Candy Blog

I’ve visited the Eclat Chocolate shop in West Chester, PA a couple of times when I’ve been in the area. I’ve tried a wide variety of their truffles and a few of their hot chocolate sticks and other items. However, I’d never picked up their chocolate bars before.

When I placed an order with the PA Country Store back before Easter, I decided to rectify that omission by selecting the Eclat Chocolate Caramelized Hazelnuts 65% bar. The packaging is simple, a slim black paperboard box holding a mylar wrapped bar. Sadly it didn’t protect the bar from getting broken (but I was going to break it anyway).

Eclat Chocolate may be best known as the creator of one of the most expensive bars on the market filled with celebrity names, the Good & Evil Bar made from Peruvian Pure Nacional cocoa beans and retails for about $18 for 2.8 ounces. I’m not terribly interested in things that are notable for being expensive though I enjoy a good origin story. So I’ll stick with the Caramelized Hazelnuts for now. Here’s what the online description said:

Although most hazelnuts, also known as filberts, are harvested out of Turkey, the Spanish hazelnut out of Tarragona has an extremely unique and rare flavor. By caramelizing the hazelnuts and blending them with a 65% dark chocolate, the flavor profile of this Obsession Bar is boldly nutty and deliciously sweet.

The bar is attractive, a nice mold with well portioned segments. I prefer a thicker bar, especially when there are inclusions, but there’s something particularly stunning about such a large field of molded dark chocolate.

The scent is sweet, woodsy and a little buttery. The chocolate has a smooth and rather quick melt and an immediate sweetness. I don’t eat a lot of 65% chocolate, so I forgot how sweet it is. The inclusions are crispy and have a great deep toasted toffee and hazelnut flavor. I don’t know if I got the subtle difference of the Spanish hazelnut, but I liked what I was tasting.

I would have preferred slightly larger pieces, I found the ratios a little off, but then again, I think I would have preferred a bit darker chocolate, too. However, if you’re a milk person, this is a great munchable dark bar that doesn’t feel too dense or difficult. I had no trouble at all eating my way through it, especially because of the excellent melt of the chocolate and lack of overall bitterness.

I mentioned I’d been to the shop before. I’ve picked up bonbons there on two occasions, though they weren’t for review, just for eating. They’re well priced for an artisan confection. The boxes are well put together to highlight the chocolates and it traveled very well (first by car around Central Pennsylvania for several days and then flying back to Los Angeles).

The tempering was excellent, all of the shells were thin but never cracked. The ganaches were smooth and never grainy.

I picked out varieties such as Beer, Star Anise and Single Malt as well as the classic 73% Dark Ganache and Dark Caramel. The flavor infusions were not overwhelming to the chocolate and the piece size, though on the small size, meant that I could eat quite a few pieces for maximum variety.

I believe my box was $25.00 in the store. I’ve also bought their hot chocolate sticks, which I find exceptional though expensive. I like making my own hot chocolate, because then I get to control the milk (lactose free, please) and these sorts of “melt it at home” products make for a far richer experience than the powders. At $4.50 each, it’s more than you’d spend at a Starbucks. But sometimes it’s nice for a splurge.

If I’m in the area, it’s a stop I’ll continue to make. It’s a great little pick me up before I get on the Turnpike and is a great place to pick up a few hostess gifts. I posted a few photos of the shop as well.

Related Candies

1. Poco Dolce Hazelnut Bar
2. Recchiuti Asphalt Jungle Mix
3. Kohler Chocolates Garden Ganache & Toffee Mountains
4. Valerie Confections: Pour Homme and Pour Elle
5. Short & Sweet: Hazelnut Bites
6. 3400 Phinney: Fig, Fennel & Almond and Hazelnut Crunch

The folks at Just Born continue to develop new flavors and merchandise for their iconic Marshmallow Peeps line.

The newest flavor addition, which I mentioned in a roundup last month, is Bubble Gum Flavored Peeps. As you might expect, they’re pink. They’re also Peep shaped, not bunny shaped or bubble shaped. Even though they’re little baby chicks, they’re considered a year-round flavor.

