September 23rd: M&M's Premiums Raspberry Almond

Kcal 240 Fat 17.0g Fat(sats) 6.0g Carbs 19.0g (per 42.0g serving)

A few weeks ago, thanks to **I SHOP 4 YOU II** I took my first look at the M&M's Premiums range with the 'Triple Chocolate' flavour - I thought they were absolutely delicious, and definitely worthy of their 'Premium' branding. The standard had well and truly been set - read on to find out if these 'Raspberry Almond' M&M's Premiums matched up to expectations?

The 'Raspberry Almond' flavour consisted of 'Raspberry flavoured white chocolate and almond nut, wrapped in dark chocolate' - a pretty interesting mix that I can't really recall encountering elsewhere beforehand. From the pictures above you will see that again the product was nicely presented in the modern style packaging. The M&M's themselves again looked stunning with their marble effect painted finish - the insides of each M&M also looked very impressive with a distinct layering and definition between the different chocolates, aswell as a fresh looking nut. Opening the inner plastic packet I was met with a strong fruity berry aroma. It smelt very distinct, and I guess very relevant for the flavour, though one part of me couldn't help but feel that it was overly sweet and artificial - of which of course it was. Surprisingly there were no genuine raspberry ingredients listed on the packaging whatsoever. Fruit flavoured M&M's have always been pretty weak in my reckoning, and my previous reviews have always called for Mars to use real fruit elements instead of the artificial flavours ... no such luck again here.

The artificial nature of the smell soon paled in comparison to the artificialness of the raspberry in the taste. The raspberry flavour was sharp, overly sweet and just really quite fake in it's flavour. It was unfortunately the strongest part of the taste - and dominated the almond and chocolate layers. When eaten in isolation from the raspberry flavoured white chocolate, the almonds were crunchy and fresh with a pleasant buttery taste, the dark chocolate was also fair flavoured, providing a decent semi-sweet cocoa element to the taste briefly. The aftertaste was of course dominated by the sweet artificial berry flavour ... a shame ... a real shame. Too sweet, too fake - in a word poor!

Overall to put it bluntly, this was a terribly disappointing product. Your always going to be in trouble when trying to achieve a flavour through artificial ingredients, but even then the attempt through this method was terribly exectuted. These were no better than the original limited edition M&M's Razzpberry, which when I reviewed a few months ago were equally as disappointing ... I guess the only thing we can say about them now is that at least they didn't have the premium price tag like these. M&M's just don't see to be able to pull off fruit flavoured variants ... and these more confirmed this to me rather than dispelled that theory. Personally not a product I would recommend. Lets hope the range gets back on track with my next review from the 'Premiums' line.

6.9 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 22nd: Hotel Chocolat Milk 52% Vanilla & Cocoa Nibs

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

My exploration of the 'Purist Range' continued this week with me sampling the 'Milk 52% with Vanilla & Cocoa Nibs'. The pack informed me that this bar combined a 'unique fresh tasting milk chocolate with less sugar, more cocoa and sufficient milkiness'. The bar was farmed from the Menavava Plantation in Madagascar and contained added vanilla pod and cocoa nibs in its ingredients.

If you have been reading my reviews from this 'Purist Range' you will know that the presentation is absolutely incredible. Once again this bar contained interesting on-pack blurb about how the product was produced from bean to bar ... some may find it pretentious but personally I find it all quite interesting - its nice knowing where your chocolate comes from. I'm not to sure this type of approach would go down to well on some Nestle bars ... lol ok lets leave that issue well alone. Contained within the inner foil packet, the slab had a nice smell, it smelt very dairy based with a undertone of vanilla. It was unspectacular but pretty appetising nonetheless. 

