Highlander Kiss My BBQ! (Gusto Barbecue)

The Chef and I have tried the Black Pepper Forever! and Tomato or Nothing! flavour crisps from Highlander. We discovered them at Italian railway stations and found them tasty, indeed pretty much irresistible. Especially the tomato flavour.

 

So when Noble Friend went to Rome for a family do I asked her to look out for a packet of Highlander crisps for the reluctant taste testers to try. Which she duly did. And the reluctant taste testers found this barbecue crinkle cut crisp really very good.

 

I quite liked them too and I'm not usually mad about BBQ/barbecue as a flavour. In fact sometimes I find it downright horrible. but not here.

 

Lovely crunch, nice rich colour and a very nice taste.

 

Sadly these crisps are no longer made in Scotland but for some strange reason Italian crisp giant San Carlo finds it a good plan to market these crisps with guys wearing kilts. Weird isn't it? But easily recognisable.

 

Highlander crisps: crunchy and brave!

Highlander Black Pepper Forever! (Gusto Pepe Nero)

Another packet of crinkle cut from Highlander Crisps by San Carlo. And I thought these would probably be be tastier than the Tomato or Nothing! flavour because - because black pepper is easy, and tomato don't always work so well - but I was wrong.

And the Chef was wrong because he had thought the same.

Don't get the wrong idea. Black Pepper Forever! is a fine flavour and nothing the matter with it, but to our surprise we liked the Tomato or Nothing! flavour better. A nice fine crinkle, good crunch and a tasty flavour. And very nice too.

This packet of crisps came from Milan railway station. In fact, we found it on our way to Florence and it whetted our appetite for the Kiss my BBQ! and Fight for Vinegar! flavours which we have not yet tried. The Tomato or Nothing! packet, as you know, came from Pisa. I guess we didn't visit enough different railway stations because we didn't spot these crisps in any shops. Another time perhaps.

And here's a final chunk of Florence.

Highlander Tomato or Nothing! (Gusto Pomodoro)

Looking at this packet of crisps you would suppose it was a Scottish crisp. Well, it is, and it isn't. I think that Highlander Crisps used to be made at Bathgate in West Lothian but production there was closed in July 2013 and the owners (Italian crisp giants San Carlo) moved production to Italy.

It's all a bit confusing as the Highlander website has a .co.uk address but is in Italian. And you can't help but notice that the brand remains very Scottish looking. I mean, check out the kilt! In fact, the guys on the packaging all look as though they are taking part in a highland games somewhere; about to heft an enormous crinkle cut crisp in search of a world record.

Wearing a kit is not enough to be a Highlander, you need grit says the packet. These are ideal crisps for those with character, thick and crunchy with strong and intriguing flavours, with no compromises. Be crunchy, be brave, be a Highlander!

We found these crisps at Pisa railway station in Tuscany, and ate them on the short journey back to Florence where we stayed last week. And I must say I thought they were really tasty (even though they do feature celery which as you know is to be deplored). The Chef enjoyed them too.

Nice fine crinkle cut, good crunch although I really would not call them thick and crunchy, and the taste is a lot stronger than you usually get in a San Carlo crisp. In my experience Italian crisps tend to have a lighter flavour than most UK or US crisps, or even Swiss crisps so the good strong taste here was a welcome surprise.

Everyone knows the Leaning Tower of Pisa, so I have included two other Pisa monuments with today's crisp. If you ask me, the fabulous Baptistry (seen here with a little stretch of the Mediaeval walls) would be a world-renowned building if it wasn't for the Tower, and this little church on the bank of the Arno, Santa Maria della Spina, is pretty special too.