Just Born bills them as having that “classic bubble gum taste.” Which of course leads me to examine what that flavor actually is. Well, since there’s no natural item, like a vanilla bean to consult, the recipe varies, but generally bubble gum is very mild wintergreen, sometimes with a little fruity banana and vanilla flavors thrown in.

The Peeps come in a row of five conjoined chicks. They’re pink, which isn’t surprising at all, except for the fact that they’re colored all the way through. This ruins it completely for me.

The flavor is mild and actually goes really well with the sweet, aerated gelatin. But the artificial coloring (Red 40) has a bitter, metallic aftertaste for me. So the first bite is great, but shortly after it begins to dissolve, I have a bunch of bitter goo in my mouth.

I’m really disappointed they had to use so much coloring for these, most of the other Peeps they sell are uncolored in the middle (except for the chocolate coated ones). I’m sure that folks who don’t react poorly to Red 40 and also enjoy the slightly medicinal flavor of bubble gum will go wild for these.

Related Candies

1. Peeps Chocolate Dipped Sugar Cookie & Candy Cane
2. Dubble Bubble Gum Cigars
3. Nestle Butterfinger Pumpkin
4. Classic Gums: Black Jack, Clove, Beemans & Teaberry
5. Three Pink Bubble Gums
6. Peeps Mash Ups

Dove is again expanding their line of foil wrapped pieces with Dove Mint & Dark Chocolate Swirl Promises.

Dove has done some wonderful things with white chocolate lately, the best thing is that they’re using cocoa butter instead of substitute oils. This is expecially noticeable in products like this one where chocolate and white chocolate are together. Dove did a great job with their Peppermint Bark for the holidays, it’s a great layered combination of chocolate, white chocolate and mint candy pieces.

I assumed that these new Promises would be similar to the Peppermint Bark but without the crunch. These feature a combination of the classic Dove semisweet chocolate swirled together with artificially-colored white chocolate flavored with peppermint.

Other than finding the color of them a bit unappetizing, I think these are great. They’re minty, but it doesn’t overwhelm the chocolate. They have an incredibly silky melt and just two or three are a satisfying treat. I don’t think they needed the coloring, in fact, I think it detracts from them. The foil does enough to denote the flavor inside, a white or off-white would have been just fine for most people.

I prefer them in the pieces, I don’t think I’d be up for eating a whole bar of this. I’m fond of Andes Mints, but these are much better ... better ingredients, better melt on the tongue, real chocolate ... and pretty much the same price.

Mars is moving towards using all ethically and sustainably sourced chocolate through Rainforest Alliance for their Dove line.

Related Candies

1. Dove 71% Cacao Silky Smooth Dark Chocolate (Rainforest Alliance)
2. M&Ms White Chocolate Peppermint
3. Dove Sea Salt Caramel Dark Chocolate Promises
4. Trader Joe’s Minty Melts
5. Dove Swirl Bars
6. Marich All Natural Holland Mints & Chocolate Jordan Almonds
7. Dove Peppermint Bark

Small and plentiful is the trend these days. Most of the top candy makers are creating unwrapped bites of your favorite candies if they don’t already exist. This isn’t new, they’ve come and gone as brand extensions through the years, but that doesn’t mean that they’re not a good idea.

The Mars Milky Way Unwrapped Bites are similar to the Snickers Unwrapped Bites I already reviewed. They’re little cubes, super tiny versions of the popular Milky Way bar. The base is a fluffy nougat, topped with caramel and coated in milk chocolate.

The little nuggets are 2/3 of an inch cubed. A serving is eight pieces, which comes to about 1.34 ounces. They clock in a bit lighter on the calories than the Snickers, mostly because they don’t contain peanuts, which are a bit fattier (but also contain 50% more protein).

They’re easy to eat, sweet smelling and have a soft bite and easy, aerated chew. There was a bit of a cereal note to the smell, but overall they were just sweet and tasty.

This is another interesting example of how ratios of different element can change a candy. I know that some die hard Milky Way fans will probably detest this, but I happen to like it much more than the bar. The bar was always too big, too filling and too sweet but also lacking in any distinct flavor element. In this version the malt of the fluffed nougat is the most forward; it also combines well with the slightly salty caramel to create a great balance.

