Stoked Chocolates - Dark and Milk Chocolate Sand Dollars - July 20, 2026

Chocolate(s) of The Day

Stoked Chocolates

Dark Chocolate Sand Dollar - Cocoa Nibs + Sea Salt
Good ++
Weight: .35 oz. (10 g.) in one packet/sand dollar
Calories: 50 calories in 1 sand dollar
Cost: $N/A - part of a larger, multi-item gift set 
Purchased from: Stoked Chocolates, online order

Milk Chocolate Sand Dollar - Rainbow Chocolate Covered Sunflower Seeds
Good ++

Weight: .35 oz. (10 g.) in one packet/sand dollar
Calories: 50 calories in 1 sand dollar
Cost: $N/A - part of a larger, multi-item gift set 
Purchased from: Stoked Chocolates, online order

Dark Chocolate Sand Dollar - Raspberry
Good ++
Weight: .32 oz. (9 g.) in one packet/sand dollar
Calories: 45 calories in 1 sand dollar
Cost: $N/A - part of a larger, multi-item gift set 
Purchased from: Stoked Chocolates, online order

Welcome to Day #15 of Chocolate & Water Theme Week(s) -- featuring a variety of chocolates with tie-ins with water, that include cacao origins linked with bodies of water (oceans, lakes, rivers); chocolate fish, fishing and surfing themes; as well as chocolate sea shells and boats.

Today's three Dark and Milk Chocolate Sand Dollars with three different flavor inclusions were the creations of Stoked Chocolates (Hermosa Beach, CA).

Each of today's three, individually-wrapped, packets held a different flavored chocolate Sand Dollar, and they were all quite tasty. If we could forage sand dollars like this, the world might be a happier place.

Aroma, taste and texture for all three were well-balanced and flavorful. The chocolate was chocolate-y. A bit of added vanilla added warmth (to all three).

#1 Ingredients: "Dark Chocolate (Chocolate, Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin (Emulsifier), Vanilla), Cacao Nibs, Sea Salt"

Allergen-related information: Contains: Soy. "Processed in a Facility That Contains Nuts"

#2 Ingredients: "Milk Chocolate (Sugar, Powdered Whole Milk, Cocoa Butter, Cocoa Mass, Soy Lecithin, Vanilla), Chocolate Covered Sunflower Seeds (Milk Chocolate (Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Chocolate Liquor, Whole Milk, Soy Lecithin (An Emulsifier), and Vanilla); Sunflower Kernel; Sugar; Titanium Dioxide (Food Grade); Gum Arabic; Tapioca Dextrin; Carnuba Wax; Natural Food Colorings (Vegetable Juice, Caramel))"

Allergen-related information: Contains Milk, Soy. "Processed in a Facility That Contains Nuts"

#3 Ingredients: "Dark Chocolate (Chocolate, Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin (Emulsifier), Vanilla), Freeze-Dried Raspberries"

Allergen-related information: Contains Soy. "Processed in a Facility That Contains Nuts"

Ritter - Milk Chocolate with Cocoa Mousse Filling - Jan. 21, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Ritter
Milk Chocolate with Cocoa Mousse Filling (bar)
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.16 oz. (33 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 190 calories in 3 squares of bar
Cost: $4.99 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: Santa Venetia Market, San Rafael, CA

Welcome to Day #15 of European Chocolate Vacation Theme Week. Yesterday we were (virtually) in Austria; and we now head northwest into Germany.

Today's Ritter Sport Milk Chocolate with Cocoa Mousse Filling bar was from Alfred Ritter GmbH and Co. KG (Waldenbuch, Germany).

Waldenbuch is a small city in the Stuttgart region of southeastern Germany. I imagined visiting the Museum Ritter--a modern white building with beautiful, colorful stained glass--to look at the exhibits and to enjoy a cup of hot chocolate at the museum cafe.

