April 20th: Cadbury Clusters

Kcal 175 Fat 8.2g Fat(sats) 5.1g Carbs 23.2g (per 37.0g)

When I first saw these announced a few weeks back (see HERE) I must admit I was really looking forward to seeing what Cadbury were going to deliver. These Cadbury Clusters are one of three new Cadbury snacking products, with Cadbury Raisins and Cadbury Peanuts being the other two (reviews coming soon!). On the packaging they came described as 'crunchy flakes and raisins tumbled in Cadbury milk chocolate'. 

I am aware that these are available in larger sized bags, though for the purpose of this review I picked up a 37.0g for the pricely sum of 65p. I liked the presentation of the outer wrapper which incorporated the same matted foil material that the standard Cadbury chocolate bar range is currently using. I personally thought that the red colour scheme worked well and I must admit it did make the product stand out on the shelf. What I didn't like about the presentation however was the product itself. The actual clusters were a lot smaller than I envisaged and the surface of all of them had a dusty appearance which suggested they weren't all that fresh. Despite the rough round the edges look the clusters had an enticing aroma that had a nice fruitiness about its chocolaty smell. 

The first thing I noticed when tasting these was that the chocolate seemed a little sweeter than traditional Cadbury milk chocolate. After looking at the ingredients list I decided to give myself a pat on the back as it stated that the chocolate only contained 14% cocoa and not the usual 20% that Dairy Milk contains. The chocolate was still pretty good but just didn't have the usual creaminess and relied a bit more on its sugary sweetness. The cereal element constituted of cornflakes, which whilst providing a nice crispy texture to proceedings failed to really bring a great deal to the taste aside from a mild saltiness. Although the cereal was disappointing the raisins brought a nice sweet fruit element to the taste and certainly brought a bit of interest. I ate the 37.0g bag in a single sitting; it wasn't the most fulfilling product ever but it did an adequate job in this regard. 

Overall these didn't really live up to my expectations though I guess this could be Cadbury suffering by their own normal high standards. At the heart of the matter the product was just a little unexciting. The chocolate was of a fair standard but lacked the usual Dairy Milk sparkle, the cereal was pretty bland and the raisins whilst quite flavoursome, were at the end of the day just raisins!! One thing that is bugging me is who are Cadbury trying to aim these at? With over 8.0g of fat they are hardly the healthiest product going .... with these your looking at the same nutritional intake that you do with a standard pack of Walkers crisps. So if it isn't the healthy part of the market they are going for, what part is it? These are hardly a ghastly product, yet at the same time are pretty mediocre and nothing too much to get excited about.

6.8 out of 10

 

April 20th: Hershey's Cookies Reese's

Kcal 140 Fat 7.0g Fat(sats) 2.5g Carbs 18.0g (per 28.0g - 2 cookies)

Liz at *IShop4YouII* thought these cookies were a product I simply had to try given my love for almost anything gracing Reese's peanut butter. Hey, I was never going to argue with that - these sounded very tempting indeed and came billed as 'crunchy chocolate cookies layered with real milk chocolate and filled with Reese's peanut butter creme'! One thing that I did notice was that these contained only 140 calories for two cookies, which to me sounded pretty good.

*IShop4YouII* were kind enough to provide me with a 225.0g family sized box that took me a good few weeks to get through. The outer packaging was all pretty fair, it incorporated the famialiar orange Reese's theme and featured a pretty enticing looking picture of the cookies up close. Thankfully they looked just as good in reality as they did on the box. As you will see above the outer biscuit pieces featured the Reese's branding, whilst the inner icing layer appeared plentiful and thick. As ever with Reese's products the smell was very distinctive and immediately forthcoming when I opened the plastic wrapped tray.

So how did they taste? ... pretty damn awesome! The cookies were formed of three notable layers. The biscuit layers were a little lacking in their chocolaty flavours, and rather just substantiated a shortbread like sugary buttery taste. The chocolate hit was unsuprisingly delivered by the milk chocolate layer, which sat between the biscuit and the peanut butter creme. It brought a nice moistness to the dry biscuit, aswell as some milky, cocoa influences. The real defining element to the taste though was the inner peanut butter icing, which immediately added a wonderful contrasting salty, nuttiness to the sweet taste ... simply delicious and just ridiculously moreish.

Overall these provided a fantastic option to snack on during an afternoon and retained all the good attributes of most Reese's products. The biscuit element could potentially be bettered by having a greater chocolaty taste, though to a large degree this was a minor problem as the cookies were all about the peanut butter filling. I have said before I am not the biggest biscuit fan, but I simply just couldn't get enough of these. If your a fan of Reese's products and Oreos then these are simply a match made in heaven.

