Chinese New year has always been my favourite festive season of the year besides Christmas. Besides having a lot of gatherings and reunions, it is also the time of the year where merchants bring out the creativity on the products that are in their stash and offer great promotions. So here I am, sharing some of the promotions, deals and items which I think are worth taking a second look. 
To celebrate the exuberant Year of Monkey, F&N Sparkling Drinks has launched some limited edition Festive Packs! Super cute loh, the Festive Pack (24 cans of assorted flavours) bears the auspicious well wishes ‘灵猴献瑞’ in keeping with the belief that the clever monkey will bring good fortune in an auspicious new year. To make things sweeter, redeem one tin of Polar Puffs and Cake’s limited edition Chinese New Year Cookies (worth $9.90) with every purchase of two sets of the following –
· F&N Sparkling Drinks Festive Pack (24 cans) OR
· F&N SEASONS Party Multipack (24 cans)
Simply cut 2 coupons printed on the packaging and redeem it at any Polar outlet. To check for locations of participating Polar outlets, please visit the website. You can also save $3.50 when purchasing Polar Cookies and CNY items by presenting 1 coupon printed on F&N Sparkling Drinks Festive Pack or F&N SEASONS Party Multipack when making the purchase at participating Polar outlets. Nice right?
For more information on promotions, you can check out F&N Sparkling Drinks Facebook Page.
In conjunction with its 20th anniversary, Chang Beer has undergone a facelift. Did you notice that the packaging has changed from amber colour to emerald green and a champagne gold is now use on the cap and labels? Some interesting facts that you might not know, Chang is the regional South-East Asia partner for FC Barcelona since 2013 and has been the main club sponsor of Everton FC since 2004. The deep-well water use to brew Chang beer is also selling in Thailand as mineral water. So next time you watch soccer or enjoy your Chang beer, at least you know something that your friends might not have known. =)
Chang Beer is available at supermarkets, hypermarkets, convenience stores, InterContinental Singapore, Capri Singapore and some cool outlets including FIV五, KPO Cafe ar and TBB Tiong Bahru Bar.
Interesting fact – Ribena derived its name from Ribes Negrum, the LAtin word for blackcurrant. Made with 100% New Zealand blackcurrants, Ribena has been my favourite drink since young. It is now available in sparkling cans as well! Best of the both worlds when I wanted Ribena and carbonated drink and it is healthier too! Every 325ml Ribena Sparkling Can contains 24mg of Vitamin C and it has lesser sugar content. So yay to refreshing variant of my fav blackcurrant beverage with a fizzy twist. Ribena Sparkling Can is available at all leading supermarkets and convenience stores island-wide at recommended retail price of $6.20 for a 6-pack and $1.45 for a single can. You can also find out more at Ribena Facebook Page.
For years, CP Shrimp Wanton is the live live must have item during my family reunion steamboat. I am so happy that during CNY, CP Food is running a festive promotion:
CP Shrimp Wanton 154g – 3 for $12.90 (U.P. $15.90),
CP Chicken Cake (a versatile items which tasted a bit like Ngo Hiang) – 2 for $6.95 (U.P. $9.20),
CP Chicken Gyoza – 2 for $8.95 (U.P. $11.80) and
CP Pork and Chicken Gyoza with Suki Sauce – 2 for $9.90 (U.P. $11.80)
I always find something amissing if there is no sauce available during steamboat. Using Dancing Chef Suki Sauce as a base, I would usually add in some corriander leaves and sesame seed to give it a nice aroma. To get that fiery punch for J, the addition of bird’s eye chilli and garlic is definitely a must. You can also add in some lime juice for that refreshing tangy flavour. In fact, there is so much more that you can play around with. Currently Dancing Chef products are available at all leading supermarkets. You can now buy 2 bottles of Dancing Chef Suki Sauce @ $4.95 (U.P. $2.85 per bottle, till 29 Feb 2016) and/ or 3 packets of Dancing Chef Pastes @ $7.55 (U.P. $2.85 per packet, till 29 Feb 2016).
