August 14th: Kit Kat Kinako Soy

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

My first dip into the Japanese Kit Kat world saw me reviewing the 'Custard Pudding' variant ... admittedly not the most typical of Japense flavours. Today though I sampled the milk chocolate with 'Kinako Soy' flavour. Kinako Soy is a product very commonly used in Japanese cuisine and also known as soybean flour. It is created through the roasting and grounding of soybeans and is lauded for its Vitamin B and protein content...thank god for Wiki is all I can say. Todays sample came courtesy of the guys at UniqJapan - they stock all sorts of different Japanese goods including Kit Kats and are well worth checking out if you have an interest.

In proposition this was the same as a standard Kit Kat - milk chocolate (with added Kinako Soy) coated wafer fingers. Unfortunately this product came in the same small serving size as its 'Custard Pudding' equivalent...it would struggle to satisfy the smallest of stomach rumblings and really was just a very absurdly sized product. The packaging itself was nicely presented; the foil packaging ensured a fresh protected product, and the fingers themselves looked well crafted with the Kit Kat logo imprinted on the ever so small fingers. The overriding aroma that emanated from the packet was a sweet one that had a nice biscuity tinge...pleasant but not the most forthcoming.

The initial flavour that I detected from my first bite was a creamy chocolaty one that was not all too disimilar to the standard milk chocolate Kit Kat, just slightly more mellow and softer. This made the taste of the wafer more impactful, which in turn added a nice sweet dry cakey element to the creamyness of the coating. The aftertaste had a slight woody nutty note which could be tasted in the mouth for a while after eating - im no connesieur but I am guessing this was the Kinako soy element. The wafer element retained its usual crispness though the melt of the coating was slightly slower and seemed to clump together more than other Kit Kats I have reviewed....the coating melt was simply not as nice as with other variants.

Overall this is a fair enough variation of Kit Kat, though will hardly be setting any fires alight anytime soon. The milk chocolate had a more mellow taste than normal and didn't quite have the pleasant melty texture as is normally typical with the brand. The nuttyness in the aftertaste was pleasant though quite subtle and not did not provide the biggets of flavour hits. Though the more laidback nature of the milk chocolate allowed the flavour of the wafer to have more of a presence, this seemed a tad unexciting when the reason I purchased the product was to really get a diverse flavour from the Kinako Soy. I wouldn't overly recommend this product based on the impact of its enhanced flavour credentials, though its still a decent enough Kit Kat and probably worth trying if your curious and happen to come across it,

6.2 out of 10

Visit UniqJapan for many Japanese Chocolates including Kit Kats, Pocky and many more!

August 14th: Kshocolat Lemon & Pepper White Chocolate

Kcal 553 Fat 32.5g Fat(sats) 20.6g Carbs 58.5g

I have to say the bar I sampled and reviewed today is up there amongst the weirdest interms of flavour combinations. Today my third dip into my Kshocolat batch of goodies saw me sample the 'Lemon & Pepper White Chocolate' variant - a bar that included 'An unusual blend of white chocolate, crushed pepper corns and real lemon'.

The bar came in the usual 80g form, which did me for two substantial servings. The outer packaging was reasonably brightly coloured (when compared to the rest of the range anyway!), the bar itself had an authentic looking speckled appearance which I assume must have been due to the ground pepper as the only vanilla element to the bar was 'natural vanilla flavour'. It had a nice cream coloured appearance and had the same attractive cocoa pod pattern as with the rest of the Kshocolat range. The product looked great but my word it smell awful!!! As soon as I opened the inner foil packaging I detected a very pungent aroma that I would aliken to gone off milk...it smelt appalling and nearly put me off eating it altogether - if it wasn't for the slight presence of a lemon scent I possibly wouldn't have.

Thankfully the chocolate tasted alot better than it smelt. The white chocolate had a delightful texture; it melted at a nice pace on the tongue and had a warmth to its aftertaste which I will attribute to the presence of the ground pepper. The taste was very smooth and developed nicely in the course of its melting. The first flavour that was most evident was the lemon - it was fresh and zesty and gave the chocolate an interesting initial favour. As the chocolate melted and established itself the creaminess of the 24% milk solids made themselves known, the chocolate had a light milky vanilla flavour that was certainly enjoyable and never overly sweet. The aftertaste to the bar was where the black pepper came through, as stated previously it offered a warmth to the texture and a nice spicy kick...well worthy of its presence. The combination of ingredients although eccentric added nicely to a good creamy white chocolate - it was a good mixture of flavours and very enjoyable.

Overall I really feared for the potential of this bar before I tasted it - its near cheese like smell was extremely off-putting, and as you can see unfortunately this has had repercussions with its Chocolate Mission rating. I say unfortunately as this bar tasted really quiet good. Its creamy milky white chocolate was balanced nicely with a zesty lemon flavour, and the spicy warming ground pepper nicely added to a smooth sumptuous texture. If Kshocolat could sort out the smell of this bar I would be recommending this left right and centre as a great standard white chocolate offering. Until then I suggest you make sure you have a clothes peg handy if your going to being trying this one.

