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Kcal 510 Fat 32.0g Fat(sats) 19.0g Carbs 50.0g (per 100.0g)How some of these Lindt Excellence bars have escaped getting a ChocolateMission review for as long as they have I will never know!? Having tried Lindt products from all parts of the globe, its pretty amazing that there are still a few bars of theirs' that that have been readily available here in the UK that I haven't reviewed. Thankfully a few months ago, one of my most dedicated readers Phil gave me a nudge in the direction of this Excellence Ginger. Lindt's Excellence range is one of the most consistently high scoring product collections here on ChocolateMission, so I was looking forward to the giving this 'fine dark chocolate with an aromatic taste of ginger' proposition a try. For those unaware, the majority of the Lindt Excellence range that we get here in the UK is in fact produced in France.
As with most Excellence bars this came in a 100.0g format, which was lucky as a bar any smaller wouldn't have fed the mass of work colleagues that congregated round my desk once word was out that there was a chocolate bar in the office :) I needn't say much about the Lindt Excellence packaging - I have said for a long time that it looks classy, sophisticated and worthy of the Excellence branding and nothing has changed in my mind. Inside the branded silver foil wrapping the chocolate looked no different to many other of the the Lindt Excellence dark chocolate variants (See Coffee, 70%), with the thinly portioned, glossy surface further reaffirming the premium product feel.
Breaking the blocks apart two things became immediately evident - the first being the glorious, fresh snap sound at which they broke apart. The next thing to grab my attention were the wonderfully tempting spicy chocolate scents that wafted across my senses. The fragrant smells were nicely indicative of the taste, which was pleasantly forthcoming in it's cocoa flavours despite the relatively tame 47% recipe. In terms of flavour development the unsweetened cocoa flavours were nicely underpinned by influences of milk and brown sugar - even to the most sensitive of tastebuds this wouldn't be a dark chocolate that I don' think anyone could describe as bitter. In previous ginger flavoured chocolates I have reviewed, most of come flavoured using crystallised ginger, though this Excellence bar differed somewhat by choosing to integrate the ginger through natural flavourings. In the context of this bar I thought it was a wise choice, as the spiced ginger flavours were still delivered with as much vigour as any ginger chocolate I have tasted before, yet the texture of the melt was still kept consistently smooth. This wasn't the richest of dark chocolates I have ever tasted, but just a few blocks was enough to satisfy my chocolate needs.
Overall I have to hold my hands up yet again at how ludicrous it was that I hadn't reviewed this bar before now - it proved itself to be yet another gem in the crown of Lindt's Excellence range. This Excellence Ginger wasn't quite perfect (I would have chosen a stronger chocolate recipe myself! The 72% perhaps!?), but in terms of ginger flavoured dark chocolates it still has to be recognised as one of the finer options available on the market at the moment. Lindt's Excellence range is one that can really be marvelled at - it's continues to prove that it is fantastically consistent across a wide berth of flavours from mint, orange, chilli, coffee etc - seemingly the chaps at Lindt HQ France can do little wrong when it comes to producing high quality flavoured chocolates. I'm sure all fans of ginger chocolates fans would really like this and I can say that with great confidence given the rate at which my bar was hoovered up in my work office. Recommended.
8.8 out of 10
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34 comments:
I've been experimenting with a few of the lindt excellence bars recently because I keep seeing them on special offer. I'm yet to try this ginger one but the chilli flavour I had the other day was exceptional, I would recommend it even if you don't like the sound of chilli chocolate. It's very different to what you would expect.
Great review Jim it's good to see you rate something so highly that I can buy easily lol.
Normally you manage to rate all the things we can buy freely quite low but the more obscure things really high. I can judge for myself now.
My dad loves is obsessed with ginger chocolates so I can imagine this is the sort of chocolate he would really enjoy. Personally I can't stand ginger flavoured things so I would leave this well alone.
I will consider it for him though if I need a nice little present for him. Brill review Jim thank you.
Rxxx
Lindt Excellence bars are brilliant.
I've only just notices how good they are after trying out some of the new milk chocolate ones they have come out with. If you are lucky you might still be able to find them for £1 in some of the supermarkets. That was a few weeks ago now though.
I'm not a fan of ginger at all so I doubt I would consider ever trying this.
If ginger is something you like though this must be really good for you to rate it as high as that. Thats an amazing score for something that isn't that premium.
Since I had a serious dislike for ginger until I moved to the UK (strangely enough I love the stuff now...) I never tried any chocolate with ginger before.
After this very fine and extensive review (thank you once again Jim!) and knowing that Lindt is usually quite nice (though I was disappointed with the Chilli one, did not find the Chilli strong enough in the Lindt bar) I might have to give this one a try.