Besides having steamboat, mummy would always wok up a feast. Yes, my family tradition for CNY is always about feasting and perhaps overeating. lol. Mummy has always been using Lee Kum Kee products to whip up a table of food. One of my favourite is the XO sauce which has ingredients such as dried scallops, dried shrimp, red chilli pepper and spices. It goes well with almost everything from vegetables to porrige to even pasta! From now till 31st Jan, you can also stand a chance to win weekly prizes and cash angpow by entering ‘Lee Kum Kee Reunion Photo’ contest at the website or instagram.
Step 1: Upload a photo with the theme related to “Reunion” with any Lee Kum Kee product and writes a caption / description for the photo.
Step 2: Select a category and fill up all the information needed then hit submit button.
OR
Steps to participate (Instagram Apps)
Step 1: Upload a photo related to “Reunion” with any Lee Kum Kee product and write a caption / description for the photo followed by the hashtag #LKKReunionMY OR #LKKReunionSG.
Step 2: Set your Instagram profile to public.
Garden Picks, a home grown brand has also introduced the following NEW mixes-
• Trail Mix
• Peanut Pretzel Choco Mix
• Peanut Butter & Jelly Mix
• Tropica Mix
Who say cny snacking cannot be guilt free and healthy. hahaha. For more information, you can check out their website.
MY sister was elated when she knows that Koh Kae is available in Singapore. Haha. Now she can save the air ticket to Thailand to lug these yummy peanut snacks back. Koh Kae is available in 2 types of packaging. The can one which is easy to store and the pouch one which come with a zip to reseal and ensure freshness. The products are also available at selected Cheers, Fairprice, Sheng Siong & RedMart.com.
Pies & Coffee’s CNY cookies are back again. Yay! My personal favourite is the Salted Egg Cookies which has a melt-in-your-mouth texture with prominent salted egg yolk aroma. Super yummy! Besides Salted Egg cookies, there are Pineapple Parmesan Tarts, Parmesan Cheese Cookies and Green Pea Cashew Cookies which are all selling at $22 per container. These CNY cookies are available at the four outlets (Robertson Walk, Rochester Mall, The Grandstand and Alexandra Retail Centre)and their online store.
Tao Kae Noi has been one of the more addictive snack for me. Once I started on it, it is very hard for me to stop. This CNY, Tao Kae Noi has introduced a brand new coconut flavour and gourmet seaweed snack- iplus! TAo Kae Noi Big Roll pack comes with 15 individually wrapped grilled seaweed rolls. So snacking is made easy while on the move by putting a few of them into the bag. For a limited period, iPlus seaweed snack is also available in Singapore, exclusively at Cheers.
CNY to me is also another opportunity to shower my parents and elderly with practical gifts. My folks are usually very reluctant to accept any gifts and will scold me for wasting money aka 浪费钱. This year, I have found a perfect gift for my parents. Huiji ‘s Gift of Thoughts (S$63) gift set which consists of Huiji Waist Tonic (700ml), a total 12 sachets of Huiji Fruity Lite tea nicely packed in two modern tea tins and a bottle of Huiji honey (500g). Huiji Waist Tonic is great for alleviating backache and overcoming fatigue while Huiji Fruity Lite helps to clear excess oil and expel body toxins which is great for pre & post cny feasting. Alternatively, for peeps with tighter budget, you can get the Huiji Waist Tonic & Huiji Fruity Lite Banded Pack (S$49.80) which I thought is equally good for showing our appreciation to our folks. Huiji Gift of Thoughts is available in FairPrice, FairPrice Finest, FairPrice Xtra and Sheng Siong; Huiji Waist Tonic & Huiji Fruity Lite Banded Pack is available at Bee’s Brand, Cold Storage, FairPrice, FairPrice Finest, FairPrice Xtra, Giant, OG, Prime, Sheng Siong, Unity, ZTP, as well as pharmacies and medical halls.
Last but not least, besides all the feasting, remember to take care of your health. For any case of indigestion or heartburn, I would recommend Gavison which is very good to neutralise excess stomach acids and prevent acid reflux. 
With CNY coming in 2 weeks time, I wish everyone a Happy Chinese New Year. 祝您猴年吉祥如意, 心想事成, 吉星高照, 一帆风顺! Huat Ah!