Tastewise this was one of the milkier tasting Hotel Chocolat products I have tried. Despite the far heavier weighting of ingredients on the cocoa solids (52% cocoa solids & 22% milk solids), the taste was remarkably light and clean in comparison to many Hotel Chocolat products like the '52% Himalayan Salt/Caramel' and less surprisingly the '72% Dark'. The taste was more milky that I would say cream like, and this was true of it's texture aswell. The melt was typically super smooth and well paced but was less viscous than other Hotel Chocolat offerings. Though the thinner density wasn't entirely preferable, the added crunch factor from the cocoa nibs was pleasant and brought an extra dimension to the bar in this regard. The cocoa nibs also added an extra chocolaty burst when chewed, though the overriding aftertaste of the bar was an overarching milky flavour that had the slightest of vanilla notes. The lightness of the taste meant this wasn't the richest of chocolates - I easily ate the 75g over one sitting.

Overall this was one of the more subtly flavoured bars I have tried from Hotel Chocolat. The dominant milky flavour was a kind pleasant one, that although wasn't the most fulfilling, was still of a very high quality and very moreish. The added vanilla and cocoa nib elements had fairly minor roles in regards of being flavour incremental, though they were still very much detectable, just less flavour enhancing than say the 'Caramel/Himalayan Salt' and 'Orange & Chilli' ingredients in those bars. Some readers have said to me they find the intensity of flavour concentration in some Hotel Chocolat slabs too much - to be honest this offering seems to cover all bases for those people. For a light, clean and crisp milk chocolate I would really say this is a good choice; its not the most characteristic of chocolates from the Hotel Chocolat range, but yet another tasty offering.

8.4 out of 10

September 21st: Snickers Dark

Kcal 250 Fat 13.0g Fat(sats) 5.0g Carbs 30.0g

The original UK Snickers Is one of my favourite bars ever and sits proudly amongst the upper tier of the Chocolate Mission top rated bars. Being the dark chocolate fan I am, I simply couldn't wait to try this dark variation, which simply involved the same peanut, caramel and nougat premise, but with the normal milk chocolate replaced with dark chocolate. I am aware this was originally introduced as a limited edition, though due to popular demand it got made a staple part of the US range....this was one I was really looking forward to.

The bar came in a 51.9g serving size - smaller than the standard milk chocolate version. The bar was still very substantial and wholly satisfying yet not quite the monster of the original Snickers. In appearance the wrapper and bar were unsurprisingly coloured slightly darker - the paleness of the nougat looked even more appetising than normal against the darker coloured chocolate - yum. The bar's aroma was not quite as nutty as normal - it was more cocoa rooted. It still enticed me, but personally I think the roasted nut smell of the original is near unbeatable.

The dark chocolate was very evident from the first mouthful, and it's flavour was instantly recognisable as different from the original milk chocolate. It had a stronger chocolaty taste that although wasn't bitter, was certainly not as sweet, and had a richer flavour that lasted a lot longer in the mouth. Though their chewy textures were still evident and enjoyable, the flavours of the caramel and nougat were partly overwhelmed by the stronger chocolate. Their normal sweeter flavour elements were partially toned down by the chocolate...still recognisable but just not as impactful. The peanuts were as enjoyable as ever with their amazingly tasty roasted flavour...the slight kick of salt was as prominent and beneficial to the overall flavour as with the original. This was a great tasting bar, and was one that left me very satisfyed in terms of hunger fufilment and enjoyment.

Overall this is a nice variation from Mars and one that is worthy of its place in their portfolio. The dark chocolate is pretty 'mass consumer friendly', it's not quite the same proposition as a Lindt 70% dark chocolate; it's more of chocolate with a stronger edgier chocolaty taste - one that in a mainstream environment will be interpreted as 'dark'. The dark chocolate was enjoyable though it's stronger taste wasn't all beneficial as it overly dominated the nougat and caramel elements partially negating their impact. I would definitely recommend this bar to Snickers fans, though not quite the outstanding level of the original Snickers, it's a great variation and well worthy of trying - a bar I would definately have again.

8.8 out of 10

September 21st: Competition Results

Firstly I would like to say thank you to all the entrants! There was an overwhelming amount - my inbox has nearly exploded!!

