Vosges African Red Tea & Tart Cherry Bar

Vosges was one of the first high-end chocolate brands that I tried. Since then, I've found other brands that I like more (and often cost less) but I'm always up for a new Vosges bar. They offer some unique combinations, and African Red Tea & Tart Cherry is something I haven't seen before.

It's been a few years since I've been to Las Vegas, but the Vosges boutique in the Forum Shops at Caesar's Palace is one of my favorite stops. There are always new truffles, sometimes assortments go on sale, and they usually have several chocolates to sample. Plus, the purple/white decor is pretty.

The chocolate was quite pretty! It was light in color (at 45% cocoa) with little black flecks in it (probably the tea). It smelled more bitter than it actually was and I'm guessing that was from the tea, because it had an earthy scent, too. The chocolate was soft, creamy, and milky (little to no bitterness). It had a slight stickiness and it was sweet, but never what I'd call too sweet.

The tea gave the bar a bit of a strange, gritty crunch. The cherry bits were tart indeed and went well with the sweet chocolate. They also added a soft, chewy texture to the mix. Speaking of chewing, the red tea bits were quite tart when chewed as well. Overall it was an interesting bar, but I probably wouldn't get it again.

B

Vosges website

Chuao Ravishing Rocky Road

When I was little, I wouldn't touch a walnut brownie, I omitted the nuts from every dessert recipe, and I never would have picked Rocky Road ice cream. Maybe it was because my mom didn't care for them, but I never gave nuts a chance. Since then, I've seen the error of my ways, and now I fully embrace the use of nuts in edible applications. [Insert your own crude joke here]

Since Chuao is a brand I love and trust, I picked up this Ravishing Rocky Road bar on my last chocolate buying spree. I was expecting big chunks of "stuff" embedded in milk chocolate, and as you can see from the following picture, Chuao did not disappoint. This bar is a craving killer - it hits you with the triple threat: sweet, salty, and chocolate (which is a totally separate craving from sweet).

The chocolate was a rich brown with gorgeous hunks of marshmallow and almond inside. Some bites were just creamy, smooth milk chocolate, and these bites melted easily and without that stickiness that some milk chocolates have. Other bites had the caramelized almonds, which had a great combination of salty and sweet, as well as some nice toasty flavor - all of which went well with the milk chocolate.

Still other bites had mini marshmallows inside, which had a delicate marshmallow flavor that held up all right next to the chocolate. The marshmallows were a bit firm, but the texture didn't bother me. The almonds were my favorite, but I loved the combination of textures and flavors because each bite was a little different. It was a lot like eating Rocky Road ice cream!

A

Chuao website

TCHO Mokaccino

Even though I'm not by any means a picky eater anymore, there are some foods I'm not crazy about. Olives, banana-flavored candy, and coffee-flavored candy fall into that category. As a child, I used to hate fish, asparagus, brussels sprouts, and mushrooms, but age has changed my palate and I love them now. Project Olive (in which I try to make myself like olives) has been an abysmal failure thus far, but I'll never give up. My husband thinks that if your first experience with a food is really bad, then it can sour you for life, but if your first experience is amazing, then even poor imitations will remind you of the best version.

By that theory, TCHO's Mokaccino bar is definitely the coffee chocolate bar to try if you're on the fence! It was one of our tasting samples at the World of Chocolate Museum and Cafe, and I was surprised to find that I loved it! My husband was also a fan, so we bought the full bar in the shop. Now if only I could find some really good olives...

The bar had a strong coffee aroma, and strong coffee was the first thing I tasted, too. Although it was almost too bitter at first bite, the rich flavor of the milk chocolate cut away most of the bitterness and acidity, leaving behind a mellow mocha. The combination was great, especially since I'm not usually a huge fan of coffee and chocolate together.

