Chocolove: Frosted Gingerbread in Milk Chocolate

Thanksgiving is at last just around the corner, and so we have another Christmasy chocolate offering today. It is the Frosted Gingerbread in Milk Chocolate from Chocolove. The packaging is highly festive with what appears to be a life-sized gingerbread house under a snowy sky. The effect of the bright-lit windows is cheery and inviting. You'll note that the name is frosted gingerbread, not just gingerbread. So we're not thinking just cookies here; the idea is of a gingerbread house covered in snowy frosting like in the picture. 

Chocolove always includes these poems on the inside of their wrappers. I can't say the Christina Rossetti poem here necessarily goes with this theme, but I guess it mentions winter at one point so that's how it got in? We also have the usual gold foil and small hearts in the center of the chocolate squares. Breaking into the rows, you'll find little spots of white within. Not the color I'd expected. I had expected to see brown for  gingerbread, but the white is of course the frosting element. The back of the chocolate shows shallow lumps as you would find in an almond chocolate.

In the past, I've decided not to buy Chocolove's dark chocolate anymore, even if it's an otherwise appealing-sounding seasonal chocolate. Their chocolate isn't the highest quality, and I can't tolerate poor dark chocolate, whereas milk chocolate can be better because it's already a lot of milk and sugar anyway. That being said, this is a sweeter chocolate aroma than what I typically try. So just bear that in mind. If you buy a lot of standard milk chocolate, you probably won't see what the big deal is. But if you're buying more of the artisan chocolates, this one will be on the sweeter and greasier side.

There is perhaps of hint of ginger to the aroma, as well. Ginger was at first the only winter spice flavor that I could really pick out, though when I focus in I can tell that the cinnamon and nutmeg are there, too. The spices remain fairly light throughout. 

Once you start biting in, you'll be able to tell that in addition to the white frosting pieces are also light brown gingerbread bits. Worth noting is that this is gluten free gingerbread. There is a marked difference in the texture of the cookie pieces versus the frosting. The frosting's texture is exactly as you would expect from frosting that has been left out in the air, as on a gingerbread house; the closest comparison I can make would be to malt balls, I guess. 

I'm used to the gingerbread cookies that I make having lot of molasses. But the flavors here are more like the house kits that you buy (which really aren't designed for eating, if we're honest about it). The gingerbread here is made with just brown sugar and no molasses. So the focus becomes more on the light ginger flavor. 

I like winter spices and could do with them being stronger. But the lightness I'm sure is intentional: this approach will probably suit more palates than a strongly spiced chocolate would. Especially given that, once more, these flavors (and packaging) do have appeal for children as well as adults. Initially I had a lukewarm attitude towards this chocolate, but I do find myself enjoying it more as I nibble away. I wouldn't call it the best or most exciting Christmas chocolate I've come across. But it's a pleasant, sweet, wintry chocolate nonetheless. 

Chocolove: Ruby Cacao Bar

Chocolove's Ruby Cacao Bar is not exclusive to Valentine's Day. I've seen it before, but I've avoided it because of the ruby chocolate controversy. I recommend this article from Nest & Glow if you're unfamiliar with the topic. Basically, ruby chocolate's marketing introduced it as a new kind of chocolate, a chocolate naturally colored like rubies and flavored like berries. As the article points out, though, it isn't that they discovered a new kind of cocoa bean: they just process it a little differently. The article claims, too, that there are additives that are in such minimal amounts that most countries do not require them to be listed in the ingredients--and even among those listed, you'll see citric acid, which they claim is responsible for the tanginess that, paired with the pink color, makes your mind think of berries.

That's more of a summary than I'd planned to give. But it's interesting, right? That's why I've stayed away from ruby chocolate. Now that it's no longer new, though (basically I think it failed to take off as planned), why not take a look and see what it actually is like? We'll use the excuse of Valentine's Day frivolity. 

The wrapper is properly pink, though plain enough in design to not be too frilly. What do you think of the To/From spots? They remind me of elementary school, but is that just me? Does anyone enjoy using them? Maybe I prefer them to be on the back versus up in front. 

Inside its gold foil, the bar isn't really ruby in color. It's more of a very deep and dusty pink--almost mauve. It looks and feels almost waxy, which worried me a bit. The snap is good, though, like a regular chocolate bar. Now my impression was that this was more of a white chocolate (that is, made with just cocoa butter, as opposed to milk and dark chocolate that are made with cocoa solids, as well). But I see that the ingredients list both cocoa butter and cocoa liquor. The aroma, though, is strongly of white chocolate--that sweet, sweet, butteriness. 