The answers:

Bar 1 - Cadbury Twirl

Bar 2 - Cadbury Cherry Ripe (Aus)

Bar 3 - Mars Bounty

Bar 4 - Fry's Turkish Delight

****AND THE WINNERS ARE.....***

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M&Ms Milk Chocolate (US) - Anne McMillan

M&Ms Peanut Butter (US) - Nina Woodcock

Hotel Chocolat Orange & Chilli Dark Chocolate Slab 125g - Jan Evans

Hotel Chocolat 85% Dark Chocolate Slab 125g - Gareth Moorhead

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Congratulations to all the winners - I have sent you all e-mails asking for your postal addresses.

Commiserations to all who didn't win ... this time!! Due to a huge recent influx of goodies, another competition should be running in the next few weeks - so please continue to contribute to the blog and check for the daily updates.

September 20th: Hershey's Bliss Dark Chocolate

Kcal 200 Fat 14.0g Fat(sats) 9.0g Carbs 25.0g (per 6 chocolates)

Having kicked off my range review of the 'Hershey's Bliss' line with the milk chocolate flavour last week, I today sampled the dark chocolate variant - again all thanks to **I SHOP 4 YOU II** who sent these from America.

Evidence that these are a product positioned to the female side of the market is pretty blatant from the packaging. As you can see it was a lovely shade of pastel pink ... I don't think it could be anymore effeminate if it tried. Is it really such a good idea cutting off half a market aka blokes?? Who knows!? What I do know - is that I wouldn't feel the most comfortable buying these in a shop ... and that's coming from a bloke who buys Milkybar Buttons lol! Despite my resentment to the choice of colour, the packaging was no different to the milk chocolate, lacking detail on the chocolates themselves, but wrapped in smart stylish looking foil packages. The chocolates had an established smell, far less dairy rooted than the milk chocolate variety and one more with a dark smelling cocoa scent.

Although the perfect size and shape to simply plonk in the mouth one by one, I did bite into one of the chocolates, it had more of a soft chalky feel than the crisp smoothness of the milk chocolate. Despite having a bit more of a bumpy texture the melt was equally smooth and had a nice thick single cream viscosity once melted. The flavour of the chocolate developed as it started to melt in the mouth, the initial flavour was surprisingly nutty, though this soon developed into an intensifying cocoa flavour. Before the cocoa could become overly concentrated the sweetness of the sugar kicked in - the overall taste was strong, yet not over powering - as I always say 'mass consumer friendly dark chocolate'. The taste lasted a reasonable time in the mouth, which meant that is was a well round satisfying chocolate - no off putting Hershey's style aftertaste to note here.

Overall these are probably the best plain chocolate offering I have had from Hershey's - superior than both their original milk chocolate and even the 'Bliss milk chocolate'. The taste wasn't up their with the most accomplished dark chocolates I have tried but its a good standard friendly dark chocolate that has a delightfully smooth texture. This might not be a chocolate that would be overly enjoyed by the more refined taste buds, but is another one of those products I would recommend to people looking to ease themselves into dark chocolate.

8.0 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 20th: Aero

Kcal 251 Fat 14.4g Carbs 27.0g

Every once in awhile I come across bars that I know I should really have reviewed a long time ago - The Aero bar being one of them. The Aero is probably anxiously counting down the days until its main rival in the aerated chocolate stakes the Cadbury Wispa will no doubt make yet another triumphant return this October. Well just before the next Wispa relaunch it's only fair I cast my view upon the Aero milk chocolate bar.

The bar came in a pretty hefty looking serving size, though obviously due to its aerated composition really only constituted the weight of a standard sized bar. The packaging was fair in its design, the foil ensured the bar was packaged tightly and kept it in a good condition. The bar itself was nicely presented with Aero logos on each block - the cross section of the bar revealed the bubbly nature of the insides which was fleetingly of interest. The bar smelt very sweet with an all too obvious chocolaty aroma - nothing much to pass judgement on here, simply what you would expect from a Nestle manufactured bar.

As the smell suggested the bar had a sweet taste, it was more forceful in its breadth of sweetness than it was its cocoa flavour. The taste was one of quite a generic milk chocolate, there was certainly nothing untoward about it, but just lacking a real flavour definition in comparison to say Dairy Milk, Milka or Galaxy etc. Obviously the real selling point behind the bar is the texture - 'Have you felt the Bubbles melt' asks the packaging... well yes I certainly have. The outer chocolate had a rather waxy melt and feel in the mouth, though this was more than made up for by the inside of the bar. The bubbles did indeed provide a nice variation of texture, and one that did feel quite pleasant in the mouth. Due to the lightness of the centre the bar, it was hardly a massively filling option, though it's sweetness of taste more than made the serving size adequate.

