September 14th: Hershey's Milk Chocolate Kisses

Kcal 230 Fat 13.0g Fat(sats) 8.0g Carbs 24.0g (per 9 Kisses)

Having only reviewed the one variant of Hershey's Kisses before ... the 'Caramel Kisses', when asked by **I SHOP 4 YOU II** what products I wanted sending over from the US, I only thought it right I started to make my way through the range. **I SHOP 4 YOU II** kindly obliged with my request and have sent a truck load of different flavours from the 'Kisses' range. No better place to start than the original Milk Chocolate flavour I guess.

I must admit to be a fan of the look of 'Kisses'. They have both a unique and symbolic look that is presented nicely. The foil wrappers ensured they kept a relative freshness, and the paper tag that allowed them to be undressed (ooooh kinky!) was a nice little touch. I wasn't overly fond of the smell of the bag - it was rather like the aftertaste of the chocolate - yoghurty and tart ... just not the same appealing smell you get with most chocolate.

The size and shape of the 'Kisses' have a nice bitesized feel to them. I was eating these whole one at a time, simply letting them melt in my mouth. The melt was reasonably paced, the flavours did develop as the chocolate melted - so chewing them made little sense. The texture wasn't the smoothest and was by no means the luxuriously silkiness of say Galaxy or Dairy Milk - but was hardly unappealing. The flavour was of course very similar to the bar version of the Hershey's Milk chocolate I reviewed a few weeks ago. It had a very milky sweet taste that was neither amazingly good or bad whatsoever - just a real middle of the road milk chocolate offering. I found the aftertaste again slightly acidic and yoghurty in its taste, as I said with the bar version it neither bothered me or added anything to the experience, however I would definitely have preferred a creamier flavour left in the mouth.

Overall these are a pretty solid milk chocolate offering - far from a luxurious Hotel Chocolat gourmet experience - but just nice as a proposition to snack on once and awhile. I wouldn't recommend these as a chocolate to indulge in for personal satisfaction, though I can see they have a great appeal in situations where just a minor chocolaty hit is needed, a perfect item for the cinema or sharing with friends etc. A bit of a mediocre kick-off to my range review of Hershey's Kisses - I'm hoping for more from some of the more extravagant flavours.

7.1 out of 10

*** EU & UK Readers Attention*** Ever been been browsing Chocolate Mission or any other Candy Site and felt frustrated not being able to get hold of an American bar/item!??? .... well feel frustrated no more!!! 'I SHOP 4 YOU II'!! is a great service that provides a unique "one stop shop" international shopping experience!!! Visit the Ebay shop - if they dont have the item you want instock simply give them a message - there is no harm in asking. This service comes with a Chocolate Mission Seal of Approval!! It is a genuinely great, fast and friendly service... Just say you came from Chocolate Mission.

**Competition Time - Name These Bars**

1.
2.
3.
4.

It's about time Chocolate Mission gave some more chocolate!!

What Can you win? By answering Correctly you will be placed in a random draw to win one of the following:

• Current Chocolate Mission Leader: Hotel Chocolat 85% Dark Chocolate 125g Slab
  
• Hotel Chocolat Orange& Chilli Dark Chocolate 125g Slab
• M&M's Peanut Butter Flavour (US) 49g 
• M&M's Milk Chocolate Flavour (US) 49g

WHAT IS THE COST? ZERO, ZIP, NOTHING, NADA

HOW DO I ENTER? SIMPLY LOOK AT THE ABOVE PICTURES AND NAME THOSE BARS!!

ALL ENTRIES TO BE SENT TO JIM@CHOCOLATEMISSION.NET

Entries close at 10pm 20.09.2008 - and the winners will be notified
Open to the UK & Ireland only - sorry folks - times are tight as a student :(
GOOD LUCK and keep tuning in to Chocolate Mission :D

Small Print:

1. None of your contact Details will be used or sold on to any 3rd party companies - this is a competition solely for fun.
2. Entries must be in by 10pm 20.09.2008.
3. Only one entry per person
4. Rules/Prizes of the competition may be changed at any time to my discrection..theres blatantly details I have forgotten
5. As it says above this is only open to the UK & Ireland
6. My say on anything to do with this competition is FINAL

September 13th: Lindt Lindor Dark Mint Truffles

Kcal 75 Fat 6.1g Fat(sats) 5.1g Carbs 4.1g (per truffle)

It has been a bit of while since my last Lindt Lindor review - I still have a few more flavours knocking around the ever-expanding 'chocolate to review box'. I believe the Lindor Coffee are currently winning the war of the Lindor truffles - today I took a look at the 'Mint' variant which comprised of a cool peppermint centre encased in dark chocolate.

As we all know Lindor truffles are one of the most incredibly moreish chocolates out there, one truffle can very soon turn into one hundred... something I guess is testament to the taste, though also an indicator of their less than satisfying hunger fulfilling credentials. The truffles looked nice - the filling as you can see had a nice creamy look to it, which certainly appealed to me. Opening the garishly coloured green wrappers released a pleasant cocoa aroma ... there was a lack of mintyness which I didn't anticipate.

