Ricola

It’s lovely to be able to write about a brand that I have been using for over 20 years.  I first Ricola’s herbal Swiss sweets when I spent several months in Switzerland as part of my year off.  I came home from my Swiss adventure with the ability to ski; a working knowledge of the German language; a taste for herbal tea; and a liking for Ricola.  Since then speaking German, drinking herbal tea and always having a pack of Ricola in the car or my bag have become a regular part of my life (sadly the skiing proved a much more expensive pastime).

Recently, Ricola kindly sent me a lovely box filled with a selection of their sweets.  This sort are sugar free which I like because I don’t have to worry about the calories, plus they are better for my teeth.  There were four flavours in the box:

• cranberry
• lemon mint
• mixed berry
• liquorice

Now I’ve been a fan of the cranberry, lemon mint (more lemony than minty I think) and mixed berry flavours for quite a while, and I often buy them along with the original flavour, which I think I like best of all because it is the one that I used to buy in Switzerland.  The liquorice is a new one on me and I was a little uncertain about trying it as I am not a big liquorice fan.  It was quite pleasant though and it’s not necessary to be a liquorice fanatic to like it as it’s got a smooth, rounded flavour.  I don’t think I’ll be buying the liquorice flavour in future, just because I prefer the other varieties, but it was nice to try something a bit different.

Ricola is keen to celebrate this year’s National Herb Week and National Honey Week on the 7th May with their Honey Herb Swiss Sweets.  I’ve not tried these, but I’m liking the sound of the combination of rich honey and the Ricola’s unique blend of thirteen herbs.
Like the rest of Ricola’s range, Ricola Honey Herb Swiss Sweets are bursting with natural goodness, so as well as the herbs, including Lemon Balm, Thyme, Mallow and Lady’s Mantle, which are cultivated in the Swiss Alps, they contain only natural colours and flavours, and are suitable for vegetarians.