Please excuse my lack of social media presence lately…it’s been that time of year again and I’ve been deep in the depths of end of year report writing for the last couple of weeks! Thankfully they are now all submitted (whoop!) and I can spoil myself with a little well-earned treat! How utterly perfect that I recently was given the opportunity to review some rather naughty but nice sweets from the fantastic British company Holly’s Lollies. I have rather the sweet tooth in any case, but when I heard that this particular confectionery brand specialises in making sweets and lollies that contains real alcohol (including gin!) I was very easily sold with the concept as you can well imagine!
Holly’s Lollies was first created when recent graduate Holly Brook began experimenting with sweet making during her student days at University in Bath back in 2013. A blogger herself and on summer break from her studies, Holly began playing around with recipes for fudge and toffee that she could feature on her page. These initial trials led on to more complicated products and, with a chance discovery of an old Victorian recipe, the development and creation of her unique sweets and lollies. Her alcoholic goodies were an instant hit with student pals and before long Holly had a thriving Etsy shop where she began to sell an ever growing variety of flavours and varieties. After heading back to her studies and graduating in Marketing, Holly’s passion for creative confectionery was put on the back burner for a while until last year when she took the plunge, quit her job, and followed her dreams. Holly’s Lollies began business in 2016 and has grown from strength to strength ever since and she now sells over 10,000 sweets a month. I love an inspirational story and knowing that Holly truly lived up to one of my favourite quotes “She believed she could so she did” made me even more excited to sample her delicious delights!
When talking to the lovely Victoria (the Communication Manager at Holly’s Lollies and also Holly’s sister – I love a family run business!) I did happen to express my penchant for gin…I think you all know it’s my favourite tipple based on my previous posts! Victoria was kind enough to indulge my passion and included in my parcel both a jar of Gin and Elderflower Rock Sweets and some Gin and Elderflower Humbugs. Now, I don’t know about you but I am obsessed with elderflower…it compliments gin so perfectly and is such a gorgeous, light flavour for the summer. Also popped into my delightful delivery was a Passion Fruit Mojito Giant Lollipop made with real rum – it’s like Victoria read my mind – I adore passion fruit and what a fabulous exotic flavour to help me imagine I’m sipping a rum cocktail on the beach!
The sweets themselves looked too pretty to eat! They were presented to beautifully in rustic-style jars adorned with such simple yet cute labels, I almost didn’t want to open them and spoil the aesthetic! But of course no review would be complete without the taste test and so after hurriedly snapping some photos I dived in to sample the unique flavours. They didn’t disappoint! Often I tend to find that with flavoured sweets the main overpowering taste is the sugar…this definitely wasn’t the case. Both the rocks sweets and humbugs were divine – the gin and raspberry complimented each other well whilst the gin and elderflower pairing was perfect. The mojito lollipop was moreish and tasted like sipping a delicious cocktail on a sunny destination holiday. The flavours were subtle enough that it wasn’t a case of a strong alcoholic tang but it was noticeable that there was gin and rum present!
The beautiful presentation of these jars and lollies means that they are the ideal choice as a gift for any occasion and with so many different flavours to choose from you really are spoilt for choice. Holly’s Lollies even offer a personalised selection of lollipops on their website to help you create that truly unique gift…ideal for a save the date announcement, as wedding favours or ‘thank you’ gifts. Head on over to their website to have a look at the selection of tempting treats and choose from fancy flavours such as Cherry and Amaretto, Mulled Wine, Raspberry Prosecco, Strawberry Daiquiri and Whiskey and Cola – I’ll definitely be checking them out next time I need a unique and stylish gift for someone special!
If you would like the chance to try some of these delectable treats then head on over to the Holly’s Lollies Facebook and Instagram pages as they are holding giveaways throughout the month of June. Speaking of which, I’m also giving one lucky reader of The Blonde Blog the chance to win a jar of humbugs and a giant lolly of their choice! Enter your details into the rafflecopter below and be sure to ‘like’ the social media pages for Holly’s Lollies before 12pm on Friday 7th of July to take part- good luck!
The Blonde x
*I was given these tasty treats by the lovely folk at Holly’s Lollies as part of this post. All opinions are my own and I only feature products or events that are fitting and in keeping with the tone and content of my blog or Instagram page.