Aren’t these cute? I guess I usually skim passed Valentine’s Day stuff when I’m looking through Aldi’s ad, because these didn’t even register as a blip on my radar. Of course, my wife had to be with me when we saw these, and that’s why two of them ended up in our cart. (How is it so much cheaper to go grocery shopping alone?)
Choceur’s chocolate – while good – isn’t necessarily one that I would call “premium”. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love their plain chocolate bars, and a lot of the other varieties that they have, and they certainly seem to be better than most name brand chocolates, but I would still consider them in the same ballpark as those mass-produced confectioneries. (After all, they use the “Specially Selected” moniker for their more upscale offerings.)
That being said, I love me some caramel. Part of it has to do with nostalgia, eating those caramel-filled fundraising bars from way back in the day (any other ‘90s kids know what I’m talking about?) The other part is just because chocolate and caramel is such a damn good combination. You get the tastiness of milk chocolate (or dark, if that’s what you prefer), combined with the ooey-gooeyness of caramel…if nothing else, you can’t beat that texture.
Another win for me: this packaging. It’s a minimalist design, clearly geared toward Valentine’s Day, featuring a pink background with a simple cartoon face expressing an emotion. Actually, of the four varieties available, this one is the least animated (hesitant pun intended), featuring a simple smile that is representative of being “hopeful”, the mood associated with this “mood bar”. Now, I don’t get what caramel and chocolate have anything to do with being “hopeful”, but it’s still a cute idea for a little something to get that special someone in your life.
These look like typical chocolate bars on the inside, which is what I was anticipating. They are separated into four breakable sections, which again, is a feature common in virtually all caramel-chocolate bars that I’m aware of, and are also wrapped in foil. Yet another expected quality.
Digging in, and the first thing I notice is that this is typical Choceur right here: the chocolate just melts in your mouth. That’s one thing they have over other, more popular name brand bars, which basically have the texture of chocolate-flavored plastic; Choceur’s product tends to be smoother, with an almost-rich flavor profile that’s excellent at this price point.
The second thing I noticed is the caramel…because it’s almost overpowering. It has the nice, thick consistency I was expecting, stringing out from the middle after each bite, and getting all over the place. Especially when the chocolate “collapses”, as it inevitably does with these, any time a bite is placed in the middle of an individual square. The end result are a lot of sticky fingers (and, if one is not careful, caramel strings attached to clothing and/or furniture).
But its consistency isn’t the only area where the caramel feels overpowering: it’s also apparent in the taste. It’s like the chocolate itself is infused with caramel flavoring, which leads to an overload of (what should be) the secondary flavor; instead, the caramel stands front and center, basically leaving the chocolate to serve merely as its carrier. And Choceur’s chocolate is too good to be playing second fiddle to just about anything, but especially caramel.
Despite its cute appearance, and affordable price tag (they are $1.49 per bar), I’m terribly saddened to have to say these definitely missed the mark for me.
Overall: 5/10. Value is good at $1.49 per bar, and the packaging design is adorable (and befitting the Valentine’s Day theme), but the actual execution is somewhat lackluster. The chocolate itself is smooth and melts in your mouth, but the caramel is so prevalent – both in consistency and taste – that it’s like the chocolate itself has additional caramel flavoring added. This means that the balance of a typically reliable combination is thrown off, leading to some overpowering sweetness that’s a notch above even typical caramel-chocolate bars. It’s not horrible, but it’s a far cry from the nostalgic experience I was hoping for.
