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Here we are. My first Power Rankings revealed...
I had a great time tasting all of the chuao bars. I found the chocopods to be the PERFECT size for tasting (though for some of the best bars, I wished I’d had the full-sized to munch on). The flavors are very unique and interesting. The packaging is lovely, eye-catching and modern. The descriptions of the flavors on the packaging were VERY accurate (these descriptions are italicized in the rankings below). Also, I didn’t notice until one of the last bars (I wasn't even looking at the chocolate as I shoved it in my face...), but each piece has a delicious word on it:
I didn't have such a great time finding all of the bars. Central Market sells 12 of the 15 flavors:
The "firecracker" I picked up in my 8 piece chocopod variety pack from THE CHOCOLATE BOX ($16). But there were two in particular that were more difficult. I found the "oh my s'mores!" at REI ($6). The Pretzel Toffee Twirl (a dark bar), I had to get online from chuaochocolatier.com ($4, on sale from $6 + shipping).
I decided to break up my rankings for this brand into 2 groups - milk and dark.
So...without further adieu...
- *** potato chip - "Crisp kettle cooked potato chips and a hint of sea salt mix and mingle in milk chocolate" - I tried not to eat the whole thing, but I couldn’t stop with this one. I read somewhere that the workers hand crush the chips so they are a nice size. Why have I never put potato chips and chocolate together? It’s brilliant!
- ***pop corn pop - "Inspired by that familiar flavor you love, with a surprising POP in milk chocolate" - “surprising pop” is right! There is pop rock candy (unflavored) in this bar! There is a nice hint of butter flavor but it still tastes like delicious chocolate. FUN! I want more.
- ***ravishing rocky road - "Salted caramelized almonds and chewy marshmallows pave the way in milk chocolate" - sometimes, I really love a good chunk-the almonds and small marshmallows are whole. The almonds are salted to perfection to give this bar a wonderful smooth balance.
- **oh my s’mores - "Fluffy marshmallows and crushed honey graham crackers reunite in milk chocolate" - very similar to the rocky road bar except, obviously, sans almonds and plus graham crackers. I think this bar would stand out more in the dark chocolate variety. Overall, it was very enjoyable...I just would probably choose another bar to eat.
- **sweet & salty - "A touch of sea salt swirled in milk chocolate" - the "touch" of salt is not enough for me...left me wanting more. It was still a good bar with smooth texture.
- *maple bacon - "Crisp bacon, delicate maple sweetness and bonfire smoked sea salt, bathed in milk chocolate" - this is the first chocolate bar I can think of tasting that I wished I hadn't. The very first taste is sweet maple...then BAM (like Emeril) smokey smokey flavor. I like the saltiness of the bacon and the sweet of the maple but the chocolate flavor is completely drowned in smokiness. The last bite was actually much milder, but I don’t think I’d buy this bar again.
So there ya have it! I was quite pleased with this selection of milk chocolate bars! It is so hard to find a good quality milk chocolate. So much of the good stuff is dark, and I am quite partial to milk. Anyway, I tried them all so you can be more confident in your choice. Go try one! I am pretty sure you won't regret it! Let me know what you think of the bars, if you've ever had one, where you have found them to purchase, or whatever else you want to share! Stay tuned for PART TWO coming next week!