8.5 out of 10

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April 19th: Meiji Rich Banana Chocolate

Kcal 264 Fat 17.5g Carbs 24.5g (per 45.0g bar)

I guess this is an opportune time to mention the fact that I am no great fan of bananas. As a child I ate them by the dozen, though as I grew up I seemed to take a disliking to their mushy texture. Me disliking has never stopped me before though and of course I am always willing to give anything a try. That is all pretty lucky really considering J-List have been sending me some most obscure (but awesome!) products from Japan. A product that falls into that bracket would be todays review - the Meiji Rich Banana Chocolate.

It would be awesome if products like this counted towards one of our five a day, but I still think we are some way off chocolate ever be considered for that :D The bar came in usual Meiji size in a 45.0g form. The wrapper was made of a foil like material that gave it a nice yellow coloured sparkle. Contained within some similarly coloured proper foil was the bar which had a clean cut look and was a nice relevant cream colour. One thing that was instantly noticeable after opening the bar up was the smell which was extremely potent. It had a strong vanilla dominance and a sweet fruitiness that was ever present; I found it relatively enticing yet not overly so.

I really do need to find myself a Japanese translator as it would have been wonderful to know what Meiji were aiming for, and how they market this product. What I detected myself was that it was a white chocolate with an extremely forthcoming banana element. The initial flavours were very creamy indeed and reminded me very much of a sweet, vanilla noted custard. This was very much to my liking though the banana element for me had both its positive points and its negatives. The banana flavour was extremely dominating and whilst it was actually well delivered and tasted of fresh banana fruit it just became a little monotonous. The taste was good, yet ever so slightly one dimensional and admittedly became a little boring towards the end of the bar.

Overall this was a bar that did well in substantiating the proposed flavour, however came a little unstuck when it came to keeping my interest with its taste. The initial flavours had a custard type appeal and engaged me from the outset. These cream flavours soon took a backseat to the dominant banana element though which whilst they were enjoyable and pleasant soon became just a little boring if anything. If you like bananas then I can see this being a bar that you would thoroughly enjoy. However if like me your not overly in love with the fruit then this is probably a product where you wouldn't necessarily being 'missing out' on anything.

7.7 out of 10

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April 19th: Thorntons Belgian White Chocolate

Kcal 562 Fat 35.0g Fat(sats) 21.2g Carbs 55.3g (per 100.0g)

Continuing my look at the new Thorntons *ahem*'Ritter Sport'*ahem* square bars range I today tried their Belgian White Chocolate offering. Previous experiences with Thorntons' white chocolate proved to be very worthwhile indeed with their 50.0g impulse bar earning a very reputable 8.6 out of 10 on the ever dependable ChocolateMission rating system. 

As with every offering from the square bar range this product came in a 90.0g size. The packaging was all rather well put together, I guess it was a little on the plain side though the simpleness of the design gave it both a sophisticated and modern look. The bar itself looked pretty appetising with some nice patterns weaved into the surface of the slightly yellow tinted cream coloured chocolate. One thing that was noticeably below par with this offering was the aroma that it emanated. As well as not being particularly strong, the smell of the bar was not all that pleasant and smelt rather like slightly soured, warm milk. 

Luckily the poor scents radiating from the bar were none to evident in the taste. This was a white chocolate with a progressive set of flavours that developed with the melt. Upon entering the mouth some very crisp and clean dairy, milk flavours were fast substantiated. Once the chocolate had warmed, and started to transform into its thick liquid state the flavours progressed to a richer cream based dimension that had just small hints of sweet honey. The aftertaste of the chocolate had the most delicate of vanilla hints that left a lasting impression in the mouth. I enjoyed this bar over a course of three different sittings, after which all I felt very satisfied with just a 30.0g serving.

Overall this was a very finely flavoured white chocolate that I really enjoyed. The progressive nature of the taste was particularly pleasant, and avoided the all to common pitfall of being overly laden with sugar. This was a very luxurious tasting white chocolate, and would be one that I would definitely have again. If they could sort out the really quite odd smell the bar permeates this could really be a product that Thorntons can be proud of, it is the only thing that really let it down. This is definitely one for you white chocolate fans.

8.3 out of 10 

April 18th: Cadbury Picnic (Aus)

Kcal 245 Fat 13.9g Fat(sats) 5.8g Carbs 25.4g

Way back in February 2008 I reviewed the UK version of the Cadbury Picnic (Review HERE). My view on that bar was that it was a bit hit and miss ... and if anything felt like it was a bit 'jumbled together'. Well my kind friends over at Shopenzed sent across their version of the Cadbury Picnic - this Australian version was formed of 'peanuts, wafer, caramel, rice crispies covered in Cadbury milk chocolate'.

