Sea salt and cracked pepper is a flavour for cautious people. People who want to seem adventurous without taking actual risks. People who think black pepper counts as spicy.
I’m being unfair. It’s a legitimate flavour combination, well-suited to the premium crisp format.
Burts handles it with characteristic competence. The sea salt provides the foundation, clean and mineral, while the pepper adds gentle warmth and a slight aromatic complexity. It’s subtle rather than bold.
The cracked pepper question
Is this pepper actually cracked, or is “cracked” just a marketing adjective suggesting freshness and rusticity? The flavour suggests genuine pepper rather than pre-ground dust, with a complexity that powder alone wouldn’t provide.
There are visible pepper specks. They’re doing something.
Pairing potential
These crisps want accompaniment. A glass of wine, perhaps, or some cheese. They’re sophisticated enough to serve at an adult gathering without embarrassment, mild enough not to compete with other flavours.
Solo snacking, they’re perhaps too restrained. The flavour doesn’t demand attention.
The verdict
A well-made crisp for people who want quality without intensity. Not exciting, but expertly executed.
Quietly confident.
