April 16th: Kit Kat Jasmine Tea

Kcal 109 Fat 6.0g Carbs 12.5 (per 20.5g - 2 fingers)

Kit Kat seem to be on their own mission to constantly outdo themselves in terms of crazy flavours. J-List's newest addition to the ever expanding Kit Kat range is this Jasmine Tea flavoured variant. This particular flavour offered up the proposition of 'milk chocolate coated wafer biscuits with a Jasmine Tea flavour' ... could this seriously work!?

One thing that has become evident with my Kit Kat reviews over the last few weeks is that they can never be faltered in terms of looks. This flavour variant came in a 41.0g form that was split into two handy sized 20.5g two finger packets. The packaging struck several right notes with me, with the pastel green colour background and pink trim providing a very aesthetically pleasing combination. Out its foil wrapper the Kit Kat looked no different to our standard milk chocolate Kit Kat we get here in the UK. There was however a very notable tea leaf smell that emanated from the packet, suffice to say there was something immediately about it that didn't strike me as quite right.

I like to see flavour progression with the bars I eat and indeed this was one that had this in abundance ... unfortunately it just wasn't favourable. The initial bite brought all the usual sweet, milk based flavours of Nestle milk chocolate, whilst the malty wheat flavours of the wafer were also very much notable. As the melt of the piece progressed the Jasmine Tea flavours came to the fore establishing a really quite weird herby, floral flavour base. As I ate more and more of the actual product these flavours seemed to take over entirely. In my opinion these flavour influences seemed interesting and unique, up until the aftertaste kicked in having subsequently finished the bar. My mouth was left noted with some bitter flavours that didn't correspond at all to the nature of the sweet snack I had just eaten. For me this really spoilt the whole experience.

Overall this is a product that really at the end of the day I wont reflect on all the favourably. At the time of actually eating the Kit Kat the Jasmine Tea flavours tasted slightly out of place, though at least added a degree of interest. Come the time after the eating though the aftertaste really left an unpleasant set of flavours in the mouth, which really didn't reflect that well on the product as a whole. I would recommend this for all you curious Kit Kat lovers out there as it is really quite a unique experience ... those just looking for a good tasting chocolate will want to leave this one alone though.

6.2 out of 10

Head to J-List to find this product and many more Japanese Foods & Snacks

April 15th: Cadbury Energy

Kcal 240 Fat 13.9g Fat(sats) 8.4g Carbs 26.6g

Having never heard of this bar before I must say I was a little intrigued when ShopenZed so kindly sent one my way. Apart from the words 'rich chocolate' the packaging didn't do much to communicate what this bar was all about. A spot of research on the Internet actually came up with very little ... it seems no other person in the world has ever written a review on this bar! A little visit to New Zealand's Cadbury website however managed to inform me that this product was 'traditionally eaten by New Zealanders whilst tramping in the great outdoors' .... answers on postcards to what tramping is please!!

ShopenZed were kind enough to send across a 50.0g bar for me to sample. The packaging did away with the usual purple Cadbury colour theme and chose a very visually striking red. I thought both the wrapper and the chocolate were pleasing on the eye; the chocolate was a very bold coloured brown, which was several shades darker than any Dairy Milk bar. After splitting the foil wrapper I was met with some quite subdued, yet nice smelling cocoa scents ... this was a bar still not giving much away.

By this time I was really waiting to see what this bar was going to offer in terms of flavours - truth be told it was really nothing ground breaking. If someone asked me to tell them a chocolate bar that wasn't quite as sweet as milk chocolate, yet not as strong as your standard dark chocolate, Cadbury Energy would be the one. The chocolate had a decent enough melt in the mouth and transformed into a thickish liquid state at a nice rate. The flavours started off predominately milk based, however as the melt developed started to raise in intensity in terms of its cocoa flavours. The taste never at any stage got to what I would describe as strong or bitter, yet at the same time generated a decent amount of flavour. I ate the 50.0g bar in one sitting which proved to be a decent enough snacking option.

Overall this was a chocolate that quickly established itself as a pleasant enough chocolate, though was never anything spectacular. As I previously said this was a chocolate that seemed slap bang between milk and dark; for that reason I would recommend it to people who are normally used to sweeter chocolate but are looking to be a little adventurous in the dark end of the market. I have tried so many chocolates over the last year and whilst this was a fair standard product it probably wont be one that I will particularly remember.

