Alcohol in pudding not clearly displayed

[Purpledefector]

I need a bit of a reality check - prefacing to say I'm 2.5 years sober - and not sure if this is clouding my judgement a bit.

I bought a dine in meal in Sainsbury's and the pudding was ' chocolate hazelnut pots' ' sponge biscuit layered with creamy chocolate hazelnut mascarpone and topped with hazelnuts and chocolate shavings'.

When I started to eat it I immediately noticed the very obvious taste of alcohol. Went and checked the packaging and listed within the ingredients was 'alcohol' but this wasn't mentioned or hinted at anywhere else on the product - in the picture or the describing words.

I was really surprised by this lack of transparency. Sainsbury's responded to my complaint really quickly - offered me a £10 gift card and said it would be fed back to the packaging department. I said that I felt that didn't reflect the seriousness of the issue and asked for it to be raised with a manager. It has been and their response is the same.

It's not sitting right with me, it feels like a huge error - and I want to take it further.

What's the general consensus?

When alcohol is in desserts though it tends to be an advertised feature on the package because it's a selling point and so that you know what the flavour is.

I would never expect there to be alcohol in it if it didn't, and why does it not specify what alcohol is in it?

I think it would have been considerate of them to label it more clearly although if you have an issue with a specific ingredient you should always check the ingredients list before consuming it.

However, they have offered you a goodwill gesture and are raising the issue with the relevant department, what more do you want from them?

I would complain too. There is nothing obvious on the front of that packaging showing that it contains alcohol and I could easily have thought that it was suitable for children.

If it were cooked. Puddings like sherry trifle and tiramisu aren't cooked.

Nothing obvious apart from it having "contains alcohol" on it and that the OP has now acknowledged she missed?

Also debunked repeatedly upthread.

Yes sorry.

Well done on your sobriety.

I would agree with others though the responsibility is on you to check ingredients.
I get it's a pain, I'm gluten free you will be amazed at the things I have to check from drinks (vimto, cheaper cola and others contains barley), condiments, yogurts, ice cream etc all things which wouldn't obviously contain gluten.

Think you just have to chalk this one up as an error and move on.

I can't see that it says that it contains alcohol on the front of the packaging. I wouldn't expect a hazelnut and chocolate desert to contain alcohol unless it said on the front that it was a hazelnut chocolate and brandy (or whatever alcohol they are using) desert clearly on the front of it.

alcohol usually isn’t completely removed due to the cooking process.

It takes about 2-3 hours for the alcohol to completely “cook off” for most dishes IIRC.

The alcohol content of a tiramasu is not going to be enough to cause any harm to a child.

It's not that obvious though because you wouldn't look at unless you were used to looking for allergens, because desserts containing alcohol tend to be clearly marked as such as the alcohol is a selling feature and so that you know the flavour of the product.

I wouldn't go checking for alcohol in every box of chocolates just because there are baileys chocolates or Irish whiskey chocolate.

They are never going to put a big “CONTAINS ALCOHOL” on the front if they don't when it comes to genuinely life threatening allergens. Also, it’d reduce their sales as the health conscious will be less inclined to buy.

I don’t understand why alcohol wouldn’t be clearly labelled.

It’s not just an ingredient, it’s a specific flavouring that changes the nature of what you are buying.

Oh I missed that.

M&S used to be bad for this too. DH doesn't drink for general 'I don't like thr taste' as well as moral reasons, and he's been caught out with this a lot. Profiteroles are especially alcoholic for no reason!

I'd take the voucher and leave it though. There's not much you can do.

And if you were an alcoholic they would all be a risk.

That’s weird though.

Surely the whole point of alcohol in a pudding is the taste.

A poster upthread posted a photo of the packaging and the OP confirmed it was the same product and she had missed the "contains alcohol" clearly written in white lettering.

No, my screen was playing up.

@Purpledefector

solution cook your own.
also the rules on what has to be mentioned are governed by law.
so use your vote wisely.

It's not clearly written

Not really. I did miss the small
Print on the front of the package which was a bit daft of me. However I do still think that the description of the food is not reflective of what it actually was.
And I didn't make 'all that fuss'... I sent a message to Sainsbury's via fb messenger, wasn't happy with the reply so asked for it to be escalated. And did a quick post on here. Very unfussy really.

How awkward for you being such a mean spirited person

Beyond it saying "contains alcohol"
How much clearer does it need to be?

I totally agree with you as someone who loves booze and a boozy pud. But I’ve been so surprised since having a baby at how many twenty and thirty somethings are teetotal as part of embracing healthier, “cleaner” lifestyles.