Have you ever rated a Lindt bar like this one poorly?
I don't think you are biased or anything I'm more making the point that they seem to be really consistent in quality.
I like Lindt especially their lindor chocs.
Dx
In terms of flavour development the unsweetened cocoa flavours were nicely underpinned by influences of milk and brown sugar - even to the most sensitive of tastebuds this wouldn't be a dark chocolate that I don' think anyone could describe as bitter. In previous ginger flavoured chocolates I have reviewed, most of come flavoured using crystallised ginger, though this Excellence bar differed somewhat by choosing to integrate the ginger through natural flavourings. In the context of this bar I thought it was a wise choice, as the spiced ginger flavours were still delivered with as much vigour as any ginger chocolate I have tasted before, yet the texture of the melt was still kept consistently smooth.
I really hate the sugaryness of crystallised ginger but I sorta like the flavour so hearing this makes me confident that this is one I would like.
This is another good review Jim thanks ever so much.
Can I be the only one thinking that the packaging is starting to look a little dated and old? I don't know if it is just the fact they have updated some of the rest of the blue bars but these now look old style in my opinion.
I havent got around to trying this ginger one but I agree some of the other dark chocolates Lindt make are as good as anything you can buy. They aren't exactly the most expensive thing to but either, I always use their 70% stuff if I'm baking, it is so easy to melt down.
I think I need to start being more brave and eating more dark chocolates. I feel like I'm missing out on a whole world of chocs that I'm not even trying.
I think I need to be a bit more willing to try some of these lindt chocolates. I remember trying a lindt toffee crunch chocolate years ago and not thinking that much of it.
Since then I don't think I have touched one of their products. You just convinced me to give them another go.
Morning bargain hunters. Jim has done a price breakdown for us but I have obliged.
Normally these bars are £1.79 each (or there abouts) but you can get 2 for £3 in JS and Tesco.
Thanks for the review Jim. This isn't a chocolate that interests me much because I don't like ginger. I do know a lot of people that do like it though so this is useful to know anyway.
Yuck ginger makes me feel sick. I will stick with my lindt extra creamy thanks.
Yummy this must be excellence ..... lol see what I did there ;) No seriosuly this does sound very tasty.
p.s. I understand you not saying anything about Rooney yesterday Jim. Lol I think he is an absolute scum bag but that hasn't changed me hoping he scores tonight for England lol.
Lindt are so good they always get such great score no matter what of theirs you review.
The favourite thing of mine that they make have to be their white lindors. They are utter amaze I could eat a whole one of their big packs to my self.
What annoys me about Lindt is that they don't do any sort of sampling bars.
They have such a wide range of flavours but unless you are prepared to buy them all in big bars there is no chance of trying them all. They need to make a pack like the Green & Blacks one which lets you try all the different flavours.
Omg Jim how could you rate something with ginger in so well?
I honestly cannot stand the taste of ginger in any of my food? I don't know what it is about it but I simply can't handle a sweet food being spicy at all. Thats just me though lol :)
@Mark You aren't alone in thinking that mate. I also thought the dark chocolate bars looked noticeabley older sitting next to the newer milk chocolates on the shelf the other day. They could easily change it.
lol I was expecting this to have pieces of crystalised ginger in it or sugar crystals or something. It sounds a rather nice bar i have to say, dad loves ginger chocs and I like ginger in general (I just find it can be a bit strong when you buy the chunks either covered in choc or not lol).
They may well be working on the packaging, since theyve updated the others they may be working round to it. I still think they look pretty classy though.
Yeah a sample box would be cool, they do do several bars that are very small though, but how extensive the range is I don't know.
I think this is a very fair review Jim. I agree this ginger flavour is very good, it is one that I have often bought frequently in the past but since I have become more adventurous (thanks to this site mostly I must say) it is one I have almost forgot about. Thank you for the timely reminder about how brilliant it is.
Oh yes this does sound well yummy. I've not tried many of the dark chocolates from Lindt yet, I'm a bit scared they might be a bit strong for my tastes. I do really fancy giving the chilli or coffee chocolates a try sometime. I'm not to sure that this ginger one would be one of the first on my list.
I'll have to grab one of these for my sister. She's a big time ginger fan, but not so much for dark chocolate. This sounds like her ideal bar. Nice review, Jim!
Ginger isn't of my favoured things to pair with chocolate but I do like ginger biscuits and stuff. I'm racking my brains to try and remember these ginger chocolates we had at Christmas. They were delicious but I can't for the life of me remember what they were.
This couldn't sound more horrible to me lol. I don't like dark chocolate and I hate anything gingery. Lol I don't think this is a chocolate I will be buying it anytime soon.
@Mark/David I agree with you guys its starting to look old now.
