Those of you who’ve tried Tim Tams, how do you think they shape up to Penguins and bourbon creams?
Posted by SilyLavage@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 36 comments
They have this famous Australian snack in Tesco now, so I thought I’d give them a try.
They’re bigger than a Penguin and contain a cream filling, which is nice, but they do have an aftertaste which I can only describe as Frazzles-like
toentropyandbeyond@reddit
As someone who grew up eating Penguins AND Tim Tams (Born UK left at 8, grew up & live in Aus) I can say for sure that Tim Tam's are superior. They also have completely different tastes. Flavour-wise i'd compare them more to Club's.
Penguins have NOTHING on Double Coat Tim Tams.
You also can't do a Tim Tam Slam with a Penguin.
Ketworld@reddit
Do the TimTams in the UK taste the same as the Australian version? Because the “chocolate” coating is waxy and un chocolatey in the UK ones.
megsbog1@reddit
I know you posted this a year ago but they now do gluten free timtams in the uk…my partner got me some as he is obsessed with them and anything Aussie… my review is they’re fine 🤣 I can’t say that to him but they’re alright it’s kinda like a bourbon biscuit coated in chocolate
Prestigious-Set-6328@reddit
They are rank 🤢 Not covered in chocolate it's some fake chocolate flavour coating. Penguins are proper chocolate sandwich biscuits. Cuppa tea bite two diagonal corner off and suck the tea there so the inside melts all yummy 😋 Bourbons are an elite biscuit too. The ones covered in chocolate are so good and you can get custard creams covered in chocolate too, so good 🤤
Pale-Imagination-456@reddit
its a while since i had a tim tam, but theyre similar to penguins but a bit different, like different brands are always a bit different. what i dont understand is people who say penguins are chocolate covered bourbons - theyre completely different. penguins are sugary and chemically and bourbons are more - biscuity.
bsnimunf@reddit
They are much fucking better. Penguins really are nothing like them in anything other than appearance.
Closest thing to a Tim tam in the UK is a Fox's Classic. They have a similar flavour biscuit.
SilyLavage@reddit (OP)
Eh? Penguins and Tim Tams both consist of two chocolate biscuits with cream between covered in chocolate. They're very similar
bsnimunf@reddit
So penguins and Tim tams look identical. But they don't taste the same at all. Penguins are mad eto be extremely cheap I wouldn't be surprised if it was a chocolate flavour coating rather than chocolate for example wagon wheels are a chocolate flavour coating.
Despite being a vanilla filling Fox's classic have a similar flavour to Tim tams the biscuits have the same flavour and texture.
SilyLavage@reddit (OP)
You've got it the wrong way around – Penguins are made with milk chocolate, but Tim Tams use a chocolate flavour coating. That's what it says on the packaging, anyway.
Despite this, I think both biscuits are intended to be mid-range; Tim Tams just cost more because they're imported from Australia.
OccidentalTouriste@reddit
Arnotts the manufacturer state otherwise https://www.woolworths.com.au/shop/productdetails/36066/arnott-s-tim-tam-original-chocolate-biscuits
SilyLavage@reddit (OP)
That must be a different variety. The Tesco website describes them as “biscuit bars with milk chocolate flavour coating and cream filling“. It also uses the word “chocolaty”, which typically means “we can’t claim this is real chocolate”
OccidentalTouriste@reddit
Perhaps we get an inferior product manufactured under licence or something as Arnotts are the original Australian manufacturers.
SilyLavage@reddit (OP)
The stuff in Tesco is imported, presumably from Australia?
Having looked at the regulations, I think the difference is that UK milk chocolate must contain a minimum of 14% milk solids, whereas in Australia it’s a minimum of 12 to 14%. If Tim Tams are closer to the 12% end then the chocolate used may not meet the minimum standard for milk chocolate in the UK.
OccidentalTouriste@reddit
If they are imports and not licensed then it's obviously a transparent act of petty revenge for all those criminals we transported in order to populate the place way back when.