7.2 out of 10

April 14th: Hotel Chocolat Ginger Tangs

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

Despite having mountains of products from several different continents sitting around my flat needing to be reviewed this didn't stop people gifting chocolate to me this Easter. I will quit the moaning now as I don't want to be the only person in history to go down for complaining about receiving a Hotel Chocolat gift. If you haven't done already I strongly suggest you head over to the Hotel Chocolat website (click!!), as they are currently having a huge post Easter sale.

So what do we have here then? Why we have some Hotel Chocolat Ginger Tangs which came described as 'real ginger pieces enrobed in dark chocolate'. The pieces came in a 150.0g pot that took me a week or so to consume. In regards to the presentation I would have thought more of it had I not taken a look at the Hotel Chocolat website where I saw the actual product picture looked a lot different than what was really delivered. The chocolates on the website show that the pieces are a lot longer and more crafted - I am not complaining about the actual product that was delivered, more so pointing out that there was a disparity. Aesthetics aside the product aroma was nothing short of awesome. The tub ensured that the lovely ginger and cocoa smells were maintained, suffice to say they never failed in tempting me to just have one more piece.

The packaging didn't actually say what strength the dark chocolate was, however having guzzled my fair share of Hotel Chocolat dark chocolate over the last year or so I can quite confidently say it would be around the 70% mark. As you can see above the coating to each piece was really quite generous, which meant that each mouthful delivered a wonderful base set of unsweetened cocoa flavours. Despite being as flavoursome and utterly fantastic as ever the chocolate really took a back seat to the ginger centres. The ginger centres were packed full of sweet, yet spicy flavours and really have a wonderful freshness and balance in their flavours. Of course being 'real' ginger some pieces at times had a slight 'stringyness' in their texture (see photo above!) which obviously wasn't always the most pleasant thing ever. This is a very slight criticism though and the taste more than made these a very satisfactory and enjoyable product.

Overall I never envisaged these being anything apart from superb and this proved a very accurate presumption. The dark chocolate was as always top quality and brought a plethora of rich cocoa flavours to the initial taste of the product. These chocolates were all about the ginger though, and the quite wonderful varying syrupy spiced flavours that each bite delivered were really quite fantastic. Obviously your own enjoyment of this product will be solely down to whether you like ginger or not. If you do then I seriously recommend you try these, they are simply one of the best ginger chocolate products I have reviewed.

8.3 out of 10

April 14th: Lindt Creola Vanille

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

In my previous review of the Lindt Creola 'Ek Chuah' I mentioned the fact that Dean-German-Grocery had been kind enough to send me the entire Lindt Creola range. Well continuing my assesment of it, I today tried the 'Vanille' offering from the selection - a bar which was formed of 'milk chocolate filled with cocao nib pieces in a vanilla creme'. Apologies for my lack of nutritional information for this range - it is neither displayed on the product or the web at present! Annoying huh!?

This was another huge 150.0g bar that took me a fair few sittings to get through. Presentation wise it looked very similar indeed to the 'Ek Chuah' variant, however there were the obvious differences in the branding and look of the product itself. Once again the bar was split into a rather annoying ten large 15.0g blocks - I would have preferred smaller pieces to accommodate the mouth better. Regardless of this the chocolate looked pretty enticing with the vanilla creme appearing very plentiful sat in between the milk chocolate coating. Upon closer inspection the cocoa nib pieces could also be seen in the creme. Releasing the bar from its branded foil wrapper I was met with a pleasant convergence of honey and dairy scents.

If there is one thing you can be assured of with Lindt milk chocolate it is that your certainly in for a smooth tasting experience. Indeed this was case with the outer milk chocolate, and it melted delightfully with a very crisp and creamy taste. As I noted when I inspected the bar aesthetically the vanilla creme was certainly very well portioned (43%), and thankfully it added some very worthwhile flavour additions to the cream based chocolate that encased it. As well as having a slightly softer texture that melted with a divine silkiness, it brought some wonderful vanilla essence type flavours that had hints of floral honey and caramel. The soft melting textures of the chocolate and creme centre were nicely contrasted by the small cocoa nib pieces that were left in the mouth once the aforementioned had melted away. They delivered fine bursts of cocoa flavours that really made for a long lasting and strong aftertaste.

