Good and Bad Buys at Lidl and Aldi stores (***Please don't expire***)

pumpkin89

Brie said:

LIDL ALERT!!!  

Well I call it false advertising but others may disagree.....

So in Lidl today and I spotted that they had Clarks Maple Syrup.  £1.99!!  Well it was a smaller than usual bottle but that's ok - I know there's issues with the maple sap harvest so maybe they've gone for smaller bottles.

Picked one up, turned it over and the contents are like water.  This is not syrup.  Looked at the contents and it's 25% maple syrup, and the rest is carob syrup, and fruit sugar etc etc. 

So be warned.  This was in the specials aisle, not where the jams and syrups normally live.  Clarks is a known brand so I'm really disappointed both in them and even more in Lidl.  Clarks label was a bit clearer about what it was but the headline poster from Lidl was MAPLE SYRUP but it's not.  

A disgruntled former maple syrup maker.   

This is one of those situations where you need to know the legal wording.

"Maple syrup" just means it contains some maple syrup.  What you need to look for is "pure maple syrup".

It's similar to "ice cream" which can be essentially anything sweet and frozen, vs "dairy ice cream" which actually has to contain cream.

Brie

pumpkin89 said:

Brie said:

LIDL ALERT!!!  

Well I call it false advertising but others may disagree.....

So in Lidl today and I spotted that they had Clarks Maple Syrup.  £1.99!!  Well it was a smaller than usual bottle but that's ok - I know there's issues with the maple sap harvest so maybe they've gone for smaller bottles.

Picked one up, turned it over and the contents are like water.  This is not syrup.  Looked at the contents and it's 25% maple syrup, and the rest is carob syrup, and fruit sugar etc etc. 

So be warned.  This was in the specials aisle, not where the jams and syrups normally live.  Clarks is a known brand so I'm really disappointed both in them and even more in Lidl.  Clarks label was a bit clearer about what it was but the headline poster from Lidl was MAPLE SYRUP but it's not.  

A disgruntled former maple syrup maker.   

This is one of those situations where you need to know the legal wording.

"Maple syrup" just means it contains some maple syrup.  What you need to look for is "pure maple syrup".

It's similar to "ice cream" which can be essentially anything sweet and frozen, vs "dairy ice cream" which actually has to contain cream.

Hmmm.  I know what you mean but the sign is, at a minimum, misleading I think.  Anyways, went and had a look again today knowing that we are a bit short on maple syrup at home and got one labelled "Canadian maple syrup" and it is, in fact, 100% maple syrup.  £3.49 I think.  And twice the size of the Clarks bottle so very good value.

Rosa_Damascena

I can see that Lidl has a new spin offer - has anyone benefited as yet? If so, what are the nature of the prizes?

Doc_N

pumpkin89 said:

Brie said:

LIDL ALERT!!!  

Well I call it false advertising but others may disagree.....

So in Lidl today and I spotted that they had Clarks Maple Syrup.  £1.99!!  Well it was a smaller than usual bottle but that's ok - I know there's issues with the maple sap harvest so maybe they've gone for smaller bottles.

Picked one up, turned it over and the contents are like water.  This is not syrup.  Looked at the contents and it's 25% maple syrup, and the rest is carob syrup, and fruit sugar etc etc. 

So be warned.  This was in the specials aisle, not where the jams and syrups normally live.  Clarks is a known brand so I'm really disappointed both in them and even more in Lidl.  Clarks label was a bit clearer about what it was but the headline poster from Lidl was MAPLE SYRUP but it's not.  

A disgruntled former maple syrup maker.   

This is one of those situations where you need to know the legal wording.

"Maple syrup" just means it contains some maple syrup.  What you need to look for is "pure maple syrup".

It's similar to "ice cream" which can be essentially anything sweet and frozen, vs "dairy ice cream" which actually has to contain cream.

I'd dispute that, so far as maple syrup is concerned. There's a specific labelling requirement for dairy ice cream which prevents non-milk products being sold with that description, but none for maple syrup.

Having said that, it would be an unlawful misdescription to describe something which isn't pure maple syrup as maple syrup. Just as it would be to describe butter substitutes as butter.

Cornucopia

Rosa_Damascena said:

I can see that Lidl has a new spin offer - has anyone benefited as yet? If so, what are the nature of the prizes?

It says it's a guaranteed win - so like the February bakery spin.   And it says it's for fruit.   That'll be quite interesting because all of Lidl's fruit (except bananas) comes pre-packed, I think, and getting a free item may involve getting a relatively large bag of something that is likely £1+ in price.