My only complaint with the bites is that the thinner chocolate shell makes them more delicate. There were several clumps in my bag where one spilled its caramel and they got stuck together. I don’t see myself buying these regularly, but I can see them being great for recipes, especially as an ice cream topper perhaps inside cookies.

More new product introductions were announced at Sweets & Snacks Expo in Chicago.It’s interesting to watch new versions of tried and true brands being created.

Name: Peppermint Spangler Peanuts
Brand: Spangler Candy
Description: Spangler Circus Peanuts have been a favorite for decades and now they come in a delicious peppermint flavor! Fat free, and free of the most common allergens, they’re perfect for a new generation and those who grew up loving them! Fat free and are free of the top common allergens.
Introduction Date: November 1, 2013
Notes: I have a soft spot for the sheer incongruity of Circus Peanuts, a candy shaped like a peanut, tinted like a Malibu Tan Barbie and flavored like fingernail polish remover (or perhaps it’s banana) so this new flavored version of the strange confectionery chimera also intrigues me. I hope I can find them this Christmas.,

Name: Klondike Candy
Brand: Flix Candy
Description: This new treat is sure to melt in your mouth! It comes in two delicious flavors. Mint Chocolate Chip features a refreshing mint center filled with mint chocolate chips and is covered in dark chocolate flavored coating. Meanwhile, Klondike Caramel has a creamy caramel center covered in milk chocolate flavored coating.
Introduction Date: 6/1/2013
Notes: The fact that they’re using mockolate pretty much stops me dead in my tracks as far as desireablility goes. Sure, I’d love an ice cream themed candy, but I see no point in eating one filled with tropical oils or partially hydrogenated fats when there are so many others out there made with real and decadent ingredients.

Name: All Natural Cotton Candy
Brand: Fun Sweets
Description: Delicious Fun Sweets All Natural Cotton Candy is made with real honey, coconut palm nectar and orange blossom extract. This fat-free, gluten free product is also made in a nut free facility.
Introduction Date: 05/01/2013
Notes: It’s nice to see a new version of all natural cotton candy, which is a pretty simple confection. I’m not sure about the use of honey or coconut palm nectar instead of plain old sugar ... considering the fact that cotton candy is just spun sugar. But I’ll give it a try.

Name: Starburst® Minis
Brand: Wrigley’s
Description: Starburst® Minis, a new Starburst® chew that’s small and unwrapped!
Introduction Date: 06/01/2013
Notes: I’ve always considered Skittles small unwrapped Starburst (though a slightly different flavor set) so this is a baffling candy in concept. No images were provided by Wrigley’s and they’ve not responded to my requests or inquiries since they were bought by Mars.

Name: Starburst ® Candy Corn
Brand: Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company
Description: Candy corn shaped candies in the great fruit flavors of Starburst ® Original Chews
Introduction Date: 6/1/2013
Notes: I really wish I had photos for this, but I think we’ll probably have to wait for September when this rolls out (I think the June introduction is just when it’s available for order, not necessarily in stores).

Name: Airheads Fruit and Berry Bites and Airheads Xtremes Bites
Brand: Perfetti Van Melle USA Inc
Description: New Airheads Bites are chewy bite sized pieces of soft panned Airheads dough. They are unique because the flavor is stays fruity to the last bite. Same intense Airheads flavors but in easy-to-eat pieces. NEW Airheads Xtremes Bites combines intense Airheads flavor with the perfect blend of sweet & sour for sour lovers of all ages. Each convenient bite-size piece features a unique texture and eye-catching 5-colors.
Introduction Date: 04/15/2013
Notes: These sound really interesting. I enjoy Airheads, but rarely want to eat a full bar, so a panned version would be easy to nibble on and probably combine with other candies.

Related Candies

1. Candy Tease: Sweets & Snacks Expo - Part 1
2. Candy Tease: Bar None, Reed’s and Regal Crown Sours
3. Candy Tease: April 2013
4. Candy Tease: October 2012
5. Candy Tease: August 2012
6. Candy Tease: Sweets & Snacks Expo 2012 - Part 3