Overall this was another fine bar from Lindt, though I guess I wasn't really expecting anything else. The Creola selection is really proving to be another fine range that delivers on the flavours that it promises - there isn't much else you can really ask for. The milk chocolate was again superb, whilst the vanilla filling was exquisite in both flavours and textures. This is possibly not a bar for people who do not enjoy the sweeter end of the chocolate spectrum, though for Lindt fans this is yet another you will seriously have to consider trying.

8.4 out of 10

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

April 13th: Meiji Rich Pistachio Chocolate

Kcal 272 Fat 19.1g Carbs 21.6g (per 45.0g bar)

As a self confessed pistachio nut addict I was really looking forward to trying this Meiji offering. Of course this was a bar sent to me by the wonderful folk at J-List, I am continually being amazed that I am now able to review such a wide range of Japanese products. One thing that I am going to quickly have to rectify though is my inability to read Japanese ... apart from the 'Meiji Rich Pistachio Chocolate' branding I failed to determine what any other of the on pack description meant.

This bar came in a 45.0g form that I ate in one solitary sitting. The outer packaging certainly looked very 'loud' with its very outlandish green foil look, whilst as you can see above the chocolate itself was suitably a more refrained pale green. The bar was extremely thin, and looked none to different to a Caramac with the obvious colour and branding differences aside. In regards to its smell the bar had a very appealing nutty aroma that just had the smallest hint of coffee.

As I have mentioned already the bar was extremely thin, thus meaning that individually the pieces didn't last that long in the mouth. This didn't stop the melt having a fantastic smoothness, though for my liking I would have preferred the bar to have had fewer, yet bigger chunks. The bar had much of a likeness to white chocolate but just with a heavy nut influence. The earthy, buttery flavours of the pistachio were very evident amongst the cream led flavours, though it must be said the taste experience just didn't last as long as I wanted them to. In and amongst all the creamy nut flavours there was a very welcome mild salt kick that really gave a real moreishness to the taste. Unfortunately the lack of a strong aftertaste really meant that this was not the most substantial of 45.0g chocolate bars ever.

Overall this was a really delicious bar of chocolate, but could of just been so much better had the design of it been a little better. The pistachio flavours were very well implemented, and brought very welcome nut and butter influences to the already fantastically creamy taste. Had these flavours lasted just that little bit longer I am sure this would have made for a far more substantial feeling chocolate. This is a unique chocolate bar, and is one that I would very much recommend if your a fan of pistachio nuts like myself. I am looking forward to my next bar from this exciting Meiji range.

7.5 out of 10

Head to J-List to find this product and many more Japanese Snacks & Foods

April 13th: Marks & Spencer Chunky Chocolate Flapjack

Kcal 450 Fat 23.4g Fat(sats) 12.5g Carbs 54.8g (per 100.0g)

Today sees me deliver my fifth flapjack review - the Marks & Spencer Chunky Chocolate Flapjack. Those of you may recall I am rather partial to my flapjacks, with my highest rating so far going to the Cadbury Dairy Milk option. This Marks & Spencer offering was going to have to go some way to beat it, but I guess this wasn't going to be just any flapjack ... this was a Marks & Spencer flapjack *groan*.

If this was a competition on size this M&S flapjack would have run away with it ... it weighed in at a beastly 80.0g and certainly provided one hell of a snack. I wasn't all that taken in by the packaging. The transparent nature of the wrapper displayed the product well, though I thought it was a little uninspiring. Despite this I actually quite liked the design work on the flapjack itself, it is pretty hard to tart up a flapjack but the simple drizzling effect of the chocolate placed on top was a nice touch. To be honest I was expecting more from the smell of the product, it just seemed a little lacking and only offered a quite mundane cereal type smell. It would certainly have been nice to have been able to detect a stronger cocoa presence. 

Despite the lack of evidence of chocolate in the smell, it was certainly forthcoming in the taste. The main constituents of the taste obviously belonged to the butter, honey and oat elements, but the real shinning star was definitely the 'dark chocolate'. Though described as dark on the wrapper, the flavours brought were friendly, milky cocoa bursts. Where the chocolate was present it noticeably moistened the flapjack, giving it a fantastic gooey texture. This turned out to be a very welcome addition, as you can imagine 80.0g of hefty flapjack did become quite dry towards the finishing of the product. Despite the inevitable dryness, the actual flapjack base was well delivered, and had a very pleasant buttery, oat taste that was well fused by the sweet golden syrup. As aforementioned the full 80.0g provided an extremely satisfying snack, to be honest it felt more like a meal! 