At first, the flavor, too, was like white chocolate. The texture is standard for a white or milk chocolate, as well--soft and leaning toward the greasy side. Another flavor quickly came up that did indeed remind me of bright raspberries. Then there was a tang more specifically like strawberries. Maybe I just have a bad palate, but I often describe chocolate in vague terms, and here I thought not vaguely of berries but specifically of raspberries and then strawberries. That didn't feel vague at all. Whether such specific flavor is the result of my mind getting tricked by the color, added flavorings, or indeed flavor from the cocoa, I don't know. I claim complete ignorance on this one. 

In reference to the citric acid, though, I have this speculation. If citric acid adds tang, when you put that tanginess together with the sweetness of a chocolate like this and a dash of cocoa flavor notes, that is very naturally going to call to mind berries. Berries are tangy and sweet, and cocoa does often have berry flavor notes. So to say that ruby chocolate is just flavored by citric acid is perhaps a simplistic way of describing what actually goes on--if indeed the citric acid is so heavily responsible for the flavor (which I'm not saying I doubt; it's just an interesting conversation). 

So yes, I agree that the marketing was overdone for ruby chocolate. Even this chocolate bar comes with the little label in the corner, "made with ruby cacao beans," even though we all know at this point that there is no such thing as ruby cacao beans. With all of the growing interest in knowing about cocoa production, wouldn't it be cooler to go ahead and tell the consumer about how the process creates this color and taste? Oh, right, then it wouldn't be "exclusive" and anyone could make it. But anyone can make milk chocolate, and that hasn't stopped its popularity. 

For myself, I'll say it's worth tasting. I'll finish off the bar. It tastes nice to me, though it isn't some rare jewel of a flavor effect. It's really sweet, so I wouldn't go for more than one or two squares at a time unless my sugar worms are feeling particularly voracious. The ruby chocolate controversy is still a controversy. But I don't think I'll avoid it anymore per se. If I happen on another product made with ruby chocolate that I'm otherwise interested in, I'll get it. And if I want to have a pink party for my niece or something, hey, I know I can where I can get pink chocolate. 

Chocolove: Salted Caramel and Very Cherry Hearts

I'll be honest, I'm a little disappointed with myself. After putting up my review of a box of Valentine's chocolate from Valerie Confections last week, I thought that would be it for the holiday. Sure, Black Butterfly has some beautiful offerings this year, but I have to pass because I don't have any other reason to go to Prescott right now. When I went to the grocery store this week, however, I came away with not one but four Valentine's Day products. After I'd photographed and tasted them, I found that I had mediocre thoughts feelings towards them all.

So why, tell me why, why did I get them just so I could review them? I have other, non-seasonal chocolate waiting in queue already. But I'll include these, anyway, just to show that I, too, fall under the power of marketing. And I'll include them also to show what did appeal to me and what did not.

Although I've said I'm going to try and stay away from Chocolove's dark chocolate (as opposed to their milk chocolate) in the future, all three Chocolove products I picked up use their 55% dark chocolate. But you know what I couldn't resist, besides the seasonal quality? 

The roses. Although I also love the wildflower-looking flowers, too, roses are my first choice for a bouquet because I like to dry them and then keep them for years. Though the bags of Chocolove candy for past holidays have not scored too highly, these are great. Thick roses cover the edges of each bag, and the heart-shaped opening in the middle holds the imagery of the chocolate and its flavor elements. The Salted Caramel Hearts feature orange roses, cinnamon sticks, and caramel squares. The Very Cherry Hearts showcase red roses and ripe cherries. 

The same holds for the individual wrappers. Though they're the same design we've seen the past for other holidays, the embellishments this time are heavy enough to make the festivity work. The large amount of words fades against the pale blue background of the top half of the wrapper. The bottom half is green like grass, and the roses scroll upward from its base. Though the red roses are more classic, perhaps, I'm partial to the effect of the orange together with the green.

Inside, the simple heart shapes have Chocolove's usual logo on them. We'll start with the Caramel Hearts. They are in fact salted caramel cinnamon, not just plain caramel. But maybe it would be better if they were plain after all. The gooey, orange cream inside smells like cinnamon, which in itself is not unappealing. The cinnamon taste is strong, too, but it's instantly offset by a weird tang. Remember the salt? The tang is the salt. The salt isn't bad, as the cinnamon is not--but they do not go together. 