The outer chocolate was definitely not the strongest of Lindt's Dark chocolate offerings - nowhere near the richness of the full flavoured '70% Dark '. Its cocoa flavour was not quite as strong or impactful, but its sweeter more subtle chocolaty favour was suited to the mild mannered truffle centre. As with the whole Lindt Lindor range the texture was fantastic, the outer chocolate was smooth in its melt, though the centre took things to another level. It had a butter like texture that melted luxuriously in the mouth - anyone who has had a Lindor truffle will understand the extent of the smoothness im talking about here. The texture of the centre was fantastic but the taste lacked the mint flavour I was both hoping for and wanted. It was very mild in its flavour, it had a butter toffee likeness that had an undertone of peppermint - it was certainly tasty but just didn't deliver a definitive minty taste.

Overall these are a fair truffle offering. The fact they are lacking in their minty taste does seem disappointing, however when comparing the quality of overall taste with other similar products like the After Eight Bitesize, the mildness doesn't seem such a bad thing ... far better than an overpowering minty taste anyway. The dark chocolate is not the most full flavoured Lindt dark offering but it still had a nice melt and smooth cocoa flavour. These are definitely not the best from the Lindor range and I would recommend other variants over these. By no means a bad product, just theres better out there.

7.8 out of 10

September 12th: Butterfinger Creme Egg

Kcal 160 Fat 8.0g Fat(sats) 3.5g Carbs 23.0g

Creme Egg??? This is no Creme Egg - There is only ONE!!? I wonder how Cadbury feel about all this Nestle?!? Small rant aside....today I sampled the 'Butterfinger Creme Egg' courtesy again of CandyPirate. This Egg came described as 'Butterfinger pieces & peanut butter creme in a milk chocolate shell'. Not being the biggest fan ever of the original Butterfinger bar I wasn't expecting much from it in egg form.

The product was a very similar size to most eggs I have reviewed on Chocolate Mission - lol lets not go into how they are getting smaller please. The product weighed in at 32.6g, not the biggest serving size when you think about it - but it was surprisingly fulfilling. The foil wrapping was extremely thin, though it provided a pretty adequate covering for the egg and looked reasonably smart. Opening the egg up it had a thickish layer of milk chocolate, the peanut butter filling took up all available space in the egg - no skimping there whatsoever; it looked a very appetising proposition. The smell wasn't anything remarkable - surprisingly the egg was pretty scentless in regard to its peanut aroma and only had a slight sweet chocolaty smell.

The milk chocolate coating as you can probably guess was nothing ground-breaking. It had a pretty standard sweet milky taste; it was nothing spectacular but did provide a respectable cocoa undertone to the overall taste. My main gripe with the original Butterfinger was that it was just way too sweet, and its crisp texture reminded me way too much of pure sugar. This egg was different, the filling was indeed more like pure peanut butter and creme-like, something that it was all the better for. It did lack the saltiness of Reese's peanut butter, but it still had a creamy roasted flavour that was extremely pleasant. Dispersed in the creme were small sugary Butterfinger pieces that added a nice crunchy contrast to the smooth textures of the chocolate and peanut butter creme. The filling left a long lasting creamy nut flavour in the mouth, as I mentioned above it was a surprisingly satisfying product for its size.

Overall I really enjoyed this egg, far more so than the original Butterfinger. The peanut butter creme, whilst not on the same level as Reese's, was still full of flavour and provided a wonderful filling. The Butterfinger crunchy pieces were not over portioned in the egg, this made sure the taste wasn't overbearingly sweet and thus avoided the sickening taste of the Butterfinger. As egg themed products go this is certainly up there competing with the best of them - not quite on par with the Cadbury Creme Egg but decent nonetheless. Definitely one for peanut butter fans!

7.8 out of 10

Want to try the Nestle Butterfinger Creme Egg for yourself!? Head over to CandyPirate for all your AmericanCandy & Sweet needs all right here in the UK

September 11th: Lindt Excellence Mint / Orange Intense

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

Having already reviewed both the Lindt Exellence '70% Cocoa Dark' and 'Extra Creamy Milk' to huge success a few months back, I was very keen at sampling these flavoured offerings from the Excellence range.

Both of these bars came in 35g handy servings - both of which provided just about the right amount in accordance to their relatively rich tastes. As with the entire Lindt range both were stunningly presented in aesthetically pleasing, sleek packaging designs. The bars themselves both looked smart, the 'Orange Intense' having a slight edge due to the added intricatness of how the added ingredients in the bar were implemented yet still managed to keep a stylish smooth surface - very impressive.

Mint Intense:

I was surprised by the lack of minty aroma that I got from the bar, itstill had a dark cocoa rooted smell, though the minty element was very subtle and had to be searched for to be distinguished.