7.3 out of 10

August 13th: Reese's Dark Chocolate & Peanut Butter Bat

Kcal 170 Fat 11.0g Fat(sats) 4.0g Carbs 17.0g

It was over two months ago I reviewed the first of the Reese's 'Dark Knight' special edition movie tie-ins...the 'Reese's Dark Chocolate & Peanut Butter Medallions', a product I did very much enjoy. The movie is currently being shown worldwide and if I say so myself it's really rather damn good - I recommend you go see it. Buoyed by my initial success with the 'Medallions' and sheer love of the film I literally jumped at the chance thrown to me by CandyPirate to review the full sized Reese's Dark Chocolate & Peanut Butter Bat.

This variation of the Limited Edition Reese's Dark Knight range came in the form of a 34g full sized 'bat'. It was by no means the biggest or most filling of snacks but it was wholly satisfying. The packaging looked pretty smartish - the Batman theme was well displayed but not over the top whilst the orange Reese's theme was still very much evident. The product itself look awesome...shaped in the Batman logo shape it looked fun and massively appetising when sectioned. The only slightest of disappointments in its appearance was the lack of traditional Reese's paper cup, if it had been included I think it would have helped mine keep its shape for longer...the edges of my bat were a little rounded due to the significant air miles it had obviously made during transit. Once opened an all to familiar Reese's peanut butter smell just built my anticipation further. A wonderful sweet smelling roasted peanut aroma emerged....it was typically Reese's....typically great!

As with the 'Medallions' the 'Dark Chocolate' was so alot better tasting than the standard milk chocolate. Again I will reiterate the point this was no where near flavoured anything like I would call 'real' dark chocolate. It simply just had a stronger chocolaty taste with the slightest of burnt notes in its aftertaste....just so much more flavoursome than the standard milk chocolate. Need I bother explaining the excellence of the peanut butter...probably not...but I will briefly anyway :D It had the same ever-present creamy nutty flavour with the nicest of salty licks. The usual slight dryness was of course also present giving the peanut butter its wonderfully distinct texture. The texture of the peanut butter was not only the big winner here, the dark chocolate was implemented nice and thickly, providing a nice crispness to the bite and a pleasant melted smoothness.

Overall I enjoyed this offering from the 'Dark Knight' special editions range even more so than the 'Medallions'. Both are great products, but the sheer look of the bat shape and extra thickness of the chocolate just makes this the superior format. If your expecting a very bitter dark chocolate offering your probably in for a disappointment, its certainly not even close to being anything like a Lindt 70% etc...its just simply a better, stronger and more genuine chocolate than you get with standard Reese's products, which when combined with the sheer luxuriousness of the peanut butter produces an outstanding offering. Its fair to say if your a fan of Reese's products, or peanut butter this is going to be one product your simply going to love. It's one of my favourite Reese's products ever and one that I definitely recommend.

8.8 out of 10

To try the Reese's Dark Chocolate & Peanut Butter Bat and many more American Candy & Sweets please visit CandyPirate

August 12th: Nestle 100 Grand

Kcal 190 Fat 8.0g Fat(sats) 5.0g Carbs 30.0g

The 100 Grand was a bar that I had been wanting to try for ages, thanks to my pals over at Sweet Mayhem today this became a reality. The '100 Grand' is a bar produced by Nestle in the United States and is formed of caramel, milk chocolate and crisped rice.

The bar came in a 42.5g serving which provided a suitably sized snack. It came in a pretty standard wrapper that was relatively plain in its appearance; it had a more classic design rather than a flamboyant dynamic one. The product was split into two seperate finger shapes as you can see in the above picture. Similar to the wrapper, the bars looked nothing out of the ordinary and were relatively simple and practical in design. The crisped rice gave the milk chocolate a textured look but that aside there was little decoration. The finger pieces had a pleasant enough sweet chocolaty smell that had the smallest savournyess from the rice crispy pieces.

The Nestle 100 Grand offered a largely similar proposition to the standard Nestle Crunch bars I reviewed a while ago - though thankfully the 100 Grand had a little bit more going for it due to the presence of the caramel. The milk chocolate coating was milky and sweet in its flavour and had a resonably nice smooth melting rate. Letting the milk chocolate simply melt away allowed the rice crispy pieces to release their biscuity flavour - what I did like about the rice crispy pieces was that they retained a relative crunchyness to the bite even when moistened by the melting chocolate. The malty biscuit flavour was quite subtle but could be distinguished from the chocolate nonetheless. The middle parts of both the fingers contained the caramel centres which delivered in terms of giving the bar that little something extra that both the Nestle Crunch bars lacked. The flavour and texture of the caramel was not the best, it had a grainy toffee like feel to it and a sweet but subtle taste; it was not the best caramel implementation I have experienced but the bar benefitted from it nevertheless.

Overall a pretty fair bar from Nestle, but one that never did anyhing that really excited me. Appearancewise it looked nice and it certainly did a job subsiding my afternoon stomach rumbing. Tastewise it was pleasant enough but nothing more; the texture of the crisp rice and chewy caramel was enjoyable, though the grainy feel of the latter was slightly sloppy. If your a fan of the Nestle Crunch this is a bar you should really think of checking out...it's extremely similar to the Nestle Crunch milk chocolate with just that little bit more with the inclusion of the caramel element. Nice enough ,but just a little average and never going to set anyones world alight.