Salt and cinnamon and caramel together are too much. Pick one accent or another for caramel; this just tastes odd. And speaking of odd, it is strange that I find myself neutral to the 55% dark chocolate in this context, even though the heart shells are fairly thick. It's a sweet chocolate base that perhaps just fades in comparison with all of the flavors going on with the caramel. Because if salt and cinnamon weren't enough, a peak at the ingredients also reveals Ancho chiles and ginger. Granted, they mainly come together to amplify the taste of cinnamon rather than create their own flavors. But still, the point is that there is enough going on without also trying to make a salted caramel. Just because salted caramel is trendy doesn't mean it's necessary for all caramel to be salted.

Maybe after this a turn to some classic cherry chocolate will be more welcoming? Well, maybe is the key word there. The label says that this is cherry puree filling, and I can't disagree. The taste is exactly as you would expect of a cherry puree filling. Cherry and sugar inside of a sweet dark chocolate. If you like sweet dark chocolate and cherry, maybe you'll like them just fine. If you're like me, though, and you don't like sweet dark chocolate, maybe you'll be thinking in your head about who you should give them away to.

The funny thing is, I'm more inclined to give away the Very Cherry Hearts than the Salted Caramel Hearts. Even though the Caramels remind me slightly of pine cleaner, I can't taste the sweet dark chocolate in them nearly so well as in the Cherries. (And maybe also I feel better about giving away the Cherries because I know that's a personal preference, whereas I would feel bad giving away chocolate that I think tastes like pine cleaner.) I've been enjoying sweets lately, but these hearts, well, they're not the type of indulgence I like to prey upon. Good thing I bought more of Chocolove's Christmastime Hazelnut Latte Bites after they went on sale--those are more like it. 

So the truth of the matter is that I ought not to have bought either of these bags of chocolate candy. I ought to have known beforehand that they would not appeal to me. The flavors sounded nice, though, and the roses, the roses really did it. So I'm not being entirely negative: I liked the packaging. 

Chocolove: Hazelnut Latte Bites

Whereas I often only have a couple of Christmas chocolates to review (even if there are several out there, most companies make the same ones year after year--which is fine but doesn't give me anything new to write about), this year I've had quite a flood of them. The Chocolove Peppermint Creme Bites has easily been my most popular review, so perhaps it's fitting that I finish off with one more Chocolove offering that my store only recently had back in stock (I bought the Christmas chocolates as soon as I saw them, so I don't know how I missed this one). 

The Hazelnut Latte Bites come in the same style of packaging with decorated trees and snowflakes on the bag. This time, though, the blue is lighter, evoking morning instead of evening. That is, the time of day in which you might be reaching for a hazelnut latte. The only disappointing part about this is that the individual wrappers are also a paler blue, which means that the snowflakes are barely visible on them. That makes them not quite as cheery as stocking stuffers. 

The chocolate is in the same cute tree shape, just also lighter in color of course with the milk chocolate. Cutting them open revealed a fairly crumbly looking light brown filling. With our cultural obsession with hazelnut spread, I would have expected something smoother, so this is interesting. Even before opening the packaging, I could smell the chocolate and maybe even the hazelnut. Although that may have been an accident: there was some chocolate on some of the wrappers. Perhaps there was a loose chocolate in processing that didn't make it into the bag but did dance around the wrapped chocolates before it was caught.

There is the barest hint at a crispy or crunchy texture from the filling and also the slightest touch of salt--which makes it more reminiscent of Reese's Cups than the plastic hazelnut spread that shall not be named. The hazelnut has good flavor, and as I mentioned with the Pumpkin Spice Bites, Chocolove makes a decent, standard milk chocolate. Hazelnut and milk chocolate are an easy win. It would be hard for me to give these a bad review even if it weren't for the fact that they're unique.

Hazelnut chocolate is not unique. But remember that Reese's Cup comparison? That's what I mean. With all of the peanut butter alternatives, chocolates will use almonds or sunflowers instead, but I've yet to see a hazelnut butter cup. And now that the idea is in my head, I would ask for someone to please make me one, but that's essentially what Chocolove has done here already. I've pretty much abandoned the "latte" aspect; I don't taste any coffee. If that's disappointing, though, the charming hazelnut filling will surely cheer you up. 