Both the bars used 47% cocoa solids chocolate - this made sense to me as it allowed each of the additional flavours to have more of an impact on the overall taste, something that may not have been the case if a stronger formulation was used. Despite it not being as strong as the '70% Cocoa Dark', the flavour of the chocolate was very full flavoured and had a very rich taste. The mint element was present due to the inclusion of peppermint oil, I was surprised to see it only comprised of 0.1% of the bar - even more so when I tasted the bar and experienced its impact on the taste. It provided a edgy and refreshing aspect to the bar, it reminded me of the After Eight Bitesize I reviewed a while ago - only just far superior in its overall taste with a delicious tasting, smooth dark chocolate and a perfectly balanced additional minty edge. This is a bit of a different proposition to the nearly equally as good Ritter Sport Peppermint - though if you ask me this Lindt offering is marginally superior due to the extra quality of the dark chocolate.

In summary - rich, full flavoured dark chocolate with a refreshing and perfectly balanced minty freshness.

8.6 out of 10

Orange Intense:

This bar had a relatively strong pungent zesty smell when I opened the foil. The bar incorporated 'dark chocolate with added orange pieces and almond slithers'.

The chocolate provided a lovely melt on the tongue that was just the right speed at releasing the rich cocoa flavour. As found with the 'Mint Intense' the taste became smoother and sweeter as the melt progressed. The additional orange pieces gave the bar a nice fruity twang, unfortunately though the orange pieces were by far outnumbered by the bland tasting almond slithers.

The almond slithers were a quiet puzzling inclusion for me. Sure they added a crunchy element to the texture, but this was out of context due to the nature of the chocolate, which was far tastier when just left to melt in the mouth. The size of the almond slithers were annoyingly small, this not only meant they lacked flavour but also managed to wedge themselves in between my teeth.

In summary - rich, full flavoured dark chocolate, nice fruity orange but an unnecessary almond element.

7.9 out of 10

September 10th: Cadbury Snack Sandwich

Kcal 135 Fat 7.2g Carbs 15.6g

The Cadbury Snack range has already served up two pretty average offerings to the Chocolate Mission rating system; both the 'Snack Shortcake' and the 'Snack Raisin Cereal Bar' hardly went any way to setting any fires alight. Despite this I couldn't help myself when I saw this 'Snack Sandwich' - I have to cover all bases now don't I.

This 'Snack Sandwich' was described on-pack as a 'milk chocolate coated shortcake sandwich biscuit'. It came packaged in a foil wrapper that followed much the same design as the rest of the 'Snack' range. I have previously criticised the product appearance of the rest of the 'Snack' variants, though I actually liked the look of the 'Sandwich'. It had an appealing design with the Cadbury logo inscribed on the coating of the bar. The cross-section of the bar also had an impressive look with the layers being very defined in their appearance. The product had a pretty standard chocolaty aroma - it was neither strong nor overly enticing in its presence ... simply what you would expect from such a bar.

The milk chocolate comprised most of the constituents of the bar (69%). It didn't quite have the full flavoured Dairy Milk flavour, though it was still pleasant nonetheless. The milk chocolate had a strong sweet milky taste and provided a great coating to the bar. It wasn't quite the smooth texture of Dairy Milky and did clump as it melted; it had an ever so slight grainy feel in the mouth. The biscuit element had a nice buttery taste, which had just the slightest salty kick. Placed in the middle of the shortcake biscuit was a milk chocolate creme layer. Though it further added to the coating flavour, it affected the texture of the biscuit giving it a moist limp feel, which obviously wasn't preferable to the crunchy texture I was hoping for. Despite the vaguely disappointing textures, the combination of the milk chocolate and biscuit elements worked nicely to provide a pretty satisfying proposition considering its relatively small 26g size.

Overall desipte this again being nothing more than a pretty average product from Cadbury, its definitely the best in the 'Cadbury Snack' range I have tasted so far. The milk chocolate wasn't of the highest Cadbury quality, yet it was tasty enough and provided a pleasant coating to the shortcake biscuit centre. The bar could be very easily improved two ways: 1) removing the middle chocolate layer to avoid the biscuit getting moist and 2) making it double the size. I wouldn't say this should be a product you should massively go out of your way to trying, but if your looking for a cheap and quick biscuit based fix, you could do far worse.

7.4 out of 10

September 9th: Kshocolat Milk Chocolate

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

What with all the wired and wonderful flavoured products I have been sampling recently, this plain milk chocolate bar from Kshocolat appeared a relatively subdued proposition. I haven't had too much luck with the Kshocolat range so far; neither the '72% Dark Chocolate' or the 'Honeycomb & Vanilla' bars left me overwhelmingly satisfied, whilst the 'Lemon and Pepper white chocolate' didn't quite push the right buttons with me ... to be frank I just wasn't expecting much from this before consuming it.