The chocolate itself was incredible, and I just could not get over how smoothly it melted. It wasn't sticky or waxy, and it seemed like there was nothing standing between me and the cocoa butter. For that alone, this bar is worth a little splurge. The hints of caramelized milk were subtle, but with the coffee flavor it really was like drinking a good mocha. Basically it was another stunner from TCHO.

A-

TCHO website

Furuta Matcha Chocolate

Furuta isn't one of my favorite Japanese candy and snack brands (though they do make a lot of fun themed candies), but I have a hard time resisting matcha chocolates. Long story short, these came home with me on my spring trip to Mitsuwa Marketplace in Arlington Heights, Illinois. I was in the area for a graduation ceremony (mine!) and that put me in a celebratory, buy-all-the-things mood.

It's hard to go wrong with matcha-filled chocolates, and adding black sesame paste makes me even happier. The green and gold wrappers were very pretty, and reminded me of Lindt with a Japanese twist. They looked nice in my candy dish, especially since my guests ended up enjoying them more than I did.

After unwrapping, I could smell the milk chocolate, and I didn't get a sense of the green tea filling. The thickness of the outer shellwas about right, and the chocolate itself was fairly standard: sticky, but not too sweet. The gooey, oozy matcha center had the consistency of liquid caramel, and the tea flavor was very mild and not too bitter. I didn't taste the black sesame at all.

While the filling was ere a little too sweet for me, these chocolates were still quite pleasant, if a little messy. I think these would please people unfamiliar with matcha. A few of my pro-matcha family members tried and liked them, but I didn't really test them on unsuspecting subjects. The composition reminded me of American chocolates I've had, so I wouldn't anticipate the recoil I sometimes get when I green chocolate to someone who hasn't seen it before.

B

Furuta website

TCHO Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

This year, my husband and I celebrated our anniversary in Orlando, Florida, or more specifically, at Disney World and Universal Studios. This is not the first anniversary we've celebrated there, and we did our honeymoon there as well, so I guess you could say we're those people. But even those people have their limits, and after 3 days at the parks, we needed a break from the magic.

After a little searching on Yelp, we settled on the World of Chocolate Museum and Cafe. We arrived just in time for the first tour of the day, and the tour guide David was amusing. The admission included a little history on the cultivation and production of chocolate, some massive chocolate sculptures, and finally, a chocolate tasting of about 10 different bars ranging in cocoa content and retail value. If you can't make the tour, this place is at least worth a visit for the impressive array of chocolate bars and truffles in the shop.

Even though the shop carried many of my favorite brands, I wanted to try something new, and the spectacular TCHO packaging and unique flavors caught my eye. I bought a couple flavors, but I'll start with Strawberry Rhubarb Pie. My mom makes a tasty pie, so the tagline, "Like your mom made - then plunged into milk chocolate!" really spoke to me. Sorry that I spazzed and forgot to take a picture of the bar before I devoured it, but that should tell you something!

The chocolate was nice and thick and had a good snap when broken. I could see the chunks of real strawberry and tiny pieces of crust inside the milk chocolate. Right away, it was tart like rhubarb, and then I could taste the sweet, freeze-dried strawberries. The fruit was well-balanced by the subtly sweet, slightly sticky milk chocolate. The melt was clean, leaving real fruit pulp and seeds behind for a great, tart finish. The strawberry was definitely the main player here in terms of taste and texture, while the rhubarb only adds an extra sour kick. I didn't get much of a sense of the crust at all. Still, this was a standout bar, and fans of fruity chocolate will definitely appreciate it!

A-

TCHO website

Fujiya LOOK Chocolate Premium Matcha

The temptation to punctuate the name of this snack is too strong to resist, so here goes. Look, Chocolate! I'm going to guess that's where the name came from, because otherwise, it doesn't make much sense. Not that English brand names in Japan always make sense. Crunky, anyone?

LOOK's matcha varieties haven't always impressed me, but this is Premium Matcha.　Fujiya, the manufacturer of LOOK, released several Premium Matcha snacks this spring, but this was the only one I could find online. I liked the simple, old-fashioned package design.