There were twenty of these little hazelnut chocolate trees in my bag. And I have been positively drowning in Christmas chocolates lately (I know, I know, terrible thing to be complaining about). Yet I find myself quite reluctant to share these. 

Chocolove: Pumpkin Spice Bites

As I rush to get all of my Christmas chocolate reviews out before Christmas, I have two more items from Chocolove. They were restocks at my store, so they must have sold out so quickly that I never had a chance to get them when they first showed up. The first is not actually a Christmas item. With the Pumpkin Spices Bites, we're going back to fall--but people make pumpkin pie for Christmas, too, so let's go with it. 

The bag is nice and cheery, though I've no pumpkins still out with which to take pictures of it (though I do have a turkey ornament on my mini tree that got to help out). The leaves make a warm border for the ripe pumpkin in the center. With the whole pumpkin spice trend, it's nice to have products that are generally autumnal and not specifically Halloween. Which is also nice because that means I can be opening these up just before Christmas and they're not too out of date. 

The individual wrappers are light in color with more fall leaves. Inside, the pumpkins are quite round, almost like circles. The look is pretty cute. The Chocolove double C's that form the heart shape on their surface, though, I don't favor as much. I find the they interfere with the pumpkin look, which would be better as the first visual you notice. But I suppose hearts go with a loving fall vibe, eh? (Or first day of winter, as they case may be when this post goes up.)

Colored in pale orange, the chocolate's filling looks just like pumpkin pie. It brings the light aroma of familiar spices. On tasting, I indeed found pumpkin pie flavor. It's basically the standard pumpkin pie flavor sitting in the middle of milk chocolate, which is quite welcome. While some pumpkin spice products only have the spices and not the pumpkin, this one does have pumpkin (both pumpkin puree and pumpkin concentrate). Hence the pumpkin pie effect. 

They also used cream in here, which is interesting and not too common for a grocery store product like this. And they disclose their spices (ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves), which not everyone does, even when they're pretty obvious standards like this.

I think I did once put a chocolate top on pumpkin pie filling around middle school to high school. Or did I just think about doing it? No, I think I did. Either way, the flavor combination is pretty natural and pleasing. This isn't one of the weirder pumpkin spices offerings. I definitely find I prefer Chocolove's milk chocolate to their dark; it's pretty standard, but I prefer a standard milk chocolate to a standard or less than standard dark chocolate. You want the sweetness of the milk chocolate here because it adds to the dessert effect. So for pumpkin spice chocolate candy, these are pretty nice. 

Chocolove: Peppermint Creme Bites

Thanksgiving is late this year and I do have quite a pile of Christmas chocolates, so I'd best get started putting these out before Thanksgiving. Subject number one is Chocolove's Peppermint Creme 55% Dark Chocolate Bites. For setting the wintry, Christmas tone, this one definitely captures the look. The bag portrays a classic starry night with pine trees decorated in all festivity of candy canes and lights. It's a pretty bag to bring home, but also nice enough to give as a small hostess gift or such. 

Beside the Non-GMO Project and Rainforest Alliance stickers on front, there is also a Sustainable-Social-Ethical badge on the back. From what I understand, Chocolove does maintain fair trade values and keeps supply chains clear, but doesn't have fair trade certification on all their chocolates (which is fine given that certification is . . . complicated). This bag came with 20 pieces of chocolate and I bought it for $8.79, which comes in at about $0.44 per piece. Nice and average. 

While not quite as appealing as the main bag, the individual wrappers are still alright. Their blue color is missing the touch of whimsy that the red and white Christmas trees give the bag. But the pale snowflakes still give enough of a festive look that these are good for either adults or children. Maybe they'll go in your candy bowl or you'll sneak them into Christmas gifts, but I imagine mainly they're going to be going into stockings. 

The little chocolate trees do look about as good in person as they do in the picture. Some are slightly imperfect surfaces, but only slightly. Not bad especially given that they're only protected by their thin wrappers. In fact, they're cute enough to use as a dessert garnish or to unwrap a set of them and put them on a dessert board. 