7.3 out of 10

Want to try the Nestle 100 Grand for yourself? Head over to Sweet Mayhem for this bar and many more sweet goods.

August 11th: Hotel Chocolat Milk & White Fusion

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

Sunday night at Jim's house for the last few months seems to have officially become 'Hotel Chocolat' night...hey im not complaining, I have loved every minute of it and this week was no different.

This week I tried the 'Milk and White Fusion' - 'A swirling interplay of house milk and white chocolates'. The two 62.5g slabs looked stunning...quite how they got the swirl pattern into the chocolate I do not know - it looked mightily impressive anyway. Taking the slabs out of their plastic packaging they smelt delicious - a lovely fresh sweet milky smell emerged which just heightened my all ready sky high anticipation.

The taste didn't let down the magnificent presentation, this really was an amazing combination that worked on so many levels. The bar was designed perfectly - one end milk chocolate, the other white chocolate and the middle, a wonderfully swirled combination. The milk chocolate was of the 40% house recipe, which had a wonderful creamy cocoa flavour. As with the original bar it was delightfully textured and melted like butter on the tongue. The other side of the bar was comprised of the house white chocolate (28% cocoa 31% milk solids)...like found in last weeks White Praline bar. Again it was quite possibly the milkiest and most creamy of white chocolate I have ever tasted. It was sweet and heavily noted with vanilla and was just so incredibly moreish. Texturewise once melted it wasn't quite as thick as the milk chocolate, which was the slightest of disappointments. Separately both chocolate types where outstanding, but when mixed this bar really came into it's own. The fuller bodied cocoa taste of the milk chocolate, and creamy vanilla elements of the white combined for a simply outstanding synergy of flavours...the middle swirled parts of the bar were really to be savoured.

Overall this is yet another tremendous offering from Hotel Chocolat. There is no simpler way of putting this but the combination of the two types of chocolate was wonderfully executed - to near perfection. The bar not only looked fantastic but it's design was actually functional aswell. The ends of the slabs allowed the separate milk and white chocolates to be tasted in isolation, which gave the chance to appreciate both their different offerings in flavour...both were unique and simply exquisite. The middle of the slab with the fusion of both the chocolates simply provided a delightful experience...it had the creamiest and smoothest of flavours and had a texture that literally carassesed the mouth like silk...just heavenly!! I highly recommend this bar...as combinations go there really aren't many better.

9.2 out of 10

August 10th: M&Ms M-Azing Crunchy

Kcal 230 Fat 12.0g Fat(sats) 7.0g Carbs 27.0g

This was one of those bars that had been hanging around my brimming box of chocolates to be reviewed for a good few months. Quite why until today I neglected this bar I don't know - it even promised to be amazing!! Well..sort of!? That is what I think the name of the bar was trying to get at anyway...spelling at Mars obviously isn't top of their priorities.

The M&Ms 'M-Azing Crunchy' bar came in a 43g serving size and incorporated 'mini Crunchy M&Ms in a solid milk chocolate bar'. The bar came in a paper sleeved outer wrapper with the chocolate itself wrapped in silver foil. I liked the appearance of the bar, it was split up into eight blocks with pictures of the M&Ms characters moulded into the surface. The bar managed to maintain a smooth surface area despite the inclusion of the mini 'Crunchy M&Ms' - the M&Ms added a nice bit of colour to the mix aswell - the bar didn't look at all bad. When released from the foil and sectioned the chocolate emanated a sweet smell...nothing special but it did smell far more appetising than standard M&Ms.

I have been eating some pretty high standard milk chocolate recently and unfortunately this bar just didn't fall into this category. It had a poor texture that seemed to clump in my mouth rather than melt, and did not have the smoothness that I have experienced with other milk chocolate....im not just talking about the more premium priced milk chocolate offerings either...this lacked the texture qualities of more mass produced bars like Dairy Milk and Galaxy. Unfortunately what the chocolate lacked in texture it did not make up for in taste - it had a poor sugary taste that lacked any real cocoa quality...it was just overly sweet and cheap tasting. The mini 'Crunchy' M&Ms gave a nice simultaneous flavour hit of rice and textured crispness, though due to their light nature they were often overpowered by the clumpy dominating chocolate.

Overall a pretty poor offering from Mars in a bar that really shouldn't have been too hard to pull off. Standard Mars milk chocolate (like used in Mars / Snickers bars etc) normally has a pleasant milky flavour that although is hardly groundbreaking is of a fair standard nonetheless. Unfortunately Mars saw it fit here to use a substandard milk chocolate that was poor in its grainy texture and its overly sugary taste...the mini 'Crunchy M&Ms' were fair game but they were predominantly overrun by the ever-present chocolate. This is a bar I really wouldn't recommend unless your a big M&Ms fan...this wasn't one I enjoyed.

6.0 out of 10

August 9th: Cadbury Wunderbar (Can)

Kcal 310 Fat 18.0g Fat(sats) 8.0g Carbs 33.0g

Until today if you had asked me what a 'Wunderbar' was I would most likely have gone a slight shade of red and said that it was an item of ladies underwear. The Cadbury Wunderbar seems to be a product that is very little known outside of its country of manufacture, which is in actual fact Canada.