Overall this flapjack didn't quite hit the heights of the Cadbury Dairy Milk option, though this was always going to be a tall order. The fact is, it still delivered a delicious experience, but just couldn't quite compete on the quality of the chocolate in the Dairy Milk flapjack. If it came to it, and I was propositioned with either one of these or the Cadbury, if I was particularly hungry I would possibly consider choosing this flapjack, for the sheer reason that is huge and very fulfilling. As far as being an all round product though, I am afraid the Cadbury Dairy Milk flapjack triumphs. 

7.6 out of 10

 

April 12th: Cadbury Dairy Milk Desserts Crème Brulee

Kcal 569 Fat 36.7g Fat(sats) 21.0g Carbs 52.1g (per 100.0g)

This Cadbury Desserts range is one I have been wanting to try for absolutely ages. Thanks to Shopenzed I now have the opportunity to bring you my reviews on this Southern Hemisphere exclusive product line. Today I tried the Cadbury Dairy Milk Desserts Creme Brulee variant - which appropriately came described as 'Dairy Milk chocolate with a Creme Brulee flavoured creme centre'. What with Creme Brulee being one of my all time favourite desserts, I was very intrigued to see if Cadbury could really pull this off.

It seems that Cadburys' stealth downsizing of their big bars has made it as far as New Zealand - this bar weighed in at 235.0g having used to be 250.0g. I immediately like the presentation of the product - the outer paper wrapping had a nice glossy look to it, whilst I thought the creme brulee flavour theme was communicated well with the tempting looking pudding. Inside the bar was split into rows of four blocks that were a perfect size to eat piece by piece. The inner foil layer maintained not only the look of each block, but also concealed a simply wonderful sweet smell that had heavy vanilla influence.

I have remarked before that I believe that the Southern Hempishere Dairy Milk isn't quite as good as our UK stuff; this again was the case here. In comparison the NZ Dairy Milk had just a little more emphasis on its on sweetness than its milk flavours, and just seemed to have a touch more of a sugary taste. Despite this the chocolate was still very tasty and to be honest this was a bar more about the excellence of the filling. The golden coloured filling that was held inside each of the blocks was nothing short of delicious. It had had a simply luxurious custard type appeal that was creamy, sweet and hinted with some fantastic vanilla and butterscotch influences. Both the outer chocolate and filling were wonderfully smooth and thick; additionally the rich flavours meant that just four blocks made for a substantial snack (25.0g!!).

Overall this was a really enjoyable bar of chocolate and in my opinion I think Cadbury managed to pull this one off. The only way I think this bar could have been improved was if there was the addition of some caramel crunchy pieces that would give the burnt sugar effect. I guess one consideration of this might be the balance of the flavours - at present the creamy filling perfectly compliments the milk chocolate and it would be a shame to upset this. From this review I am sure you can tell this is a bar I really liked. If you do buy this bar I would strongly suggest putting it in the fridge for an hour or so before eating it ... trust me it makes it all that bit better. I would very much recommend this product if your a Cadbury or Creme Brulee fan.

8.7 out of 10

April 12th: Hershey's Skor

Kcal 200 Fat 12.0g Fat(sats) 7.0g Carbs 25.0g

One of my first ever entries on ChocolateMission was a review of Kraft's Daim Bar. Ever since I have been meaning to try Hershey's equivalent product - the Hershey's Skor. Thanks to *IShop4You* thirteen months later down the line I have finally got my wish, and I today got my chance to see if it was in fact any better. I have read on Wiki that the Skor was actually first launched in 1981 to compete with another very similar bar called the 'Heath'. In 1996 Hershey's purchased Leaf Inc, who produced the 'Heath' - subsequently Hershey's now produce both bars under the Hershey's name ... puzzling huh!?

The Skor came in a 39.0g serving size, which certainly proved to a far more sensible size than the minuscule Daim. In regards to the packaging I wasn't all that impressed or turned off by it ... to me it just looked like a standard Hershey's product. Out its wrapper the bar looked quite similar to the Daim, though the chocolate did have a slightly dusty looking complexion that I am going to put down to the adverse conditions that the bar had to travel to get to me. The smell of the product was quite mild, yet pleasant enough. It was nothing more than I can describe as sweet, with just a small buttery hint.