The trees give off a classic mint aroma and the flavor is exactly that, as well. There is not much more to say. The 55% dark chocolate is sweet and almost even seems slightly oily, so it appears best when it is eclipsed by mint like this. The mint is the focus. It's that sweet and creamy mint flavor we all know so well--a sure crowd-pleaser of a mint. The only note I would give is that the mint is inside the thicker part of the trees; that is, the top part of each tree is solid chocolate. This does mess with the proportions slightly: there is balance in the bottom of the tree, but not in the top. On the top, you can taste the chocolate more without having any mint. Yet it's a small detail and even smaller if you eat the whole tree in one bite. And the trees are pretty enough that even I agree that a slight imbalance in proportion is worth it. 

So while I hope that these won't be the best out of the six Christmas chocolates I have so far obtained, they're a good start. Again, just a very classic chocolate mint candy put together in a festive packaging and shape. I'll be saving some for stockings for sure. 

Chocolove: Holiday Fruit & Nuts

Kind of like with yesterday, I don't usually go for Chocolove. I put them in the same category as Endangered Species chocolate; they're both pretty widely available for fair trade type chocolates, but they're also not quite the chocolate quality that I prefer. I'd rather focus on other brands, and I don't want to keep repeating my comments about quality. However, like yesterday, I still thought it might be worth it to take a look at a holiday offering from Chocolove.

The Holiday Fruits & Nuts bar comes in a cheery, red wrapper with a gold ornament sign around the logo and some imagery of what types of fruits and nuts are in the chocolate. It brings to mind a traditional Christmas with piano music and Charles Dickens stories.

I was a little thrown off by the Matthew Arnold poem printed on the inside of the wrapper. Not having had a Chocolove bar in I don't even know how long, I'm not sure if they always include this poem or if it's specific to this bar. However, given that the poem is entitled "Longing" and Chocolove has, well, "love" in the title, I'd guess the former. Alright then.

Wrapped in gold foil, the shiny squares of the chocolate bar have little hearts on them. More love and longing. Just a personal preference, but it's a little much on the love and longing for me. On the back of the bar, you can see the fruits and nuts poking out. There is a rich, semisweet chocolate aroma.

As I bit in, I tasted the fruits and nuts together. I wasn't sure at first which kinds; they kind of blended together into one pleasant flavor, with the chocolate holding it all in. As the bite mostly vanished, I just had a bit of fruit left and some chocolate flavor. That's when I got my reminder that I don't favor this type of dark chocolate. It's 55% cocoa content, so it's very sweet dark chocolate. Just something to be aware of if you're like me.

But I am also reminded of how great fruit and nuts are in chocolate. Sometimes the flavor doesn't sound appealing, so I'll pass it by in stores. Didn't I even say that the packaging looked/sounded traditional? So it can also sound bygone, not fresh or interesting. But it's a great combination, especially when you're dealing with not just one type each of fruit and nut. There is quite a mix in here: pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, currants, cherries, orange peel, and some ginger, too. Chocolove explains that they were inspired by French mendiants.

Naturally, of course, each bite is going to be different. Outer pieces might have less in them, inner will have more. There might be some small pieces of hazelnut or a big piece of walnut. Some cherries or a bit of the orange peel. So you want to take big bites so as to best get it all. Chew, don't melt (which is also fine given the type of chocolate). I like best when I get more nuts and less chocolate. Overall, though, they're in decent balance. You don't get any completely blank chocolate and you don't get a whole walnut, either. The pieces of fruit and nut are big enough for some chewing, leading to more flavor, but small enough to reasonably be in a bar of chocolate. The orange peel really helps to give it that Christmas feel (don't worry, they're small orange peel pieces). I can't say that I specifically taste the ginger.

So essentially it is an alternative to mendiants or to chocolate bark, or even to chocolate-covered nuts and fruit. I definitely prefer this to chocolate-covered fruits and probably chocolate-covered nuts, too. (You know what, I don't think I've ever had chocolate-covered currants. Maybe those would be nice. Could someone send me some please?) And this, of course, can sit on the shelf at the grocery store, unlike the chocolate bark that you would get from your local chocolate shop (if you have one).

The gist of it is, I'm pleasantly surprised. Sure, the chocolate was a tad sweeter than I prefer, but the fruit and nuts take center stage and they're good quality. So for a munching chocolate for Christmastime, it's great. Chocolate doesn't need to be a gift box of truffles in order to be given as a gift or in little individually-wrapped Santa Claus shapes in order to go in a stocking; a chocolate bar like this works, too. And now is a good time to put in the reminder that you also don't need to give holiday chocolate. Regular plain or flavored bars are still excellent even during December. But if you are looking for something with a holiday zing, you'll do alright with this one.