The chocolate smelled mild, sweet, and milky. It was a soft and slightly sticky milk chocolate with a mild cocoa flavor. In the center was a slightly bitter matcha creme that was almost like a ganache. The mild chocolate was a perfect companion for the subtly bitter flavor of the smooth matcha center; stronger cocoa would have overpowered the tea.

The well-balanced combination was delicate and tasty. Neither the coating nor the filling was overwhelmingly sweet. Both the chocolate and the filling melted smoothly and creamily on the tongue. Premium Matcha LOOK was simple, classic, and delicious.

A

Fujiya LOOK Website

Polishing Off the June Skoshbox

The items in this review were provided by a marketing representative.

For the past week or so, I've been reviewing snacks from Skoshbox, a new subscription box service just for Japanese candy, snacks, and trinkets. Let me repeat that I received a promotional box, but I'm not affiliated with Skoshbox and did not (nor will I) receive any compensation for the reviews or for anyone who subscribes. I just think it's a great idea and I want to help spread the word! You can find my previous reviews here and here.

Skoshbox is $12 a month including shipping, and you can find more information at their website. If you do decide to sign up, you can use the code SNACKLUV04 by July 15th to receive a free mystery snack with your first box! Currently, Skoshbox only ships within the US.

UHA High Concentration Milk Candy was a little scary because of my lactose intolerance, but it was nothing a little Lactaid couldn't fix. The hard candy was extremely milky, as expected. It tasted a lot like drinking heavy cream, and it was pleasant and rich. The candy itself melted down slowly and uniformly, leaving no jagged edges as it got smaller.

The Marukawa Orange Fusen Gum came in a set of 4 gumballs in a small box. I split it with my husband, so we both chewed 2 pieces at once. The gum was very soft and smooth, making it a little tricky to blow bubbles. The flavor authentic orange with a little extra sweetness, sort of like a creamsicle. We both loved the gum, and the flavor longevity was about average (less than 5 minutes).

The Shoyu Bite-Sized Senbei had an extremely mild soy sauce flavor that was so subtle, it got a bit lost in the salty and buttery flavors of the crackers. They had a great crunch, but the flavor was a little bland. These would be an excellent introduction to senbei, because some varieties have much more intense flavors.

Since matcha (powdered green tea) is my favorite flavor in the world, the item that had me the most excited was the LOOK Matcha Mousse. It contained two flavors: Matcha Azuki (red bean) Matcha Milk. Unfortunately, the chocolate lost a little something in shipment, and it was a bit dry.

The dry chocolate lost its smooth texture and a bit of its cocoa flavor, but the insides were still intact. The mousse in the Matcha Azuki had a mild flavor, and the sweet red bean gel was sweet and almost jammy. The Matcha Milk mousse was a little creamier and stickier, and the matcha flavor was stronger. I liked both, but liked the Matcha Milk just a bit better. In cooler months, the chocolate would be just fine, but it wasn't up to the journey this time of year.

Despite a few issues with chocolate texture, I loved my June Skoshbox, and I'm definitely going to subscribe. For the overall experience, I give Skoshbox an A-. The only change I could recommend would be fewer chocolate items in warmer months. Still, Skoshbox is a great way to try new Japanese snacks, or to enjoy your old favorites! The June box had a great variety of items, and I am looking forward to seeing what comes next month!

Skoshbox website

Skoshbox Continued

The items in this review were provided by a marketing representative.

One of the nice things about receiving the Skoshbox is that it's given me the chance to try Japanese snacks I've seen but never tried before. If I'm shopping at a store or online, I'll go for the KitKats and Tirol chocolates every time, so it's fun to try things that someone else has picked!

