Tesco Express, Islington, London

Recently I’ve been on the look out for a good hazelnut yoghurt. I guess my model is the old, cheap hazelnut yoghurts I got as a kid. Back in those days quite likely full of junk and definitely not live… but… I used to love the milky, clean flavour with the little bits of real nut. On the whole I love the trend to more ‘luxurious’ flavours in yoghurts. Creamy lemon curd or Greek with honey… yum! But it seems that if you try to improve hazel, what you end up with is something that tastes of caramel, rather than nut. And don’t even get me started on the brazil yoghurts that have replaced them in some places. I love brazils, but put them in a yoghurt and the milkyness of the nut is hidden by the yoghurt itself and all you get is sickly sweetness and the bitterness of gone-off nut. Ik.

My local Tesco used to do a good hazel yoghurt. Milky rather than creamy. Generous with the ‘bits’. I didn’t blame them when they (and the lovely black cherry that was also part of the same line) disappeared, replaced by another line. I believed it was head office’s fault, the line was discontinued, and I mourned.

I was wrong. This branch has them! (And I’ve included a picture should anyone want to try them). I will have to go and take a star off my local branch…

Anyway, as to this branch… It’s largish for one of the smaller Tescos (come on, you know what I mean…). So lots to choose from. Not often visited (though maybe now I will!), but never had a problem. And they did some awesome reductions on Christmas Eve this year: I had oven ready ‘posh’ stuffed pheasant at Christmas for £3 thanks to them.

PS: ironically, in these yoghurts caramel is listed in the ingredients. What can I say? They’ve got the balance right in my opinion.