The bar incorporated a scrumptious sounding 'peanut butter centre with a caramel and chocolate coating', and came in an extremely large and satisfying 58g serving. It was packaged in a pretty standard looking wrapper that incorporated a typical Cadbury purple colour code scheme. The bar itself looked almost identical to a Cadbury Starbar though the peanut butter centre had a nice moist look to it, the bar also appeared a tad larger. Splitting the bar down the middle revealed a delightful sweet nutty smell...it smelt absolutely delicious; I simply couldn't wait to dig in.

Biting into the bar revealed a vast array of textures and flavours... so many infact that im going to find it hard detailing them all. The chocolate coating was just the right thickness and provided both a nice cracking sensation when bitten into, and also a nice melt when left on the tongue. The chocolate didn't quite have the flavour depth of Dairy Milk though it was of a good standard nonetheless. Tastewise it didn't have the strongest of cocoa strengths, but it had pleasant creamyness that allowed the rest of the other ingredients to express themselves. The caramel layer was a genius inclusion...it had a delightful sweetness and chewy texture that really complimented the peanut centre. The centre was a mixture of peanut butter and peanut pieces, which made for a wonderfully moist but crunchy texture. Flavourwise it wasn't quite as creamy and flavoursome as Reese's peanut butter but it was still very tasty and had a nice strong smooth nutty flavour. The addition of the peanut pieces added yet another variation in the texture and made the bar all the more substanstial. Looking at the nutritional values this isn't a bar for a person on a diet, just look at the fat content! Disregarding that, if your're after a truly satisfying and substantial chocolate bar you will be hard pressed to find better.

Overall this is a really good standard bar from Cadbury - so much so that I am really surprised at its lack of distribution outside of Canada. None of the layers to the bar are individually executed to the highest standard, though the way they are integrated together truly makes for a high quality amalgamation of different flavours. The sheer array of textures and flavours is outstanding - from the smooth creamy chocolate, sweet caramel and moist crunchy nutty centre, each bite was interesting and full of flavour - a real delight to eat. It's almost selfish of the Canadians to be keeping this bar all to themselves :) if your lucky enough to come across a 'Wunderbar' I would highly recommend you give it a try.

8.8 out of 10

August 8th: Marks & Spencer Swiss Milk Chocolate

Kcal 30 Fat 2.0g Fat(sats) 1.2g Carbs 2.7g (per disc)

Own Label (Grocery Store brand) chocolate till today had been an area I'd simply stayed cleared of. Working in the marketing industry I am pretty fascinated by brands, so these own label offerings generally just don't seem to make it on to my radar. Well today this was all change as due to the volume of requests I have been receiving to review some Marks & Spencer chocolate I could gloss over this area of the market no more.

For my readers outside the UK let me give you a quick low-down on M&S: it's a British food and clothing retailer with 600 domestic stores, and is generally perceived by most consumers as a more up market brand in comparison to our major multiples Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda etc.

Today I sampled some of their Milk Swiss Chocolate that came in a 115g tube which contained twenty disc shaped chocolates. On pack they were described as 'Extra fine Swiss milk chocolate discs with ground hazelnuts'. The ingredients read pretty cleanly: 'Sugar, cocoa butter, dried whole milk, cocoa mass...ground hazelnuts (1.2%)', the cocoa and milk solids were at a reasonably high level - 35% and 21% - this all seemed pretty premium sounding to me.

The product itself was presented nicely - i wasn't quite sure of the cardboard tube format at first, aesthetically it wasn't terribly impressive but it did a job protecting the discs inside. The discs were foil wrapped in plain blue wrappers which kept them relatively fresh looking; they had a nice pattern displayed on the surface which added nicely to their relatively plain look. The discs didn't offer the strongest of aromas - a faint chocolaty smell but nothing overly enticing.

One thing I immediately found quite puzzling with these discs when I came to eat them were their size. They were to large to place in the mouth to eat whole (comfortably!!), yet to flimsy to really break into smaller pieces - this was a slight annoyance. Despite my issue with the size, the disc shape really helped deliver a delightful melt on the tongue. The large surface area allowed the chocolate to have an immediate flavour intensity and nice longevity of melt. The chocolate had a nice cocoa flavour with a nice milky smoothness - the aftertaste was noted with the slightest of nuttyness from the hazelnut that added a nice dimension to the overall taste. Due to the milkyness and smoothness of taste these were not the richest or most satisfying of chocolates, though one or two with a mid-morning coffee seemed a perfect situation for these to be consumed.

Overall although not the most unique tasting on the market these are a better than average milk chocolate. The quality of ingredients is reasonably good and the additional element of the ground hazelnuts made for an more compelling overall taste. I wouldn't necessarily recommend these as a product to enjoy on mass i.e. eat a tube at a time - as I wouldn't say it would be the most exciting of experiences, although as I said above, these are a great choice of product to eat one or two at a time for a quick chocolate fix.

