Saturday, January 31, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 31, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:

2 pieces
Anastasia Confections
Key Lime Flavored Coconut Patties (dipped in dark chocolate)
Good + - Very Good
Wt.: 76 grams)/ 12 oz. (340 grams)
Calories: 300 for 2 pieces
Cost: $3.89 (sale)
Purchased from: Marshall's in San Jose, CA

Nice cheery Florida colors on the box, which was fun to look at in the middle of winter. (Also shown above, are other coconut patty flavors that are available.)

Friday, January 30, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 30, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:
3 pieces
Alaska Wild Berry Products
1.) 1 - Wild Salmonberry (milk chocolate version) - Very Good
2.) 2 - Wild Blackberry (milk chocolate version)- Very Good +
Wt.: 1.8 oz.(51 g)/15 oz. (425 g.) total box
Calories: 210 calories for 3 pieces
Cost: $ 24.00 for total box (online order + shipping) as recorded previously
Purchased from: Alaska Wild Berry Products (website)

And, with today's chocolates, this nice assortment box is finito. I had the chance to sample almost all 15 flavors of wild berry centers. I don't remember seeing any Wild Mossberry, but they could be seasonal items. Heck, what am I saying, I don't even know what a Mossberry looks like, much less what their growing season is in Alaska. Catch you next time Mr./Ms. Mossberry; it was fun nibbling on all your semi- and sub-arctic cousins.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 29, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:

4 pieces
Alaska Wild Berry Products
1.) Wild Highbush Cranberry - Very Good + - very nice, almost buttery flavor
2.) Strawberry Rhubarb - Very Good
3.) Fireweed - Good + - Very Good
Wt.: 2.4 oz.(68 g)/15 oz. (425 g.) ttl box
Calories: 280 calories for 4 pieces
Cost: $24.00 ttl bx* (online order + shipping) as previously noted
Purchased from: Alaska Wild Berry Products (website)

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 28, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:
3 pieces
Alaska Wild Berry Products
(Assortment box (15 wild berry flavors) see previous entries)
1.) Gooseberry (dark) - Very Good +
2.) Wild Red Currant (milk) - Very Good
3.) Wild Blueberry (milk) - Very Good - Very Good +
Wt.: 1.8 oz.(51 g)/15 oz. (425 g.) ttl box
Calories: 210 cals. for 3 pcs.
Cost: $24.00 for total box, as entered previously (online order + shipping)
Purchased from: Alaska Wild Berry Products (website)

These berry fillings have a bit of vitamin C in them: they taste good, and may even help with the cold I'm fighting off this week.

Sometimes a small glass of brandy helps with colds. Instead of brandy, last night I tried a sip of Koda dessert wine ("with natural chocolate flavors"), purchased from Trader Joe's in Mtn. View, CA. I could taste the chocolate flavor; however, I couldn't determine from the label whether chocolate was actually added or infused into this wine or not. This seems like something people might enjoy for the novelty - or not. Fun to try though. Koda dessert wine is produced and bottled by Olde Shandon Port Works, in Shandon, CA.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 27, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:
3 pieces
Alaska Wild Berry Products
1.) Rhubarb (2 milk chocolate coated) - Good +
2.) Rhubarb (1 dark chocolate coated) - Very Good
Wt.: 1.8 oz./(51 grams)/15 oz. (425 grams) in total box
Calories: 210 calories for 3 pcs.
Cost: $24.00 for whole box (online order + shipping), as previously noted
Purchased from: Alaska Wild Berry Products (website)

Monday, January 26, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 26, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:

1 serving
M and M's/Mars
Mocha - mocha-flavored milk chocolate
(Premiums line)
Good +
Wt.: 1.5 oz. (42 grams)/ 6.0 oz. (170.1 grams) in total package
Calories: 230 calories in 1 serving
Cost: $ ? (need to find receipt)
Purchased from: Walgreens, Palo Alto, CA

Sunday, January 25, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 25, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:

2 pieces
Old Kentucky Candies, Inc.
Bourbon Cherries
Very Good + - Yum
Wt.: ~.88 oz. (25 g.) for 2 pcs/ 8 oz. (226 grams) for total box
Calories: ~ 133 calories for 2 Bourbon Cherries
Cost: ~ $14.00 (online order + shipping)
Purchased from: Old Kentucky Candies (online order)