The bar came in the standard Kshocolat paper wrapping with inner foil layer. Again I had neither any great deal of affection or disposition towards it, it was just pretty standard packaging and what you would expect from a more premuim positioned brand. The bar itself had the typical Kshocolat cocoa pod pattern moulded into the chocolate - there's no doubting it does look impressive and is far superior in comparison to a lot of other manufactures who are quiet lazy with their bars aesthetics. The bar had a reasonable aroma - it had a strong cocoa based core scent that had elements of vanilla coming through sporadically.

The chocolate had a smooth butter like texture that provided a silky melt in the mouth. This must be accountable to the high amounts of cocoa butter (18%), in texture it at least felt like a more premium style product. unfortunately the same could not really be said about the taste. It had a one-dimensional milky taste; surprising considering the cocoa solids (32%) were portioned far more heavily than the milk solids (17%). It had a smooth taste, though it was just relatively bland, the flavours never developed onwards from the initial milky creaminess. The aftertaste was actually partially sour tasting and was just not the most enjoyable. The bars lack of richness meant that it wasn't a massively satisfying product. After eating half the bar at a time (40g) I was hardly yearning for more, although this was mostly due to the unexciting taste. As with the rest of the range the bar ingredients were pretty clean - there's no vegetable fats or artificial ingredients to be seen ... unfortunately this didn't make it an outstanding bar of chocolate.

Overall in a market that is so full of different flavour variations and bars sourced from fancy locations, this was a bar hard to get excited about. It was lucky that really, as at the end of the day it was far from spectacular. The texture was quite pleasurable; it had a lovely smoothness and melted like butter on the tongue. Unfortunately the taste was really just quite lacklustre and never ventured in its flavour development to ever being more than a pretty subdued milk based flavour - the lack of cocoa depth was both surprising and disappointing relative to its proportion with the milk solids. As you will see from its score this is a hard bar to really recommend due to there being so many other far cheaper and more flavoursome bars on the market, this merely just never reaches anything more than being an average milk chocolate offering.

7.3 out of 10

September 8th: Hotel Chocolat Milk 52% Salt & Caramel

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

Having polished off Hotel Chocolat's full 'Peepster Box' range , the guys from the HC marketing team were kind enough to send me this 'The Purist Library' collection box.

The collection includes seven single origin variants - todays cocoa bean originating from the Uba Budo Plantation which is in the Agua Grande region of the island nation of Sao Tome; for those that aren't aware ... (lol me included!) this is an island in the Gulf of Guinea off Africa. Todays bar was formed using cocoa beans from this island and had added 'Himalayan Salt & Caramel' ingredients.

Each of the bars come in a 75g serving, as you can probably tell from the above paragraphs the packaging contained a fair amount of blurb. Despite the on-pack information nearly verging on pretentious I must admit it was stunningly presented. The bar came in an outer cardboard sleeve packaging that looked the definition of sleek. As I have said the on-pack information was borderline over-the-top but for those interested it was both informative and appetite whetting. Inside the cardboard box was a bar/slab that was kept amazingly fresh in a foil package. Opening the foil package I could detect an instant cocoa aroma release itself, the strength of the smell was not only enticing but indicated the incredible freshness of the product.

The bar was very easy to split, the thickness of the product was near perfect. The texture of the chocolate was incredibly soft, just handling the bar left firm thumbprints on the service which should give you an indication at the ease of its melt. On the tongue it felt amazingly smooth, this was a chocolate that under no circumstances would need or ever should be chewed.

The initial taste of the bar was quite an concentrated cocoa flavour; its taste was extremely fresh and was not overly dominant or intense. As the melt progressed so did the flavour and the caramel became increasingly evident as the chocolate started to liquidify. The caramel element was not sweet like most mass confection caramels, but rather provided a more bitter honey flavour, one I would almost describe as burnt sugar - rather creme brulee esc. Occasionally some pieces would release a fantastic subtle salty note that was fantastically balanced with the caramel flavour, giving it a very moreish and refreshing taste. Despite the bar being very full flavoured in it's duration in the mouth, I found the aftertaste slightly underwhelming in that it just didn't last very long, this meant I actually consumed this bar rather sharpish as I was increasingly wanting the delicious flavour hit it provided. This was probably the fastest I have ever eaten 75g of chocolate.

Overall after battling my way through the reams of information the packaging was shouting at me (I loved it really!!), there was really quite a great tasting bar of chocolate. Despite my moaning, the packaging looked fantastic - theres no two ways about it - presentation top notch! As I have said the taste wasn't half bad either ;) It had a deliciously balanced taste; the chocolate was full flavoured but did not overshadow the caramel undertone. The additional salty lick made the bar all the moreish, which was partially unfortunate due to the shortness of the longevity of the taste. If this combination sounds like a proposition you would like, then its a pretty safe bet this is a bar you will immensely enjoy. Me...!?... Reccomending a Hotel Chocolat product!?... Never :)

8.6 out of 10

September 7th: Hershey's Bliss Milk Chocolate

Kcal 240 Fat 14.0g Fat(sats) 9.0g Carbs 24.0g

I didn't know too much about this Hershey's Bliss range before **I SHOP 4 YOU II** kindly provided me with some samples. Doing a bit of research via Google I found out that this particular range is supposed to provide a more premuim Hershey's option for consumers:

"The launch is part of Hershey's attempts to cash in on the growth of the more upmarket chocolate sector in the US." ...full spiel HERE

There are three variants in the range - today I sampled the 'milk chocolate' variant ... was it really that much better than the original Hershey's Milk Chocolate!? Only one way to find out ...