On the packet the bar stated 'delicious chilled', given that I truly obliged and left it in the fridge for a good few hours before eating it. This proved a very worthwhile thing to do, as it certainly made the rather thin coating of outer chocolate last that little bit longer whilst it warmed in the mouth. The texture of the chocolate was somewhat grainy, much like its dusted look suggested. Saying that it tasted fair enough and managed to substantiate a sweet, chocolaty background taste. As sweet as the chocolate was, it was nothing compared to the brittle toffee centre. In comparison to the Daim the flavours were far more toffee led with less of an almond influence. The buttery, sweet influences delivered a nice taste, though unfortunately were not the longest lasting in the mouth. The 39.0g bar certainly made for a pretty standard snack size, and did its job adequately.

Overall due to size alone I would have to say I preferred this to the Daim. It varied slightly in its toffee flavours, with a little less impetuous placed on the almond and more on the buttery sweet flavours. The chocolate quality again wasn't all that great, though did a fair job that I wouldn't complain about too much. This isn't a bar I would be rushing to have again in the near future, however if your a fan of the Daim this is probably one well worth checking out ... if only for curiosity.

7.0 out of 10

Fancy importing some of your favourite goods from the US? I recommend you try ISHOP4YOUII - a friendly, family owned busines. You want it?... They can get it! E-mails welcome.

April 11th: Thorntons 61% Dark Chocolate with Ginger

Kcal 505 Fat 33.9g Fat(sats) 21.3g Carbs 43.5g (per 100.0g)

It has taken me a while to get round to Thorntons' new line of 'square bars', though I think my hesitance is justified given some of the poor efforts they have produced in the past. Coming in square shaped bars Thorntons' latest range cuts a very 'Ritter Sport' esque look. Today I tried one of the more appetising looking bars from the range - the 'Togo 61% Cocoa Dark Chocolate with Ginger'. I was hoping that given my previous success with the Thorntons Dark Chocolate and Ginger Bar that similar results might be seen here. 

It appears that the people in the Thorntons factory forgot to add the last 10.0g of my chocolate, as it came in a rather puzzling 90.0g size. Despite my slight resentment at the resemblance to Ritter Sport, I thought the product looked pretty good. The outer cardboard packaging was simplistic, yet stylish in its use of colours and fonts, whilst the bar itself was protected within an inner plastic sheath. As you will be able to see above the bar was uniquely split, with some double sized chunks included between the smaller single piece sized - a nice idea I thought. A strong spicy, ginger smell soon made itself evident as I unsealed the plastic packaging - it was comforting to know I was going to get my desired ginger hit. 

Over the course of 15 months we haven't seen many charts like the one below. This bar tasted pretty good ... very good in fact. Unfortunately though it had a pretty big problem with its texture, which was evident from the off. In regards to taste it wasn't the strongest tasting dark chocolate ever, though it exerted a clean, mild and unsweetened cocoa influence that I would say on the whole was really quite pleasant. The ginger element was delivered well through the implementation of not only ginger oil, but also some crystallised ginger pieces that thankfully saved the texture from being completely abysmal. As strong and pleasant as the ginger was it all proved slightly pointless due to the melting nature of the chocolate. The chocolate melted into an extremely fine, thin liquid that neither let the flavours fully express themselves, or give chance to long in the mouth. The texture gave the bar a diluted, almost watered down like feel, which I am sure you can imagine made for a really unsatisfying chocolate.

Overall I found this to be a really disappointing product, as the flavours were there ... but just weren't allowed to fulfill their potential. With dark chocolate you generally expect the taste experience to be long, and sustained in the mouth. Unfortunately this just simply wasn't the case here. The thin melt alone made for an ultimately unsatisfactory product that frustrated me more than anything. Not a great start for this new range of Thorntons bars, but I would be interested to hear all your views. 

6.8 out of 10   

April 10th: Kit Kat Yellow & White Peach

Kcal 69 Fat 4.0g Carbs 7.7g (per 12.3g)

Kit Kat just keep pumping out the flavours in Japan, and J-List just keep on sending them over for me to review. J-List are forever updating their product lines and stock, so it is very much worth keeping an eye on their website if it is Japanese Snacks that your are interested in. Today I sampled these Yellow & White peach flavour variants that came in 'Mini' Kit Kat form.