7.7 out of 10

August 8th: Nestle Milkybar White Moments

Kcal 500 Fat 22.1 Fat(sats) 14.0g Carbs 70.0g (per 100.0g)

Long-time Chocolate Mission readers will be aware that I am a big fan of Milkybar products...from the 'Chunky' bar,the Easter 'Shaker Egg' and even the traditional 'Buttons'; I have enjoyed them all, with each of them scoring at least 8 out of 10. Today I sampled the latest addition to the Milkybar portfolio, the Milkybar 'White Moments' which were described on pack as 'delicious, creamy white chocolate wrapped in a crispy sugar shell'.... a product very similar in proposition to the quite frankly awful M&Ms 'Pirate Pearls'... could these do any better on the Chocolate Mission rating system?

The 'White Moments' came in a 175g grab pouch which I ate over the course of four occaisions. The 'Moments' themselves were slightly larger in size than Galaxy Minstrels and had a sound if uninspiring look. The pouch was nicely presented with a handy reseal able sticky tab included. Despite being concealed in a fresh style package the 'Moments' had only a very insignificant subtle milky aroma...I can only theorise the smell wasn't as strong as with other Milkybar products as the chocolate was being contained within the sugary shells.

The sugary shells delivered on the promised crispness to each bite and gave an expected sweetness. Due to the largish size of the 'Moments', simply sucking on one in the mouth felt like sucking on a sugar cube, ruling this eating method completely out of the question. This meant that each one had to be bitten into which did not play favourably for the chocolate. All too often white chocolate is produced with excessive sugar making the taste unbearably sickly (see Cadbury Dream!!)...this is something that Milkybar generally avoids as the high milk content makes for a creamyness that normally dominates the taste. Unfortunately the sugary shells just added to the sweetness of the original Milkybar chocolate and masked the normally delicious creamyness, making for an extremely sweet taste that sooner became more sickly than it did satisfying.

Overall im starting to believe that sugar shelled white chocolate is simply something that can't be pulled off. Milkybar is among my favourite white chocolate, but when placed in this format it could not avoid the inevitable, and when the additional sugar from the shells was added to the mix these 'Moments' fell down the all too familiar trap of being overly sweet in their flavour. To be honest I was more disappointed than I was suprised at these 'White Moments', and because of that I wouldn't overly recommend them. In my opinion these are a pretty poor line extension for Milkybar, and though I can see their appeal to a younger consumer with a pallette more accustom to sweeter tastes, I think your better off seeking out another product from the range if your after a dose of Milkybar.

6.7 out of 10

August 7th: Kshocolat Honeycomb & Vanilla

Kcal 530 Fat 30.5g Fat(sats) 19.2g Carbs 57.5g

Today saw me venture into my Kshocolat bag of goodies for the second time sampling the Honeycomb and Vanilla variant. Unlike the last Kshocolat product I reviewed (72% bar), this bar was made of milk chocolate (31% cooca 17% milk solids) and included honeycomb pieces and vanilla flavouring.

Similar to the 72% offering the bar was presented nicely. I cant say I cared much for the card sleeve - it was rather dull colourwise, but the bar itself was impeccably designed and had the same finely crafted cocoa pod pattern on each block. The bar had a pretty distinct aroma - it smelt sweet and floral; admittedly at first I wasn't overly convinced by it - though the more I ate the bar the more I understood the smell with the taste I experienced.

The milk chocolate became ever increasingly intense in its flavour as it slowly melted on the tongue. The melt was nice and formed a smooth taste which allowed for this slow release of flavour. The chocolate had quite a sharp cocoa edge, for milk chocolate it really wasn't the creamiest of tastes...this wasn't necessarily a bad thing - it tasted pleasant and certainly unique. Each block had its fair share of honeycomb pieces which were formed of 80% honey and 20% milk solids. Each small piece had a crystallised like texture which provided a nice variation against the smooth milk chocolate. Like the aroma suggested the honey had quite a flowery flavour... im no expert but it did remind me vaguely of elderflower - it had a heavy presence in what was a quite a strong aftertaste. The aftertaste of the chocolate was also heavily influenced by the vanillla flavour - it had a bourbon flavour that just didn't sit well with me. It tasted somewhat artifical and left an acrid flavour in my mouth for a long time after finishing the bar. Truth be told it was really quite unpleasant.

Overall this was a hard bar to rate tastewise. Initially I enjoyed the flavours of the bar, the milk chocolate was rich and nicely textured, and the honeycomb pieces added a distinct if slightly unusual foral element...at this point I had the taste down as a 7. Unfortunately the aftertaste of the bar simply spoilt the whole experience. As described above the vanilla flavour was bitter and despite the sweetness of honeycomb it simply wasn't subsided...it really spoilt for me what was a fairly nice bar of milk chocolate. It's not often that the taste of a bar drags the score of a product down, but unfortunately this was the case with the Honeycomb and Vanilla bar - disappointing.

6.9 out of 10

August 6th: Dove Caramel Waves

Kcal 482 Fat 24.2g Fat(sats) 14.2g Carbs 60.5g

Before I rattle on with todays review I must thank eagle-eyed Zeddy who spotted these in his local discounter 'B&M Bargains', and was kind enough to send a pack along for me to review! It was only last week I was discussing with frequent Chocolate Mission contributor Justin the differences (if any!?) between Dove chocolate and its branding equivalent here in the UK - Galaxy...thanks to Zeddy I could make this comparison today.

