Update: This competition is now closed. The winner will be announced soon!
It’s time to give away more chocolate!
This time, we’ve got together with our friends at WeLoveYorkies.co.uk to bring you a very special prize: A whole box of Raisin & Biscuit Yorkies – That’s 36 bars, making this our biggest competition ever!
All you have to do to be in with a chance of winning all this chocolate is to subscribe to the email version of our feed and then answer the simple question below (the answer to which can be found hidden on the We Love Yorkies web site).
That means not only could you win all that delicious chocolate, but you also get Chocablog delivered to your inbox every day without having to lift a finger.
Competition Closed
Rules
- To enter, you must be subscribed to our email updates service and use the same email address in the entry form above. You can unsubscribe afterward if you like, but you must be on the list on the competition closing date for your entry to be counted.
- One entry per person only.
- Chocablog staff writers may not enter. You have enough chocolate already.
- The competition is open to UK residents only.
- The competition is open to girls as well as boys.
- The competition closes on Friday 10th October, 2008.
- The winner will be picked at random from valid entries with the correct answer.
- The judges’ decision is final.
- Rules are subject to change without notice (if we’ve forgotten something because we’re a bit slow)
After my affair of devouring the Pralus 100%, I naively thought that I would enjoy any other 100% at least almost equally. Alas, I forgot two very important points. One, Pralus is a master chocolatier and therefore has exceptional products. Two, no matter the percentage, chocolate can still be incredibly different since there are so many factors contributint to its taste and then to how each person likes it.
Doing a little research, Bonnat also seems to be fairly high up in the chocolate world, but they also seem to have a different approach. Dark, intense, biting. Their 75% Trinité was so dark, I guess I should have known.
This bar looks exactly the same as that one, but smells more flavorful and has a bit of spice. And it’s BITTER. Instead of lessening as it melts, it actually becomes more intense. And more. The spicy note stayed, reminding me not just a little of the Aztec Warrior elixir.
I couldn’t handle it. My mouth and nose scrunched up. After two pieces, I just had to find something else to put in my mouth to take out that sting. So what can I say? I know that some people adore this bar, but I (who loved another 100%, so my problem isn’t there) don’t. It may be the origin of the cacao beans. I can’t find the origin for these, but Pralus used the less-bitter Crillo beans. For whatever reason, I’ve now truly learned how different chocolate can be. Pralus at least succeeded in a bar that more people will enjoy. Only consider Bonnat’s if you have a taste for bitter. I’m not sure I can apply the word to anything else right now.
These were the other two ‘factory’ bars from Cukrček that Barica sent over from Slovenia a while back. (Yes, I know Barica – a LONG while back. Sorry!)
Both use the same base chocolate that the Teran Wine bar I reviewed a while back uses, so I’ll concentrate on the additional flavours – in this case Rosemary in one bar and Cloves in the other.
The Rosemary bar was up first, and the label kindly informed me that rosemary has a stimulative effect on the circulation and central nervous system, and can help with depression. Apparently it can also help people that frequently feel dizzy. Very interesting.
Now I happen to love rosemary. No, really. I LOVE rosemary. If I spot some growing I cannot help but grab a stem and rub the leaves between my hands before inhaling the gorgeous scent. It’s THAT sort of love. Easy enough to guess that I was somewhat enthusiastic about this one.
I’m pleased to report that I wasn’t disappointed either. Once on the tongue, the rosemary flavour began to slowly build as the chocolate melted. I found that the balance of flavours was just right – any more rosemary and I’d have lost the bittersweet elements of the (64% Cocoa) dark chocolate. Any less and it would have been too bland. I now find myself torn between conservation and gluttony. Do I preserve it until I find more rosemary chocolate or just pig out?
The second bar contained cloves. I believe I recently made public my opinion of cloves. In short, I don’t care for them much. As for cloves and chocolate – well, I wasn’t exactly salivating at the thought of tasting this particular bar.
When it came to the crunch (or should that be the snap?) I’m afraid I did something that I have never done in however many reviews – I spat out a piece of chocolate!
Yes, the clove flavour is really that strong. Overpowering any cocoa flavours (for this palate at least) the medicinal sharpness of the cloves killed off my taste buds in seconds, leaving me reaching for a couple of glasses of water and cancelling any further reviewing for that evening. Too much for me, but maybe not for someone who loves cloves in the way I love rosemary.
As you can probably tell, this is part of the same range as the Special Toffee bar I reviewed earlier this week. Like the toffee bar, this one also features slightly annoying packaging, however this time I have opted to photograph the box at a slight angle in order to enhance your enjoyment and add a little artistic flair to this review.
I hope you appreciate the lengths I go to. Seriously.
As you can see, this bar features the same distinctive pattern as the toffee bar too. The blurb tells me this bar is made from Ecuadorian cocoa beans (40%), Florida orange oil and finely ground cardamom.
Like the toffee bar, this one also has a pleasantly tempting aroma when you rip open the non-recyclable packaging. Oranges. Lots of oranges.
Unsurprisingly, it tastes or oranges too. But it’s a far more subtle flavour than the ubiquitous Terry’s Chocolate Orange, and some of those milk chocolate flavours do still come through. It’s creamy rather than tangy, and really rather nice.
I did however find it quite difficult to detect any trace of cardamom until after the chocolate had completely gone. A very subtle peppery aftertaste slowly built in my mouth, which to be frank, I found a little annoying. It simply wasn’t “connected” with the other flavours at all. I’m all for adding a bit of spice to chocolate, but I’m not sure it adds anything to this particular bar. I wouldn’t be surprised if the main reason it’s here is simply because “cardamom” looks good written on the box.
All in all, not a bad little bar if you’re into orangey chocolate. Personally I prefer the toffee variety but I still have more of these to review, so I’ll withhold final judgment for now.
