Ghirardelli Gourmet Milk - Coconut Rendezvous

Whatever else the US may be famous for, it is certainly not chocolate. The only American chocolate brand that I have read about with any consistency over these months of chocolate blogging is Ghirardelli. And it is unsurprising because the company apparently has a Lindt & Sprungli connection ¹. The brand is named after founder Domenico Ghirardelli, an Italian chocolatier. Having been established in 1852, it is America's second oldest brand (the oldest being Baker's Chocolate). It is also among the few brands in the world that control the bean-to-bar aspects of production.

I was naturally excited to find it at a specialty food store in Chembur, Mumbai. However, they had only a couple of variations and I had to bring back a milk chocolate bar. So my first Ghirardelli experience was to be with Gourmet Milk Coconut Rendezvous.

Once the card wrapper is opened, one sees a lovely light golden foil embossed with the Ghirardelli brand name. The chocolate bar is also branded with the Ghirardelli logo, that has a quintessentially American eagle in it. The chocolate bar has a sweet aroma and I was afraid it might be a little too sweet by the time it reached my palate. And right I was. The chocolate turned out to be disappointingly sweet; even for a milk chocolate. I might as well be drinking Milkmaid.

That said, the chocolate is exceptionally smooth and has a lovely, creamy texture. The coconut adds texture, but I found it dry and it did not do much for me in terms of flavour. For example, I'll think of Bounty first when someone says coconut chocolate and not Ghirardelli Coconut Rendezvous. Milk chocolate lovers may like it, but it isn't worth spending INR 490 for a 100 g bar.

I'm eager to try Ghirardelli's dark chocolate offerings, but I'm definitely never buying this again.


RATING: 2.5/5

Mars' Bounty Coconut Milk Chocolate

Another famous offering from the Mars' stables, Bounty is a coconut-filled milk chocolate. Available in single & double bar packs and miniatures, it is sold internationally by Mars Inc.  

The typical rounded bars have a sweet and moist (thanks to the high glucose syrup content) coconut filling within some more sweet milk chocolate. Mars had apparently tried to register the rounded shape of the bars, but were not allowed a trademark by the European Union. The chocolate will be preferred either by coconut buffs or anything-sweet-goes folks. I belong to the former category. Snickers and Mars Bars are perhaps more popular of the three Mars products available easily in India.

There is apparently a dark chocolate version of Bounty too, but I've never seen it here. As always, I'd love to try it out, given my preference for dark chocolates.

Interestingly, Bounty is not marketed in the US, because Hershey's has a very similar product called Mounds. The shape of the bars, the packaging and the filling are almost identical to Bounty. This, I'd like to try too.

Bounty has, in the past, released some limited edition flavoured versions too, like Cherry and Mango, but did not enjoy much success. I guess people prefer their coconut to taste like coconut.

I wonder if Mars will ever introduce any flavoured variations in India. If nothing, they ought to bring at least the dark chocolate variant of Bounty. Priced at INR 50 for 57 g in a double bar pack, these are quite popular; at least, going by their presence in supermarket shelves.

RATING: 3/5

Ferrero Confetteria Raffaello

Frankly, I've never understood what the big hoo-haa about Ferrero chocolates is. Their most popular product, Ferrero Rocher, is as average a chocolate as there can be as far as the taste experience goes. I suppose it is the fancy layering that people like so much.

I spotted a lesser-known (at least in India) product by the same company at the Mumbai airport and promptly picked it up for a review. Confetteria Raffaello is a white chocolate-based confection and comes in these handy 3-piece packs.

Like its better-known cousin, Raffaello too is made of three layers; a top layer of desiccated coconut, a thin crunchy wafer-like middle layer and soft, creamy white chocolate on the inside. Quintessentially, it has a whole nut in the centre, an almond, creating a profusion of textures and flavours as you pop one in your mouth. Wholly, the taste is mildly sweet, but not memorable.

These Poland-made chocolates were introduced in 1989, according to the company website, and cost INR 49 for a pack of three. While I don't quite fancy them, Ferrero Rocher fans will like it, and white chocolate fans more so.

RATING: 3.5/5