The bar came in a very plentiful size of 46.0g - it certainly made for a very fulfilling snack. I immediately preferred the look of the product to our UK version. The outer wrapper was made of a fantastic foil material that really made the red and yellow colours look particularly vibrant. The bar itself took a more orderly fashion than its UK equivalent - a look at the cross section above will show you that it looked remarkably like a Nestle Lion but just with peanuts incorporated into the outer coating. Aswell as aesthetically the nuts were also very evident in the smell of the product, where their enticing roasted scents added to the already tempting chocolaty smell.

My main complaint with the UK Picnic was that each bite was so inconsistent with what it delivered. I had pretty much the polar opposite experience with this bar, each mouthful was simply delicious. The outer chocolate had a wonderful thickness and made sure that every bite had a resounding chocolaty taste before the other elements came into play. Contained within this chocolate were the rice and peanuts that both added a nice crunch to the smooth texture. The peanuts especially bought some very forthcoming bursts of salty, nutty flavours which combined perfectly with the other sweeter elements. Normally I am not the greatest fan of wafers as I perceive them as being to light and unsubstantial. The caramel however made sure that the wafer had more of a dense, chewy nature, whilst also bringing some buttery, toasted sugar flavours to the mix. The combination of all these different elements was nothing short of superb.

Overall this bar was completely superior to our UK version and made for a thoroughly enjoyable product. With this bar everything seemed so more ordered - each element was correctly distributed throughout the bar which made the experience more consistent and thus more enjoyable. The lacking of raisins really wasn't a sore point for me, the sweet and salty combination of the peanuts and caramel was enough to make this one delicious bar. If your a fan of the Nestle Lion, or other similar products I strongly suggest you get acquainted with one of these - highly recommended.

8.6 out of 10

April 18th: Ghirardelli Milk & Peanut Butter

Kcal 250 Fat 17.0g Fat(sats) 9.0g Carbs 22.0g (per 45.0g serving)

A peanut butter product that isn't Reese's!! whatever next!? knowing my love for all things peanut butter related my pals at *IShop4YouII* thought this would be a great product for me to check out. Having got myself nicely acquainted with some of Ghirardelli's range already this year I must say that I was really looking forward to try this bar, which incorporated 'gourmet peanut butter with crunchy peanuts in milk chocolate'.

This bar came in a 90.0g size that I split into the proposed two 45.0g servings. I continue to be impressed with Ghirardelli's presentation - the outer cardboard box included some nice pictures of the chocolate, as well as using some stylish looking gold coloured fonts. The look of the bar itself didn't let the product down either - it was split into chunky logo inscribed blocks that when cross-sectioned revealed a plentiful portioning of filling in each. The product didn't quite radiate the same level of nuttiness than Reese's offerings, though it was noticeable that the bar didn't have the same greasy feel that you commonly get with the aforementioned products.

This was a bar that grew on me as I ate it, though it certainly had its ups and its down in terms of its tasting experience. I am ever critical about Reese's milk chocolate, and I thought this might be the area where Ghirardelli would really triumph. The outer milk chocolate for me though lacked the real cocoa strength that I was hoping it would have. Despite having a nice thick melt and substantiating a pleasant enough creamy, milky flavour base I would personally have preferred the flavours to have been more cocoa centric. The peanut butter filling was the part of the product that took some getting used to. It terms of initial nut flavour strength it was nowhere near as imposing as Reese's however it did include some crunchy nut pieces that really brought some nutty flavour bursts later on in the taste. To be honest this felt more like a peanut creme rather than peanut butter ... both the taste and texture were smooth, not like the rough, gritty imposing Reese's. The 45.0g servings certainly provided a degree of fulfilment, though the smoothness of the taste meant I probably could have easily eaten more.

Overall I can't say this is a bar that I would naturally pick over most Reese's products, though to be fair it is still an enjoyable offering in its own right. I was a little disappointed with the milk chocolate - it was not poor or anything, it was just that it lacked the desired chocolate hit I was wanting it to give me. The peanut butter centre certainly offered something a little different from Reese's - it was more subtle in its deliverance of its creamy, nut flavours ... whether you prefer that will solely be down to individual taste. If offered this is a bar I would certainly have again; its worthy of its very credible score.

