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Kcal 210 Fat 13.0g Fat(sats) 8.0g Carbs 23.0g (per 40.0g serving)Despite Charlie and the Chocolate Factory being widely recognised as one of the most loved children's book of all time, the Wonka confectionery brand currently has a very limited presence here in the UK. Back in 2005 Nestle did seemingly bring the brand to UK shores for a brief period (See HERE), however those bars appear to be long gone. Conversely the brand in America is still quite strong, and recently three new flavours got introduced under a sub-brand named 'Exceptionals'. Luckily for me (and all you of course!!) my pals at Yankee Soda & Candy managed to obtain a limited stock (See HERE), and today I will be taking a look at the Chocolate Waterfall flavour. On pack the wrapper this chocolate was described as 'a combination of swirled milk and white chocolate' that was 'truly amazing, and made with all natural ingredients'.
One thing I can't fault Nestle for on these Wonka bars is attention to detail - this was not a 100.0g bar of chocolate .. oh no ... this was a 99.2g bar of chocolate :D As awful as my picture looks above (sorry!) the wrapper did actually look pretty cool, and appeared zany and distinctive enough to be believable that it had come from a factory of one Mr Wonka. Not to be outdone by it's foil exterior, the chocolate also looked damn sharp, with the swirled milk and white chocolate proving to be almost hypnotic with it's eye catching patterning. Once I had managed to snap out of my swirled chocolate trance, the forthcoming sweet dairy smells were the next thing to hit my senses, raising my anticipation even further.
Having never tasted Wonka chocolate before I was really unaware of what to expect. Would this be a company creating cheap chocolate to cash in on an idealistic brand name? Or would the quality of the product actually prove to be ok? Thankfully I can say it was more the latter, and it probably deserves more than just being labelled 'ok'. As you can see above the block sizes were a bit on the large side, but it was no real hassle breaking them into smaller pieces. When doing so the chocolate broke with a satisfying snap which is always a good thing as it indicates the chocolate is relatively fresh. Taste wise the chocolate was pretty unique in it's flavours, which is something I have to admit I wasn't expecting from a Nestle product as a lot of them tend to just taste the same. The chocolate was what I would describe as sweet, yet it never had a sugary sharpness, as a fudgey cocoa influence occupied the majority of the taste. From what I could detect the white chocolate influence came to the party in the form of some slightly yogurty, cream flavour bursts that were apparent every now and then in certain stages of the melt. Speaking of the textures the chocolate melted at a fine rate, and with a real softness and elegance that I would rank above that of your average mass produced chocolate. I didn't think this was the most satisfying of chocolates I have eaten, but this predominantly driven by the moreishness of the taste.
Overall this was a great first experience to have with the Wonka brand and it has really got me excited about trying the other two variants from the range. As you might have been able to tell above I did have some preconceived fears before tasting this chocolate that it might be a product that relies on it's brand name alone to generate interest. Having now tasted it I can confirm that the quality of the product very much matches up to the standards I was hoping for, and if I was to place the quality of the chocolate in the context of the total mass produced market I put it up there with the likes of Milka etc. I thought this Chocolate Waterfall bar was going to have a hard time living up to the excitement that the wrapper and overall presentation created, but I felt the chocolate more than held it's own. The taste wasn't as distinctive as the likes of Dairy Milk, but the smooth, fudge noted cocoa taste was certainly compelling enough to hold my interest. If you are after a second opinion why not check out Cybele's review on Candy Blog (See HERE). I personally really liked this bar, and would have it again in the future if given the chance - more Wonka chocolate coming next week!
8.0 out of 10
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26 comments:
Wonka chocolate FTW. We haven't had Wonka stuff in this country for years now.
I don't remembering it being that good when we did have it though.
Did you get a golden ticket? :)
I have heard of Wonka chocolates before but I had no idea they were created by Nestle. I am guessing it is produced in the US correct?
It looks so pretty. It reminds me of the Milka Happy Cows chocolate with the mix of white and milk choccies. I would gobble this right up given half a chance.