The packaging looked nice yet had a very familiar appearance - on more than one occasion I did have to double check I wasn't consuming a Dove (Galaxy) product ... this is obviously a deliberate thing as the similarities are all to obvious. The chocolates themselves came in nice foil packages, I was slightly disappointed by there being no patterns on the chocolates, though the design shape provided a perfect fit in the mouth. The chocolates had a pretty strong smell that was very similar to Dove (Galaxy) chocolate. It was far stronger in its dairy scents than its cocoa intensiveness; my overall thoughts on the presentation of the product were resoundingly positive.

As I have already referred to, the shape of the chocolates were very well designed. Each piece was a perfect bitesize mouthful and melted longingly in the mouth due to its intelligent shape. The slow melt released the on-pack promised creamy taste; as the smell suggested its milk flavours were far stronger than its cocoa. Both the taste and texture were smoother than original Hershey's milk chocolate, the texture avoided clumping like I found with the original. I ate six of these chocolates in one sitting with real relative ease, the lack of real cocoa richness meant that overall this was not a product that was wholly satisfying. One thing the product did deliver was a pleasant aftertaste that had a nice creamy note to it; it was a pretty stark comparison to the yoghurty tangy taste of original Hershey's ... im pretty sure the majority of people will much prefer the aftertaste of the 'Bliss' offering.

Overall this is a nice tasting product that certainly delivers its on pack promise of being a creamy milk chocolate. It has super smooth milky taste that I would much compare to standard Galaxy chocolate. Its lack of real cocoa flavour hit damages the overall richness of the product, though this can be my only real complaint in what was really a pleasant tasting smooth milk chocolate. Im not to sure about the price of this product in the US - it would be interesting to know how it compares to the price of Dove chocolate, as it seems to be a very similar proposition. Personally I preferred this to Hershey's original milk chocolate - certainly worth a look at if you prefer a smoother tasting chocolate.

7.8 out of 10

*** EU & UK Readers Attention*** Ever been been browsing Chocolate Mission or any other Candy Site and felt frustrated not being able to get hold of an American bar/item!??? .... well feel frustrated no more!!! 'I SHOP 4 YOU II'!! is a great service that provides a unique "one stop shop" international shopping experience!!! Visit the Ebay shop - if they dont have the item you want instock simply give them a message - there is no harm in asking. This service comes with a Chocolate Mission Seal of Approval!! It is a genuinely great, fast and friendly service... Just say you came from Chocolate Mission.

September 6th: Reese's Peanut Butter White Egg

Kcal 180 Fat 11.0g Fat(sats) 3.5g Carbs 17.0g

Easter is long gone but I was never going to be turning down the opportunity offered to me by CandyPirate to try this 'Reese's Peanut Butter White Egg'. The original 'Reese's Peanut Butter White Cups' still remain in the top rated bars section, and are truly one of my favourite products of all time ... I could eat them all day long!

This 'White Egg' variant was identical in build to the 'Reese's Peanut Butter Fudge Egg' - it came in a 34.0g single piece serving. This struck me as being significantly smaller than you get with the standard cups, it certainly wasn't the most filling product ever, and its moreish taste left me feeling like I could easily eat another straight after. The product looked simple, yet pleasant with its egg shaped design. The shape was protected well by the cardboard sleeve, though as with the 'Fudge Egg' there was a lack of a paper cup ... like I said on the 'Fudge Egg' review this wasn't a massive deal, but I always think of it as a nice authentic touch for Reese's products. The egg had a delightful smell, it had the usual distinctive Reese's nutty aroma with an added dairy undertone - so hugely enticing!

As you can see by the cross-section the upper layer of white chocolate was tremendously thick - it provided a nice crack to the first stage of the bite that contrasted nicely with the softer peanut butter. The melt of the white chocolate was also rather good; it was very smooth and again was a nice comparator to the ever so grainy nature of the peanut centre. I haven't had a white chocolate Reese's offering for a long time but it was every bit as good as I remember it. The peanut butter was its usual tremendous quality with its distinctive salted roasted flavour. The white chocolate had a delicious creamy taste, it was by no means the best or most flavoursome white chocolate I have tried, but its subtle milky flavours seemed near perfectly balanced with the peanut butter. The aftertaste lingered in the mouth for a good while after and had a creamy nutty edge, this was an all round great tasting product.