The aroma notes for today's thick, sweet chocolate bar included: pfeffernusse cookies and chocolate hazelnut butter cookies with chocolate milk. The milk chocolate surrounded a darker chocolate "mousse" filling. 

Ingredients: Sugar, milk, palm fat, cocoa butter, chocolate liquor, cocoa, skim milk, butterfat (milk), hazelnut paste, soy lecithin.

Allergen-related information: May contain traces of peanuts, other tree nuts, wheat and egg.

Tera's Whey - Grass Fed Organic Whey Protein - Dark Chocolate - Oct. 6, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Tera's Whey
Grass Fed Organic Whey Protein - Dark Chocolate 
Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) in total package
Calories: 110 calories in 1 package
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: Rainbow Grocery, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Grass-Fed Milk Theme Week.

Today's Tera's Whey Grass Fed Organic Whey Protein was from Wisconsin Specialty Protein (Reedsburg, WI).

The 20 grams of protein in this single-serving packet was supplied by, presumably, dairy cows in Wisconsin. 

The cocoa powder had been de-acidified (processed with alkali), so the flavor was relatively mild. The sweetness level was about right. There was no sugar, just stevia leaf extract, which tasted fairly natural.

Ingredients: Organic dairy whey protein concentrate, organic cocoa (processed with alkali), organic stevia leaf extract, sunflower lecithin.

Charles Chocolates - Ode to Joy (bar) - Sept. 24, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Charles Chocolates 

Ode to Joy (bar)

Good +

Weight: 1.3 oz. (36 g.) in 1 bar

Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1 bar

Cost: $4.00 (estimate) in 1 bar

Purchased from: SweetE Organic, Mill Valley, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate, Nuts and More Theme Week.

Today's Ode to Joy (bar) from Charles Chocolates (San Francisco, CA) was a high-end homage to American chocolate-covered candy bars with nuts (almonds) and caramel.

The core of this small, chubby bar was milk chocolate ganache, "deep" roasted almonds, and soft fleur de sel (salt) caramel that was coated in 65% bittersweet chocolate. It was small, sweet and successful as a high-end candy bar.

Ingredients: Bittersweet chocolate (cacao beans, cane sugar, cocoa butter, sunflower lecithin, vanilla beans), almonds, cane sugar, butter, milk chocolate (cane sugar, cocoa butter, full cream milk, cacao beans, sunflower lecithin, vanilla beans), cream, glucose syrup, salt, vanilla beans.

Buddy's Chocolate Peanut Small Batch Nut Butter + thinkThin - Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie - Dec. 17, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Buddy's
Chocolate Peanut Nut Butter
Good
Weight: 1.15 oz. (32 oz.) in total packet
Calories: 180 calories in 1 packet
Cost: $0.99 for 1 packet
Purchased from: Sprouts, Mountain View, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate, Fruit and Nuts Theme Week.

Buddy's (Minneapolis, MN) nut butters are sold in both jars and in single-serving pouches. Today features the latter. The Little Buddy's Chocolate Peanut packet was made with roasted peanuts, semi-sweet chocolate and cocoa powder (with sea salt and sugar).

Nut butters offer several possibilities. They can be enjoyed as a spread, a mix-in with ice cream or a smoothie, or enjoyed plain. How about all three?

The pouch/packet was carefully squeezed out and used in a peanut butter and fresh banana protein drink smoothie mix, on a cracker with apricot jam and by itself.

True, peanuts are legumes, not true nuts. However, the protein smoothie mix used also contained cashews and almond protein. The fresh banana and Little Buddy's Chocolate Peanut nut butter helped to liven this thick protein drink up.

My favorite use for this Chocolate Peanut spread was, however, the second option: spread on a red rice quinoa cracker with apricot jam.*

*Buddy's also makes a Cinnamon Raisin spread which would have been happily co-featured today as the "fruit" in Chocolate, Fruit and Nuts Week. But there was no time to search for this flavor in local stores.