You will definitely be able to taste the Jim Beam in these dark-chocolate coated bourbon cherries. Although I'd rather have these than a shot of bourbon. I suppose you could also throw one or two of these into a glass of bourbon too. Or, perhaps more intriguing, I'd like to try stirring a whole 8 oz. box (18 pcs.) of these into a brownie mix. Yum.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 24, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:

4 small squares
Dolfin
1.) Chocolat Citron (dark chocolate with lemon peel) - Good + - Very Good
2.) Chocolat Noir Cumin (dark chocolate with cumin) - Good + - Very Good
Wt.: .626 oz. (18 g.) for 4 small squares (2 Citron, 2 Noir Cumin)/ 3.76 oz. in total package of 24 small squares
Calories: 94 calories (estimate) in 4 small squares
Cost: $? Canadian (need to find receipt)
Purchased from: store in Montreal, Quebec (last year)

I like Dolfin's flavored chocolates. The different flavors and combinations are bold, creative and nicely blended. And the smaller sized squares and bars allow one person to try a few different chocolates without having to buy large quantities. They're convenient to include in a packed lunch or a nice high-end snack on the go. The only downside: these Belgian chocolates may be hard to find in the U.S.

Friday, January 23, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 23, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:

4 pieces
Old Kentucky Candies
Bourbon Truffles
Very Good + - Yum
Wt.: ~1.88 oz. (~53.18 g.)/ 8 oz. (226 grams) in total box
Calories: ~ 282 calories (estim.) in 4 pieces
Cost: ~$14.00 (online order + shipping)
Purchased from: Old Kentucky Candies (online order)

It is great to sample some chocolates from Kentucky. And, if in the future I happen to attend a Kentucky Derby celebration party, I would certainly enjoy a small dish of these bourbon truffles - alongside a mint julep and a view of the horses. A short list of quality ingredients make for some very nice chocolates - and you can really savor the real Jim Beam Kentucky Bourbon flavor in these.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 22, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:
3 pieces
Schakolad Chocolate Factory
1.) Almond toffee crunch - Good Plus - Very Good
2.) Dark Hazelnut Cluster - Very Good
3.) Dark Coconut Cluster - Very Good +
Wt.: ~ 1.2 oz. (estim.)
Calories: ~ 165 (estim.) cals. for 3 pieces
Cost: $ 3.93 for 3 pieces
Purchased from: Schakolad Chocolate Factory, Plano (Dallas area), TX

Thank you to the staff at Schakolad in Plano for taking a few minutes to talk about their operation, and letting me taste some cacao nibs straight from the pod (from Ecuador). I don't eat wheat/gluten; however, if I did, I would have tried their cake truffles - Red Velvet, German Chocolate and Dark Chocolate. Also worth noting were a variety of chocolate molds & shapes in their store - special orders are possible.

The Schakolad story began in Florida. There are now several locations. This particular store I visited is in the Plano (Dallas) area in the "Legacy" development - an upscale combination of shops, hotel, movie theater and condominium units from what I could see.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 21, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:
2 pieces/squares
Dolfin
Chocolat Orange (Dark chocolate with orange peel)
Good + - Very Good
Wt.: .313 oz. (9 grams) for 2 small squares/3.76 oz. (108 grams) for total variety pk of 24 squares
Calories: ~ 47 calories
Cost: $ ? CAN (need to find receipt)
Purchased from: (store in Montreal, Quebec, in Canada in 2008)

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 20, 2009

Chocolate of the Day:
1/2 container
Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker
Chocolate Covered Zante Currants (Bittersweet Drk Choc.)
Good + - Very Good
Wt.: 2.25 oz. (63.5 grams)/ 4.5 oz. (127 g.) in total container
Calories: ~ 349 calories in 2.25 oz.
Cost: $ ? (need to find receipt)
Purchased from: (need to find receipt)

Monday, January 19, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 19, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:

2 pieces/squares
Dolfin
Chocolat Noir Anis (Dark chocolate with aniseed)
Good + - Very Good
Weight: .313 oz. (.9 grams) for 2 small squares/3.76 oz. (108 g.) in total package, variety pack of 24 squares
Calories: 47 calories (estimate) in 2 squares
Cost: $?
Purchased from: (store in Montreal, Quebec in 2008 - need to find/check receipt)

