Kandy Kritique --Lindor Truffles Revisited

Tried the limited-edition flavors of Lindor Truffles -- these are also not so much ordinary candies as they are confectionary delicacies.

The Extra-dark-chocolate peppermint is bittersweet, bold-tasting, slightly fruity on the outside, with a creamy, mint-sparked "frosting" center. The two distinct taste sensations complement each other beautifully, creating a rich and unique candy delight that will appeal to pint-sized sweets aficionados and grown-up gourmets alike. These make Peppermint Patties seem like junk, and that's saying a lot.

Th milk chocolate with smooth white filling features a silky milk-chocolate shell and a creamy, satiny, alnost buttercream-like white-chocolate "frosting" center. The flavors of the two chocolate types mingle together in a heavenly mix. These things are mmmmmmmm-MINDBLOWING.


You can se where this is going.

THIS CANDY HAS BEEN RATED D (DIVINE)

Kandy Kritique -- Dove Tiramisu Promises

I never had tiramisu, so I don't know if these squarish foil-wrapped tidbits taste like real tiramisu. All I know is, these taste absolutely mind-blowing!
As soon as I unwrapped these plump little morsels, a deep, sweet, roasty chocolate-coffee scent caressed my nostrils. A rich, tantalizing scent. The funny thing is, I don't like actual coffee as a beverage, but I do like coffee-flavored items like ice cream or candy. These little gems had a creamy melt, a distinctive spark of coffee mingling with the chocolate richness, and a syrupy, caramel-esque center that tasted like the glaze on a gourmet pastry. Addictive little suckers, these are.

Now for the rating. What's a synonym for "addictive" or "absolutely mind-blowing"?

This candy has been rated D (Divine)

Russel Stover International and American Collection

Elegant chocolate squares, often mixing two chocolate types (milk and dark, milk and white) and a creamy filling for a rich taste sensation. Tried New York Cheesecake Ganache, Swiss Lodge Mocha Creme, and French Vanilla Creme. All had a creamy melt and a satiny satisfying richness. More filling in each piece would have earned these candies a D rating, but as it is, they merit a rating of IST

Kandy Kritique -- Starbuck's Truffles

The coffee bigwigs extend beyond java and tap into one of the world's tastiest sources of caffeine -- and do it very well, I may add.

I sampled two flavors of these confections.

These are little domes, kind of like Old-Fashioned Cream Drops -- but so much more sophisticated and sumptuous.

VANILLA BEAN -- A buttery, satiny "frosting" center given a pleasant crunch from specks of vanilla bean. A dusting of cocoa powder adds a bittersweet spark, and silky dark chocolate finishes off the piece. Complex, flavorful, satisfying. Had to summon all my willpower not to finish off the whole bag at a sitting

CHAI -- Same smooth "frosting" center. No tea taste that I could discern. Mostly, I tasted the spices -- mmmm, vanilla and cinnamon. Intermingled with rich milk chocolate, a very addicting, indulgent confectionary delight. Again, all I could do not to demolish the whole bag at one sweep!

You know what's coming!

This candy has been rated D (Divine)

Kandy Kritique -- Lindor Dark, Extra Dark, and White Chocolate Truffles

Hi! I have been away from the blog for a while -- life was calling, and I had to answer, but I have returned.

Having tasted Lindor Milk Chocolate truffles and bestowing on them a D rating, I had to taste the other varieties in the line. Here's how it went

WHITE -- Smooth, sweet, mild, melt-in-the-mouth, with a spark of vanilla. Talk about your cake frosting! This definitely tasted like cake frosting. Really yummy cake frosting. Truly delectable cake frosting. It was all I could do not to polish off the whole bag at one sitting.

DARK -- More intense than the milk, and the shell paired well with that smooth, sweet ganache/mousse center. Simply scrumptious.

EXTRA DARK -- The shell was intense with fruity notes and an almost bitter finish. The perfect foil for the sweet "frosting" center. Definitely crave-worthy.

I like them all equally for different reasons, and they all have earned a rating of D


THIS CANDY HAS BEEN RATED D (DIVINE)

Kandy Kritique -- Ferrero Rondnoir

These little chocolate rounds look like a dark-chocolate version of Rocher -- but are a little different.
The wafer base is more pronounced rather than blending in like with the Rocher, and the Rocher's nut pieces are replaced with chocolate bits. There's still the same ganache filling, inside which is nested a bead of solid dark chocolate. It's like eating a gourmet pastry laden with fine chocolate. Scrumptious.