8.0 out of 10

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April 17th: Pocky Kiwi Fruit

Kcal 67 Fat 3.4g Carbs 8.4g (per 12.8g - 5 sticks)

You guys demanded more Pocky reviews ... you get more Pocky reviews :) Thanks to fabulous people at J-List I once again today got the opportunity to test drive one of Glico's latest Pocky flavours this 'Kiwi Fruit' variant. Frankly I cant say I am the greatest fan of Kiwi, however as you will find out when you read on these turned out to be a really pretty awesome product.

When J-List sent these across they were kind enough to send across two boxes of these. I was planning on eating one for the purpose of reviewing and using the other for some form of competition ... unfortunately for you guys I ended up consuming both boxes (sorry!! competition coming soon I promise). Contained within each box were four seperate packets of five sticks which surprisingly supplied a sufficient enough snack.

I thought the presentation of the product was pretty good - the communication of the Kiwi flavour couldn't really be missed on the outer packaging, whilst I thought the green speckled nature of the sticks combined for a unique and colourful look. The uniqueness of the aesthetics were only to be outdone by the really quite formidable distinct smell that emanated from the packets. The smell had a artificial strawberry like nature to it which initially brought some concerns in regards to the taste.

Thankfully there turned out to be nothing whatsoever artificial about the taste - these were certainly one fantastic tasting product. The outer flavoured coating of the biscuit stick had a white chocolate nature about it, in that it delivered some very pleasant creamy, milky yogurt like flavours. The Kiwi element was implemented superbly with the fresh, forthcoming fruity taste seemingly constituting of red berry and citrus lime flavour elements. The biscuit as ever had a tasty shortbread like appeal with its wheaty flavours enhanced perfectly with slight sugar and salt bursts. The forthcoming and lasting fruit flavours made these a surprisingly substantial snack; they were moreish, yet at the same time five sticks seemed like a perfect amount.

Overall I was thoroughly impressed with these despite my initial pessimism that the Kiwi Fruit flavour could really be implemented well into such a small confined product. The fruit element was in fact one of the best fruit flavourings I have come across and was both flavoursome and balanced in its sweet well rounded taste. From what I understand Pocky is a brand that likes experimenting with all sorts of different flavours and have many limited edition variants. If this is the case and your a fan of Pocky I would strongly suggest you try a pack of these before they disappear, these come highly recommended.

8.2 out of 10

Click here for J-List where you can find many more exciting Pocky Flavours

April 17th: Thorntons Choc Chip Choccies

Kcal 48 Fat 2.5g Fat(sats) 1.6g Carbs 6.1g (per piece)

These were another product requested for a review by the ever present ChocolateMission reader Lottie. Now sometimes I understand I take things all a little seriously, but I must say the name of this product does make me want to bash myself to death with a blunt object :) ... its the word 'choccies' ... blimey I can't stand it!! Bad names aside these Thorntons 'Choc Chip Choccies' *groan* were formed of 'praline, fudge and oats covered in milk chocolate'. 

I bought these in a 115.0g bag that contained about 15 individual chocolates. The bag was reasonably plain looking but gave a good insight into the actual product using both an illustrative and of course on-pack information. It would have been nice had it included a resealable flap, however the chocolates were still kept in pretty good condition across the three days I kept them, and maintained their quite forthcoming malty, cocoa aromas well. I liked the look of the chocolate themselves as the centres had a visibly lighter, fluffier look than the outer coating. 

I thought the pieces were a nice size and fitted nicely in the mouth one at a time. The outer milk chocolate provided both a nice set of flavours and melt in the mouth, substantiating some delightful sweet, milky cream based flavours with its thick, smooth melt. Contained within this crisp, clean tasting milk chocolate, I would unfortunately have to describe the flavours of the centres a little more muddled ... almost murky. At times some strong hazelnut influences were present in the taste, however this seem to get somewhat distorted and shackled by the baking flour type flavours from the oats. The oats to me seemed a non worthwhile edition, and more hindered the pleasantness of the praline rather than add to to tasting experience. In addition I also couldn't quite see where the fudge element came into things? For me it seemed not to factor in the taste whatsoever. One positive thing I guess you could say about the oats was that they made the texture quite stodgy - thus making just a few pieces feel quite substantial. 

Overall these were described to me as 'to die for', and though I can't quite agree with that sentiment they certainly struck me as a product with potential. I think Thorntons have made the classic mistake of trying to put too many ingredients in one product here. A milk chocolate coated praline may sound a little more boring, though to be honest I think it probably would have tasted absolutely superb. It is always great seeing brands trying new things, but my advice for Thorntons would be possibly to keep it a little more simple ... oh and to never use the word 'choccies' for their products again :)

7.2 out of 10

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