Zachary Confections - Milk and Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cremes - Dec. 16, 2017

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Zachary Confections

Milk and Dark Chocolate Raspberry Mini Cremes

Good

Weight: 1.48 oz. (42 g.) / 11.87 oz. (336 g.) (per label) in total container

Calories: 180 calories in 1 serving

Cost: $N/A part of a Candy Club subscription

Purchased from: N/A - taste of someone else's (subscriber's) candy

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate, Fruit and Nuts Theme Week. 

Today's Milk and Dark Chocolate Raspberry Mini Cremes were made by Zachary Confections (Frankfort, IN). The company got its start in 1950, making novelty items in Chicago (the self-proclaimed Candy* Capital of the World in the early 1900s). 

The company now turns out thousands of chocolate creme pieces (and many other candies, including at least 10 flavors of candy corn) in its 300,000 square-foot, modern facility in central Indiana.

Each of today's round, milk and dark chocolate pieces were filled with a light colored, creamy but solid, raspberry-flavored sweet center. These were eaten with walnuts.**

*Most chocolate items featured on ChocolateBanquet.com are classified as chocolate, not candy; that is, sugar is listed below/after cocoa/chocolate in the ingredients. Today's chocolate was part of a Candy Club subscription box, and the #1 ingredient was sugar.

**Because there's not much protein, fat or fiber to slow down the absorption of the sugar in candy, I eat candy with nuts—like the roasted walnuts pictured with the Raspberry Mini Creme pieces here.

Chocolino - Double Dark Chocolate 55% bar - Dec. 1, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

"Artfully Crafted for Chocolino"
Double Dark Chocolate 55% Cacao bar
Good - Good+
Weight: 2.14 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 330 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $2.15 for 1 bar
Purchased from: CVS Pharmacy, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and California Dreaming Theme Week.

Today we head south to the Central Valley (Fresno, CA) where today's Chocolino* La Dolce Vita Double Dark Chocolate 55% Cacao bar had its origins.

While not mentioned on the packaging (and despite the somewhat confusing "Artfully Crafted for Chocolino" tagline), I believe G. Debbas Chocolatier, a private label manufacturer with a shop in Fresno, produced this bar.

California's Central Valley is a tremendous source of agricultural food exports for the Golden State. Beautiful fruit posters drew immigrants with dreams of the good life in the past. Food is grown on a massive scale in the Valley. Not cacao perhaps. But, it is a region where food and beverages are appreciated.

The "Double Chocolate" designation refers to a blend of two dark chocolates, one perhaps a bit more flavorful. There was a trace of green (the relatively light, forest-like blend of green tea, green stalks and green floral) notes—and lots of popular, sweet dark chocolate flavor.

The overall aroma and flavor was consistent and a small step above most bulk, commercial chocolates. The chocolate broke with a snap, and had an even melt. The incorporation of whole milk powder made it slightly smoother.

The bar contained a standard disclaimer** that often appears on packaging for chocolates produced in a larger/shared facility with multiple-ingredient product lines.

*Chocolino showed up as a registered wordmark of SSI G. Debbas Chocolatier, LLC (Fresno, CA) (or at least the application showed up to be one in a google search -- filing date was March 2016)
Business was listed as chocolates, confections, chocolate bars, etc.

A Chocolino Facebook page for them showed a phone number with an 818 area code. 

**May contain peanuts, tree nuts, wheat.

Cadbury - Royal Dark Creamy Mint - Oct. 6, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Mondelez
Cadbury Royal Dark Creamy Mint
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.52 oz. (43 g.) / 5.5 oz. (155 g.) in total package
Calories: 220 calories in 1 serving (3 pieces)
Cost: $3.50 for 1 package (2 for $7.00)
Purchased from: Safeway, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #6 of Cadbury Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's individually-wrapped Cadbury Royal Dark Creamy Mint chocolates were the best ones I've tasted so far this week.