As discussed in my previous post, Skoshbox is a new subscription box for Japanese candy, snacks, and trinkets. I received a promotional box and have been covering the items within, but I'm not affiliated with Skoshbox and did not (nor will I) receive any compensation for the reviews or for anyone who subscribes. Skoshbox $12 a month including shipping, and if you do decide to sign up, you can use the code SNACKLUV04 by July 15th to receive a free mystery snack with your first box! Currently, Skoshbox only ships within the US.

Umaibo is the perfect example of something I've seen in stores many times but never got around to trying. It's a cylindrical puffed corn snack that comes in tons of different flavors, and the mascot looks awfully similar to a certain ear-less cat... The promotional box included Mentai and Cheese flavors. I tried the Mentai first because it sounded more interesting. Mentaiko is marinated fish roe, and the stick did smell just a tad fishy (in a good way).

I don't remember ever eating mentaiko, but the Umaibo certainly tasted like Japanese food. It had the flavors of soy sauce, fish, and onion, with a hint of pepper heat. The coating was quite salty, but still tasty. It was very similar to Cheetos in terms of crunch. I will probably let my husband have the cheese flavor, but I'm curious to see how closely it resembles American cheese puffs.

The Skoshbox also included 2 individually wrapped Morinaga Hi-Chew candies in grape and apple. Hi-Chew does a great job with authentic, juicy fruit flavors, and these were no exception. The product guide included in the box explains that Hi-Chew was designed to be an edible chewing gum, which explains the bouncy, almost rubbery texture and long-lasting chew. Hi-Chew is slowly becoming available in stores in the US, but it's still mostly confined to the East and West coasts.

One of the long-standing candy rivalries (at least in my head) is between M&Ms and Smarties. Preference seems to depend upon home country, and being partial to M&Ms, I'm no exception. Meiji Marble is a similar type of candy, but I'm not sure it's quite in the same league. The texture of the Marble pieces reminded me of Reese's Pieces - thin, crispy shell, and smooth, almost airy chocolate inside. The chocolate wasn't very rich or solid, but it did have a nice, mild cocoa flavor. I loved that a couple pieces had character faces, and it was fun to see a different variety of colors from other similar candies.

Lotte Koala's March is a classic Japanese snack that was available in the US as Koala Yummies when I was a kid in the 1980s. It's a simple chocolate cream filled cookie, and it tastes the same as ever (which is to say it's pretty yummy). The filling is sweet, but the crunchy cookie shell isn't, so it's got a good balance. The only issue I have with Koala's March is that it contains some trans fat, so I keep my consumption to infrequent, small servings like this.

Since I'm probably not going back to Japan in the near future, I'm very tempted to subscribe to Skoshbox for July. I'll finish up the rest of the snacks within the next couple days and keep you posted on my decision! Is anyone else thinking about signing up?

Skoshbox

The items in this review were provided by a marketing representative.

The most common question I get about this blog is, "Where do you buy Japanese snacks?" In the United States, unless you live in very specific areas, Japanese import shops are few and far between. When I was contacted by a marketing representative for Skoshbox, a new subscription box just for Japanese snacks and goodies, I agreed that it was a perfect fit for Snack Love readers.

Skoshbox was created by two childhood friends who have lived in both Japan and the United States. The creators hand-pick each item, ranging from Japanese candies to traditional snacks to stationery. Skoshbox kindly offered to send me their June box, and I'll be reviewing the snacks over the coming days.

Please note that while I did receive the promotional box, I did not receive any compensation for writing about Skoshbox here, nor will I receive any compensation should you choose to subscribe. I'm writing just because I honestly think it's a fun service!

The service is $12 a month (including shipping), and a 6 month gift subscription option is available. If you think you might be interested, check out Skoshbox.com for ordering information. In addition, Skoshbox has kindly created a promotional code for Snack Love readers! Use the code SNACKLUV04 at check out to receive a free mystery snack with your first box. This code expires on July 15th, which is also the last day to sign up for the first box. At this time, Skoshbox only ships within the United States.

