July 13th: Hotel Chocolat Almond & Coconut

Kcal ??? Fat ??? Fat(sats) ??? Carbs ???

Dipping into my 'Peepster Box' for the second time, today I casted my eye over the Hotel Chocolat Almond and Coconut bar. Anyone whos been reading the blog will know that I have had a particularly tough time finding decent quality white chocolate...Milkybar and Thorntons White aside its all been rather poor....how will current Chocolate Mission leader Hotel Chocolat perform in this area? Well read on and find out....

This particular variant came in a smaller single slab 100g serving. Compared to the other 125g slabs I have tried from Hotel Chocolate it wasnt the richest bar and I actually ate this in one sitting.

On pack the slab described itself as 'coconut accentuated smooth white chocolate, balanced beautifully with crunchy almonds'. The slab itself looked great...just look at the cross section above the almonds were generously crammed into the slab and were dispersed evenly. Everyone already knows my thoughts regarding the design of Hotel Chocolat slabs...aesthetically brilliant....practability terrible.

The bar smelt gorgeous...the strongest smelling comoponent by far were the almonds which smelt deliciously nutty and woody. The bar also had a lovely undertone of coconut which further raised by expectations of the added flavours.

I slightly chilled the slab which gave it a delightful snapping sound when breaking it up. The chocolate was delicious in flavour and had an developing and changing root taste throughout its presence in the mouth. The initial flavour was the coconut element which was forthcoming in its flavour as soon as the chocolate met my tongue. Unfortunately it was only this initial instance where the coconut flavour was detectable and it soon subsided to the other components. The chocolate then developed into a double cream like flavour and texture once melted on the tongue...silky smooth and just the right viscosity...the 30% milk solids and heavy lashings of cocoa butter duly made for a creamy silky taste. The afertaste was heavily vanilla noted which provided a pleasant and long flavour experience.

As I outlined above the almonds were dispersed generously and appropriately throughout the bar which resulted in each mouthful having a delightful contrast of textures. The almonds provided a fresh crunchyness agaisnt the super smooth chocolate...a truly great combination. The almonds themselves had a subtle buttery flavour that although were not the strongest in taste were pleasant and fresh tasting nonetheless.

Overall im getting bored of saying this (no not really!) but this is yet another great offering from Hotel Chocolat. The white chocolate was divine in flavour...it had a taste that developed during the course of its time in the mouth....its sinfully cream like in flavour and and gorgeously smooth. My only slight disappointment with this bar came in its coconut element...why did they use coconut essential oil!? Why not Cococnut flakes/chips!? They would have furthered the variety of textures and also made for a longer coconut flavour. This small gripe aside this is white chocolate at its best...its not the richest tasting chocolate ever but its by far and away the best tasting white chocolate I have reviewed on Chocolate Mission. Another great product thats worth anyone trying from Hotel Chocolat.

8.7 out of 10