Most dedicated? Or most obsessed lol.
I'm glad you liked it Jim. What I liked about it most was the ginger flavour, as I'm not keen on those chocolates with crystalized ginger in. I agree it could have been a bit darker. It'd be nice if Lindt did their bars in different cocoa percentages, but I guess that's not practical.
@Craig- Lindt used to do smaller bars, I'm not sure if newsagents still sell them. They did the dark, milk, orange and mint.
@Mark/David/Mysterio - I agree too. I think they will eventually change them since they did with the blue bars.
EVERYONE
Hi All,
It's promising to read so many of you would consider this as a flavour you would try. I would very much recommend you do so if it is one that you think you might enjoy - I really rate it very highly as you can see :D
As I did yesterday I will answer any direct questions/points, but thanks for all the comments it is always great getting your thoughts and opinions on my reviews I of course value them all.
David - How can you say that chap :D Cadbury, Galaxy, Snickers, Mars ... they all have highly rated products you can buy easily :D
Rachel - Indeed it would be a great gift for ginger lovers.
Anne - I would really welcome your thoughts on it so yes please do give it a try sometime. I'm surprised to hear the chilli chocolate wasn't strong enough for you. You must be keen on your spicy foods.
Daisy - I must say more of them tend to score well than score poorly. Now you mention it I can't recall a Lindt Excellence bar that wasn't too my liking. Not off the top of my heard anyway.
Katie - It's still weird seeing you quote me :D If you don't like crystalised ginger this is one of the very few chocolates that is ginger flavoured without it being implemented in that fashion.
Mark / David / Mysterio - Regarding the packaging I do see the point you are all raising. Compared to the new more modern looking style that they have across the newer milk chocolate bars I do agree that side-by-side the black coloured wrappers do look a little older styled. I think it is down to the font that is being used. The font on the newer packs looks more curved and modern. The one being used on here looks a bit 'Time Roman'. Lindt could do with aligning the range I think now.
Richard - Thanks for the pricing information. It's useful knowing where to buy it on the deals good work.
Nigel - Haha very clever :D The less said about Wayne Rooney the better I think.
Lindsay - They don't always score great. They did bring out this one range which was based around flowers and spices which was utterly horrid.
Craig - They do offer the mint and orange intense bars in smaller 35.0g servings but yeah aside from them none of the others are available in smaller bars. I think a pack like the Green & Blacks one would be good to see one day. I think it would work really well for them considering how large their range has got.
Steven - Well every flavour has it's lovers and it's haters. I do like ginger so I was always going to be open to scoring it highly :D
Alan - If you don't like chunked ginger and want it in a more refined smoother style of chocolate then this would be bang on for you I think. The ginger canapes that Hotel Chocolat make are the best ginger chocolates I have ever had, but this Lindt bar wasn't too far off you know.
See my thoughts on the packaging above - like you I think they could do with aligning it all with the new style in the near future. Perhaps they have just delayed doing so for the minute so that the new bars get a bigger 'WOW' factor instore!?
I really think a sampling box like Craig has suggested would work. When you consider just how many flavours they have now, their range is just as large as Green & Blacks if not bigger.
Rod - The dark chocolate isn't the strongest Lindt recipe so your sister may well still be ok with it.
Lucy - If you remember please let me know. It wouldn't happen to be Benndicks would it? They are popular around Christmas time.
Again thanks for the comments everyone - I do worry that just because I don't respond to you all individually that you will think I wont be reading them all. Please be assured I am.
JIM
Thats a huge score. Lol I see this bar around all the time but I've never given it a try.
I think I might just have to change that now. 8.8 is pretty phenomenal if you put it in the context of chocolates of a similar price band. Nice one Jim thanks.
This is one Excellence bar I've only seen in pictures, unfortunately. My first Lindt bar was a spiced Christmas bar and it was lovely, so I'll be happy to give this one a try if I can find it.
Phil - Haha I think Lindt would end up having another 30 bars in their range if they different strength version of their flavoured bars. If you ever have more suggestions you know I always willing to hear them. They always seem to be really worth checking out :D
Ana - I really rate their spiced Christmas bar aswell. The cinnamon, ginger go so well together.
JIM
Yes I am very keen on spicy food. :-)
Anyway, I tried this bar today. The ginger was more subtle than I expected and at first i wasn't sure if I would not prefer it to be stronger. However it works nicely with the (not so) dark chocolate and overall the taste is very well balanced. I would give it a 7,5/10.
I loved the chocolate in this but the ginger used was just too flowery for my taste. I'm picky about ginger, I usually only like it among other spices & with preferably brown sugar in sweet things like gingersnaps/gingerbread, not on its own or in salty foods.
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