Fudgey dark chocolate with a creamy texture and melt surrounded a layer of mint in the middle. The combination worked well.

Cadbury - Royal Dark Salted Caramel - Oct. 5, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Mondelez
Cadbury Royal Dark Salted Caramel
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.52 oz. (43 g.) / 5.5 oz. (155 g.) in total package
Calories: 200 calories in 1 serving (3 pieces)
Cost: $3.50 for 1 package (2 for $7.00)
Purchased from: Safeway, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Cadbury Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's Cadbury Royal Dark Salted Caramel, individually-wrapped 2-bite sized, chocolates from Mondelez were distributed in the U.S. by The Hershey Company (Hershey, PA).

These Royal Dark small 2-square, rectangular chocolates smelled like sweet, dark chocolate. They also contained milk.* A silken, smooth melt and texture was due, in part, to the inclusion of both cocoa butter and milk fat.

A tasty salted caramel filling oozed out with every bite.

*The chocolates were made with semi-sweet chocolate (sugar, chocolate, cocoa butter, milk fat, natural and artificial flavors, lecithin (soy), milk).

Haagen-Dazs - White Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream Bars - Mar. 20, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Haagen-Dazs
White Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream Bars
Good - Good +
Weight: 3 fl. oz. (88.6 mL) / 9 fl. oz. (266 mL) in total box of 3 bars
Calories: 280 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $3.99 for 1 box of 3 bars
Purchased from: Safeway, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Ice Cream Bar Week.

Today I tried a relatively new Haagen-Dazs ice cream bar. The (box of 3) White Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream Bars was distributed by Nestle Dreyer's Ice Cream Company (Oakland, CA).

A core of white chocolate ice cream (with embedded raspberry swirls) was dipped in milk chocolate then drizzled in dark chocolate. You experience the chocolate tri-fecta, in a well-designed ice cream bar that also offers layers of flavor.

The first mouthful of this bar revealed what looked like plain ice cream; however, successive bites uncovered the raspberry swirls.

The attractive milk and dark chocolate coating was smooth and natural tasting, with relatively mild chocolate flavor.

ChocolateBet: August 6, 2012

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Anne Taintor, Inc.
(Distributed by: Priam Group)

1.) Milk Chocolate bar
OK+
Weight: .29 oz. (8.33 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) total bar
Calories: 45 calories in 1/12 bar (1 square)
Cost: $1.99 total bar (sale price)
Purchased from: Cost Plus/World Market, in Mountain View, CA

2.) Dark Chocolate bar
OK+ - Good
Weight: .583 oz. (16.66 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) total bar
Calories: 91.6 calories (per label) in 1/6 bar (2 squares)
Cost: $1.99 total bar (sale price)
Purchased from: Cost Plus/World Market, in Mountain View, CA

Today was a Chocolate Fun Day at Chocolate Banquet headquarters -- which generally involves taking a trip down chocolate nostalgia lane; enjoying an example of "only in the U.S." chocolate creativity; a "chocsimile" -- an amusing chocolate facsimile of a person, animal or object; or other unique cacao-based fun and games. In short, any chocolate that made me smile might qualify.

Anne Taintor's Vintage Revisited product line with images from the 1950s, accompanied by witty captions, can be seen in numerous places online. My favorite part about today's Anne Taintor chocolate bars was the packaging, which could be framed and hung. Both bars were well wrapped. The Milk Chocolate 34% cocoa ("did somebody say 'chocolate'"?) bar was quite sweet, and had a very faint chalky, metallic taste. The Dark Chocolate 55% cocoa ("chocoholic doesn't begin to cover it") bar was a bit better.

