The almonds in this bar are slivered and create crunchy little flakes that add a nice texture to the chocolate. It also adds a slightly nutty flavour. The pear flavour is subtle, but a little on the sweet side, especially since this dark chocolate only contains 57% cocoa solids, so it is already a bit sweet. Also, the ingredients list shows that all the flavouring is natural and from actual pear powder, so I give the manufacturer a big 'thumbs up' for keeping its chocolate natural. As for the chocolate, it is just sort of your commercial chocolate with okay quality.
Overall, the chocolate bar is good. If you like a sweeter dark chocolate, you may like this one. I am not a big fan of fruit-flavoured chocolate, so it isn't my thing, but if you are into fruit and chocolate, it may be yours!
Here are the package details from the chocolate bar that I tasted today:
Hageland Premium Belgian Chocolate Dark Chocolate Pear & Almonds, 3.5 oz (100g)
http://www.hageland-chocolate.com/
Made in Belgium, Imported by: Sco Koladen, LLC (Hayward, CA)
Ingredients: cocoa mass, sugar, almonds (8%), pear granule (3.5%) [inuline (fibre), pear powder (5%), natural flavoring pear type], cocoa butter, butter oil, emulsifier: soy lecithin.
Hageland Chocolate bars are no longer stocked by Walmart. Pity. They are absolutely the best.
ReplyDeleteHave a look in WholeFoods Markets. You will find 6 3.5 oz. tablets, including this pear & almond, under their own brand.
ReplyDeleteThe reason for a 57% dark chocolate is that it gives the perfect balance with the subtle pear flavor. I did not work in a 70+% dark chocolate. Sometimes less is more :-)
Just bought this today at WholeFoods and my goodness its delicious! Its sweet enough to satisfy my sweet-tooth but not too sweet where my teeth are aching. Like you said, the chocolate is okay but I really do love the crunch and texture the almonds give and the pear flavor is really there- i love how I can taste it.
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