As far as I could decipher these Dove Caramel Waves were producded in the Netherlands and seem to be distributed throughout Austria and Belguim. The Caramel Waves were slightly larger than 'mini egg' type equivalents we have here in the UK and each simply contained a plentiful helping of caramel encased in a thick milk chocolate shell....imagine the Galaxy temptations egg I reviewed at easter but with each being about a quarter of the size. Each 'Wave' made for a very substantial mouthful and for my liking could probably have done with being just a little bit smaller, as this would have made them more comfortable to eat. The waves came in a 180g pack of sixteen...six of which I ate this evening: this provided me with a very sensible and satisfying portion.

The Waves outer packaging looked nice and had the design of a standard Galaxy product with the only obvious difference being the rebranding of the Dove logo. The 'Waves' themselves were nicely presented, though the foil wrappers did prove to be slightly loose, and thus did not keep the freshest of chocolates; they had a slightly dusty surface and the aroma wasn't quite the usual fresh smelling milkyness as found with the 'Temptations egg' or original Galaxy Caramel bar - they just had a less fragrant sweet smell.

Tastewise the Waves were slightly different to their Galaxy cousins. The milk chocolate seemed slightly less sweet, still extremely creamy, but with more of an cocoa sharpness to their taste - it was equally just as tasty as Galaxy milk chocolate but certainly different in its flavour compisition. The caramel centre was more plentiful than in a standard Galaxy Caramel block though it still had the same luxurious smoothness. The flavour of the caramel was still wonderfully balanced...very sweet but with a delicious salty hint in its aftertaste that made it so incredibly moreish. Personally I found the proportioning of caramel to milk chocolate better than the 'Temptations egg' but not quite as balanced as in the Galaxy Caramel bar...I just feel the slightly smaller blocks in the bar form make for an easier mouthful than the rather largish nature of the Waves.

Overall if your lucky enough to happen across a pack of these I simply urge you to buy them - they are excellent chocolate caramels and well worthy of a purchase. If you find normal Galaxy chocolate overly sweet these will go some way to helping this problem, as despite containing the usual creamyness of Galaxy, the Dove chocolate seemed to have a slighty more purposeful cocoa flavour with less of an initial sweetness. The caramel was simply delicious as with every Mars product...very sweet but wonderfully smooth - extremely enjoyable. For fans of caramel and milk chocolate combinations these are a simple must have purchase. So today the question has been answered: is there any difference between Dove and Galaxy chocolate?? In my opinion a slight variation in taste...but same magnificent quality, especially for the price.

8.6 out of 10

August 5th: Zagnut

Kcal 230 Fat 10.0g Fat(sats) 5.0g Carbs 31.0g

My interest in this bar derived from its recent appearance in the Hollywood blockbuster 'Hancock' featuring Will Smith. In the film it was depicted as bar that could literally 'knock you off your feet' - thanks to the kind people at 'Sweet Mayhem' I was given the oppertunity to test this for myself.

The Zagnut bar is another part of the ever expanding Hershey portfolio after its acquisition in 1996. The bar is comprised of a peanut butter flavoured centre with a outside coating of crunchy toasted coconut - so what the devil is it doing on Chocolate Mission you ask? Well whilst not containing chocolate, the bar does contain a small amount of cocoa....so why the hell not!??

The bar came in a plentiful 49g serving which was pretty sufficent at satisfying my hunger - it seemed just about the right serving size for the flavours it provided. The bar came in a pretty retro looking wrapper...to be frank I had no real affection or disposition towards it. The bar itself looked intresting in appearance, the toasted outer coconut gave the bar a nice golden look and the inner peanut butter centre looked appertising...one thing that was slightly flawed with the design of the bar was the sticky coating that was used to make the toasted coconut covering stick; it meant the bar was messy to eat and it left a heavy residue on the wrapper. The bar had a nice nutty aroma when opened - it had a pronounced peanut smell with a coconut hint....nice, but nothing too unexpected or anything that heightened my anticipation.

The initial bite into the bar revealed a very crunchy powdery coating of the toasted coconut - once bitten through a moistened but crispy peanut butter layer was revealed. The bars variation of crispyness and moistened centre provided a nice array of textures - the only aspect I didn't enjoy was the powdery nature of the toasted coconut, it slightly irritated the back of my throat. The taste of this bar was very sweet and it obviously contained a high level of sugar - saying this though the peanut butter centre was the dominant aspect of the bar and provided a strong peanut base flavour that had a deliciously balanced salty aftertaste...not quite the creamyness of Reese's but enjoyable nonetheless. The coconut coating was not massivelly present in flavour though was a substantial part of a long aftertaste - this was probably due to the small bits of coconut which were left in the mouth. The taste of the coconut was buttery and milky though really should have been stronger. Despite this its presence didn't detriment the bar in any manner and the initial texture it provided warranted its inclusion.

