March 31st: Galler Piemontais

Kcal 571 Fat 38.3g Fat(sats) 20.5g Carbs 47.8g (per 100.0g)

You guys should know by now that if you ask for something ... I deliver ... albeit eventually some may say :D Indeed, for months now several readers have been contacting me both by e-mail and on the requests page (HERE) asking me to review some chocolates made by Galler. For those who are unsure who Galler are, I can tell you that they were founded in 1976 by a man called Jean Galler, who originated from Liege in Belguim. The brand is positioned with a premium proposition and they market their chocolate as 'all-natural and high quality', for more information I would suggest taking a look at their website (See HERE).

After dropping the kind people at Galler an e-mail recently, their PR team kindly sent me along some samples to try. Included in the box they sent me was this Piemontais chocolate bar, which came in a 70.0g ingot like form. On the packaging this bar was described as 'milk chocolate filled with a crispy filling nut centre' which sounded like a sensible way for me to introduce myself to their range. Looking at the presentation, I thought the wrapping did a very good job at getting across the premium nature of the brand with the outer layer establishing sense of sophistication with it's simplicity. Inside the inner gold foil went on to only reaffirm it's sense of classiness, and the cross-section looked very tempting with a clear distinction between the chocolate and inner filling.

Creating a chocolate that looks good and talks a good game is one thing, but making one that tastes just as good is a different matter altogether. Luckily for me (and Galler obviously!!), this chocolate didn't pull any punches when it came to the taste test and I can thankfully confirm that it very much backed up all that had gone before. Taking in the aromas of the chocolate before eating it, it was quite clear that this was going to be a creamy milk chocolate, and that was very much what came through in the taste. The outer milk chocolate broke with a delightful snap when bitten in to and it melted with a wonderful smooth, velvety texture on the tongue. In terms of flavours it was very similar to Lindt's Extra Creamy Milk Chocolate in that it was a taste heavily rooted in cream, but with a sweet edge that grew stronger in terms of cocoa volume as the melt developed in the mouth. Sitting below the milk chocolate, the filling was similarly delicious, and it delivered both the hazelnut and cereal elements to the party with great conviction. The filling was well textured due to the crispness of the rice cereal, whilst the hazelnuts really brought an extra flavour dimension with a really fresh tasting woody nut influence. This was a bar that was split into four large size blocks which I have to say wasn't ideal. I personally would have preferred smaller bite sized pieces as biting in to each block wasn't too kind on the teeth due to their firmness.

Overall my first experience with Galler chocolate has been an overwhelmingly positive one. This Piemontais bar delivered on everything I had come to expect about the Galler brand having had so many readers contact me saying how wonderful it is. The presentation was classy and the chocolate delivered the goods when it came to the taste - of course that is always a good start for any chocolate product. Judging from what I have experienced today, on the face of things Galler seem to have a lot of consistencies with Hotel Chocolat. They are high end brand that don't market their chocolate in an over the top or pretentious manner, and they use high quality ingredients to make chocolate that tastes fresh and mostly importantly great. This bar in particular should be one that praline and hazelnut fans should take note of. It might perhaps be a little stretching to say it is best in class, but I tell you what it isn't that far off. Thankfully I can say that there is more Galler coming very soon to a ChocolateMission near you!

8.5 out of 10