Dx
In the UK we haven't had a decent milk chocolate and white chocolate combo since the cadbury Marble. Does anyone remember that?
It was my favourite bar but of course cadburys got rid of it :(
This looks nice but I am a little put off by the price. I guess they are big 99 gram bars.
Have you ordered of those guys before Jim? Didn't you used to use candy pirate? Any reason why you switched?
Rxxx
This is proper wonka chocolate. Not like that pants stuff Harry Courzeziet has put on the market.
I desperately want to try it to see if it is any good.
I remember wonka chocolate from a few years ago.
I found a link to some but they are sold out
http://www.britishcandy.com/products/1/166/wonka_bars.html
You can still get other Wonka sweets in newsagents but I don't think they do the chocolate bars any longer.
It is a shame as I remember them being pretty good.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is like the best book ever created. The recent film wasn't that bad either (the one featuring Jonny Depp).
Back to the chocolate lol. I would Jump at the chance to give one of those Wonka chocolates a try. I like the sound of the peanut brittle one better if I am honest though.
I must have had that book read to me about a hundred times when I was small and I always remember my mum for a Wonka chocolate bar each and every time.
I was always so confused when she said that they didn't actually exist. I guess now they do.
You being kind about a Nestle product? Get out of here who's paying you?
There is something wonderfully magical about Wonka stuff isn't there.
I think it is because it reminds me of my childhood. I bet there are way too many kids today that haven't been exposed to the delights of Mr Wonka and his chocolate factory. For shame those parents.
These sound nice. It really baffles me why we don't get the Wonka brand over here anymore. I will always remember the lovely triple dazzle caramel bar, it was pure sweet indulgence.
I wonder if US Nestle uses a different chocolate recipe than over here? Because the milk choc wonka bars weren't too great.
I am with you on this one. This chocolate looks utterly gorgeous.
I have always liked the idea of swirling milk and white chocolate together. It not only looks cool but it tastes great most the time.
As kids back in the late 80's my sister and I always wanted to buy Wonka bars having seen the original 1970's film repeated on tv many times but were always sad that they weren't available in any shops!lol
Of course when they appeared a few years ago we were quite astonished lol sadly they didn't taste that good, they were ok, but quite small and thin and fairly standard Nestle fare and no where near as chunky and delicious looking as the films bars. i remember thinking they'd be better by another maker. These look lovely and I think they do a better job with the US version than they did with our UK one.
I remember them having a toffee milk chocoalte that was quite nice a few years ago. The stuff in this country was definitely also made by Nestle.
Ooh yum this looks nice.
I always like the look of the two different types of chocolate on one another. It is even better when it also tastes nice lol.
I look forward to reading your next two reviews
Theae wonks chocolates look amazing nice find. When do you think you will review the other two flavours? I want to order some bit don't want to waite to long to find out which is best incase they run out.
Thanks
Greg
I had my money on you complaining that this was going to be one of those chocolates that looked better than it tasted but I was wrong wasn't I :)
Sounds surprisingly rather nice. The idea of milk and white chocolate together doesn't sound very pleasant in my head, I've always thought they would 'cancel each other out', if ya get me. But your way with words has got me to pondering now..I may have to sample the milka cow bar to see how this shiz goes down.
P.S. I remember a wonka bar they did that was purple and had green nerds embedded in it. PURPLE I said! Who cares if it tasted crap, it was freaking purple! Kids today.
Just placed an order for one of these :D ill let you know what i think Jim but not disagreed with you yet haha.
Also have you seen the new Milk Way Simply Caramel Bar? have you tried it, cant find it on the site?
Matthew
Yum, looks pretty good! All I remember from Wonka is those bars with the popping candy stuff in, I really used to like those...
I might as well take this comment as an opportunity to tell you what I thought about my Easter chocolate.
I ended up getting the Hotel Chocolat Eton Mess egg (I guess the Scrambled was sold out, haha) it was so delicious! I'm shocked how much fresh and realistic the strawberry part tasted, yum!