I reviewed some 'Mini' Kit Kats last year and was largely impressed at how well they established their flavours despite their small 12.3g size. J-List sent me a bag of twelve, in which six of each of the yellow and white peach variants were included. The mini Kit Kats came in a very presentable foil bag as well as individual foil wrappers. I thought both looked aesthetically pleasing, whilst they also maintained each piece in good condition. The smells that emanated from both variants were very similar, with each smelling incredibly fruity if a little artificial with their sweet peachy scents.

I decided to not review these variants separately as they fundamentally provided the same sort of proposition. Much like the smell suggested the peach fruit flavours were very assertive at establishing a firm grip on the taste. The 'Yellow Peach' flavour was the strongest in terms of its fruit flavours, though at times the sharp citrus taste did strike me as quite artificial. The 'White' variant was a little more subdued in its flavours and had more a less imposing milky smoothness to its taste. In both the wafer element established some nice savoury, wheaty flavours whilst the creme contained within the wafer layers brought a very satisfying, cool, cream based element to the dominant fruit influence. Of course with the small size of the pieces each individual Kit Kat was not the most fulfilling ... to be honest I don't know why they didn't just make them in standard size.

Overall there is no doubting that all these flavour variants that Kit Kat are producing are certainly making for an interesting product range. Personally I wouldn't say these are the best from their extensive range, though I would definitely say that fans of fruit flavours and peaches will certainly be able to get some pleasure from these particular flavours. The peach flavours did taste a little on the artificial side, though on reflection this was certainly better than the flavour not being delivered whatsoever. If your a Kit Kat fan then I would say these are worth a try.

7.2 out of 10

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***Visit J-List for more Japanese products and Snack Foods***

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April 10th: Fannie May Mint Meltaways

Kcal 240 Fat 16.0g Fat(sats) 10.0g Carbs 23.0g

Thanks to *IShop4YouII* over the last week or so I have been able to review some Fannie May products in the form of their 'Trinidad' and 'Pixies' offerings. Today I tried their 'Mint Meltaways', which were formed of 'chocolate mint centers in a pastel coating'. One thing I did note before eating these was that a single pack contained 50% of the GDA of saturated fat, contrasting this with other products this did seem remarkably high.

As with the Fannie May Pixies these came in a three-piece, 42.5g pack that I ate over a single sitting. The packaging once again impressed me, and as with the other offerings from the range looked stylish with its contemporary look. The chocolates had a very vivid appearance with their pastel, winter green colour; when cross-sectioned the inner chocolate had a noticeably smooth, dense texture. Opening the packet I was immediately met with an extremely strong mint aroma. To be honest even then I found it somewhat overpowering - these were one of those chocolates that simply could not be stored in any close proximity to any other chocolates once opened.

As overpowering as the smell was, I wasn't quite expecting the sheer dominance of the mint in the taste. The outer pastel coating had a taste that simply consumed every other flavour influence on offer. It delivered a really one dimensional menthol taste, which was very severly limited in its flavour progression. The peppermint flavours were not exactly repulsive, though at the same time their cancelling out of the dark chocolate centre was bitterly disappointing. The pastel coating had a rather waxy type melt, though I must say I really quite enjoyed the texture of the dense, almost chewy dark chocolate centre - it was just a shame it had no impact tastewise. Due to the quite simplistic taste I didn't find these all that satisfying - certainly not enough to warrant 10.0g of saturated fat thats for sure.

Overall I am disappointed to say these are the worst offering I have sampled from the Fannie May range. Despite looking the part, they simply placed far to much emphasis on the mint flavouring in this product. As I stated above, the mint flavouring was not particularly bad, just it quickly became monotonous and boring in relation to what the product really could have delivered. Personally I would suggest your probably best avoiding these unless your a real mint-aholic.

6.4 out of 10

Fancy importing some of your favourite goods from the US? I recommend you try ISHOP4YOUII - a friendly, family owned busines. You want it?... They can get it! E-mails welcome.

April 9th: Ritter Sport Strawberry Yogurt

Kcal 570 Fat 37.7g Fat(sats) 24.4g Carbs 52.4g (per 100.0g)

Before the e-mails land in my inbox let me confirm that this was indeed a product sent to me by *IShop4YouII*. To cut a long story short a mix up at the post office in the US meant that a few Ritter Sport bars got mixed in to my package ... bizarre eh!? Well anyway, it seems that 'Strawberry Yogurt' really is flavour of the month in Germany; this is the third bar this month that has starred this combination - please see Milka Strawberry Yogurt & Ferrero Yogurette.