Oh, yeah, I'm rating this a D


This candy has been rated D (Divine)

Kandy Kritique -- Lindt Lindor Milk Chocolate Truffles

Some candies are fun. Others are sophisticated. Still others are both. Lindor Milk Truffles are both. Like Andes mints and Ferrero Rochers, these little delights can be a hit with everyone, be they suave sophisticate or candy-crazed kindergartener.
Inside the shiny red wrappers that remind one of Christmas tree ornaments are plump chocolate spheres. One nibble reveals a contrast of delectable flavor sensations as the intensely flavorful chocolate shell gives way to a delicate, creamy, buttery, almost pudding-like ganache center, and the whole thing melts on the tongue smooth as satin.
These look like a candy for adults, and yes, I can see a classy, urbane host or hostess putting these confectionary gems out in a fancy bowl for guests, but I can also imagine that any costumed pint-sized princess or small-fry superhero would be as happy as a pig in a mudhole -- or as Charlie in Willy Wonka's factory -- to receive these sweet, bite-sized delicacies in their plastic jack o' lantern on Halloween. A great all-round candy, and you know what comes next.

This candy has been rated D (Divine)

Kandy Kritique -- Andes Creme DeMenthe Thins

These are cute candies -- small, delicate wafers, somewhere between a fun-size bar and a tasting square, in a pretty green wrapper.
Out of the wrapper, the confections are elegant-loooking candy sandwiches of dark chocolate with a mint flavored, green tinted layer of white chocolate/white confection between. Looks pretty. But how do they taste?
They taste like they look -- delicious, scrumptious, and utterly delectable, melting on the tongue in a cloud of soft, creamy, buttery richness with a refreshing spark of mint. A classic. And one that rates a solid D.

This candy has been rated D (Divine)

Kandy Kritique -- Scharffen Berger Assorted Tasting Squares

I was curious as to whether "artisan" candy tasted any different from the stuff the Big Guys turn out, so I bought an assortment pack of Scharffen Berger fine artisan chocolate tasting squares.

There is a difference. This is pure chocolate, not "confection" or "compound," made with cocoa butter, and no artificial flavors to get in the way of that rich real chocolate taste.


BITTERSWEET-- A firm snap, a smooth melt, and a bold, intense flavor that may be too bitter for some, but I liked it. A lot.

SEMI-SWEET -- Firm snap, smooth melt, sweeter than the bittersweet. A high-end version of semi-sweet chocolate baking chips. Just scrumptious.

MILK -- I may like this one best of all. Soft, buttery, very soft snap, a creamy silky melt, and a rich taste. Should be outlawed!

I rate the SB squares a D, but the milk ones get a DD rating, for Doubly Divine.

This candy has been rated D (Divine)

Kandy Kritique -- Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

This is a classic. And with good reason. The chocolate is creamy and satiny, no trace of waxiness, and partners very well with the crumbly, grainy, delicious peanut butter filling. The commercial slogan was "two great tastes that taste great together," and whatever Madison Avenue creative type penned that slogan was right on target. And when Harry B. Reese, the Hershey's employee who invented this confectionary delight, first came up with the recipe for this round, fluted piece of yumminess, HE was right on target.
There's no doubt but I'm rating PBCs a solid D!

(This candy has been rated D (Divine)

Kandy Kritique -- Ferrara Pan Milk Chocolate Almonds

Think of these candies as a classied-up version of Goobers.
Instead of a peanut, there is a crisp, toasty whole almond blanketed in a thick jacket of sweet, creamy milk chocolate. This chocolate cleaves off easily between the teeth, is rich-tasting with subtle coconut and vanilla notes, and it melts in the mouth and is not "waxy" like the chocolate coatings of similar candies.
An enjoyable, addictive, craveable confection that rates a solid D.

This candy has been rated D (Divine)

Kandy Kritique -- Skittles Chocolate Mix

Always wanting to try new flavors in candy, I picked this one up, lured by tantalizing flavor names such as S'mores and Chocolate Pudding and Brownie Batter. Sounds scrumptious, right?
Well, even in the world of candy, things aren't always what they seem. The yummy-sounding names were only names. Each candy -- or should I say, each flavorless little tablet --tasted like -- NOTHING. Lightly sweetened nothing. I finished the bag thinking maybe they'd improve. Nope. They still tasted like nothing mixed with a few grains of sugar. It was like eating sweetened wax. Where was Quality Control when these insipid little circles were being produced?
This pathetic excuse for a candy earns the first NFC rating since I started this blog.

This candy has been rated NFC (Not Fit for Consumption)