Overall this was a highly enjoyable, yet at the same time frustrating offering. It tasted incredible; the near perfect execution of the peanut butter was accompanied nicely by the balanced milkiness of the white chocolate. Personally I prefer the white chocolate Reese's use rather than their milk chocolate, which I find relatively flavourless and waxy in its texture. The only real problem with this product was its size ... this could potentially be me just being a greedy guts, but I just wasn't satisfied by this ... I could have easily have consumed a product twice the size. This is another great product in the Reese's range - one for peanut butter and white chocolate fans alike.

8.2 out of 10

Want to try the Reese's Peanut Butter White Egg for yourself!? Then on over to CandyPirate for this and even more American Candy & Food right here in the UK.

September 5th: Kit Kat Dark

Kcal 236 Fat 13.3g Carbs 25.0g

Having recently tried some of the crazy Kit Kat flavours from Japan ('Watermelon, Brown Sugar etc), it felt a bit silly not having reviewed all of the Kit Kat variants we have here in the UK. Today I went about sampling the 'Dark' variant in its four finger form - no fancy added superfood legumes to be seen here ... just simply four wafer fingers coated in dark chocolate.

Despite this 'Dark' variant being a little more fulfilling than the standard Kit Kat I was hardly overwhelmed by its sustenance. Indeed it was a great snack, but Kit Kats just never seem to completely satisfy my hunger. The bar was nicely packaged with a darkly coloured foil wrapper, I just love the look of Kit Kat fingers - classical and fun to eat; there's no end to the satisfaction to be had at splitting the fingers from each other ... I think I enjoy the cracking sound as the chocolate splits that little bit too much :) The smell of this 'Dark' variant wasn't quite as forthcoming as the original, though there was an undertone of cocoa that was pleasant enough.

The taste was exactly how I imagined it to be - mass consumer 'friendly' dark chocolate. By this I mean that this was by no means a harsh tasting dark chocolate, yet still noticeably more concentrated in its cocoa flavour. The melt of the chocolate was still as good as the original, I found it particularly pleasant letting the coating melt away smoothly on the tongue, and then enjoying the crispness of the wafer. Eating it this way also meant that the full taste of the dark chocolate could be savoured - it was a less creamy more cocoa intensive flavour. Though not as creamy as the original, the combination of the unsweetened chocolate and sweet tasting wheaty wafer was a great combination and left an satisfying chocolaty taste in the mouth.

Overall this was a bar that I really enjoyed. I wouldn't say it was better than the standard Kit Kat, though nor would I say it was worse ... its simply a different proposition. The unsweetened chocolate and sweetness of the wafer worked well together to provide a nice synergy of tastes and texture variations. This bar goes to prove its not always the best idea to go for outlandish flavours, some combinations are classic, and this is one of them. Definitely recommended, even if you're not the biggest fan of dark chocolate, this could be a good place to ease yourself in.

8.3 out of 10

September 4th: Snickers Charged (US)

Kcal 250 Fat 13.0g Fat(Sats) 5.0g Carbs 31.0g

Not another?? I can hear you shouting at your computer screen already!...yes indeedy another limited edition Snickers bar...and this time its CHARGED!!!

So what's the deal with this one!?...well its much the same premise as a standard Snickers but with added Caffeine, Taurine and B-Vitamins. Looking at the back of pack its confirmed the bar contains 60mg of caffeine...to put this in some sort of perspective that's roughly the same amount of caffeine as a regular cup of coffee (also 60mg), more than a standard can of Coca-cola (40mg) but less than a can of Red Bull (100mg)....so being the dedicated bloke I am, I sampled this in a suitable situation, and swapped it like for like with my morning cup of coffee.

As with every limited edition bar the Charged came in smaller serving than the standard Snickers bar - 51.9g. This equated to two things - firstly it wasn't as filling as a standard Snickers as the nougat was less kindly portioned with about half the quantity. Secondly this bar incorporated the amalgamation of the caramel and peanut layers so they were no longer separate.

The bar came in a nice looking silver foil wrapper. The bar retained an extremely alluring aroma - a nice mix of chocolaty peanutty scents emanated from the bar and smelt absolutely delicious. Out the pack the bar looked extremely weedy and smaller compared to its original Snickers comparator - the cross section also didn't look as impressive ,with the nougat layer appearing to be a little lacking in presence.

Biting into the bar it was quickly evident that many of the textures of the bar were up to the standard of the original. The chocolate coating still had a nice consistency and melted smoothly in the mouth; whilst the mixture of peanuts and caramel wasn't at detriment to either element as the caramel still gave the bar a nice chewyness, and the peanuts still provided the added crunch. What was disappointing was the nougat element, which I found to be drier and more granular than normal...it just didn't feel nice in the mouth.

So the taste...well initially all was well:

The chocolate...milky smooth chocolaty goodness..yum!
The caramel ... sweet with a nice syrupy edge... yum!
The peanuts ... a delicious buttery nuttyness with that slight salty note ... yum!
The nougat ... slightly lacking the flavour of the original...but still had a nice milky flavour...yum

Then it hit...this bitter awful aftertaste that was really quite repulsive. The added caffeine in the bar obviously gave this bar a bitter edge and it was very much likeable to the bitter saccharine taste of artificial sweeteners - to be honest it was fowl, and was a flavour that didn't leave my mouth for hours afterwards.

