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We first heard about Cacao Reserve chocolates, the new premium line from Hershey's, a couple of weeks ago. It is the first Hershey's-branded premium chocolate line, since up until this point, all of the gourmet products from the company have been produced by Scharffen Berger or Joseph Schmidt Confections, the two luxury chocolate brands that Hershey's acquired. Cacao Reserve is all-natural and, like so many other new chocolates, is categorized by cacao percentage, not just "milk" or "dark." They seem to carry the full line, although I did not see the "country of origin" bars (with beans from specific countries, at Target and I picked up a couple bars to try.
The three I chose were 35% cacao milk chocolate, 65% Extra Dark Chocolate and 65% Extra Dark Chocolate with Cacao Nibs. Each of the bars was 1.3-ounces and contained four squares of chocolate, just the right size for a snack at about 200 calories each. I began with the darks.
The 65% chocolate was the same with and without the cacao nibs. It was very smooth and rich, with an appealing "snap" to it that I usually associate with freshness in chocolate. The chocolate wasn't too sweet and had a bright cocoa flavor with lots of fruity notes. Unfortunately, it did leave a somewhat bitter/earthy aftertaste that I wasn't particularly fond of. It was more noticeable in the bar with the cacao nibs, but I suspect that it would have been far less noticeable if I had been drinking something (soda, coffee, etc) when I tasted the chocolate. The cacao nib bar also could have used a few more nibs, as the crunch that I anticipated (spoiled by the tasty peaces from last week), was somewhat lacking. I would buy this one again to make sure that I didn't get an "off" bar with the aftertaste in this batch.
At 35% cacao, the milk chocolate is on the very low end of the chocolate intensity scale and, as I expected, it was very milky and sweet. Although it was smooth, I didn't feel that there was enough chocolate flavor to balance those two elements, so I didn't eat all that much of this bar. I think it might appeal to people who enjoy a certain type of milky European milk chocolate, but I would pass on this one in the future unless they increased the cacao percentage to 45% or 50% to give it a more rounded flavor.
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12-14-2006 @12:46PM rainey said... Lake Champlain Chocolates has a sampler of chocolate from Sao Thome, Grenada, Tanzania and an African Blend available in .28 oz. squares. They make excellent chocolate and you can sample and make direct comparisons.
Here's some info: http://lakechamplainchocolates.com/dept.aspx?pn_DeptID=81 I got them at Whole Foods.
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12-14-2006 @2:50PM Spoonman said... Gonna have to disagree with you on the one with the nibs. Easily the most amazing chocolate thing I've ever put in my mouth. I've made it part of my "dark chocolate is good for you, so I'm eating this every day" routine. :)
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12-14-2006 @12:16PM Rance said... You mentioned that it would have tasted better if you "been drinking something (soda, coffee, etc) ".
You should try port with your dark chocolate. It is fine.
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12-14-2006 @1:33PM Jessica said... Nice review. I still may never buy them, because of my ingrained mental associations of all Hershey's chocolate with waxy and grainy flavors. Hershey's, why have you convinced our poor country that this is what chocolate is?!
And Nicole, you should totally go back and review the Ghirardelli Intense Dark line that you first posted about in April. I got them at last recently on your recommendation, and they are awesome! Kind of cheesy names, but I'm willing to suffer some cheesiness for deliciously smooth and dark and rich chocolate.
No chocolate-cheese combos though, incidentally.
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12-14-2006 @2:40PM Nicole Weston said... Thanks, Jessica. Ok - my early new year's resolution is to review more chocolates, and maybe a couple other new candies as I come across them, as well.
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12-14-2006 @4:34PM Allison said... "although I did not see the "country of origin" bars (with beans from specific countries,"
Hershey sent out boxes of Cacao Reserve samples to
people registered to host tasting parties at houseparty.com. My box included their Santo Domingo
and Arriba bars. Both were excellent ! The Arriba
bar was a nice mix of dark chocolate and fruity
flavor. The Santo Domingo was just the perfect amount of richness for a bar of dark chocolate.
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12-14-2006 @7:00PM cybele said... I registered for that tasting party thing that Allison mentioned but didn't get picked.
Find the Hazelnut milk chocolate bar - it was really good (I didn't try the straight bars). I enjoyed the nibby bar ... actually more than the acidic Scharffen Berger bar (though of course I still prefer the Scharffen Berger chocolate covered nibs as a nibby treat ... then perhaps the peaces after that).
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12-15-2006 @11:16AM Heather said... i actually loved these chocolates...too small and only in the states. I haven't reviwed it on my site yet, but sure will
http://candy-kid.blogspot.com/
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12-20-2006 @9:46PM Danny said... I was one of the lucky ones chosen to do the houseparty for the cacao reserve line and all I can say is YUM!
My wife loves the extra dark with nibs variety and also added it to her dark chocolate is healthy so this is what I must eat routine.
I can't say what my favorite was though as I enjoyed them all!
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