$1 tea is now at Coles

Gotta love a duopoly. If you missed the $1 Twinings 10-pack teabag bargain at Woolworths, it's now on at Coles until next Tuesday, 19 February.

Now, like me, you can crack a Prinny… or, indeed, enjoy your favourite other tea variety. But I just like saying "crack a Prinny".

I'll drink that for a dollar

I love it when the supermarkets have tea specials, because I can build up a mix-and-match collection of different varieties.

Anyway, Woolworths currently has 10-packs of Twinings teabag varieties for $1 each (save up to $1.12). The last time they had this special I spent around $10 and had an instant tea library to the point where I was ridiculously tailoring my cuppa to the time of day and my mood.

But it's my experience that the popular varieties (eg English Breakfast) sell out very quickly, so get down there to snaffle your favourites.

More sparkling bargains

As I never tire of saying, this is my Summer of 'Champas' and so I perk up when there are sparkling wine bargains to be had. First Choice Liquor has an intriguing 'Sparkling Bundle': a bottle of Grandin Brut NV (which is one of the better French cheapies) plus two bottles of B Francois Blanc de Blancs for $28 (save $14 off the individual bottle prices).

I have never heard of B Francois but it's from the Loire Valley and allegedly has "ripe apple fruit and toasty flavours". This bundle is a very good deal as single bottles sell for $14, or they're at Vintage Cellars for $13.49.

First Choice Liquor also has Pol Clément Blanc de Blancs for $7.26. At that price you don't lose much if you buy it and it turns out to taste terrible. (It's also available at Liquorland for $10.)

Thirst-quenching specials

Weather's been hot, huh? I bet you're thirsty. Well, you're in luck. Until Tuesday 8 January, Coles is selling 15 cans of Pepsi, Solo or Schweppes soft drink at half price – $6.49.

A pack of four cans of V Energy Drink is also half price – $4.61. That's excellent value for workaholics and party animals. But from 12 January at Aldi, you can get a 1.2L bottle of V for $4.99. Holy shit. I had no idea they sold it in bottles that large. You will probably have a heart attack if you drink the entire thing.

At Coles you can also get the limited-edition retro slabs of Fanta, Sprite or Mello Yello for half price – $12.44 a slab.




Looking at these old logos makes me realise how much packaging designers these days rely on drop shadows, gradients and illustrative elements which look quite crass and busy compared to the clean, flat colour, simple typefaces and geometric imagery of the original logos. Compare and contrast with the contemporary packaging:



For people who like the taste of Coke Zero and were like, "I wish there were other flavours of Coke Zero!" well your dreams have come true at Woolworths, which has Coke Zero Cherry. It comes in 600ml bottles at 2 for $5 (save $1.15) or in an eight-pack of "mini refreshment" 200ml cans for $5 (save $2.63).

Farmer's Union Iced Coffee is also 2 for $5 at Woolworths. That's one for you and one for your mate down the building site!

But for people who don't like or can't tolerate dairy, Coles has Almond Breeze almond milk for $2 a litre (save $1.29). This is a pretty good deal, since almond milk is the most expensive of the non-dairy milks.  

Cost-effective hydration

Would you like to take up boxing in the New Year? Big Dubs offers a low-stakes entry with $10 Everlast boxing gloves. And to stay hydrated, how about a Sodastream machine for $55 (save $9.88)? They reckon the gas cylinder is good for 60L. When my housemate Paul had one of these, it was a golden era. I drank so much bubbly water.

In other water bargains, Aldi has Brita water filter jugs for $19.99. Holds 1.4L filtered water. I got one of these when Is Not Magazine had the Vesta House office and the water came out of the tap a weird brown colour. It was astonishing how it made the water normal.

Celebratory foods and drinks for intolerances

Here's my Food And Drink Intolerances Corner! If you know someone who can't or won't eat gluten, Ajitas Vege Chips are on special at Coles for $2.15.

And if you are in the market for non-alcoholic wines during the festive season, Woolworths has Fronti red and white varieties on special for $3.89. Appletiser sparkling apple juice is 2 for $5 – a saving of $1.84. And Aldi has Ariel dealcoholised wine in 'rouge' and 'blanc' for $9.99. They also have Paulaner Alcohol Free Beer for $1.79 per 500ml bottle.

November groceries

Food-wise, avocados are 2 for $4 at Woolworths and for those of you like me who are basically working around the clock, you can get eight 250ml cans of V for $10 from both Coles and Woolies. I lived on that stuff when I was finishing my MA.

Nutella is $6 for 750g at Coles, save $1.59. Also, Quorn 'Versatile Mince' is now at Coles for $5.50, save $1.40. Quorn sells fake meat for vegetarians and apparently their products are exclusive to Coles. The mince looks pretty meaty. No idea what it tastes like.

Tresemmé shampoo and conditioner is currently half price at Coles – $4.99. I use this brand and I like that it comes in giant bottles that last for ages.

And Mainland Buttersoft is on special for $4.50 at Woolies – save $1.19. I have recently got into this because apart from Lurpak, the El Expensivo brand, Buttersoft is the only spreadable butter that isn't adulterated with vegetable oil. (I checked all the other brands in the supermarket.) Plus it comes in a larger sized container than Lurpak. There is some bullshit scare campaign on TV at the moment saying margarine has less fat than butter, but if you knew how margarine was made you would never eat it. (In the interests of ABC-style 'balance' here's the margarine industry's rebuttal.)