August 16th: Kit Kat Chunky Hazelnut

Kcal 270 Fat 15.6g Carbs 29.7g

I get the feeling that there are plenty of UK consumers still feeling a little disappointed (understatement of the year!) at Nestle's decision to replace the Kit Kat Chunky Peanut Butter with an inferior (in my opinion!) Kit Kat Chunky Caramel. If you are one of the people that fall in to that category this is probably not the best post for you to read, as today I will be showcasing this Kit Kat Chunky Hazelnut. Why is this such a bad thing!? Well I'm sure all my UK readers will be instantly annoyed by the news that this is a bar solely manufactured and distributed in Germany - I can hear the mass 'DOHs' being exclaimed now. On the wrapper the bar came described as 'crisp wafer layers, with a hazelnut creme filling, coated in milk chocolate' - this prospect had me licking my lips.

As with all other standard Kit Kat Chunkys this bar came in a single piece 50.0g size that I ate across a single sitting. My first impressions of the wrapper weren't all that positive and I was instantly confused by the choice of a green colouring to indicate the hazelnut flavours theme (I still am to be honest) Aside from the lime/bogey green exterior things became a whole lot more familiar when I unwrapped the foil and took out the bar inside. In keeping with any other Chunky variant the chocolate and wafers looked as just grand and thick, whilst the hazelnut creme looked well portioned and inviting. In addition to the standard chocolate biscuit Kit Kat smells there were also mild hints nuttiness on offer which further heightened my anticipation.

I'm sure 99% of you would have tasted some sort of Kit Kat product down the years so there is probably very little need for me to inform you all of what the chocolate and wafer constituents of this product tasted like. Just to clue up the remaining 1% :D the thick helping of outer milk chocolate delivered the desired chocolate flavour hit and was more than competent at establishing a sweet, milky cocoa flavour base that perfectly combined with the malty wheat flavours of the crunchy wafer layers. The sole defining aspect of this product was of course always going to be the quality of the hazelnut creme - was it good? was it bad? was it out of this world? Well it fell a little short of being out of this world :D but I'm glad to say it was very tasty indeed. Unlike the dry, pasty texture of the UK Chunky Caramel, this creme had a more fluid, cool feel in the mouth. Most importantly it added a further nutty dimension to the taste - it wasn't the most intensive of hazelnut influences, but it was strong enough to cut through both the chocolate and wafer elements, leaving a lasting impression of creamy hazelnut in the mouth. The total bar was a joy to eat and pleasure to eat in it's entirety and left me feeling very satisfied.

Overall this Kit Kat Chunky Hazelnut was every bit as good as I was hoping it to be, and would have to be placed right alongside both the Peanut Butter and White Chunkys in regards to my favourites. To give you some sort of context this Chunky Hazelnut was pretty much exactly like a beefed up, more substantial version of the Kit Kat Senses. It had exactly the same milk chocolate, wafer and hazelnut creme constituents, but all three were more heavily portioned which most greatly benefited the hazelnut creme. Unlike in the Senses where the filling is more of a 'suggestion' and portioned pretty poorly, every bite of this bar had strong hazelnut tones which I personally found much more to my liking and far more satisfying in comparison. My UK readers are no doubt going to be very frustrated by this review given that I have now been lauded over yet another flavour of Chunky they don't have readily access to. For those of you that do have this bar in distribution in your local stores, I would strongly suggest you give it a try - I for one will be buying it again in the future.

8.5 out of 10