Unless, of course, they bring in some loose fruit specifically for this purpose...

Farway

Cornucopia said:

Rosa_Damascena said:

I can see that Lidl has a new spin offer - has anyone benefited as yet? If so, what are the nature of the prizes?

It says it's a guaranteed win - so like the February bakery spin.   And it says it's for fruit.   That'll be quite interesting because all of Lidl's fruit (except bananas) comes pre-packed, I think, and getting a free item may involve getting a relatively large bag of something that is likely £1+ in price.

Unless, of course, they bring in some loose fruit specifically for this purpose...

A gooseberry for every winner

pumpkin89

Doc_N said:

Having said that, it would be an unlawful misdescription to describe something which isn't pure maple syrup as maple syrup. Just as it would be to describe butter substitutes as butter.

No, it wouldn't unfortunately.  The wording "maple syrup" is ambiguous because it can mean either syrup from a maple tree, or any syrup which contains maple (the latter being analogous to vanilla syrup, strawberry syrup etc.)

Cornucopia

Farway said:

Cornucopia said:

Rosa_Damascena said:

I can see that Lidl has a new spin offer - has anyone benefited as yet? If so, what are the nature of the prizes?

It says it's a guaranteed win - so like the February bakery spin.   And it says it's for fruit.   That'll be quite interesting because all of Lidl's fruit (except bananas) comes pre-packed, I think, and getting a free item may involve getting a relatively large bag of something that is likely £1+ in price.

Unless, of course, they bring in some loose fruit specifically for this purpose...

A gooseberry for every winner

Every Lidl counts.  

Doc_N

pumpkin89 said:

Doc_N said:

Having said that, it would be an unlawful misdescription to describe something which isn't pure maple syrup as maple syrup. Just as it would be to describe butter substitutes as butter.

No, it wouldn't unfortunately.  The wording "maple syrup" is ambiguous because it can mean either syrup from a maple tree, or any syrup which contains maple (the latter being analogous to vanilla syrup, strawberry syrup etc.)

I think we’ll just have to disagree on this one. I don’t think the point’s ever been pursued legally, and certainly the UK Good Food magazine is no legal arbiter, but:

“Any product labelled 'maple syrup' must be pure maple syrup. While Canada and the US have slightly different grading systems, the colour of the syrup is your guide. Lightness or darkness of colour indicate the lightness or darkness of flavour, in turn reflecting the way maple syrup changes according to the time of collection.

If you plan to use it for drizzling over pancakes and waffles, go for the lighter colours. If you're using it to flavour cakes and muffins, or to add a touch of sweetness to stews or other savoury dishes, you might choose a darker, more robust style.

Maple-flavoured syrups, sometimes sold as 'breakfast' or 'pancake' syrups, will be cheaper, but these are made up of a sugar syrup that has been artificially flavoured and coloured.”

Brie

Doc_N said:

I think we’ll just have to disagree on this one. I don’t think the point’s ever been pursued legally, and certainly the UK Good Food magazine is no legal arbiter, but:

“Any product labelled 'maple syrup' must be pure maple syrup. While Canada and the US have slightly different grading systems, the colour of the syrup is your guide. Lightness or darkness of colour indicate the lightness or darkness of flavour, in turn reflecting the way maple syrup changes according to the time of collection.

If you plan to use it for drizzling over pancakes and waffles, go for the lighter colours. If you're using it to flavour cakes and muffins, or to add a touch of sweetness to stews or other savoury dishes, you might choose a darker, more robust style.

Maple-flavoured syrups, sometimes sold as 'breakfast' or 'pancake' syrups, will be cheaper, but these are made up of a sugar syrup that has been artificially flavoured and coloured.”

Thanks for such a clear way to describe it.  When we lived across the pond the OH was very fond of Aunt Jemima's pancake syrup and while I've always preferred maple I'd hate to put it to a blind taste test.  

Must admit though I didn't think the colour was due to the time of collection but to the relative amount of sugar in the end product.  And by sugar I mean maple sugar.  My point being that pure maple syrup will be made from maple sap.  The general line on this is that it takes 40 litres of sap to make 1 litre of syrup.  Continue this process and eliminate nearly all the water and you have sugar.  So a more watery and therefore lighter syrup may be the product of 50 litres rather than 40.  Obviously the point of collection will affect this a bit in that if there's a lot of moisture for the trees the sap flows easier as it's more watery.  But this is balanced by the fact that the sap is only (normally) collected when winter is turning to spring and there's the very real threat that anything too watery will freeze.