Sweets are an obvious gift at Christmas – easy to get your hands on, relatively inexpensive, and guaranteed to please even the most ungrateful of recipients (provided you make the appropriate choice). 

What were once big tins of sweets have been steadily decreases in size and variety over the past few years, much to the dismay of chocolate lovers everywhere.

But when you pick a particular brand of chocolates as a Christmas gift, you're making a statement without even being aware of it. 

We look at the options out there and consider what each type of chocolate says about you...

1. Roses

You're a traditionalist, and know it's best to play it safe when gifting chocolates at Christmas, so you give a tin of Roses. Without breaking the bank you're getting both quality AND quantity, unreal! 

You know that Roses are an Irish tradition that's not to be interfered with, so you won't be buying any of that fancy shite.

2. Milk Tray

While you're trying to impress with chocolates that are a little more upmarket than average, you're flat broke 'til payday. Milk Tray are like Roses' snazzier, sexier cousin, but a few euros more expensive. 

But you'd never buy them for your own family, God no! They'd hoover them up in seconds, but they're perfect as a gift for your significant other's mammy to win her over with caramel hearts.

3. Black Magic

Black Magic will always look like a last minute panic buy (unless they're actually someone's favourites, and you're being extremely thoughtful). 

You slept through your alarm and ran out the door, realising en route you didn't want to be that scab who arrives to Christmas dinner empty handed. 

Not to worry – there's a garage on the way! Unfortunately all the garage has left are wilted Christmas bouquets and a solitary box of Black Magic. Slim pickings, but they'll have to do...

4. Leonidas

You're pulling out all the stops here – sure what harm in spending thirty quid on a box of chocolates? Sure isn't the Celtic Tiger himself rearing his head from hibernation? 

You don't even know the person you're buying the sweets for very well, but one thing's certain – you want to knock their socks off. So you lash as many liquor and marzipan-based chocolates as physically possible into the golden box.

5. Quality Street

If anyone ever dares tell you that Quality Street are superior to Roses, you must immediately excommunicate them as you don't need that kind of negativity in your life. 

Sure, they have the long toffee fingers and the caramel triangles, but they're missing the vital ingredient of our nation's favourite chocolate, and we simply cannot overlook that fact.

6. Butler's

This kinda says, I ran out of ideas on what to get you and happened to be passing Butler's on my way back to the DART station on Christmas Eve. 

The thing is though, these hand-crafted Irish chocolates are just so good that if you're able to keep a poker face, they'll be none the wiser.

7. Celebrations

You give the gift of miniature chocolate bars? Wow, you must be SO fun! 

The gift of Celebrations can mean a few things – firstly, that you don't hold grudges as you're a big enough person to overlook the tragic disappearance of the Topic sweets from the tin. 

Secondly, it could mean that you're actually really, really sneaky – if you're a fan of the lesser favoured Mars or Milky Ways it means that there'll be plenty left for you when all the rest have been gobbled up. 

Or perhaps you're just looking for some 'clean eats' this Christmas season, because Bounty contains coconut so it's practically a vegetable. 

Plus, Celebrations are just that little bit smaller than your average wrapped sweets, so you're subject to less guilt and self-hatred as you eat the whole tin, swear!

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