Overall in my opinion the Cadbury Wispa is definitely the superior bar out of the two; largely down to the overall quality in taste of the milk chocolate. The Aero has a middle ground sweet taste that is neither bold in its cocoa or milky flavours, it simply maintains a pretty medium in between the two, which makes for a pleasurable but relatively uninspiring taste. Personally I think its just a matter of time before the Wispa comes back and reclaims this part of the market.

7.4 out of 10

September 19th: Mars Rocks (Aus)

Kcal 230 Fat 8.4g Fat(sats) 5.1g Carbs 35.5g

The original UK Mars bar is one of my personal favourite bars of all time, suffice to say I was pretty excited when I came across this Australian variant, the 'Mars Rocks': a bar containing all the original elements of the Mars, but with added 'Crunchy Crisps' in the outer milk chocolate layer.

The bar came in a standard 50g serving, complete with a fantastic looking silver foil wrapper. Splitting the bar revealed a pretty interesting cross section, the crispy pieces gave the chocolate a substantial studded look, whilst the nougat and caramel layers were well separated and defined ... it certainly looked the part. The product offered quite little in the way of an aroma, it had a milky smell though it was quite faint - surprising really considering the foil packaging which gave the bar a fresh appeal... aesthetically anyway.

The outer chocolate was nice in it's taste. It had a nice milky flavour that was just about on the right side of its sweetness. It was a lot thicker than the chocolate you get in an original Mars though this was of course due to the presence of the crispy pieces. In theory the idea of the crispy pieces sounded like a reasonable idea, though it was certainly flawed in its implementation. The crunchy texture that the pieces should have added was negated by the chewy caramel and nougat layers ... when chewed the dense nature of the caramel and nougat elements over powered the presence of the crispy pieces and simply stopped them being crunchy. In addition to this the nougat layer varied in its constituents from the original Mars; it was heavier and didn't have the lightness of the original - it felt a little grainy in the mouth and just simply didn't have the same creaminess. The caramel layer didn't seem to vary at all from the original - still delicious and silky smooth - it was just a shame about the nougat as it was far greater in its proportion.

Overall this bar for me was a bit of a letdown. The added crispy pieces just didn't work - their flavour had a nice malty edge however their real point for inclusion was to bring an added crunch element, something that was sadly lacking. The chocolate and caramel elements were of a high standard though struggled for flavour presence against what was really a poor nougat layer. To be honest I wouldn't recommend this bar, simply due to the original being so superior. Fans of the Nestle Crunch may have an interest in this bar, but for the rest of you outside Australia its probably not worth the cost of importing.

7.1 out of 10

September 18th: Pretzel Flipz White Fudge

Kcal 130 Fat 5.0g Fat(sats) 4.5g Carbs 20.0g (per 28.0g / 7 pieces)

Way back in April CandyPirate re-ignited my love for Nestle Flipz by sending me a pack of the milk chocolate flavour. Though I thorougly enjoyed them, a little part of me was desperately calling out for a pack of my former favourite White fudge flavour. Thankfully CandyPirate sent me through a pack with their latest delivery, they inform me that these are one of their best selling items!! Now I know these don't contain cocoa (nor do most Hershey's bars nowadays haha!!)... but they are close enough - and considering they were one of my childhood favourites I couldn't help but review these.

Fortunately CandyPirate sent me through a large pack (141g) which went some way to curing the problem that these were so incredibly moreish - a handful soon turned into two ... before I knew it half the pack had gone ... lol oh dear oh dear! The product came in a foil pouch, it would have been useful if it was resealable, though as you will have gathered this wasn't too much of an issue for me. The pretzels themselves looked nice, they had a nice thick coating, which was evenly spread across all the pretzels. Once opened the pouch released a delicious creamy sweet smell that had the slightest of savoury hints ... these smelt great but I hardly savoured the aroma for that long ... I just dug right in.

So what is white fudge!? Well looking at the ingredients it doesn't sound good ... a mix of sugar, hydrogenated oils, milk and artificial flavours. Despite the uninspiring constiteunts the coating of the pretzels was delicious. It tasted milky and creamy with a slight vanilla note, it was very sweet but this contrasted extremely well with the saltiness of the crunchy pretzel. The mixture of sweet and salty flavours, like in the milk chocolate variant made for an incredibly moreish taste. The aftertaste wasn't that long, which probably made these all the more addictive, the flavour hit was intense and delicious, just unfortunately short lived.

Overall these were every bit as enjoyable as I remember them. They are by no means a masterpiece in crafted confectionary but there is simply no doubting their ridiculously great and tasty snacking potential ... they are one of the most addictive products I have tried this year - and I simply just couldn't put the pack down. I think Nestle are really missing a trick having delisted these from the UK, if they were a product I could buy as part of my staple weekly shopping they would be. These are well worth tracking down, the nostalgia appeal is endless ... I fully recommend them if these take your fancy.

8.3 out of 10

Interested in trying Pretzel Flipz for yourself? Find this bar and many more American candy & foods delivered directly from the UK at CandyPirate!!

September 18th: Nilla Cakesters

Kcal 110 Fat 5.0g Fat(sats) 1.0g Carbs 16.0g (per Cakester)

Where is the chocolate in these Jim!?? ... short answer there isn't any :) but having reviewed the rest of the 'Cakesters' range in the form of the Oero Cakesters, **I SHOP 4 YOU II** thought it would only be right of me to complete a full range review. As far as I can tell 'Nilla' is a brand owned by Nabisco (Kraft) and is most closely associated with its line of wafer cookies, which are supposed to be 'crisp and light, and have a hint of real vanilla flavour' *Wiki*!!

These 'Nilla Cakesters' followed much the same premise as both 'Oreo Cakesters' variants - two pieces of soft sponge cake, which had a layer of vanilla frosting in the middle. The packet as you can see above contained three of these cakes, which was a little too much to eat in one sitting (which I duly attempted to do and felt quite ill afterwards for doing so haha!). The packaging was nicely presented in a foil pack with enclosed cardboard sleeve that protected the fragile nature of the cakes. The Cakes themselves didn't quite have the contrasting colours of the 'Oreo Cakesters' yet looked very enticing. The smell was very sweet and one I would alike to being like maple syrup, personally I found it quite alluring.

Before eating these I chilled them in the fridge, this made them certainly more enjoyable, and less messy to eat than at room temperature. The outer cake pieces had a moist, almost greasy texture. They didn't have a light sponge feel and were more alike a brownie with their dense weighting. Despite their heavy constituents they offered quite little aside from a very sweet honey like taste, I could detect the odd note of vanilla but the flavour was sparing. Between the two cake pieces lay the devilishly tasty inner frosting. It was hugely sweet in its flavour, but both creamy and moreish at the same time ... it was a bit like eating the icing round a birthday cake - so very tasty, but ever so sugary and sickly ... by the time you realise you have eaten too much you have that awful feeling in your stomach - you must know the one. After eating these I had a nice sweet vanilla taste in my mouth for long after, these were certainly a filling snack - though they were always going to be with the three cakes instead of the standard two.

Overall these are a nice little variation from the 'Cakesters' range, I wouldn't quite say they were as tasty as the Oreo Chocolate Creme Cakesters but they had a similar moreishness to them. The sponge cake pieces could have done with being a little more flavoursome, I guess the real flavour hit is supposed to come from the inner creme layer, but a tastier more vanilla flavoured cake element would have been pleasant. These are hardly man's greatest creation but they are certainly a nice product to have as a snack ... serve them up with some vanilla ice cream and now your're talking!

7.4 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 17th: Cadbury Dairy Milk Cranberry & Granola

Kcal 500 Fat 25.7g Fat(sats) 15.5g Carbs 60.3g (per 100g)

Having enjoyed yesterdays 'Apricot Crumble Crunch' I was hoping for much the same from the second of the two new Cadbury Fruit and Nut themed bars. Personally I thought this one sounded the more appetising out of the two - the 'Cranberry and Granola' sounded like a better combination of ingredients and certainly a little less gimmicky than the 'Crumble Crunch'.

Sampling the bar again in the 200g form, unlike the Apricot bar from yesterday it took me more than two servings to eat ... the overall taste and weighting of the ingredients made this bar the more substantial out of the two. I had much the same perception of the packaging than with the 'Apricot Crumble Crunch' - the foil wrapper had an impressive looking matted appeal, the dark rouge colour gave both a contemporary and stylish look. The bar itself also looked impressive; the large cranberry pieces provided a nice interesting look and were spread evenly throughout the chunks. The granola was also relatively well spread and gave the surface a textured quality. The smell of the bar was unsurprisingly milk based; it smelt a bit sweeter than a standard Dairy Milk bar with a minor but detectable biscuity element to its aroma. 

The Dairy Milk retained its standard delicious taste, but had it's texture was spoilt somewhat but the rough sharpness of the granola pieces. By the time I had finished the bar the roof of my mouth felt quite sore; sucking on the chocolate whilst it melted meant that the granola pieces had an almost sandpaper like effect, the melt of the chocolate was smooth but the texture of the granola was not favourable in the slightest. When the granola was bitten into it did release a nice oat centred flavour, definitely more flavoursome than the added 'Crumble Crunch' of yesterdays bar - overall it was a nice addition to the taste. The dried cranberries were not quite as pronounced in their taste as the dried apricot of yesterday, they more reminded me of the raisins used in a standard 'Cadbury Fruit & Nut' - they had an obvious chewy texture but were very limited in their flavour. In this case the cranberries only added the slightest of sweet berry burts that was largely overshadowed by the more dominant chocolate. The aftertaste of the product was far longer in comparison to the 'Apricot Crumble Crunch', it had a nice creamy taste with a note of sugary wheaty oats that stayed in the mouth for a nice duration, this made for a pretty satisfying chocolate.

Overall this was another interesting and tasty bar from Cadbury, however after sampling both new variants I now can't help but feel that instead of creating two bars they should have just gone for the one. Despite the granola having a pretty ragged and rough texture, its overall taste was more substantial and meaningful than the 'crumble crunch'. On the other hand, the apricot of yesterdays bar was more flavoursome than the cranberries of this bar ... you can probably see where im going with this .... YEP .... the 'Cadbury Dairy Milk Apricot & Granola'. Well unfortunately this isn't what we have, so focusing on reality - they are both pretty good bars, far from perfect, but good nonetheless. What I did enjoy about todays bar was that like yesterdays, this 'Cranberry & Granola' was at least something a little different and pretty tasty to boot. Again Dairy Milk and 'Fruit & Nut' fans, this definitely worth you taking a gander at.  

8.3 out of 10

September 16th: Cadbury Dairy Milk Apricot Crumble Crunch

Kcal 455 Fat 23.2g Fat(sats) 14.1g Carbs 54.4g (per 100g)

The widely anticipated new fruit and nut variants from Cadbury finally made their way to me today. Ever since the 'Apricot Crumble Crunch' and 'Cranberry & Granola' were announced earlier this year, I had really been looking forward to trying them ... finally something a little different from Cadbury! Today I sampled the 'Apricot Crumble Crunch'.

I sampled this bar in it's beastly 200g form - I say beastly yet I easily ate this bar over two sittings ... It definitely wasn't a filling bar despite its chunky and largish appearance. The packaging looked nice and varied in comparison to the normal bars from the Dairy Milk range, the yellow glossy foil wrapper looked both modern and aesthetically pleasing, whilst doing a great job keeping the bar fresh. The freshness was no more evident than through the smell of the bar, it had the usual creamy smelling Dairy Milk smell that had the slightest of fruity tinges - yummy! The bar itself looked mightily impressive, the apricot pieces were large and seemed nicely dispersed throughout the chocolate. The crumble pieces provided a nice variation of colour ... the bar actually looked like the picture on the front of pack ... lol its all too often bars come with the promise of massive generous fillings but in reality are a letdown ... this wasn't the case here! 