Supersaneduck@reddit
The biscuit is more crisp and the drink through it trick is cool. I don't know if you can do it with a penguin though.
Rumhampolicy@reddit
They are different from Penguins. I find them more sickly. I can eat a lot more Penguins than Tim Tams 😅🤦🏻♀️ I love Penguins, I like Tim Tams.
Perpetu_Ally@reddit
They have many, many more flavours (I recall a Black Forest Gateau about 15 years back)
You cannot do a successful Tim Tam Slam with a penguin. I won’t believe you if you say otherwise.
HirsuteHacker@reddit
I can and have. Orange clubs are best for it though.
SilyLavage@reddit (OP)
What is a 'Tim Tam slam'?
Perpetu_Ally@reddit
Would you believe there’s even a wikihow article on it 😃
HirsuteHacker@reddit
They're basically just penguins. I don't get the hype.
MangoTeaDrinker@reddit
I think the chocolate on Tim Tams is nicer than Penguins.
Andi-anna@reddit
I had an Australian flatmate once who was insisting we had to try the Tim Tam slam. So we went off to the Australian shop in Covent Garden, overpaid for some Tim Tams, got home, made our tea and tried the Tim Tam slam. I was so disappointed to find out they were identical to Penguins, no difference whatsoever!
SomeHSomeE@reddit
I think they're nicer but some of that may be psychological as they're more of a luxury / rare treat.
But Tim Tams do have additional ones like double coat and caramel which are definitely much better.
MissingScore777@reddit
Don't understand the fuss, they're just penguins basically.
SilyLavage@reddit (OP)
They are bigger, but they also cost £2.50 and you only get nine in a pack, so
MissingScore777@reddit
I appreciate there are small differences but the point stands that I don't get why they're such a big deal.
They are close enough to a fairly middling, average biscuit in the UK.
SilyLavage@reddit (OP)
I didn't realise they were a 'big deal' over here – I just saw a pack and thought I'd try them.
If they were literally a big Penguin, with the same chocolate, then they'd be really quite good, but I'm not as big a fan of the Australian ingredients (assuming they've not been licensed to be made here by a third party).
Sibs_@reddit
Tim Tams are fabulous, always had a ready supply of them through having a lot of family living in Australia. Compared to a Penguin I felt they had a better biscuit, better filling and better variety of flavours.
I've cut chocolate out of my diet completely but if anything ever changes that, it'll be a pack of Tim Tams.
Drab_Majesty@reddit
Aussies are weirdly defensive about them, like if the Australian equivalent of Romulus and Remus suckled on the teats of a timtam.
If you really want to make their heads spin, tell them that Penguins are the OG and timtams are just knock offs.
zephyrmox@reddit
It's some of the varieties that make them better than penguins imo.
DangermanDickhead@reddit
I am addicted to them. So much so that I go to a big-Tesco that's quite out of the way just to get them.
I have always seen Aussies raving about TimTams, talking about how much better than Penguins they are, now I understand why. I've found they have a much more milky/creamy flavour than Penguins.
Craft_on_draft@reddit
Lived in Australia as a child and remember them being amazing! I went to Oz recently and had them, they are basically a penguin. There is literally no difference.
If blindfolded me and you gave me a TimTam and a penguin, I wouldn’t be able to pick which was which
BeanOnAJourney@reddit
It was a long time ago and they were brought back from Australia for me, but I remember them being way better than Penguins. I don't remember a Frazzles aftertaste. Not really at all comparable to Bourbons. No idea if the ones you can buy here now are actually the same as the real ones from years ago, I've developed an intolerance to chocolate and sadly if I eat them I will vomit and run the risk of hospitalisation.
imminentmailing463@reddit
I would say they're...fine. As are penguins and bourbons. I couldn't raise any strong opinions about any of them or the difference between them.
AutoModerator@reddit
Please help keep AskUK welcoming!
Top-level comments to the OP must contain genuine efforts to answer the question. No jokes, judgements, etc.
Don't be a dick to each other. If getting heated, just block and move on.
This is a strictly no-politics subreddit!
Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.