Overall the Zagnut is a bar that offers a combination of ingredients that provide a pleasant tasting offering. The peanut butter is a of a good standard and the coconut although should be more forthcoming still does provide a nice enough aftertaste. The texture of the bar is like not many others - a crisp coating is complimented by a nice moist centre. It's certainly not the most practical of combinations as it makes for a slightly messy eating experience but it does have some contrastive appeal. The Zagnut is certainly not a 'must try' but for fans of peanut butter this is certainly a bar you would enjoy and well worth trying for yourself.

7.7 out of 10

Head to Sweet Mayhem to find the Zagnut and many other US Candy right here in the UK

August 4th: Lindt Swiss Classic Double Milk

Kcal 532 Fat 41.0g Fat(sats) 25.9 Carbs 50.3g (per 100.0g)

My initial thought when I saw this bar was that it looked like a posher, more adult form of the Kinder Maxi - it was an assumption that proved not far off the mark. The front of pack promised 'Swiss double milk chocolate with a smooth milk filling' and was said to be made with the finest Swiss ingredients...there was only one way to find out :)

Like the rest of the Swiss Classics range this bar came in a 125g serving with a very appealing, premiuim looking wrapper. The bar also came foil wrapped which maintained the bars very tempting sweet smell....it had a delightful creamyness to its aroma that had a suprisingly strong caramel like tone - very alluring indeed. The bar itself looked as amazing as the packaging suggested - the white filling literally gleamed in-between the milk chocolate, the detail of the Lindt logo on each block looked impressively detailed; in its presentation the bar struck all the right notes.

I chilled the bar in the fridge for a few hours before eating it, this gave the middle filling a bit more of a solidity meaning its flavour lasted that litte bit longer. The milk chocolate was as smooth as any Lindt milk chocolate I have tasted. Its flavour was milky though had a nice cocoa root base flavour to it - sweet as always but not overly so; just great tasting, smooth milk chocolate. The middle milk filling was slightly lighter in its texture compared to the milk chocolate - it was buttery and more truffle like. Flavourwise it was not vastly different to the milk chocolate....just even milkier and creamier in its taste. Due to the filling being sandwhiched between two layers of milk chocolate it was hard to really seperate its taste - it was more that it added an extra level of creamyness and smoothness to the overall taste rather than adding a whole new flavour element.

Overall this is another luxurious offering from Lindt - I beggining to lose count the amount of times have I said that now!? The product is stunningly presented and the milk chocolate is of a very high standard . The chocolate is sweet and maybe not for the more mature tastesbuds, but its still deliciously creamy and has a brilliantly smooth taste. The additional milk filling further added to the smoothness of the taste and its extra creamy flavour just made it incredibly moreish. The only slight issue with the bar was that because of its moreish nature and light smoothness it was not the richest of experiences...it was a good thing it came in a 125g bar - I managed most of it in one sitting. This is definately a bar for the fans of Kinder chocolate - it's an incredibly smooth milk chocolate experience and one I would really recommend you try for yourself.

8.6 out of 10

August 3rd: Hotel Chocolat Praline White

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This weeks Hotel Chocolat review comes in the form of the 'Praline White' - a combination of white chocolate swirled with hazelnut praline. The front of pack stated that the Praline White 'melts like butter on the tongue thanks to a dash of pure hazelnut paste'....all this sounded pretty good to me.

As you can see above this particular variant came in two 65g slabs - both provided adequete seperate servings, though on both occasions I was left wanting so much more for reasons I will go into. The presentation of the slabs was nice - the swirl pattern seperated the two different aspects of the white chocolate and hazelnut meaning some bites were full flavour white chocolate, some full flavour hazelnut praline - whilst the middle provided a mixture of the two...this was an interesting way of designing the bar. Opening the plastic package a quite frankly gorgeous dairy smell emerged...upon closer inspection it also had a slightly woody nutty scent...this bar smelt heavenly.

When breaking the slab into pieces I noticed the texture of the bar was slightly different to standard Hotel Chocolat slabs....it was softer and did not break away cleanly. When I placed the first piece in my mouth I realised the wonder this did for the melting point....the piece just melted ever so softly into a sinfully smooth but ever so exquisite double cream like texture...it felt like a thicker lindor truffle centre...just wonderful.

The white chocolate simply tasted divine. It had a full on cream flavour that was so amazingly milky - it was just so smooth and balanced in its intensity of sweetness. The white chocolate was superb, but the real champion of this slab was no doubt the hazelnut praline... it was absolutely heavenly...some might say the stuff of the gods haha! The praline tasted very similar to that of the creme centre of a Kinder Bueno...a delicious combination of milkyness and flavoursome hazelnut that was just so incredibly moreish. Each end of the slab contained the seperate components in isolation which was pleasant enough, though when both of the elements were mixed in the centre of the slab the flavours seamlessly combined making an even creamier offering with the nicest of nutty aftertastes.

Overall I have pretty much run out of words to describe what a great tasting amazingly textured bar this was. It was quite simply the best white chocolate offering I have tasted. For my money its creamy milky sweetness with the stunningly fine hazelnut praline made for a near untouchable synergy of flavours. Due to the nature of the super soft light texture, although the 65g servings were more than adequete they did not quite provide the full round satisfaction of the 85% dark chocolate. If your a white chocolate fan this is seriously a bar you need to try - its unmatched in this category by my reckoning - yet another sensational offering from Hotel Chocolat.