Here's a rundown of the items in the June box: Choco Ball, Orange Bubble Gum, Kaki no Tane, Marble Chocolate, Koala's March, Milk Hard Candy, Hi-Chew, Look Chocolate, Shoyu Senbei, and an Air In Eraser.

This is a pretty classic assortment of Japanese snacks and candies, which would be especially great for someone new to the world of Japanese goodies, or someone feeling nostalgic for old favorites. The snacks covered the spectrum from savory (Kaki no Tane and Senbei) to sweet, chewy to crunchy to hard candy, and the eraser was a nice touch! A postcard listing everything in the box was included, and I loved that there was a little fun fact about each item.

To start with something savory, I tried the Kaki no Tane. It's a mix of peanuts and tiny rice crackers shaped like persimmon (kaki) seeds. I never paid much attention to Kaki no Tane, although I did think that they were actual persimmon seeds (so now I feel a little silly). But clearly, I was wrong to ignore this snack. The rice crackers were mildly spicy with a light soy sauce flavor, and they had a nice crispy texture. The peanuts were simply lightly salted nuts. The mix of the two components was great, and they were so addictive!

Choco Ball is a simple snack: chocolate covered nuts. Although the card enclosed in the box said that these had an almond in the center, it was actually a peanut. The peanut was toasted, crunchy, and much lighter than the peanuts I'm used to, but I liked the texture! The bite-sized balls were just slightly sweet and highly addictive. Unfortunately, shipping chocolate in the summer months is always a bit of a gamble, and though the Choco Balls were still tasty, they were a little worse for the wear.

As for the Air-In eraser, I thought it was a fun extra. Japanese stationery has a well-deserved cult following in the USA. One swipe of this soft, gummy eraser and you'll see why. I can't even count all the Japanese pens, pencils, and erasers I've amassed over the years, and I'm still hungry for more.

While I was a little disappointed that the Choco Ball had melted, I was still quite pleased with the variety of items in the box - many of which were much more heat-stable! Stay tuned for more items from the Skoshbox!

Vosges Woolloomooloo and Peppermint Candy Cane Bars

If I'm feeling like a splurge, I often turn to chocolate. In this case, my splurge resulted in this Vosges mini bar sampler pack. I bought it on special the day after Thanksgiving last year, and it wasn't a bad deal! The pack came in a bundle of cookie mixes and other chocolates that I doled out as Christmas gifts, but I greedily kept the sampler for me.

Vosges is known for some pretty wild flavors (carrot or Absinthe, anyone?), but the flavors I'll cover in this review are fairly tame. The Woolloomooloo is a slight variation on the winning combination of nuts + chocolate, and the Peppermint Candy Cane bar is perfect for Christmas (or maybe Christmas in July by the time I post this review).

The Woolloomoloo bar smelled like butter and macadamia nuts. It was quite salty from start to finish. The chocolate was soft and just a tad sticky, but it was velvety and had a lovely cocoa flavor. The hemp seeds added a soft crunch, and while I couldn't taste the coconut, it did add to the texture. With the exception of the salt, the flavors were all quite subtle, and the combination of tastes and textures made for an interesting bar.B+

Peppermint and dark chocolate are normally great together, but this bar was too minty for me. The mint was so intense I thought there might have been peppermint oil infused into the chocolate, and it felt chilly on my tongue. The dark chocolate had a nice, crisp snap and the candy cane bits added a good candy crunch without being too sharp. I can't bring myself to give this bar a C because the ingredients were great, but it was hard to get past that chill. Mint lovers only for this one! B-

Vosges website

Tirol Mix 9

It's time to emerge from blogtirement! It's been a little while, but before it got too hot to ship chocolate to my house, I purchased this 9-pack of Tirol chocolates from napaJapan. It's the standard assortment, though Tirol always rotates a few limited edition flavors in and out of these packs. If you bought this assortment now, you'd get Lemon Cookie instead of Caramel Bis.

