Cru Chocolate - Peppermint Drinking Chocolate - Feb. 28, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Cru Chocolate 

Peppermint Drinking Chocolate 
Good ++
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (56.6 g.) in total package

Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1 piece (1/2 package)

Cost: $8.99 for 1 package  

Purchased from: FarmFresh (add-on to produce delivery service)

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate & Mint Theme Week.

Today's small box of Peppermint Drinking Chocolate (wheel set of 2) was from Cru Chocolate (Roseville, CA). I enjoyed tasting the gold foil-wrapped chocolate "wheel" by itself and then when prepared as a drinking chocolate.

Aroma and flavor notes included: smooth, but flavorful dark chocolate, with embedded bits of sweet peppermint candy. One wheel had rich, satisfying chocolate (cocoa) notes when prepared with milk as a 6-oz. mug of hot drinking chocolate.

Texture: slightly rough/rugged with sugar crystals/candy bits, but with a smooth melt--before dissolving in/mixing with a hot liquid. This chocolate was, of course, smoother and creamier when blended with (dissolved into) warm milk. And the milk also helped balance the sweetness of the peppermint candy and sugar.

I appreciated the maker's short list of only three ingredients, and use of organic sugar. While peppermint candy does tend to overpower subtle cacao nuances, I could still taste the balanced complexity of the cacao -- chocolate-y; faint and diffuse fermented cacao/tropical fruit; and barely detectable balanced, light earth/clay -- in between sweet ripples of mint.

Maker's Tasting notes:

Intensity: Light. 50% cacao

Style: North American

Body: Smooth & silky

Nose: Fresh mint

Mood: Fresh happy cheer

Suggested liquid: Whole milk

Preparation: Melt and mix 1 wheel into 6 oz. of suggested liquid. Enjoy.

Ingredients: Fermented cacao beans, organic cane sugar, peppermint candy

Allergen-related information: Manufactured on equipment that processes peanuts and milk.

Moonstruck Chocolate - Peppermint Bark Dark Chocolate (bar) - Feb. 27, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Moonstruck Chocolate
Peppermint Bark Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good + - Good ++ 
Weight: 1.6 oz. (45.5 g.) / 3.2 oz. (91 g.) in total bar
Calories: 245 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $8.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Market at Edgewood, Palo Alto, CA 

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate & Mint Theme Week.

Today's Peppermint Bark Dark Chocolate (bar) was manufactured by CW Moonstruck LLC (Portland, OR).

Aroma and flavor notes for this attractive seasonal confection of a bar included: dark chocolate (fudge, ganache), peppermint candy and very faint vanilla.

Texture: smooth dark chocolate melded with a field of crunchy, crushed peppermint candy pieces.

This Peppermint Bark bar was a balanced, authentic blend of flavors and textures. 

As with most sweet chocolates or chocolates with candy bits, the additional sugar can make them a bit more addictive (more-ish). For those with a sweet tooth, this may not be a plus and not a problem.

Ingredients: Dark Chocolate (Unsweetened Chocolate, Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin, Natural Vanilla Flavor), Crushed Peppermint (Cane Sugar, Corn Syrup, Peppermint Oil, Red 40).

Allergen-related information: "Contains: Soy. Manufactured on Shared equipment. May contain traces of milk, egg, wheat, soy, peanuts, sesame, and tree nuts."