August 15th: Ritter Sport Peppermint

Kcal 503 Fat 26.0g Fat(sats) ??? Carbs 54.0g (per 100.0g)

My top-to-toe examination of the Ritter Sport range continued today with the Peppermint variant. Along with the Marzipan and Hazelnut flavours this seems to be one of the most commonly found in the UK - I have seen it in many of the major multiples: Tesco, Sainsburys and Waitrose etc so if you get a hankering to try this after reading this review you know where to head.

This bar had all the signs of being one of those products that I would nibble away at over a good few days. This was an assumption that proved to be pretty inaccurate, and I in actual fact ended up consuming this 100g bar over two sittings. In proposition it was very similar to a Hershey's York Pattie and the rather ill tasting After Eight Bitesize - a cool peppermint fondant centre filling covered in a helping of plain chocolate. As with the entire Ritter range the outside packaging and blocked nature of the bar was well received and the white filling had a nice contrastive pale look against the darkly coloured chocolate. What was also pleasing to find was that the bar didn't disappointment in regard to the on-pack product shot, that showed the bar crammed full of the promised Peppermint filling...it was very well portioned and actually took up 40% of the total constituents. The smell of the bar was very evident upon the opening of the packaging; it had an unsurprising cool minty smell with just the finest of chocolaty undertones...as I said the smell was duly expected but pleasant nevertheless.

My assumption that this was going to be a bar I enjoyed over a few days was rooted in my past experiences of similar fondant filled products (See After Eight Bitesize & Frys Cream), reality was this could not have been further from the truth. The plain chocolate coating provided a deliciously deep flavoured initial flavour that despite the generous portioning of the peppermint filling, was able to establish a real flavour base in the overall taste. The chocolate was strong in its cocoa flavour and withstood being overpowered by the mint filling. It had a smooth texture that melted at a nice slow rate which was a nice way of slowly introducing the flavour of the peppermint. The peppermint filling wasn't quite the intense sweetness I was expecting...which I must say was a good thing. The minty flavour was more subtle than in bars such as the After Eight Bitesize, and had a kinder overall taste because of this. It had a nice cool freshness that was both refreshing and flavoursome - a real triumph amongst mint fillings.

Overall this was yet another fantastic flavour variant from the Ritter Sport range. The combination of the plentiful and tasty mint element and a good standard base plain chocolate coating made for a surprisingly moreish offering - and was one I particularly enjoyed. As ever Ritter have produced another nicely presented product that is balanced in its flavours and texture. I would really recommend this bar to fans of mint chocolate, it's genuinely one of...if not 'the' best mint chocolate combinations I have tasted yet.

8.4 out of 10