Although Amber Lyn, based out of Utah, makes sugar free chocolates, they also sent me these regular (with sugar) Cocoa Republic bars, which I’ve decided to start with. Both are single-origin, from Columbian beans, and are divided into six pieces.
The milk chocolate reminds me of the Chocolate Traveler Dulce de Leche, only it isn’t such a thick taste. There’s a flavor in here I’m not too keen on, but I can’t quite put my finger on it. Ignoring that, it is rather nice with its caramel kind of milkiness.
I had to pause for a second when I saw that sugar is also the first ingredient on the dark chocolate. It’s a 60%, how can that be? But cocoa butter and cocoa mass, which both count towards that total, are separated, so it works. Once you taste it, though, the sugar is just a little too apparent, appropriate to being the first listed ingredient. Cutting back on it wouldn’t hurt. Now, I don’t think this chocolate tastes bad, but I don’t see very much gain in it. It’s another Dove-alike, darkness without a real chocolate experience.
Both chocolates do have a smooth and gentle melting, though, so I’ll keep my hopes up for the sugar frees. If it was between these two, I’d reach for the 36% first, unless plain dark chocolates are to your tastes, which I know is the true in some cases.
Rainer from Premier Food and Beverages urged me to try a packet of the German biscuits Waffeletten. Based in Hanover, Bahlsen have been making biscuits since 1891 and export them to over 80 countries around the world. Bahlsen make an astounding 145,000 tons of biscuits every year employing about 3,800 staff to do so. An interesting little fact reveals that Bahlsen was the first European manufacturer to use a factory conveyer belt in 1917; a full eight years before Henry Ford did so with the Model T car.
Any how, what about the Waffeletten? Rolled up wafers that are half dipped in milk chocolate with 28% cocoa solids sounded like a pretty nice thing to taste test at afternoon tea time. And what a darn shame, there was no nutritional information on the back panel, so that made it far easier to eat them without stressing about saturated fat or sugar levels too much.
They reminded me of stubby little binoculars about 3cm long and my two little co-tasters (my daughter Carly and her play-date, Juliet) were keen to try them with a glass of milk straight after school.
Their verdict? “Mmm, can we have some more please?” These delicate little wafer rolls were most definitely moreish. The milky sweet chocolate was naturally the first end a proud chocablogger elected to bite into and it melted away rapidly to allow a second sensation of crunching through to the delightfully crisps layers of wafer. Simple, scrummy and satisfying. Within two minutes, the packet was gone. That says it all really.
Having tasted a couple of the Malagasy dark chocolate bars from Madagascar I was compelled to buy this J.D. Gross bar when I saw it in Lidl. Made from the same Sambirano beans as Malagasy use but presented as a high cocoa content milk chocolate, I spotted 10% cream powder in among the ingredients.
Once opened, the chocolate gave off a lovely creamy cocoa aroma, light and yet hinting at hidden depths. It’s milk chocolate, but with a much richer and more complex smell. The same is true for the taste. This chocolate has a depth and intensity that most ‘ordinary’ milk chocolate can’t get close to. Obviously 46% cocoa solids is a huge amount for milk chocolate, but it’s also the choice of Sambirano beans. There is no bitterness at all here, just oodles of lush, creamy cocoa spreading out across the palate . The adddition of cream powder is probably a contributing factor as well – after all, if 1% salt can radically alter the flavour of chocolate, I’m certain 10% cream is going to do a lot for a milk chocolate. Obviously not ‘a glass and a half of full cream milk’ but nevertheless a significant addition.
This bar is further proof that it is possible to get one’s hands on premium quality chocolate at less than premium prices. Of course we’re not talking Master Chocolatier material but this milk chocolate is certainly cut above your average, and at a very reasonable price.
Like the Wagon Wheel, Chomp, Polly Waffle and Violet Crumble; Golden Roughs and Mint Patties have been around for as long as I can remember (at least 35 out of my 40 years). However, I couldn’t remember when I’d last tried one. Therefore it was time to renew a friendship not thought about since the late seventies.
At only 20 grams each, they’re ideally positioned as a snack for sensible dieters (not me) or for children (me, at least some of the time), so I thought I’d try ‘em both together. The Mint Pattie only slaps me with 2.1 grams of fat, whereas the coconut-laden Golden Rough slathers another 6.7 grams onto my thighs, but I’ve dealt with bigger boys than these two. Plus, I have a treadmill……
Firstly, the Golden Rough. Like a lot of dessicated coconut bars it has an almost chalky and moist feel on your teeth when first you bite into it, but it tastes sweet enough and the flavour of the coconut is decidedly present. Taste-wise this is nothing special and is probably only a big-seller due to size because serious chocophiles who also love their coconut would be better placed buying a block of Whittakers. The ingredients also show that it’s nothing special – sugar first, followed by roasted coconut (20%), vegetable fat….*sigh*, yep so it’s compounded chocolate. No wonder there’s no ‘covered in a thick layer of delicious milk chocolate’ flowery advertising descriptor on the front of the pack.
Sadly, the Mint Pattie was even worse – what do they say about not being able to go back? It tasted like a flattened mintie or an ultra stale marshmallow soaked in mint essence before being steam rolled and then coated as thinly as possible with a smeary, oily layer of compounded chocolate. Maybe it’s for the best that they aren’t generous with the chocolate – ingredients include chemical delectables such as emulsifier 492, gelatine, food acid, emulsifier 476, enzyme (invertase) with traces of wheat starch. Yum yum!
You’d be better off buying your kid a Milky Way or a Mars Bar than this stuff.
