The Salt & Vinegar Crisps of Éire - Part 3: Aggressively Pomaceous

The brand name "simply roasted." made me think of the movie Dazed & Confused. Should I eat these at 4:20?

These may have been the first lifestyle crisps I encountered on my trip. (I shall find out when I review the crisps I sampled in Britain.) They're roasted in "one-of-a-kind ovens" and so they have less fat and fewer calories than your typical deep fried crisp. In addition, their website boasts about sustainable business practices such as powering the crisp factory with solar, converting leftover cooking oils into aviation fuel, and so on.

I should note that these aren't Irish crisps, but rather English ones found in an Irish airport. They're made across the Irish Sea in Norfolk.

Given all of this, how did the roasted salt & vinegar crisps taste?

Let's begin with how they looked which was yellow with some brown patches. They appeared to have had the skin left on as the edges were uniformly brown. Without my calipers I couldn't be sure but they seemed to be cut a tad more thickly than their common American counterparts. The aroma was oil, followed by cider vinegar, and then a bit of sweet spud in the background.

These crisps were nice and crunchy. At first a sweet potato flavor predominated but it was followed by some mild vinegar tanginess. After I chewed some crisps into a paste the potato flavor took on some earthy tones. Although there was a paucity of vinegar zip, there was no shortage of its flavor as these puppies had a wonderful, firm cider vinegar taste. My notes say that I may have tasted sherry but I cannot recall if I tasted it before or after reading the ingredients which includes sherry vinegar powder. No doubt the addition of apple powder boosted my perception of the cider vinegar.

Although they were roasted and not deep fried, I couldn't tell the difference. What made these crisps stand out for me was the prominent apple/cider vinegar taste which was just delicious.

The Road of Beans

Upon returning from the UK last autumn, I thought it would be nice to continue the vibe and eat beans on toast again after having had my first proper English breakfast in Leicester. (It is easier to prepare than black pudding.) I cannot eat this often so it would have to be a treat.

I bought a small can of Bush's baked beans for the occasion. While I would have bought some of Heinz's from the UK, a normal sized can was too much for me as I would be eating solo. That and my source of baked beans from across the ocean, Woodman's, stopped carrying the curry beans. Now, had they been on offer, I would have gotten those.

Well, that can of beans sat in my cupboard for a while but I recently dusted it off, threw in some smoked pork loin, and served it over some toast made with bread I made. (Er, my breadmaker made.)

It turned out well and I listened to some IQ as I ate because, while I was waiting to be seated for my first proper English breakfast, IQ's singer, Peter Nicholls, walked right in front of me. I was gobsmacked as I reverted to being 17 again. It's not everyday I get to be in the presence of a prog rock god. Haha!