Theodent Chocolate Toothpaste!

I always hated being a kid. I can't understand why some ride the nostalgia train about childhoods. What's so great about being bossed around and told to sleep now, eat this, don't do that and brush your effin' teeth? I'd never choose to be be a child again, but for this! This is chocolate toothpaste for crying out loud!!!

American company, Theodent has recently released a chocolate-flavoured toothpaste for kids, which will be available for sale worldwide through their website for ... gulp...$9.99 (that's approximately INR 530). But there are more 'chocolate' angles to this product than meets the eye. The company introduced a fluoride-free toothpaste a year ago that contains Rennou, a propriety extract from cocoa, that it says strengthens tooth enamel. Unlike fluoride, it isn't toxic in nature and hence perfectly safe, even if ingested, as often happens with kids.

 

Theodent is available for adults also - in Theodent Classic Whitening Crystal Mint and Theodent 300 Whitening Crystal Mint variations - both with the revolutionary Rennou component, of course.  But, the adult versions taste minty rather than chocolaty like the Kids' variant. No prizes for guessing which one I want.

“Now we have the best of both worlds: a toothpaste with an active ingredient derived from chocolate that tastes like chocolate as well,” President and Chief Executive Officer Arman Sadeghpour was quoted saying in a release.

Birdy's Chocolate Eclair

Day 37 for Chocosophy, and today I have the first follower for my blog. A big shoutout to Vandana Choudhary. Thank you and welcome to Chocosophy.  

And today, there is another first. I've been in two minds about starting dessert reviews, because no F&B establishment can be consistent with their sweet offerings the way a company can. However, when a colleague bought me a chocolate eclair from Birdy's yesterday as 'payment' for the N number of times he borrows my phone charger, I decided to review it afterall. This blog is turning me into one of those Instagram freaks who can't eat anything without taking a picture of it. All things chocolate in my case, but it's freaky enough when someone's about to tuck into a dessert, and you snatch it from right under their spoon because you want to take a picture first. Ah, well...

It was hard not to photograph the happy red box, emblazoned with Birdy's name and logo. Happier still was the sight inside it! A gooey, dark chocolate-coated eclair sat in it, begging to be eaten. (The gym instructor could go to hell for that moment!) For those who don't know any eclairs other than those hard, shitty sweets in shiny golden wrappers, an éclair is an oblong pastry made with choux (a light, fluffy dough) filled with cream and topped with icing.

The chocolate eclair from the Birdy's outlet in Chembur is all that plus some divine. The chocolate is dark and gooey with just the right amount spread on the pastry. The pastry is delightfully crumbly, indicating copious amounts of butter in it, and the cream filling inside is sweet and generous.  For INR 45 apiece, it is well worth it.

Make all the phallic symbol jokes you want about it, but try it you must.

RATING: 3.5/5

The Nature's Co. Yummy Chocolate Soap

It's the first day of February and all brands will go into the Valentine marketing overdrive now. I've had my share of these and find all heart-shaped things corny now, but I wouldn't mind heart-shaped things if they happen to be chocolate soaps by my favourite brand, The Nature's Co. The Nature's Co. has some fantastic natural cosmetic products, which are eco-friendly, vegan and cruelty-free. Their products are classified as Atmosphere, Starrize, Foressence, Earthborne and Aquaspark according to their nature inspirations.

Now, to add to the season of love, The Nature's Co. is offering an attractive pre-packaged heart-shaped basket hamper, comprising of three aromatic soaps at a special price of Rs.695. It could be the perfect gift for your special someone! You can pick from three specially-crafted limited edition heart-shaped soaps.  Apart from Yummy Chocolate, there are two other variants - Juicy Strawberry and Creamy Vanilla. These products are priced at Rs.245 each.

Well, shelling out INR 245 for one soap might feel like a little too much pyaar, but trust me, this thing is good enough to eat. And you WOULD want your lover to smell like chocolate, now wouldn't you?

Available for a limited period at all The Nature's Co. stores from 4th to 15th February 2013
For additional information visit: www.thenaturesco.com

RATING: 4/5

Sunfeast Dark Fantasy Choco Fills

"Savour the taste of bliss as you bite into the new Sunfeast Dark Fantasy Choco Fills biscuit. The sun-baked rich crust enrobes the purest of smooth choco cream made to mesmerise your tastebuds..."

This copywriter for ITC Sunfeast's Dark Fantasy Choco Fills box really needs to take it easy. I know nothing about baking, but I find it hard to believe that these biscuits are left out in the sun to bake. That's what sun-baked means, right?

Although, a fan of Sunfeast's other Dark Fantasy product, I wasn't impressed with the Choco Fills. Perhaps I expected too much because everyone seems to be going gaga about it. While it is the first of its kind in the cookie/biscuit segment with a 'liquid' filling, the end result isn't anything to write home about.

I was disappointed mostly because the creamy chocolate filling inside isn't dark enough, and the cookie is sweet too, making the product a little cloying. However, it must be praised for the consistency, as the cookie is crunchy, and the filling perfectly creamy. The individual packaging for each piece helps maintain its freshness, though it may come across as wasteful to some.

A 75 g box costs INR 30 and has six biscuits in it, which makes it Rs. 5 per piece. Rather expensive for a biscuit, I say, but okay for an occasional treat.

