Tipples Cream Liqueur with Brandy and Amaretto

Author's product rating:   

Value for money	Excellent
Product Quality	Excellent
Product package	Average
Taste	Delicious
How loyal are you to this brand?	Very

Advantages:	Enjoyable liqueur coffee when you want it
Disadvantages:	Sometimes hard to find

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

The chances are that if your local supermarket has supplies of Tipples then they are keeping them well-hidden. Even when I know exactly what to look for, I can struggle to locate them in a store. “Ten little pots of luxury” it says on the box, and I try to remember that they are probably located somewhere near the liqueurs because of their alcohol content.

It always seems to me more logical that they should be placed with the coffee that they complement, or with the long life milk for which they are an extravagant and much more pleasing substitute. That’s where they’re placed once I get them home. But today it took longer than usual to search my local store and I failed to find them altogether. The assistant I asked seemed genuinely sympathetic to my plight. “I know the things you mean” said he, “but we don’t stock them any more”. He then went on to explain that they had experienced problems with the supply.

Now I’m hoping this is just a local problem, and a transient one at that, so I’ve written to Quality Spirits International who are still advertising their product and I’ll update this opinion when and if I hear anything more. I would hate to think that I was whetting your appetite for something more widely unavailable. (Availability has improved since I first wrote this - see end of op).

There is nothing much more annoying than coming home at the end of a good evening out, inviting your companions in and finding that you’ve run out of milk – or arriving home from holiday in the middle of the night after a delayed flight only to discover a completely empty fridge. These are the sort of occasions on which I find myself reaching for Tipples.

The “little pots” look no better than the ubiquitous plastic individual milk portion containers that you get at self-service restaurants the world over. It is just as difficult to remove their tops without splashing their contents over yourself and your neighbours. But there the comparison must end as the contents are made of stronger stuff.

Not for the diet conscious and not for anyone with tee-total tendencies, each pot of Tipples contains Guernsey double cream laced with brandy and a touch of amaretto, and can enhance beyond recognition even the most modest mug of instant coffee, not alone the real thing. The 15% alcohol content preserves the cream (although it is a lot thinner in consistency than one would expect of double cream) and so there is no need to refrigerate and they keep for a long time.

For maximum effect, make sure any companions know that you’ve run out of milk. Let them get to the point where they have politely said they’ll be happy to drink their coffee black while their tone of voice and facial expression have both said otherwise, and then remember that you can offer them Tipples. The appreciation you receive will be enormous!

Now for those of you who aren’t so keen on brandy, I once made the mistake of buying the Whiskey flavour. I say “mistake” not because there was anything wrong with the product, but just because I would always choose to have brandy in my coffee in preference to whiskey. As I’m no whiskey connoisseur I can’t comment on their claims to use Mature Irish whiskey except to say I have no reason to doubt them.

The price should be between £2.99 and £3.49. There have been quite a few developments since I first wrote this op with regard to availability. Tipples are now available in Safeways and Morrisons stores; I have also heard that Express dairies have been running a promotion of them; and that they should now be available in Sainsbury's. Sadly they are no longer to be found in Tesco's.

For further information:

The producers according to the box I have are: Channel Islands Liqueurs Ltd. Liqueur House, St Peter Port, British Channel Islands.

The advertisement I found on the web that featured the product was for Quality Spirits International.

If you use one of the standard search engines and enter “Tipples” you will find all sorts of things that have nothing whatsoever to do with this product !