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A Kimberley is one of the few biscuits designed to be soft, and the Elite teacake wraps that softness in chocolate. Where you keep it, how you eat it and what you pour beside it all follow from those two facts.
Same Kimberley, different coat
Every Kimberley starts with a pair of ginger biscuits sandwiching soft mallow, and the plain version finishes its outside with a sprinkle of sugar. The Elite teacake keeps that inner build and puts a coat of chocolate where the sugar would be. Nothing here is meant to snap: the rounds give, the mallow yields, and at room temperature even the coating is soft.
The chocolate changes the balance more than the shape. The plain Kimberley already carries two sweet elements, and the coat adds a third, so the warm spice in the rounds has more to push through. If the ginger is what you love, the plain pack shows it off better. If you want something nearer an after-dinner sweet, this is the one to choose.
A cool cupboard, never the fridge
Temperature is the one thing that can spoil this teacake, and it can go wrong in either direction. Straight from the fridge the mallow turns firm and rubbery, and cold chocolate tastes waxy and gives off almost no aroma. On a sunny shelf the reverse happens: the chocolate slumps, smears on your fingers and blurs into the soft centre, taking away the one contrast the teacake has.
An ordinary cool cupboard is the right home for it. If yours runs cold in winter, take the box out about five minutes before you want one and let the chocolate come round. At 132g this is a small pack, more a treat for a few evenings than a tin-filler; for Kimberley by weight, the plain 300g pack is the bigger buy.
What to pour against three sweet layers
There is no reason to dunk a Kimberley of either kind. With no crisp biscuit to soften, a hot mug adds nothing, and the mallow collapses as soon as it meets the heat. Leave the teacake on the saucer and give the cup a different job: cutting through chocolate, mallow and biscuit so the next bite tastes as good as the first.
That job needs tannin or bitterness, and no sugar in the cup. A strong black tea brewed properly manages it, while a pale, weak one simply gets buried. After dinner an Earl Grey or a black coffee suits it well, and a short, dark espresso gives the cleanest cut of all. It is a teacake for people who already know Kimberley, and a fair introduction for anyone who does not.
The packs we stock
- Bolands Elite Chocolate Kimberley Teacake, 132g (barcode 870719000154)
What to drink with it
- Hyson Premium Breakfast Tea, 100 Tea Bags 180g: a strong black breakfast tea with enough tannin to cut through three sweet layers, best drunk without sugar.
- L'Or Espresso Ristretto Intensity 11 Coffee, 40 Pods 208g: a short, intense coffee for after dinner, where its bitterness meets the chocolate and clears the mallow from the palate.
- Dragonfly Organic Earl Grey Rooibos, 40 Tea Bags 100g: the Earl Grey idea in rooibos form, for an after-dinner cup beside the chocolate coat.
Elsewhere in the Bolands range
The full range is on the Bolands brand page.
FAQ
How is the Elite teacake different from a plain Kimberley? The inside is the same idea: ginger rounds and a soft mallow centre. The plain Kimberley has a sugar-sprinkled outside, while the Elite has a chocolate coat instead.
Does the chocolate coat make it any better for dunking? No. There is still no crisp biscuit to soften, and the mallow collapses as soon as the tea is hot, so keep it on the saucer.
Should the teacake go in the fridge? No. Cold makes the mallow rubbery and the chocolate waxy. A cool cupboard is better, with a few minutes out of it on a chilly day.
What drink suits a chocolate Kimberley? Something strong and unsweetened: a well-brewed black tea, an Earl Grey after dinner, or a black coffee.
Where does the Bolands name come from? Bolands is a Dublin biscuit name belonging to Jacob Fruitfield, which is also the business behind Jacob's biscuits. During the 1916 Rising, Boland's Bakery in Dublin served as a battalion headquarters.
Curator's note: Take it out of the cupboard, let it sit while the kettle boils, and pour your tea strong and unsweetened alongside. That is all there is to it, and it is worth keeping. Lee, teas.co.uk, Tunbridge Wells.
In short: Bolands Elite Chocolate Kimberley Teacake: the Kimberley in a chocolate coat
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Brand | Bolands |
| Packs we stock | 132g |
| Category | Chocolate Biscuits |
| Dunkable | No, keep it on the saucer |
| Best with | A strong, unsweetened tea or a black coffee |
| Occasion | After dinner |
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- Tea and Food Pairing: The Five Principles
- Tea with Chocolate: Pair by Cocoa Percentage
- Tea and Chocolate Pairing
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