Overall I will admit this bar did give me the same buzz and short-lived perkyness that a cup of coffee does every morning. Before eating the bar I was pretty sceptical at the bars claims of giving this extra burst of energy but it actually did do relatively the same job....unfortunately this has come at detriment to another thing and that was the truly wonderful taste of Snickers. The added caffeine element in this bar adds an inexcusable bitter aftertaste and spoils what is truly a great tasting combination of flavours and textures. The bar also follows suit with the rest of the 'limited edition' bars and is slightly smaller in size - this comes at detriment to the nougat component which is literally halved...not a good thing! To be honest if you really want a caffeine kick from a chocolate bar this isn't a bad option...at the heart of the matter though your better off enjoying a nice filtered fresh coffee and a regular Snickers.

7.4 out of 10

September 3rd: Cadbury Caramilk (Can)

Kcal 260 Fat 13.0g Fat(sats) 8.0g Carbs 33.0g

The search for the best Cadbury Caramel bar has truly stretched worldwide - previous reviews have seen me try:

Cadbury Dairy Milk with Caramel (UK) 9.4
Cadbury Caramellow (Aus) 8.5
Cadbury Caramellow (US) 8.1

All of which as you can see by their scores have gone down very well. Today I stepped up the search another gear sampling the 'Cadbury Caramilk' from Canada.

This 'Caramilk' bar followed the same premise as the other variations - milk chocolate blocks with gooey caramel centres. The bar came in a plentiful 52g serving that certainly provided a substantial snack. The bar came presented very similarly to the Cadbury Dairy Milk bar from Ireland - an retro looking paper sleeve with gold foil wrapping. Personally I thought it looked stunning, the bar itself also was nicely presented, with each block having a nice Cadbury logo detail inscribed... it looked a classic bar and very stylish. The foil packaging did not provide the tightest of wrappings, though the bar still retained a strong aroma. It had a very appetising dairy smell that maybe just wasn't quite as defined as our UK bar.

The bar itself was split into twelve blocks with dome shaped moulded tops. The dome shape created a larger surface area that meant the outside coating melted all that bit faster in comparison to both the US and UK bars. The melt was still super smooth, though the extra pace at which it melted did not play in its favour, as the flavour of the milk chocolate didn't last as long in the mouth. The flavour of the chocolate was almost identical to the Australian 'Caramellow' - sweeter and less cocoa rooted than the UK version, with a thinner texture. It still had a delicious milky flavour, though it simply wasn't as rich as the UK bar.

The twelve block approach of the bar meant that the blocks were the smallest out of all the different caramel variants tried so far. This meant each block contained less caramel, which resulted in its flavour being not as impactful as other variants. The caramel was very similarly flavoured to the UK bar, very sweet but balanced nicely with a light touch of salt ... extremely moreish. It was just disappointing it was lacking in its portioning in each block.

Overall this bar is yet another instance where the slightest of alterations to the format and design of the bar has been detrimental. Splitting the bar into twelve smaller pieces simply made each mouthful that less forceful in its flavours. No doubt this bar still tasted great, the chocolate wasn't quite as rich as the UK Dairy Milk but it was delicious nevertheless. The caramel, as I have said just wasn't as impactful in its flavour as other variants due to its smaller portioning with the smaller blocks...still though I must reiterate the point, the flavour it did provide was of a high quality.

So the search still continues...with the UK bar still holding onto the coveted 'best in the range' claim. Im not actually aware of any other regions that have a Cadbury Caramel offering!? Drop me a line if you know of one yourselves. A very good attempt here by the Canadians...just not the best though.

8.4 out of 10

September 2nd: Kit Kat Azuki Bean

Kcal 228 Fat 13.6g Carbs 25.6g

Even after last weeks Kit Kat extravaganza UniqJapan still managed to find yet another flavour of Kit Kat I hadn't sampled from their store. I must admit being rather oblivious to what an 'Azuki Bean' was prior to eating this bar. Some research via wiki has revealed it to be a red coloured bean that is grown in East Asia. It actually turns out that it's the second most popular legume in Japan behind the Soybean, and is very commonly used to add flavour to foods such as ice cream, pastries and biscuits...fascinating stuff huh!?

This 'Azuki Bean' flavoured Kit Kat came as a four-fingered white chocolate Kit Kat with added 'Azuki Bean' paste in both the wafer and coating. The product came in a nice glossy looking box, it certainly made the bar feel that little bit more special than a standard Kit Kat. Contained within the box were two packs of foil wrapped double finger servings; handy if unlike me you can resist tucking into both at the same sitting. The Kit Kat's themselves looked just as awesome as the exterior packaging ... the speckled look of the bars gave them an interesting look - not like any other Kit Kat I have seen before. I enjoyed the smell that came from the product; they had a extra sweet dairy scent - quite alike vanilla ice cream.