Sunday, January 18, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 18, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:

3 oz.-serving
M&M's/Mars
Raspberry Almond
Good +
Wt.: 6 oz. (~170 g.) pkg. *
Calories: ~960 calories in 6 oz. pkg.*
Cost: $?
Purchased from: (need to check receipt)

*I updated quantity to reflect that fact that the second half of the package was indeed polished off later in the evening.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 17, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:
2 pieces
Alaska Wild Berry Products
Red Raspberry
Very Good
Wt.: 1.2 oz. (34 g.)/15 oz. (425 g.) in total box
Calories: 140 calories in 2 pieces
Cost: $24.00 (+ shipping)
Purchased from: Alaska Wild Berry Products (online order)

ChocolateBet: January 16, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:

1 8 oz. serving (4 oz. hot + 4 oz. cold)
Blue Diamond
Almond Breeze - Chocolate
(Non-dairy beverage, made from almonds)
1.) Hot - Good
2.) Cold - Good +
Wt.: 8 fl oz. (240 mL)/ 32 fl. oz. (1 Qt)(946 mL) in entire carton
Calories: 120 calories in 8 oz. serving
Cost: $3.21 total
Purchased from: Safeway, Palo Alto, CA

Thursday, January 15, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 15, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:
1 package
Devil in an Apron
Pecan Pie ("Georgian pecans", Tennessee bourbon, Michel Cluizel 72% dark chocolate coating)
Yum. This is sin in a little red box.
Wt.: 2.3 oz. (70 grams)
Calories: 345 calories (estim.)
Cost: $4.99 (and worth every penny I might add)
Purchased from: Whole Foods, in Los Altos, CA

Where to start? Did roadside wires start bending when the Devil's delivery truck passed by, on its way to delivering these handmade chocolates to Whole Foods? I like dark chocolate, nuts, and alcohol flavorings. This cross between pecan pie filling and a high-end dark chocolate bar is the most enjoyable combination of these elements I've found yet. I wish these folks the best and look forward to trying their other flavors.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 14, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:

1/2 cake
IKEA (Produced in Sweden for IKEA Food Services)
Tarta Mandel (Almond Cake) (sold frozen)
Very Good - especially for a wheat-free cake
Wt.: 6.15 oz. (175 grams) for 1/2 cake/ 12.3 oz. (350 g.) for whole cake
Calories: 750 calories for 1/2 cake
Cost: $4.99 for 1 cake
Purchased from: Ikea store, in Palo Alto, CA

OK, eating half a cake (even a small one like this) is excessive, but I don't often find cake I can eat (as I don't eat gluten, wheat, flour, etc.). So this was pretty darn satisfying. The chocolate ingredient in this cake is cocoa powder.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 13, 2009

Chocolate of the Day:

2 pieces
Teuscher Chocolates
Pompadour - Marzipan
(A Pompadour is: "pistachio marzipan w/ layer of dark chocolate ganache, coated in dark choc. topped w/ slivered almonds mixed with honey marzipan")
Good +; although sweet, you being able to taste a real honey flavor to the marzipan is nice
Wt.: ~ 1.0 oz. (for 2 pcs.)
Calories: ~ 140 calories (estim.)
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: N/A (Teuscher store in Palo Alto, CA)

Monday, January 12, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 12, 2009

Chocolate of the Day:

3 pieces
Teuscher Chocolates
Chili Marzipan: (The chili marzipan chocolate as a chili pepper paste center "surrounded by an almond marzipan mixed with Chili pepper. Half coated in dark chocolate.")
Good +; a big sweet but good; chili is detectable but not that strong
Wt.: ~ .9 oz.
Calories: ~ 125 calories (estim.)
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: N/A (Teuscher store in Palo Alto, CA)

Sunday, January 11, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 11, 2009

Chocolate of the Day:
2 pieces
Teuscher
Hazelnut Clusters - 1 dark and 1 milk chocolate
Very Good +
Wt.: ~ .8 oz.
Calories: ~ 120 calories
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: N/A (Teuscher store, Palo Alto, CA)

Saturday, January 10, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 10, 2009


Chocolate of the Day:
2 pieces
Alaska Wild Berry Products
"A Taste of Alaska" assortment box
Wild Blackberry (dark choc covered)
Very Good - Very Good +
Wt.: ~ 1.2 oz. (34 g.)/15 oz. (425 g.) in total box
Calories: ~ 140 calories in 2 pieces
Cost: $24.00 (+ shipping)
Purchased from: Alaska Wild Berry Products (online)

The Wild Blackberry dark chocolate contains a nice rich combination of flavors. I'm not especially fond of little berry seeds, so I give the company extra points for straining them out, while still maintaining the nice authentic/natural berry flavor in jelly-gel centers.