Some of these flavors have been reviewed here before, including Milk, Hot Cake, and White & Cookie Crunch. Some of the never-before reviewed on this blog flavors in this assortment are classic Tirol chocolates, so most of them should be easy to find online or in Japanese import grocers.

One of the rotating flavors in this mix was Caramel Bis, which is a twist on the classic Bis. The dark chocolate and caramel chocolate layers reminded me of purin. The lighter caramel chocolate was sweet and creamy, and it mixed well with the darker, slightly bitter chocolate base. The center biscuit added a fun crunch, but as usual, not much flavor. The darker chocolate was a nice touch and it made this flavor stand out.

According to the Collection section of Tirol's website, Chocolate Almond has been through a few different wrappers before the cute one we see today was introduced in 1996. The tried and true combination of almond and chocolate is just what you'd expect. The chocolate smelled nice and nutty, and it a little sticky but melted smoothly. The almond had a crunchy caramelized coating and it imparted hints of cherry flavor.

According to the Tirol website, the Milk Nougat flavor was introduced in 1983 and the Swiss-inspired packaging hasn't changed since then. I tried to break this one in half for the second picture but the nougat was too hard! The piece only smelled of plain chocolate, but the nougat had a slightly nutty flavor. I liked the taste but wasn't crazy about the texture; the nougat was at first sticky like taffy, then crumbly, and finally it got stuck in my teeth.

Regular Bis is one of Tirol's standard flavors, and it's also one of my favorites. It's a simple combination of sweet milk chocolate and a crunchy, cracker-like biscuit. The biscuit was dry and pretty bland, but it added a nice crunch and balanced the sweetness of the milk chocolate.

Strawberry was a simple pink strawberry filling covered in milk chocolate. The filling was creamy, fluffy, and full of strawberry seeds. Despite a slightly soapy taste, the strawberry flavor wasn't bad. On the whole, it was quite sweet.

Finally, the iconic Coffee Nougat flavor. I love the contrast of the colorful lettering against the dark wrapper, but I like the packaging better than the flavor. It smelled mostly of chocolate and just barely of coffee. The nougat had a mild, lightly roasted coffee flavor, and it had the consistency of extremely thick, sticky caramel. This is another stick-to-your-teeth piece, and it's just not worth the potential tooth decay.

Overall, this collection was a B. The Caramel Bis was my favorite of the bunch, but though they may be classics, I just wasn't crazy about either nougat flavor.

Tirol website

AVI Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

A few months ago, vending machines were installed in my office building. Again. When I first started there 5 years ago, there were dubious vending machines in a forgotten corridor of the building. Rumor has it that they contained sandwiches, but I can't confirm that (even though I bought one once).

This time, no one was about to mess around with sandwiches. The new vending machines have chips and candy, and they're doing pretty well. My curiosity got the better of me yesterday, so I branched out and bought this 2 pack of AVI cookies. The package had no nutrition information, but it did have a very long list of ingredients.

The cookies had a surprisingly strong cocoa scent that reminded me of chocolate fudge. They were soft and chewy, and the little chocolate chips melted away into the bulk of the cookie, making it a bit richer. The cookie itself had a very fine, sugar-like grit to it that made it seem more like a brownie.

Even though it was a really sweet cookie, there was just a hint of saltiness to keep the sugar in check. It killed my chocolate craving, but the portion size was just too large. According to the AVI website, one cookie is 270 calories, and there are two cookies in the bag. Furthermore, as Rodzilla of Rodzilla Reviews pointed out, each cookie also has 3 grams of trans fat, which is more than I really want to get from a cookie (especially one that already has a decent amount of saturated fat). After the media blowout several years back, many companies minimized their usage of trans fats, and I can't remember the last time I saw a non-negligible quanitiy listed on a label (for example, I didn't even think to check these cookies for trans fat). I won't lie - the cookie was pretty good, but I wouldn't pick it again.

B-

AVI website