four) and Mannix (six), and Laura Rosa (four), daughter of Lee and Sebi on next door’s barge, have put them through their paces. The boys have inherited their parents’ skills in assessing design and structure: Falco got to the heart of the matter, quickly sussing that most calendars are laid out with the best treat saved for no 24; he selflessly tested this theory out time and time again. Mannix put a lot of thought into aesthetics, and Laura Rosa outed herself as a bit of a chocolate connoisseur (restaurant critic in the making, perhaps?).
Daylesford, £12
The organic company started off well with this stylish option – everyone admired the lovely packaging but Kate was dubious about its prospects of lasting a whole month, as it was flimsier than others. The chocolates were delicious but when Laura Rosa opened one of the doors, the major flaw revealed itself, written all over her disappointed face: no chocolate! The treats kept falling out of their boxes on to the floor of the calendar. An unforgivable error. 2/5
Frozen, M&S, £2.50
This calendar was quickly found to come to the rescue for Laura Rosa, a big Frozen fan (and it was scored by her alone). She proclaimed the chocolates “deeeeeeeeelicious” and looked like she was about to burst into a chorus from the film when Sebi reminded her of her reviewing responsibilities. She dug deeper, to find her inner food critic: “A little bit coconutty and a LOT of chocolatey.” She thought it was very Christmassy, though not, she was quick to add, “as Christmassy as Christmas” (possibly for fear of upsetting Santa). 5/5
Biscuiteers Advent biscuit tin, £45
Winner: mid range
Opening this pretty tin to reveal the iced animals inside caused great excitement (think fireworks night style “Ooooh, ahhhhhhhs”) with thoughtful Mannix declaring it “like opening a box of toys”. Everyone agreed these “charming and beautiful handmade biscuits” tasted unusually delicious, with a subtle hint of ginger that the kids absolutely loved. To turn it into an advent calendar you need to buy a £20 apron separately – not cheap, but the whole thing was “so beautifully done, it’s well worth it for a treat at Christmas”. 5/5
La Pâtisserie des Rêves, £25
“That’s so cool – I wanna eat number 24!” shouted Falco. Refillable houses were popular with all the parents from an economic and environmental point of view. Lily O’Brien’s offering (slightly cheaper at £20) was praised by Kate for great looks and substantial structure, but La Pâtisserie des Rêves was picked out by Mannix as the firm favourite. “I love this box the best, the drawings are cool.” It also got marked up for being “packed with Christmas cheer and yummy choices” because of its variety: as well as chocolate, there were sweets and lollies crammed inside those doors – it had “oodles of wow factor”. 4/5
Chococo treasure hunt, £16.50
Everyone thought this was a great idea: “A lovely playful twist on an advent to keep the kids busy,” said Kate, hopefully. But the quality of the chocolate was so bad that both families were disappointed in the end. Laura Rosa summed up the feelings all round when she said, rather sadly, “finding was better than eating”. 3/5
Lindt, £14, from Moonpig.com
Winner: affordable
The Lindt calendar was a big success. It aroused the most curiosity and excitement among the kids with its perfect balance of mystery and hints of what was to come. Crucially, the doors are all different sizes, which helped to build anticipation. “I love the bear,” Falco said possessively, taken with the gold teddy peeping out from the middle of the box. “I would give it a 29.” The price and quality of the chocolates went down pretty well with the adults, too. 5/5
Children’s Fortune Cookie Advent, Cracking Cookies, £37.99, Not on the High Street
These can be personalised with your family’s names, and the wording on the box – “The power of surprise is magical” – really built the excitement. So it’s a shame the contents were such a let-down. The cookies tasted decent enough, but there was a worrying moment when Mannix opened his fortune and declared it “really bad”. To some relief, it turned out just to be a cheesy joke. The kids had some feedback for the manufacturers – put some thoughtful messages inside – “Make someone smile” or “Share this cookie” – and save the bad jokes for Christmas crackers. 2/5
Hotel Chocolat, White Chocolate Advent Calendar, £12.50
The boys loved the snowflakes, and, thanks to Falco’s somewhat unpredictable ratings system, the box scored 20 out of 5. Laura Rosa approved of the white chocolate, which “tastes like a milky bar” and Falco decided “I guess I would give that 100”. There was some debate over the “squares” (doors), which design-conscious Mannix pointed out “might not be ordinary squares”. It was marked down for its uniformity, considered a bit bland overall, and the chocolates were too sweet for the adults (Hotel Chocolat’s truffles for two calendar went down far better, though at £26, it is probably best kept just for the adults). 2/5
Bettys Advent Calendar, £47.50
With its farmhouse aesthetic, the apron would look really lovely hanging by the Aga in someone’s kitchen, interior designer Kate noted. She also liked the quality, and thought it was designed to last. The chocolates were really moreish, moulded into “gorgeous little characters” in different sizes. But some of the pieces were big and tooth-gnashingly hard – a bit of a mouthful for kids. This one would be perfect for adults. 4/5
Rum Advent Calendar, Firefox, £149.99
Winner: adult only
“Laugh in the face of other advent calendars”, declares the packaging on this “swashbuckling” dram-based delight. Which we thought was OTT until we read Adrian’s tasting notes, which started with “sensational” and ended “yum, yum give me rum”. Before he lost his critical powers entirely, he’d marked out the spice rum and the Barcelo Imperial as being particularly enjoyable, the whole thing as “educational”, and a “rum enthusiast’s dream”. Even waking up to the price tag of these 24 little wax-sealed bottles of rare and reputable rums would not dissuade our panel of sailors from awarding top marks. “It’s expensive, yes, but it’s a luxury experience,” reasoned Kate. “We shared them with the neighbours while we were all hanging our Christmas decorations.” There may have been some swaying – on account of the rum, or the swell of the Thames around the boats – but there was no swaying on the verdict on this calendar. Fit for the captain’s table. 5/5
Comments (…)
Sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion