October 16th: Ferrero Giotto

Kcal 27 Fat 1.9g Fat(sats) 0.5g Carbs 10.6g (per piece)

Once upon a time I remember these Ferrero Giotto frequently occupying a shelf at my local newsagents. Unfortunately these seem to be all but gone from the UK, though not so it seems from Germany. Dean-German-Grocery recently sent me a huge pack on which to pass my judgment. For those of you who have not heard of Ferrero Giotto before, I can inform you they come described as 'moreishly nutty wafer bites, with a creamy hazelnut centre'.

When I was younger I remember that when seeing these on display in a shop I was often scared off buying them due to their posh aesthetic look, I would quickly seek solace in another friendlier looking alternative. Now being more mature (I hope!!), I can now appreciate the quality of the presentation an awful lot better. These Giotto came in small mini packs, with three pieces in each. The foil wrappers looked stylish and very premium, with some classy designs and fonts at work. The Giotto themselves were also brilliantly presented. They had a strong creamy hazelnut aroma that emerged as soon as the foil seal was broken. The pieces looked nice in their appearance, with some nice textural variances and contrasting colours. The only slight annoyance was their proneness to crumbling all over the place ... like the Cadbury Flake this was a product that was easy to end up with more in your lap than in your mouth.

Dean-German-Grocery sent me a big multi-pack with nine, three piece servings contained within ... I am almost embarrassed to say I finished the lot in just two sittings. The size of each of the individual pieces were perfect for placing whole in the mouth. The outer coating was a fantastic mixture of white chocolate and chopped nuts. The white chocolate was sweet, though due to it's relatively small portioning, worked out well to provide an initial creamy chocolaty flavour. The next layer was the wafer, which provided a nice crunchy element to the texture - it did not have the strongest of flavours, but added a nice sugary, malty background element to the taste. In previous Ferrero products I have frequently lauded the quality of their hazelnut creme centres (See Kinder Bueno etc), once again the hazelnut creme was absolutely spot on. It was devilishly creamy and silky smooth, with just the most divine of buttery, nutty tastes - sinfully good and ever so moreish. There is no doubt these tasted fantastic, and as I have just referred to were extremely addictive ... unfortunately this brings me on to my next point - these simply just didn't wholly satisfy me. No matter how many of these I ate, they just didn't satisfy my hunger whatsoever, this was hardly surprising considering the light weight constituents.

Overall these are another great tasting product from Ferrero, but just not a completely well rounded one though. There is no denying these taste fantastic, they have a delicious creamy, nutty taste that is absolutely superb. Despite this I just can't recommend them on the basis that I don't believe they are product that completely satisfy the consumer in terms of fulfilling their hunger. For my money these are a perfect little treat to have with a mid morning/after dinner cup of coffee ... they are more an enhancing product, rather than one that should be enjoyed on their own. If you are a fan of praline or hazelnut creme products, Ferrero Giotto will be right up your street.

8.0 out of 10

Fancy trying the Ferrero Rondnoir for yourself!? Fancy any another Ritter Sport / Milka / Lindt / Storck or German Grocery ... head over to Dean-German-Grocery!!

October 15th: Kellogg's Rice Krispies Squares Chocolate Caramel

Kcal 151 Fat 4.5g Fat(sats) 3.0g Carbs 27.0g

Request and it shall be reviewed ... that is the motto we live by here at ChocolateMission. I can't go as far as saying this Kellogg's product was ever top of my priorities to review but you simply can't argue with demand! So what have we here then? 'Light, crispy grains of toasted rice cereal and milk chocolate chunks with a cramaely chocolate flavour coating'.

This product came in a 36g serving, it might possibly cure a mild bout of the munchies but anything more than that I would suggest it would only whet your appetite more. The foil packaging was nice in it's design with a snazzy looking golden foil wrapper. Although to really be expected, I was somewhat disappointed that a large portion of the bar simply stuck to the inner side of the wrapping - there is definitely potential for one of those non-stick cardboard sheaths that come with so many products nowadays to be incorporated here. The product had a pleasant enough syrupy smell, but the apparent lack of chocolate was very indicative of what was to come. 

Being the big mouth I am, I ate this in no less than four bites ... unfortunately none of which gave me the chocolaty hit I was most craving. The bar was dominated by the sugary, honey like flavours of the 'caramel', which personally I found far too sweet for my liking. The rice cereal was obviously fair and crispy in it's texture, though merely a passenger along with the chocolate coating in terms of the overall taste. When tasted in isolation the chocolate was relatively flavourless, it had a milky nature to it's taste, though the intensity was so non-existent it was no surprise it got lost in the context of the overall taste. The flavours lasted a very short amount of time in the mouth, which made for a very unfulfilling experience.

Overall beyond the nostalgic feeling of making similar products in school food technology classes, the positives I could take from this product were pretty sparse. The rice cereal unsurprisingly lacked flavour and the caramel substance used to fuse the product together was overpoweringly sweet - almost to the point of throat burning! To top it all off the chocolate really lacked flavour and therefore impact on the overall taste. This one has really taken a hammering on the ChocolateMission rating system, it has been a while since that has happened. I won't go as far as recommending this to anyone, but it's possibly one for the younger consumer.

5.1 out of 10

    

October 15th: Ritter Sport Knusperflakes

Kcal 519 Fat 28.0g Fat(sats) 18.3g Carbs 60.5g (per 100g)

Thanks to Dean-German-Grocery I am really getting my fill of Ritter Sport at the moment. They have an amazing range of flavours, a lot of which I will be sampling in the coming weeks ... to be honest judging by the standard of the range so far I can't wait. Today I sampled the Ritter Sport Knusperflakes (aka Cornflakes) - a solid milk chocolate bar with cornflakes cereal interspersed.

As you will all know by the now the Ritter Sport range comes in 100g bars, and have smart looking, freshness sustaining, one layered wrappers. The bar itself looked interesting with cornflake pieces jutting out at all angles, the cereal looked far more generously portioned than the on wrapper claim of 12%. The bar had a pretty no frills aroma, it had a relatively forthcoming sweet chocolaty scent that was fair yet unspectacular.

The chocolate was comprised of 30% cocoa and 15% milk solids. As I reported in the Ritter Sport Milk Chocolate with Hazelnuts and Ritter Sport Cappuccino bars, Ritter Sport milk chocolate is nice enough tasting, but just lacking a certain uniqueness that would make it stand out from other milk chocolate alternatives. It has a relatively milky taste and pleasant smooth melt, being neither overly intense or bland ... just real middle of the road milk chocolate. With previous Ritter bars I have generally found that this chocolate has played perfect host to some great central flavours. The cornflake pieces in this bar provided a nice crunch that complimented the smoothness of the chocolate nicely. Despite the generous portioning, the cereal did at times struggle to express it's flavour. There were mouthfuls where I could detect a nice savoury biscuity note from the cornflakes, though there was an equal number where I couldn't detect them in the taste at all. This meant that at times this bar was not the most strongly flavoured and wasn't the most satisfying of bars, a tad surprising really given the cereal content of the bar.

Overall Ritter Sport are really the architects of their own downfall with this bar. If the other alternatives in the range were not so strongly flavoured and unique tasting, I'm sure this bar would not have reflected so badly on me. In essence there is nothing wrong with this bar whatsoever - the milk chocolate is of a good standard and the cornflakes add a nice texture ... it is just they don't converge to make a really impactful combination like the Cappuccino or Hazelnut bars from the range. This bar is far from being a disaster, especially with a score of 7.4 ... but in my opinion there are superior alternatives from Ritter Sport.

7.4 out of 10

Fancy trying the RItter Sport Knusperflakes for yourself!? Fancy any another Ritter Sport / Milka / Lindt / Storck or German Grocery ... head over to Dean-German-Grocery!!

October 14th: Hershey's Kisses / Marshmallow / HUGS / Peanut Butter / Dark Raspberry / Cherry Cordial / Chocolate Truffle

This truly is the definition of a super-post! As I informed you last week, with my first round of Hershey's Kisses reviews, ***I SHOP 4 YOU II*** literally sent me the widest range of Kisses I have ever seen. Today's reviews touch on truffles, limited editions, peanut butter, brand extensions ... phew where do I start ....

Hershey's Kisses Chocolate Marshmallow

Kcal 210 Fat 13.0g Fat(sats) 8.0g Carbs 24.0g

These Marshmallow Kisses combined a milk chocolate coating with a marshmallow centre. They had nice funky chequered wrappers, though the Kisses themselves had a greasy look and feel.

The greasy surface area meant that the outer chocolate had a very soft and quick melt. The chocolate was creamy and avoided the tangy Hershey's milk chocolate aftertaste. I was expecting a lighter, less dense marshmallow centre, though it was more like the consistency of a creme. Tastewise the marshmallow element reminded me of the Vanilla Creme Kisses, just lacking the vanilla.

The nature of the centre meant that these tasted very sweet and on the whole were not that enjoyable. Personally I feel the marshmallow centre could have been executed better- why not just use a product similar to Fluff!? By and large disappointing.

6.5 out of 10

Hershey's HUGS

Kcal 210 Fat 12.0g Fat(sats) 7.0g Carbs 23.0g

The premise behind these HUGS are that the original milk chocolate Kisses are being 'hugged' by white chocolate. These were a funky looking mix of white and milk chocolate, and had a very similar smell to the Hershey's Milk Chocolate Kisses - a tangy, milky smell that wasn't the most appetising.

I enjoyed the melt of these HUGS, each one melted at a nice rate in the mouth allowing the flavours to fully develop. These tasted like an even milkier version of the original milk chocolate Kisses. They were neither stunningly well flavoured or wholly satisfying, but they were relatively enjoyable. Worth trying if you like very milky chocolate.

7.5 out of 10

Hershey's Kisses Peanut Butter

Kcal 230 Fat 15.0g Fat(sats) 7.0g Carbs 21.0g

A Hershey's peanut butter product that has no tie in with Reese's!?? Errr why!? Who knows eh! These Peanut Butter Kisses had a very greasy look and feel, you can only assume this was a result of the peanut butter centres. The Kisses had a nice nut element to their aroma, despite the greasiness they were presented nicely.

I enjoyed these immensely. The chocolate seemed more flavoursome than with most Reese's milk chocolate products, it provided a nice creamy milky outer layer and had a pleasant smooth melt. The peanut butter didn't quite reach the highly flavoursome level of Reese's peanut butter, but it still provided a great creamy filling. At times it lacked that kick of saltiness, but overall it was still very satisfying. The best from the Kisses range I have tasted so far.

8.0 out of 10

Hershey's Kisses Dark Raspberry
Kcal 180 Fat 12.0g Fat(sats) 8.0g Carbs 25.0g

Limited Edition alert!!! I have no idea the reasoning behind these being released as a limited edition. Normally limited editions have some holiday tie-in but these seemingly not - I have heard whispers about valentines day!? As you can tell by the name these were an amalgamation of Hershey's dark chocolate and artifical raspberry flavours.

The product looked nice, though I was surprised when I cross sectioned one to see that it was completely solid. The product had a very strong fruity jam smell, it was poignant yet at the same time artificial.

After finding the dark chocolate Kisses to my liking in last weeks round up, I was disappointed at the sheer lack of strength of cocoa I got from these. The artificial raspberry flavouring very much dominated the taste of the product. It was very sweet, very synthetic, and just very very sickly. I really wouldn't recommend these.

5.9 out of 10

Hershey's Kisses Cherry Cordial
Kcal 180 Fat 7.0g Fat(sats) 4.5g Carbs 30.0g

Yet another limited edition, and another fruity chocolate combination. These varied to Dark Raspberry in that the outer coating was the standard milk chocolate, whilst the fruity centre was formed of a liquid cherry cordial.

The product looked nice, the cross section revealed an interesting looking pink coloured centre. The smell of these Kisses was particularly sweet and fruity, the cherry element was very detectable.

The outer milk chocolate had a very quick melt and had a nice creamy taste. The cherry cordial was surprisingly dense in it's viscosity. The cherry flavour was very strong, and unsurprisingly artificial. The fondant sugaryness did have an initial slight appeal but it soon became very sickly. These are not a flavour you would want to eat in large quantities at a time. Far from abysmal, but far from the best in the range.

6.6 out of 10

Hershey's Kisses Chocolate Truffle

Kcal 21o Fat 14.0g Fat(sats) 9.0g Carbs 25.0g

I have been informed these are a relatively new flavour. Like with some of the other Kisses I found these to have a greasy look and feel. The layering was pretty distinct when cross sectioned and could be clearly made out.

These were a rather puzzling option for me, despite texture differences the layers didn't vary at all in taste. The outer chocolate had an extremely soft, quick melt; it took a matter of seconds for the harder centre to be revealed. The centre had a thick, grittier feel, I guess this was supposed to accentuate the truffle like features, however I just really didn't enjoy its texture too much. The taste was pleasant, though at the same time quite forgettable. It was not quite as strongly flavoured as the standard milk chocolate Kisses, and had a milkier overall taste. I would personally recommend the original milk chocolate Kisses over these, but if you wish to avoid the tangy aftertaste these are a good option.

7.o out of 10

Phew .... who knew chocolate blogging could be so tiring eh!? These were a real mixed bunch. It seems that Hershey's really do struggle with their fruit flavours! Would it really be too hard to use natural fruit juices to achieve cherry and raspberry flavours? Surely they would be far better than these poor artificial flavourings. Anyway, out of the Kisses range so far the Peanut Butter ones have been by far my favourite, though the HUGS are definitely worth a look at if you like milky chocolate ... I'm off for a lie down in a dark room :)

*** 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.

October 13th: Hotel Chocolat Organic Dark 72% Chilli & Pink Peppercorns

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

After last weeks small excursion into Hotel Chocolat's Halloween offerings, I this week returned to 'The Purist' range sampling the Hotel Chocolat Organic Dark 72% Chilli & Pink Peppercorns bar. I had tried a few products before containing chilli, though the whole concept of peppercorns was entirely new to me. Similar to the 100% organic cocoa offering of two weeks ago, this bar was comprised of cocoa from the Hacienda Lara Plantation, Ecuador. The added pink peppercorns were from nearby Peru and the piri-piri chilli from Madagascar ... the ingredients were certainly well travelled.

The outer packaging was as ever fantastic - no need to go into details here, it has all been said before. I must admit I was shocked at the presentation of the chocolate when I opened the inner foil wrapper - the bar had a highly decorative look with fluorescent pink peppercorns jutting every which way out of the surface. It gave the slab an interesting look ... certainly a unique one anyway. The appearance of the bar was not the only thing that struck me upon opening the inner wrapping. The smell was also very distinct, and far less indicative of cocoa than most standard Hotel Chocolat products, it offered a rather mysterious spiced aroma that I wasn't all that sure of ... it was rather like the smell of an incense candle.

From the very first piece I placed in my mouth it was obvious this was not your typical Hotel Chocolat offering. From what I could tell the chocolate still tasted as great as ever. The 72% had a delightful smooth, rich cocoa taste that is every bit as good as anything else out there on the market. Unfortunately the chocolate took a major backseat in this offering ... and I mean major backseat. The spice elements of the bar were massively overpowering. The warmth of the chilli was relatively pleasant, though by my reckoning the pink peppercorns just simply didn't work on any level. They were harsh and bitter in their taste, not only dominating the taste when the chocolate was in the mouth, but also leaving a longing pretty horrible bitter flavour in the mouth for a long time after. The peppercorns did have an element of fruitiness about them, though the flavour just seemed largely out of context and completely lost on me. I did try eating the majority of this bar, though I simply couldn't ... when offered to my housemates they each took a small portion and quickly told me how awful my taste in chocolate was ... oh if only they knew :)

Overall as you all know I'm a huge, huge fan of Hotel Chocolat - but today for the first time it feels like they really failed me. This is only my personal opinion - and others may feel differently, but for me the inclusion of the pink peppercorns entirely spoilt the whole product. As I previously stated this was the first time I had tasted a bar with peppercorns in, and thinking about it now I really hope it is the last. They added a dominating horrible, spiky, bitter element to the overall taste ... sure they looked nice and pretty but to be honest I would far rather of them not been included, simply leaving a chilli enhanced 72% dark chocolate, like the one I tried a few months ago ... and upon reflection much preferred. My own personal recommendation would be to stay well clear of this variant, though if you fancy a flirt with the spicy side by all means go for it ... not to my liking whatsoever.

6.4 out of 10

October 12th: Ritter Sport Butter Biscuit

Kcal 546 Fat 33.0g Fat(sats) 16.1g Carbs 54.1g (per 100g)

This has been one of the most requested reviews ever for ChocolateMission. Despite searching high and low in my local area for one of these Ritter Sport Butter Biscuit bars, I simply just couldn't pin one down until Dean-German-Grocery came to my rescue. Despite my own troubles, I understand that the Ritter Sport Butter Biscuit is quite widely available in the UK - for those of you that haven't heard of it before I can inform you that it includes 'a butter biscuit and finest cocoa cream, coated in milk chocolate'.

I won't go on again about the quality of presentation of the Ritter Sport range ... in a word it is fantastic. This bar in particular looked a real work of art when split into it's blocks. The biscuit had a nice clear presence wedged in between the thick cream and solid chocolate layers, suffice to say I didn't stick around admiring it long, I couldn't wait to tuck in. The bar also smelt pretty damn good. The milk chocolate very sweet and dairy based, and the biscuit adding a nice savoury element to formulate a pretty enticing contrasting mixture of scents.

The only similar product I have reviewed on Chocolate Mission is the Milka 'Choco Swing' ... I am glad to report this bar surpassed even that admiral effort. The outer chocolate provided a nice smooth, very milky chocolate base flavour. It had a nice melt and relatively strong taste - as I have referred to before, Ritter Sport Milk Chocolate doesn't have a unique taste quality like Cadbury Dairy Milk or Galaxy, but it is still a good quality milk chocolate. The biscuit itself was fair tasting with a sweet buttery flavour, despite it's constant contact with the cocoa cream it maintained a nice crunchy texture - something that was a real shortcoming of the Milka 'Choco Swing'. The biscuit and outer milk chocolate were good, but my own personal favourite layer was the cocoa cream. It was super smooth in it's texture and wonderfully creamy - it was extremely moreish. I ate this whole bar in one sitting, again this is instance where this is a testament to it's taste, but unfortunately also an indication at it's lacking of hunger fulfilment potential ... this probably isn't a bar you want to eat if desperately hungry.

Overall this is yet another shining star of the Ritter Sport range ... believe me there is getting to be quite a few! Each of the three components play a pivotal role in the overall taste and each have their own qualities that add to what is a great mixture of creamy buttery flavours. This is yet another bar from the Ritter Sport range that I feel confident in recommending to you all. No nasty surprises here, just another outstanding bar of chocolate.

8.4 out of 10

Fancy trying the Ritter Sport Milk Whole Hazelnuts for yourself!? Fancy any another Ritter Sport / Milka / Lindt / Storck or German Grocery ... head over to Dean-German-Grocery!!

October 11th: Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate Flapjack

Kcal 360 Fat 17.9g Fat(sats) 6.4g Carbs 44.7g

It is funny how random Cadbury products seem to appear from almost nowhere sometimes. Whilst queuing in my local Sainsbury's the other week I saw this CadburyDairy Milk Chocolate Flapjack nestled in between the chocolate bars on the impulse stands by the tills. Personally I had never seen one of these before, a very quick Internet search has shown that this range was first launched in 2004, and included a 'fruit and nut' variant ... though there have been very few sightings. Throwing caution to the wind (oh what a devil I am!!), I decided to pick one up.

The flapjack came in a large 75g serving, comprised of a thick flapjack base and plentiful helping of Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate placed on top. The outer packaging as you can see had a pretty standard purple Cadbury theme, the flapjack itself lacked a little imagination and maybe could have been bettered with a Cadbury logo inscribed ... this could have just been any old flapjack. Opening the wrapper I was met with chocolaty, cakey scents - the packaging obviously did a great job at maintaining the freshness. 

This freshness was none more evident through the crumbly and soft feel of the flapjack. The flapjack had a thick stodgy consistency that made for a very fulfilling snack. The base had a fantastic buttery, oaty taste - it was sweet but not over powering and the gooey substance that fused the oats had a taste that reminded me of Cadbury Caramel. The creamy butter flavours of the flapjack were further enhanced by the dairy flavours of the Cadbury Dairy Milk. I was half expecting the flavours of the chocolate to be lost in the dense nature of the base, however the chocolate was generously portioned meaning it's creamy, delicious flavours were ever present and a perfect enhancement.

Overall this was an extremely satisfying, great tasting snack that I very much enjoyed. The flapjack was deliciously comprised with a wonderful mix of oat, caramel and butter flavours. The Dairy Milk chocolate truly added a delightful finish to the product - making for a long lasting enjoyable flavour. If you like flapjacks this is a product you will very likely enjoy - I would love to hear from anyone who has tried one already for their thoughts. Another random, but deeply satisfying product from Cadbury.

8.4 out of 10

  

October 11th: Milka White Chocolate

Kcal 540 Fat 29.5g Carbs 63.0g

If there is one thing I have learned on ChocolateMission it is that good quality white chocolate is pretty hard to come by. We need look no further than Cadbury themselves to see that even the best have failed attempting to play in this field. Though few and far between, Ritter Sport, Milkybar and Thorntons are all brands that have managed to create winning white chocolate formulas, could Milka follow suit? Well Dean-German-Grocery sent me this Milka White chocolate bar to find out exactly that.

The bar came in the standard Milka packaging, as I referred to in the Milka & Daim bar review I liked the way the wrapper with just only the one layer, had both an attractive look and fresh seal. As you can see above, the bar itself was clean, fresh looking yet unremarkable ... it is not as if you could really expect anything more from a plain white chocolate bar. The bar didn't have a very forthcoming aroma, when searched for I could detect a very milky smell that reminded me a lot of Milkybar.

As the appearance suggested the chocolate had a very smooth feel in the mouth. The melt was reasonably well paced, it was slower than some other Milka bars I have reviewed (see 'Chocolate Cream'), but on the whole the texture was pleasant and enjoyable. I have recently tried some very rich, strong tasting chocolates - this bar quite frankly wouldn't fall in to that category. The only element I found particularly strong was the sweetness, I guess a bar that is almost two thirds sugar is always going to be. There were some very enjoyable creamy, buttery layers to the taste, but these were soon overcome by the overbearing sugary edge. It didn't quite replicate the Cadbury Dream throat burning sensation, but the taste was enough to not make me want to eat more than a few blocks at a time ... leaving me both unfulfilled and relatively unsatisfied.

Overall this Milka offering fell down the all too familiar trap of overloading the bar with sugar ... ultimately making for an overbearingly sweet and sickly taste. Of course this may just be my own taste, I'm sure this is a product that could be enjoyed by many a reader. As far as white chocolate goes it is by far not the worst I have reviewed, neither is it anywhere near the better end of the spectrum. One maybe for those with a super sweet tooth, for the rest I would recommend other alternatives if it's a white chocolate fix your after.

6.8 out of 10

Fancy trying the Milka White for yourself!? Fancy any another Ritter Sport / Milka / Lindt / Storck or German Grocery ... head over to Dean-German-Grocery!!

October 10th: Lindt Excellence 85% Cocoa

Kcal 210 Fat 18.0g Fat(sats) 11.0g Carbs 8.0g (per 40.0g)

Lindt are a brand that very rarely disappoint ... as of typing I'm struggling to think of a product of theirs' that I haven't enjoyed - anyone!? Well anyway, when Dean-German-Grocery sent me this 85% cocoa bar I will admit I was expecting quite a lot ... especially since the equivalent 85% formulation of Hotel Chocolat currently leads the Chocolate Mission leaderboard ... could this Lindt offering match up?? There was only one way to find out.

Lindt are a brand that never leave presentation as an afterthought, and this bar was no different. The look certainly justified the 'Excellence' branding. From the smart cardboard sleeve, silver branded foil and the spotless surface of the chocolate itself - it all looked fantastic, top notch presentation. The smell was also relatively good, this was not a product that radiated a huge aroma as soon as the packaging was opened, but when searched for, a rich cocoa scent all but spelt out the depth of the flavour.

You would come to expect from such a strongly concentrated cocoa bar that the taste would need getting used to, and that it would take some time for the taste buds to adapt ... this was all but unnecessary. From the first to the last block I did not detect any element of bitterness in the taste, a pretty stark comparison to the extremely harsh 100% bar from Hotel Chocolat I tried the other day. The chocolate had a divine melt on the tongue; as I referred to in the presentation of the product, the surface was spotless and smooth - this followed through with the texture of the bar. The melt was fantastically paced, allowing full expression of the highly developed flavours. The strength of the cocoa was forceful but had a balanced milkiness that meant it never became overly intense. The taste was long and smooth, and had notes of dark coloured fruits and hazelnuts in its long aftertaste. This was a beautifully textured, rich tasting bar of chocolate - superb.

Overall this was one of those chocolates that was an absolute joy to eat from beginning to finish. Despite it's strong flavours the taste was welcoming and never once overbearing. Although a completely different bar of chocolate by it's own merits - compared to the Hotel Chocolat 85% the thickness of melt meant that texturewise this bar scored slightly lower; consider the difference in price though, and this slight discrepancy can very much be taken in jest. I cannot stress enough what a fantastic bar of chocolate this is, if you enjoy strong flavoured chocolate then this is a bar I cannot recommend enough.

9.0 out of 10

Fancy trying the Lindt Excellence 85% Cocoa for yourself!? Fancy any another Ritter Sport / Milka / Lindt / Storck or German Grocery ... head over to Dean-German-Grocery!!

October 9th: M&M's Premiums Mint Chocolate

Kcal 240 Fat 14.0g Fat(sats) 9.0g Carbs 24.0g (per 42.0 serving)

Today sees review number three of five of the M&M's Premiums - in the form of the 'Mint Chocolate' variant. Liz from **I SHOP 4 YOU II** has informed me that these are by far and away the best sellers of the 'Premiums' range, no surprise really when you look at the very tempting on pack description - 'white chocolate mint wrapped in dark chocolate'. It wasn't long ago I reviewed the M&M's Mint Crisp, a product that although I enjoyed, I wasn't all too impressed by their presentation or aroma credentials.

Well straightaway these M&M's Premiums solved those problems - the packaging was stylish and relevantly coloured, and the M&M's themselves looked extremely appetising with their marble design finish and distinct layering. The smell of these M&M's Premiums was also completely superior to that of the 'Mint Crisp', they had an unsurprising but enticing minty fragrance ... as I had come to expect from the range the presentation was top notch.

As with all the M&M's Premiums these replaced the outer crunchy shell of the original M&M's, with a 'confectionery glaze' (coconut oil, starch and colourings). This gave the M&M's a wonderful initial smoothness that complimented the even smoother two chocolate layers nicely. Letting the M&M's melt on the tongue slowly revealed each layer, the dark chocolate layer was as you would expect from mass consumer friendly dark chocolate ... more like unsweetened milk chocolate rather than a chocolate with its cocoa prowess accentuated. The outer dark chocolate was nice enough, though personally I would have rather a more impactful, richer flavoured alternative. The white chocolate mint layer was nothing short of superb; it had a deliciously cool refreshing mint flavour and was wonderfully balanced in it's creamy sweetness. The marriage of white chocolate and mint was near perfected here. Despite being very flavoursome, the creaminess of the middle white chocolate mint meant that the taste didn't last that long in the mouth. As with the rest of the range, these came in a 170.0g box - supposedly four servings. Due to the nature of their taste I consumed the whole box in only two separate occasions. Despite their fantastic taste these were extremely moreish and not all that fulfilling ... a dangerous mix.

Overall these are another great addition to the M&M's Premiums range, and I can see why they are currently extremely popular with M&M's consumers. Even before tasting these I could tell they were superior to the M&M's Mint Crisp, the presentation was nothing short of superb - this instantly had the problems of the M&M's Mint Crisp solved. Tastewise they were equally as great, the dark chocolate was not the best, though the white chocolate mint layer was both creamy and refreshing. Despite the relatively strong flavours these were certainly not the most fulfilling chocolate I have ever tasted, which was the only slight drawback of the product. Though I would say I marginally more enjoyed the 'Triple Chocolate' variant from the range, I would definitely say that if you enjoy chocolate mint combinations these are a real must try.

8.3 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.

October 8th: The Original Cookie Dough Bites Chocolate Chip

Kcal 190 Fat 9.0g Fat(sats) 5.0g Carbs 26.0g (per 40.0g serving)

I am a massive fan of Ben & Jerrie's Cookie Dough ice cream, so when sent these by CandyPirate I was hopeful they would deliver a similar experience. I hear these 'Cookie Dough Bites' are similar to Hershey's Milk Duds, in that they are a very popular choice of snack to consume at the cinema in the US. The on pack description described the product as 'bite sized cookie dough pieces in creamy milk chocolate', as far as I am concerned cookie dough is a really underutilized flavour variant. The only cookie dough themed bar/product I have tried before was the Kit Kat Chunky Cookie Dough ... which was extremely disappointing - I was hoping for far more from these.

The pack I received from CandyPirate contained two 40.0g servings (well it totalled 88.0g as my pack had 10% extra free!). I did eat these over two sittings, neither of which were really that fulfilling, though the sweetness of the product went some way to abiding my afternoon munchies. The packaging was ok in it's appearance, the decorative colour scheme was nothing spectacular but fair. The bites themselves were stored in an inner plastic packet ... in an ideal world this would have been foil just to keep an extra freshness to the product. The bites were quite randomly sized, this was more dependent on the amount of the cookie dough in each, as the chocolate layer remained relatively the same thickness throughout. The product lacked a real definitive smell, there was a sweet chocolaty scent as I opened the plastic packet, it just wasn't the strongest or the most forthcoming ... a mild aroma is a better than a bad one I guess!?

The outer milk chocolate instantly brought comparisons to Reese's milk chocolate to mind when tasting the product ... as dedicated readers will know this isn't a necessarily good thing. The milk chocolate had a grainy texture, of course this wasn't helped by the expected rough texture of the cookie dough, but the chocolate was noticeably clumpy and stodgy in it's melt. Though the texture was poor the taste wasn't altogether that bad, it was mostly devoid of flavour, though it did add a milky note to the overall taste. The chocolate was pretty disappointing, but in contrast the cookie dough was spot on. It had a deliciously raw, doughy taste that had small crunchy notes of brown sugar; despite lacking the promised chocolate chip element it was very well executed. The taste didn't last all that long in the mouth and these were incredibly addictive, I can see how it could be very easy to polish off a box of these in next to no time.

Overall these are a product that will definitely cure a cookie dough craving, but are still far from being anything spectacular. The chocolate was obviously not the main focus of the product, and this was all to apparent; lacking flavour and with a poor texture it was certainly nothing to get excited about. Thankfully the cookie dough was extremely well executed, bursting with all the sweet, doughy flavours you would come to expect from such a product ... and doing them rather well at that. Cookie dough fans will no doubt love these, but if your not fussed by the flavour there is little else here for you.

7.2 out of 10

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