I got a G+B dark chocolate egg too, but I think my white chocolate obsession has altered my taste buds; I'm just not as fond of it as I used to be. *shrug*
Hope you had a good Easter. Looking forward to the two other Wonka reviews. :)
Steven
I didn't have that much of a vested interest in chocolate around the time those bars were available so I can't pass comment on them I am afraid. The going impression on here though is that they were pretty good.
David
No golden ticket I am afraid :(
These bars are indeed produced in the US.
Daisy
You are right this does look like the Happy Cows Milk bar. The difference is that the white chocolate in this bar isn't just there for decoration like it is on the Milka bar.
Golden
I don't remember the Wonka bars but I do remember the Cadbury Marble.
Didn't it have a sort of praline bit in the middle?
Anon
You are right this is proper Wonka chocolate. Why not try it for yourself?
Nick
Good find chap. I can't remember it myself but I am sure others will. Nice find.
Justin
They do others sweets do they? Are they more traditional sugar based ones? Like strawberry laces etc?
Chris
I agreee it was one of my favourite books from my childhood .
Don't worry the toffee and peanut review will be up soon enough.
Lauren
Haha I also never seemed to get it in my head that Wonka chocolate didn't exist.
The way they described the chocolates in the books always made them sound delicious don't you think.
Anon #2
No one is paying me :D I hold no prejudices against any manufacture.
Katie
This bar did have a nice sprinkle of Wonka magic.
I don't even want to think about kids not knowing who Willy Wonka is. That would just be way too depressing if it were true. Every child ... and I mean EVERY child should read that book at least once.
Alan
Hmmm the opinions are pretty mixed on these bars that appeared in 2005.
I am glad to hear you enjoyed the original film aswell. The film is good but there is nothing quite like reading the book with all the crazy Dahl illustrations. Don't get me started on how marvellous the book is again or I will be here all night :D You should try these bars.
Richard
It does look cool doesn't it. As I said in the review I think they did a cracking job with the wrapper also.
Estelle
I don't think you are alone in thinking they were pretty good.
Selina
Thanks Selina. The next two reviews will be posted across the next two weeks.
I am going for one Wonka review a week. Look for the dark chocolate one next week.
Greg
See above chap. Two weeks should be pretty safe. You could always treat yourself and order all three :D
Duncan
Me? Complain? Never :D
Lottie
The Milka Happy Cows bar looks good but they don't really mix the white and milk chocolate together. They just put spots of white chocolate on the surface so you don't get the best of both worlds :D
You could always try the Hotel Chocolat Milk and White Fusion! Now there is a good example of where milk and white chocolate work nicely!!
I aint too sure about purple chocolate mind you :D
Matutu
Oh no you got me worried now :D I look forward to hearing your views chap.
Rearding the Milky Way Simply Caramel. I have already reviewed that bar in some carnation ... it is called the Mars Caramel in Canada http://www.chocolatemission.net/2008/06/june-14th-mars-caramel-can.html .... probably why you couldn't find it :D
Rachel
It sounds like you had a great haul this Easter huh!?
The Eton Mess truffles I have tried from Hotel Chocolat are out of this world. I bet they were just as well done in that egg.
I am still not all that sure about G&B's chocolate. I think it is awfully hit and miss ... hey I wouldn't have turned it down put it that way :D I sounds like you had a great Easter!
Thanks everyone. I hope you all enjoyed the Wonka review today. More next week.
JIM
"I put it up there with the likes of Milka etc"
Bloody hell, I wouldn't have expected anything of that quality to be produced by Nestle in North America.
I've been seeing these bars around a lot, but have been avoiding because they're Nestle. If you say they're Milka quality, I think I should try one.
Hey Jim did you hear about the Nestle/Facebook fiasco? Would make a good news item:
http://www.smartcompany.com.au/internet/20100323-nestle-s-facebook-bungle-an-example-for-smes.html
Richard
It would be good to see what you think of these bars chap. I look forward to reading your views on them.
Phil
cheers for sharing that! I have stuck it in the new post for tomorrow.
Thanks both
JIM
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