Friday, January 9, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 9, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:
2 pieces
Alaska Wild Berry Products (Anchorage, Alaska)
"A Taste of Alaska: Wild Berry Products" - Chocolate Covered Wild Berry Jelly Centers - Assortment Box
"Wild Lingenbery" (milk chocolate covered)
Good + - Very Good
Wt.: ~ 1.2 oz. for 2 pieces/15 oz. (425 g.) in total box
Calories: ~ 140 calories for 2 pieces
Cost: ~$24.00 for 15 oz. box + shipping may apply

It's been fairly cold in California for the past month...which got me thinking....Have I eaten any chocolates from Alaska yet? Negative. So, here is where online search and ordering comes in so handy. Just plug in "Alaska chocolate" into a search window and voila! This is how I found Alaska Wild Berry Products. The (15 different) wild berry jelly centers (from hand-picked berries no less) are really the stars of this milk and dark assortment.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 8, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:
3 pieces
Chocolee Chocola
1.) Hazelnut - Good +
2.) Mint - Ivy leaf - Very Good
3.) Rum - 3 white pts on top - Very Good
Wt.: ~ 1.5 oz. (estim.)
Calories: ~ 230 calories (estim.) for all 3
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: N/A (Chocolee Chocola)

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 7, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:
1 piece
Chocolee Chocola
Violet - Cassis (black currant)
Good +
Wt.: ~ .5 oz.
Calories: ~ 75 calories (estim.)
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: N/A (Chocolee Chocola)

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 6, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:
1 piece
Chocolee Chocola
Chili - (decorated w/ 3 red points on top)
Good + - Very Good - hard to taste chili - but it appears at end/after you're done with it.
Wt.: ~ .5 oz.
Calories: ~ 75 calories (estim.)
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: N/A (Chocolee Chocola)

Monday, January 5, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 5, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:
1 piece
Chocolee Chocola
Coconut Cream
Very Good +; this tastes like a high-end Mounds bar
Wt.: ~.5 oz.
Calories: ~75 calories (estim.)
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: N/A (Chocolee Chocola)

Sunday, January 4, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 4, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:
1 piece
Chocolee Chocola
Salted Caramel
Very Good + - very nice, almost liquid caramel center
Wt.: ~.5 oz.
Calories: ~ 75 calories (estim.)
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: N/A (Chocolee Chocola)

Salted Caramels are some of my favorites. The first few bites of this one were divine. My only quibble: a concentration of too many large salt crystals topping the piece in the last bite. I look forward to trying this one again in the future. And, next time I'll bite from a different angle to even the taste out.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 3, 2009




Chocolate of the Day:
1 piece
Chocolee Chocola
Rose (shaped) Lavender dark chocolate
Very Good - nice authentic lavender flavor
Wt.: ~ .5 oz.
Calories: ~ 75 calories
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: N/A (from Chocolee Chocola)

Friday, January 2, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 2, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:
2 pieces
Chocolee Chocola (handmade chocolates by Terri)
Pear - pear shaped dark chocolate w/poire (pear) liqueur
Very Good - nice flavors
Wt.: ~.9 oz. (estim.)
Calories: ~ 135 calories
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: (Chocolee Chocola)

Very nice flavor pairing.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

ChocolateBet: January 1, 2009



Chocolate of the Day:
1.5 pieces
Chocolee Chocola
Buddha - Green Tea
Good - I am told Terri uses fresh herbs and flavorings whenever possible rather than extracts.
Wt.: ~.75 oz. (estim.)
Calories: ~ 112.5 calories (estim.)
Cost: $0 (gift)
Purchased from: (from Chocolee Chocola in Los Angeles area)

I wish Terri at Chocolee Chocola well in her handmade chocolate business.
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