September 24th: Mars Dark

Kcal 230 Fat 9.0g Fat(sats) 6.0g Carbs 36.0g

After reviewing the Snickers Dark last week a lot of readers requested I try the Mars Dark. Well in truth I have indeed already reviewed the Mars Dark ... in the form of the Milky Way 'Midnight' .... that was the American version; and was a bar I found disappointing for its relatively flavourless dark chocolate and vanilla nougat. Well today I sampled the Canadian version of the Mars dark - this bar retained the usual chocolate flavoured nougat found in the standard Mars bar, but was coated in dark chocolate instead of the standard milk chocolate.

As is commonly found with most non UK Mars and Snickers, the bar came in a slightly smaller 50g serving, this was by no means catastrophic - it still was a very fulfilling bar, it just wasn't quite the full on experience of a full sized UK Mars bar. It's smaller size made it look slightly less of a prospect, though the bar itself looked pretty appetising when cross-sectioned - the caramel layer especially looked particularly enticing. The wrapper itself was pretty standard but it must be said it ensured the bar retained a fantastic smell. The bar had an enticing cocoa smell when opened, it didn't smell as sweet as the original bar but it had an extremely chocolaty appealing scent.

The dark chocolate had a nice balanced taste that was very similar to the dark chocolate of the Snickers Dark. It was by no means a really dark, rich tasting dark chocolate like a Lindt or Hotel Chocolat product, it was more an unsweetened version of the standard milk chocolate with a tad more emphasis from the cocoa. It was nowhere near what I would describe as intense - just a slightly different proposition to the original. Im glad to report that the middle nougat was its usual highly satisfying standard, it had a delicious milky chocolaty flavour that became more and more forthcoming as it was chewed. The Caramel was also its usual standard; it had an enjoyable chewy texture and delicious sweet, partially salt enhanced taste - yum! The combination of all these different layers made for a long aftertaste, the unsweetened cocoa taste stayed in the mouth for a nice amount of time.

Overall this was highly enjoyable variation of the original Mars bar. The dark chocolate was nicely implemented, it didn't push the boundaries of dark chocolate with its 'mass consumer friendly' approach but it tasted fair and individual enough to differentiate itself from the original milk chocolate. The nougat and caramel bars remained true to their original attributes, both adding great variations to the taste and textures. Personally my preference lies with the original Mars bar due to is greater size and milkier taste - for the odd occasion though this is a great bar and one that I would highly recommend to Mars fans ... do us all a favour and bring back the Mars Midnight for the UK!!

8.8 out of 10