RATING: 3/5

Amul Dark Chocolate

While Amul is the largest market player in India as far as pure dairy products go, it has not had much luck with chocolate. It has quietly co-existed with the Nestles and the Cadburys of the world and produced consistently produced sub par chocolates. They recently re-introduced their Dark Chocolate with this attractive looking print campaign, proclaiming a 55% cocoa concentration, which is high by Indian standards.

I had to try the "new & improved" Amul Dark Chocolate, obviously. What should have been obvious-er to me is that there would be nothing "new & improved" about it. Even the packaging doesn't look too different from the older one. The chocolate, while pleasantly bittersweet, is not smooth even at room temperature. It has a crumbly, powdery texture that I have long associated with Amul's dark chocolates.

However, Amul's USP with chocolates has always been their pricing. At just INR 20 for this 35 g bar, Amul offers a pocket-friendly option for lovers of dark chocolate. But if you are picky about how your dark chocolate feels in your mouth, Amul isn't the right product.

RATING: 2.5/5

Cadbury Creme Egg movie-inspired adverts for 2013

It's time for Cadbury's much-loved Creme Eggs to be back in the market as Easter come close. These festival-themed chocolates are released by Cadbury each year between the months of January and March as an Easter egg variety. The milk chocolate shell is filled with white and yellow cream, made to resemble the white and yolk of an actual egg. Vegetarians can't find it very appealing. 

However, these chocolates are crazy popular, especially in Western countries where Easter has cultural significance. For this year's launch, Cadbury's made some rather cute movie-inspired print campaigns such as this one with Louise Thompson in an American Beauty-inspired ad, and another featuring her and Binky Felstead in a Mission Impossible mock up. I love!

  

I've not tasted this product yet. Have you? Rate the product or share a review. Chocosophy will be happy to feature it.

3D Face Chocolates by FabCafe

If you're wondering what to give your Valentine this year (and perhaps even break up), this is just the thing. Shibuya's FabCafe in Japan is letting you create a perfectly creepy 3D chocolate head (your head!) at their labs to gift your lover a thing that will haunt them forever.

For 6000 Yen, which is about INR 3565, budding chocolatiers can attend a 2-day workshop, where they can have their head scanned and turned into a 3D model via a silicon mould, according to Guardian. This mould is then used to create you face in chocolate and thus let your lover eat your head!

To read more, head here.

Kellogg's Chocos breakfast cereal

Is it just me or are we really surrounded by reams and reams of chocolate products that we don't even seem to notice? Like all good unhealthy households, mine has boxes of chocolate cereal that are often an excuse for breakfast. Despite their new 'Whole Grain' claim, we know just how good (or not) a chocolate snack is in terms of nutrition.

However, that hasn't stopped people from buying Kellogg's Chocos and other products from the brand and from the Kellogg Company becoming one of the largest cereal manufacturing companies in the world! Of the many kinds of cereal they make, Chocos is my favourite, because who doesn't like to make a meal out of chocolate? :D

The cereal is very crisp and very sweet, thus eliminating the need to add sugar if you're eating it with milk. They turn super soggy and lame like any other cereal if you add hot milk, and stay crisp a little longer in cold milk.They are also good to eat by themselves - like sweet chips - if you are lactose intolerant or simply aren't in the mood for milk giving you an apparent dose of 'proteins, minerals and fibre', and yes, a whole lot of sugar. They are, however, filling and makes for a satisfying breakfast once in a while.

The standard box weighing 375 g is priced at INR 140, but it's also available in handy 30 g (1 serving) packs at Rs. 10. The other Chocos varieties available are Duet - A combination of chocolate and vanilla flavoured flakes, Smacks - square shaped chocolate snacks, and Moon & Stars - cereal shaped like celestial bodies. These certainly are a hit with kids and therefore worth stocking for food tantrum emergencies.

RATING: 3.5/5

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

Satva Getrim Chocolate Mocha Meal Replacement Shake

All things chocolate are not fattening.

Of the many things I've been doing in the past six months in a bid to get fit, trying Satva's Getrim meal replacement shake was one. As a weight management product, Getrim works very well. A 300 ml glass of shake made with two scoops of Getrim and low fat milk makes for a 'meal' less than 200 calories. I personally prefer it for dinner, because it doesn't have a great satiety value. If you don't go off to sleep soon after this dinner, you're going to feel hungry after about three hours.

The product is available in Strawberry Cream and French Vanilla flavours too, but I being me  picked Chocolate Mocha the first time. I've tried all three by now, and sadly, Chocolate Mocha has turned out to be the worst variant.

Now I don't expect wondrous flavours from a protein blend of mostly milk, soy and whey, but this one's just crappy. My biggest problem with this product is its solubility. You can shake and stir as much as you like, but lumps of dry powder will float about, making the consistency rather unpleasant. If, however, you take the trouble of making it in a blender, it becomes okay and will look something like this.

The Mocha bit in the Chocolate Mocha is barely discernible, unless you count that slightly bitter aftertaste. The French Vanilla and Strawberry Cream flavours are much more palatable, and don't make drinking a meal replacement shake look like such as bad idea.

Priced at approximately Rs. 700, a tin of 500 g serves about 20 meals and is well worth the investment, if you are serious about your weight management plans.

RATING: 2.5/5