9.3 out of 10

August 2nd: Milka Happy Cows

Kcal 530 Fat 29.5g Fat(sats) 17.5g Carbs 59.0g (per 100.0g)

My world tour of Chocolate has once again swung past Germany with today seeing me try yet another of Kraft's Milka range - the rather oddily named 'Happy Cows'. This bar was formed of a base of Alpine milk chocolate with splodges of white chocolate inserted into the surface...this gave the bar the 'cow' like appearance.

As standard with the Milka range this came in a 100g package - this served me for three sittings...normally I would have consumed 100g in two but due to the taste I chose to eat this over three. I must pass comment on the new 'reclosable' packaging - not only did it serve its purpose keeping the bar fresh but it also handily sealed back up with the ingenuity of the seam of the wrapper being slightly tacky...simple but effective. The design work of the bar itself was certainly unique and despite my small uncertainty at the name of the bar, the splodge theme certainly made it interesting to look at. The bar had a nice aroma that seemed even more dairy based than the original Alpine milk...the cocoa smell didn't quite come through as strongly though it still smelt damn appealing.

The divine texture that im so accustom to expect with Milka was yet again evident from the very first block I placed in my mouth. The milk chocolate melted almost the instant it hit my tongue releasing the milky cocoa nature of the Alpine milk chocolate. The Alpine milk was its usual balanced taste of milkyness and cocoa and the only slight discrepency I noted in this bar was the sweeter aftertaste that misplaced the usual subtle nuttyness. Due to 'splodged nature of the white chocolate it was not present in every block, though even in the ones that it was present it struggled to establish a real flavour apart from adding a sweetness to the aftertaste as noted above. The sweetness unfortunately soon became quite arduous and it slightly spoilt the overall flavour. The added sweetness was solely down to the white chocolate and when I actually tasted it in isolation (after some intricate operation board game like manouevers splitting it from the milk chocolate base haha!) it was very very sweet and tasted somewhat like the Cadbury Dream white chocolate...never a good thing!

Overall despite having a nice base flavour with the Alpine milk chocolate the added white chocolate did little but spoil the subsequent taste. Although largely dominated by the creamy flavours of the milk chocolate the white added an unfortunate sweetness to the aftertaste making this a slightly less attractive option when placed next to an original Alpine Milk bar. The texture, presentation and appearance of the bar are still of a high standard though I will tell you this for nothing - I will not be running to try Milka's white chocolate bar anytime soon. If your after a recommendation from me regarding the Milka range I would point you in the direction of the standard Alpine Milk. Though if you truly believe you can handle the sweetness, then this bar wouldn't be a bad shout either.

7.5 out of 10

August 1st: Kit Kat Custard Pudding

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Im normally inclined to leave the whole Japanese Kit Kat sector to Terry over at The Chocolate Review, who to date has done a sterling job at sampling all sorts of weired and wacky flavours (see HERE). Despite Terry's dedication to the Japanese Kit Kat cause I simply couldn't resist the temptation of trying a few of the different flavours out for myself via a bit of Ebay wheeling and dealing.

Today I sampled the ever so traditional Japanese themed 'Custard Pudding'* ;) The Kit Kat itself was of a conventional standard form - two coated wafer fingers. Unfortunately it came in a disappointingly small serving size...it was about the equivalent of one and a half standard Kit Kat fingers. This was no Mr T 'real man sized' snack and did very little at satisfying my mid-afternoon stomach rumbling.

The Kit Kat came in a nice sealed glossy package - complete with authentic Japense writing*. The fingers themselves (despite being ridiculously small grrr!) were nicely formed as per your usual Kit Kat, and had the logo finely etched into the surface. The product had a rather striking yellowish colour which fitted relatively well with the flavour context. The foil pack ensured a pleasant freshness and once opened released a particularly fragrant sweet dairy smell - it was very alluring and suprisingly strong relative to the small size of the product.

The fingers split nicely with a satisfying crisp crunch from the wafers. The outer coating was extremely soft in its texture and literally melted instantly in the mouth, revealing the crisp light wafer. Despite the short longevity of the solidity of the coating its flavour was still very strong and impactful. It had a simply luscious milky base flavour, with a very strong vanilla aftertaste that provided a devilishly creamy combination - truth be told it was absolutely gorgeous. The wafer had a nice crispness which contrasted nicely with the super smoothness of the melted coating; its flavour was sweet with a slight saltyness...rather like a rich tea biscuit.

Overall if it not for its size this would be up there with the best of the Kit Kat range....yes even the peanut butter variant!! The 'Custard Pudding' flavour is remarkably well delivered with a strong creamy vanilla taste that I would aliken very much to the cream filling of a custard creme biscuit...sweet indeed but incredibly moreish which is unfortunate given the ridiculous serving size that the product came in. If you ever come across this product (Ebay is a good place to look!!) then I strongly suggest you try it out - Kit Kat fans will simply love this variant...who knew the Japanese were so hot on their custard!?? I certainly didn't!

7.7 out of 10

*This is a long shot but if anyone can actually read Japanese and can confirm to me that this is 100% branded as 'Custard Pudding' on the wrapper it would be very much appreciated....it certainly tasted like it anyway :D - Jim