I wont waste much of your time with describing the taste of the chocolate...surprise surprise ... the Dairy Milk was sublime; rich, thick and smooth in it's melt and all this with a delicious long creamy taste (See HERE for more detail!). 

The fillings were both quite generously portioned, the 'dusted dried apricots' made up 16% of the bar and were present in almost ever single small chunk. The pieces had a nice sweet fruity taste, not the strongest, though dried apricot never really is that full of flavour. The apricot was strongly flavoured enough to give a nice fruity tang, and had an enjoyable soft chewy texture. The 'crumbly crumble pieces' were not quite as generously portioned at only 6% of the total ingredients. The pieces added a nice crunchiness that contrasted nicely with the softer apricot. Personally I thought the crumble pieces lacked flavour, they could have done with having a little bit of salt, which would have made their sweet wheaty flavour more impactful. Truth be told the crumble was all but lost in the chocolate and struggled for presence.

Overall this was a product that ticked more boxes than it didn't. The chocolate was of course delicious, and the apricot pieces added a nice change up in fruity flavours in comparison to the raisins of the original Cadbury Dairy Milk Fruit and Nut. The crumble lacked presence ... in my opinion, the use of a nut might have been more suited to the product; failing that a stronger flavoured biscuit would probably have just sufficed. The heavy presence of the fillings meant this bar was not the most fulfilling of propositions, as the richness of the chocolate was somewhat toned down. As I said above it's nice to see Cadbury at least attempt something a bit more original - it is definitely not the best product ever, but it's one definitely worth checking out if you like Fruit and Nut combinations - bring on the 'Cranberry & Granola'.

8.2 out of 10

September 15th: Hotel Chocolat Dark 72% Rabot Estate

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

Having already reviewed the Hotel Chocolat 72% Dark Chocolate from the Dark Peepster Box, I was rather unsure to what degree this bar could really vary. This offering from 'The Purist' library collection differed in that it was supposed to offer a purer version of the original ... it ridded of both the vanilla and soya lecithin ingredients and was simply comprised of 'cocoa mass, cocoa butter and cane sugar'. The on-pack blurb informed me the cocoa came from Hotel Chocolat's own cocoa plantation in the volcanic soil of Rabot Estate in St Lucia, West Indies ... all very fancy but how did it fare in the Chocolate Mission stakes?

Last week in my opening review from the 'The Purist' range I raved about the presentation of the bar - and of course this was no different here. It was again beautifully presented in an informative and stylish cardboard sleeve, with inner foil packaging for freshness - stunning! Opening the foil package I immediately detected a massively impactful cocoa scent, the smell indicated that this was going to be one rich, deeply flavoured experience.

Placing the first piece on my tongue I was literally overwhelmed by the strength of flavour. It had a raw burnt initial taste that really shocked my taste buds, it wasn't all that pleasant if im honest. Thankfully the experience went all uphill from there ... by the third piece my taste buds seemed to adjust to the initial intense flavour, the taste not only started to mellow but also revealed it's true attributes. It was extremely cocoa rooted, and was heavily noted with coffee, nutty, earthy elements - this all made for a fantastically rich but smooth taste. The texture was sublime, it felt thicker in its melt than the original 72% bar and was extremely soft and smooth. The aftertaste seemed to last that bit longer with the added intensification of cocoa, it was an extremely satisfying, indulgent experience.

Overall this was yet another offering from Hotel Chocolat packed full of pure delicious flavours. The purer constituents of the bar simply increased the intensification of the cocoa, making the taste even more raw and longer in its duration. Truth be told, it could simply be too intense for some, the buffer of the sweetness from the vanilla has been taken away, people wary of dark chocolate should beware this is probably not a bar for them. This is yet another stunning and quite frankly delicious offering from Hotel Chocolat, who are simply starting to dominate the 'top rated bars' section ... changes are soon to be made ... suggestions are more than welcome!!

9.2 out of 10

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**

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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