I can't quite work out where this bar has actually come from by the language on the front? Anyone? Though it still came in the usual 100.0g square bar form. The outer packaging nicely displayed the flavour variant, whilst I thought the pastel pink was an appropriate choice of colour. The bar itself looked particularly appetising, with the plentiful pink yogurt supplemented with some bright red strawberry pieces. Opening the wrapper I was immediately met with a pleasant concoction of chocolaty, red fruit smells - no sign of any artificial like elements.

Just as with every other Ritter Sport milk chocolate bar the chocolate did a grand job of carrying the inner filling. It established a pleasant chocolaty base taste from which the filling built on nicely once revealed after the smooth melt of the outer chocolate. The yogurt that sat below was delicious in its flavours, and had a familiar creamy, yet tangy impact on the taste. Until I saw the bar I could not determine how the strawberry was implemented due to the language displayed on the wrapper. Once I tasted it however I was pleasantly surprised to find that freeze dried pieces of strawberry had been used, and boy they had flavour!! The pieces delivered real zesty, berry bursts that had no artificial nature about them whatsoever. Normally I find some yogurt creme filled bars to lack a bit in their hunger fulfilment, however due to the fruity twist this bar really felt quite substantial in 50.0g servings.

Overall I was singing the praises of the Ferrero strawberry yogurt product earlier this week, but this Ritter Sport offering has quickly gone and trumped it. This bar implemented the strawberry element that little bit better, with the dried fruit pieces really exerting some fantastic, fresh tasting fruit influences. This combined with the yogurt and milk chocolate made for another highly commendable offering from the Ritter Sport range. As much as I recommend you try this bar, I have to say I have had my fill of strawberry yogurt combinations for awhile :)

8.4 out of 10

Fancy importing some of your favourite goods from the US? I recommend you try ISHOP4YOUII - a friendly, family owned busines. You want it?... They can get it! E-mails welcome.

April 8th: Pocky Marble Chocolat Framboise

Kcal 93 Fat 5.0g Carbs 10.8g (per 17.6g serving - 4 sticks)

Ever since I revealed that ChocolateMission had struck up a partnership with J-List.com I have literally been flooded with e-mails requesting some reviews on Glico's Pocky range. One short e-mail to J-List later and I have myself some of the latest Pocky lines. Today I tried out this 'Marble Chocolat Framboise' variant which from what I am told was Glico's special edition for this years valentines day. The combination of milk chocolate and raspberry liqueur sounded like an interesting flavour combination to me.

The product came in a pack that included three mini sleeves of 4 sticks. I thought the outer cardboard box was well designed with some simplistic but nice looking pictures and font styles. I was surprised at the thickness of the Pocky sticks - they certainly looked a lot thicker than I expected. Out their packet the brown and purple colours made the sticks looked interesting, whilst they also emanated a very pleasant vanilla smell that had just a subtle fruity hint to it.

Frankly I thought there was only one problem with this product and it was a pretty predictable one. Although I think the small packets were designed so the consumer would eat them separately, I frankly couldn't help but eat all three at once. The taste was simply moreish, yet pretty unfulfilling at the same time. The biscuit sticks all had a nice fresh crunch and substantiated some nice wheaty, slightly sugared favours to each bite. The coated portions of the sticks were packed full of the intended flavours with the cocoa nicely coming through early in the taste. As the coating melted in the mouth the more fruity influence from the raspberry framboise element came through, adding some very pleasant tart red berry hints to the taste. The coating did have a slight tangy yogurt element to it that made the flavours last surprisingly long in the mouth, this however didn't make the product any more fulfilling.

Overall it seems that the Pocky range has got off to a pretty good start on ChocolateMission. I can see the brands lack of hunger fulfillment potential slightly holding it back on the scoring system, however I am sure most consumers will know that these are probably not the snack to choose if they are looking specifically for this. In regards to taste the quality can not be doubted. These were nicely flavoured with both the chocolate and raspberry elements expressing themselves well. If your a fan of Pocky then I would really recommend these ... more from this incredibly diverse brand coming soon.

8.0 out of 10

Head to J-List to find this product and many more Japanese Chocolates & Snacks