The fingers had a smooth textured coating; the added minuscule bean pieces did not disrupt the silky nature of the melt. The bean paste was quite apparent in its presence; tucked in the wafer, it added a smooth moistness, unfortunately though this partially negated the usual crispiness of the wafer. The initial flavour of the fingers had a dreamy creamy taste; the white chocolate quality was actually quite good for a mass confection bar, not overly sweet but a nice full rounded milky flavour with a lick of vanilla. The flavour of the wafer was largely dominated by the 'Azuki Bean' paste, which added a unique set of sweet nutty flavour depths. I ate all four fingers (41.0g) in one sitting which made for a great afternoon snack. The flavours were strong enough to make sure the bar felt substantial and satisfying. I must also note that I really enjoyed the aftertaste, it left a long pleasant creamy taste in the mouth.

Overall contrary to a lot of the other Japanese Kit Kats I tried last week, this flavour actually really worked and felt right at home in the Kit Kat format. The white chocolate provided a solid flavour base from which the 'Azuki Bean' paste added a particularly pleasant additional sweet, nutty flavour. The wafer didn't quite retain its usual crispness, though the paste did give it a heavier more substantial feel. This was a nicely presented, great tasting, fulfiling offering that im sure Kit Kat and white chocolate fans alike would very much enjoy - recommended.

8.3 out of 10

Visit UniqJapan for this Kit Kat Azuki Bean and many other Japanese products - delivered right here to the UK!

September 1st: Hotel Chocolat Ginger & Lemon

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

The 'Dark Peepster Box' has served up a few treats so far - most notably of course the 85% house bar, Be sure to keep on the look out for a competition coming very soon to Chocolate Mission! You could be in with a chance of winning a Hotel Chocolat 85% to sample for yourself...as I said coming soon!!

This week I sampled another offering from the 'Dark Peepster Box' - the 'Ginger & Lemon'. The slab billed itself as an 'intriguing combination of ginger pieces set in lemon accented dark chocolate'. I must confess to being a huge fan of ginger and dark chocolate combinations; previous favourites including Duncan's 'Ginger', Thorntons 'Ginger Bar' and Montezuma's 'Culture Shock'. Despite being slightly cautious of the added Lemon element, I was pretty optimistic about this Hotel Chocolat offering.

The slabs came in two 50g servings - the 'flavoured' mini slabs seem to come in smaller servings (100g) compared to the 125g you get with the plainer variants ... im not quite sure why!? It all seems a bit odd to me as I guess it means you get significantly less chocolate from the slab, as a lot of the room is already being taken up by the extra flavour elements ... down-weighting it further doesn't really make much sense does it!? Anyway the slab looked nice in appearance, the 72% dark chocolate had a nice yellow rippled effect running through it - this was obviously supposed to signify the lemon flavour. The crystallised ginger pieces were very generously portioned accounting for 20% of the make up of the slab, they looked impressive, though it would have been nicer if they were dispersed throughout the slab a little more rather than the majority merely placed in the middle.

From the first mouthful it was apparent something about this bar wasn't quite right. The crystallised ginger pieces simply just didn't release their flavour unless chewed. Unfortunately chewing the ginger, meant chewing the chocolate, which you can probably guess wasn't to my liking as it just meant the full breadth flavour could not be savoured. Enjoying the chocolate in its usual manner - simply letting it melt on the tongue, let it release its flavours naturally. It had an initial intense cocoa flavour that mellowed as it melted, becoming ever increasingly smoother. When letting the chocolate just melt on the tongue the crystallised ginger pieces just simply remained intact - releasing no flavours whatsoever. When chewed they did release an explosion of sugary, spicy, fresh tasting ginger...something that wasn't the most pleasant in isolation ... it was just both too sugary and too intense. The lemon element wasn't very detectable until the aftertaste of the bar, at which point it really kicked in providing a nice longing freshness - unlike the ginger It was perfectly implemented. After eating these slabs I was left with a resounding feeling of disappointment - not a conclusion I was expecting.

Overall this bar is an instance where the combination of ingredients is simply dysfunctional. The dark chocolate and ginger pieces could only be enjoyed in tandem when mouthfuls were chewed - this just simply isn't how the chocolate should be enjoyed. When the chocolate was enjoyed in its correct fashion, letting it melt on the tongue, the ginger pieces just remained intact and were relatively flavourless until chewed, upon which their flavour was just too intense. The lemon element was implemented well, but the mismatch of the ginger and dark chocolate meant this bar simply lacked the quality of taste and textures it should of had. If this bar is to be improved Hotel Chocolat will have to find a way of either implementing the ginger flavour differently... maybe ginger oil!? Or making the crystallised ginger flavour enhancing without it having to be chewed. With so many other great variants in their portfolio I would recommend you go for one of them before trying this one. This slab was a disappointment, but I guess no ones perfect ... not even Hotel Chocolat!

7.2 out of 10