ChocolateBet: August 3, 2012

Chocolate of the Day:

Whole Foods Market
Milk Chocolate bar - Tanzania
OK + - Good
Weight: .875 oz. (25 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 139 calories (estimate)
Cost: $2.99 in total bar
Purchased from: Whole Foods, in Los Altos, CA

Today was Day #7 of Milk Chocolate Theme Week. Milk Chocolate bars are, by definition, at the lower end of the cacao percentage range -- meaning that these bars have more sugar and milk than my usual dark chocolate fare. While I had a tough time tasting the cacao beyond the wall of sweet sugar, my daughter helped with today's tasting, and she picked up some "spicy" notes. The texture was smooth.


A portion of the proceeds from sales of this Organic, single origin 32% cacao (Tanzania) Milk Chocolate bar -- from Whole Foods Market (Austin, TX) -- will, according to the label, go to schoolchildren as part of a Tanzania Schoolhouse Project. 

ChocolateBet: July 31, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Patric Chocolate
Signature Dark Milk Chocolate bar
Good + - Very Good
Weight: 1.15 oz. (62.5 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) total bar
Calories: 173 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $6.95 total bar
Purchased from: Fog City News, in San Francisco, CA

Today was Day #4 of Milk Chocolate Theme Week.

This Dark Milk Chocolate bar, from Patric Chocolate (Columbia, MO), came with the added creaminess of some milk, but retained chocolate maker Alan "Patric" McClure's signature blend dark characteristics -- that is, a well-balanced blend of acid/fruit and earth notes.

Made with four simple ingredients: cacao, whole milk powder, cane sugar, and cocoa butter -- this Dark Milk bar, I'm guessing, might be anywhere from 52% - 62% cacao. No percentage was listed on the packaging or the Patric website. Thank you to Alan for his deft use of sugar, to enhance and not overpower the cacao flavors.

I look forward to trying the new, seasonal Patric Milk Chocolate bar with Anya Apricots soon. In the meantime, I'll work on biting Patric bars so that they more closely resemble the shape of their origin state of Missouri vs. the fictional jurisdictional outline of Chocolate County.

ChocolateBet: July 28, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Chocolate Momotombo
Dark Milk Chocolate (bar) with roasted Cacao beans
Very Good +
Weight: 1.766 oz. (50 g.) in 1 bar
Cost: $ N/A
Obtained from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Happy National Milk Chocolate Day to all.

I wanted a special milk chocolate to honor this U.S. holiday, and to kick off Day #1 of Milk Chocolate Theme Week on Chocolate Banquet today.

Fortunately, I found a great Dark Milk Chocolate bar from Chocolate Momotombo (Managua, Nicaragua), at The Chocolate Garage in downtown Palo Alto, CA -- the only place on the West Coast that carried chocolates from this Central American maker.

If you like cocao nibs you'll really appreciate this bar. The wonderful, complex flavors from the (whole, roasted) cacao beans that are embedded in this "59% Dark" bar are more typical in a bar with a higher percentage of cocoa solids. Less sugar allowed the smooth, earthy, roasted flavors (with hints of nut and olive) to really shine. This was a special bar that I could enjoy any day of the year. Thank you to Carlos and crew at Momotombo for making great chocolates.

ChocolateBet: May 8, 2010

Chocolate of the Day:
1/5 bar
Wonka Exceptionals
Domed Dark Chocolate Bar
Good
Weight: .7 oz. (19.84 g.)/3.5 oz. (99.2 g.)
Calories: 102 calories in 1/5 bar
Cost: $1.99 (sale)
Purchased from: Walgreen's, in Palo Alto, CA

I was enticed by the idea that I might win a trip around the world. However, alas, there was no golden ticket inside this Wonka Exceptionals bar.  Even so, this dark chocolate bar with "milk chocolate medallions" topping each square, and a pleasant fudge-like consistency, was still fun to open and to eat. Make sure you have someone to share this with, as it is a lot of chocolate for just one person. Fortunately, I was able to give some to friends after a movie, otherwise I would have ended up having to toss the rest.

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate and Fun and Games Theme Week.