As senior food and drink editor at Good Housekeeping, I taste hundreds – if not thousands – of wines every year. But there was a very surprising bottle at the recent M&S Autumn Drinks tasting that had some very serious wine and spirits writers pretty excited. But it wasn’t a Premier Cru Burgundy or a vintage Champagne. The bottle everyone was raving about was actually M&S’s new Vegan Coconut and Chocolate Spirit Blend.
Think Bounty chocolate bar (or Coconut Grove bar if you’re M&S), only pourable – and with a rather grown-up after-dinner twist. The creamy, coconutty liqueur had the whole room buzzing.
M&S describes it as a coconut- and chocolate-flavoured spirit blend with a rich cocoa finish. It also happens to be vegan. And if it sounds familiar, M&S did release a vegan option a few years ago – but this one is different and WAY tastier.
At £12 for a 70cl bottle, it makes a tempting alternative to the usual cream liqueur. One taster even declared it ‘better than Baileys’ – high praise indeed from a room full of people who had just worked their way through hundreds of wines.
M&S suggests serving it over ice, adding a splash to your after-dinner coffee or pouring it over ice cream for an affogato-style dessert. I wouldn’t be averse to adding a slug to a decadent hot chocolate either. And I’ve earmarked a bottle for our Bonfire Night party.
So, if the mini Bountys are the first chocolate you pinch out of a box of Celebrations, this is definitely one to look out for on your next M&S trip. Even if you’re a big Baileys fan, we think you’ll love it.
Stacey looks after all food and drink reviews — from coffee pods and veg boxes, to natural wine and tequila. Stacey is also founder of Crummbs, where she’s written nearly 2,000 restaurant and hotel reviews since 2013. Prior to this, Stacey wrote hundreds of in-depth buying guides for the Independent, i newspaper and BBC Good Food, as well as reviewing restaurants and interviewing celebrities in her column at Balance Magazine. Stacey has also appeared in BAFTA-nominated BBC documentary Blood, Sweat & Takeaways, where she investigated South East Asia's food production industry, appearing on both Newsnight and BBC World Service to share her findings. Regularly checking out the latest restaurants, bars and product launches, Stacey also loves experimenting with recipes at home, and is a WSET-certified wine and spirits expert, with over 10 years of experience in the business. You can follow Stacey on Instagram @crummbs_uk
