Candy Bar Lab

Here in the US, Kit Kat bars are manufactured by Hershey’s. In the UK (which is where this bar is from), Nestlé makes them. This is a little red flag for me because I tend not to like Nestlé chocolate. On the other hand, I like plain Kit Kat bars and this version has peanut butter. So in theory, I should really like this candy bar.

Structure
The center consists of creme filled wafer covered on the top and one side with creamy peanut butter - all contained within molded milk chocolate.

Texture
The chocolate covering is quite thick, which is par for the course with these large single stick Kit Kat bars. Surprisingly, the wafer wasn’t the same as what I’m used to in American Kit Kats. It was lighter and not as crispy as I expected. The peanut butter is smooth and creamy, which works well with the wafer center. All together, not a bad texture; certainly better than it’s American caramel cousin.

Taste
The chocolate is a bit bland (I mentioned earlier that I’m not a huge fan of Nestlé chocolate) and the wafers don’t add any flavor. That leaves the peanut butter to save the day. Unfortunately, it does not. I don’t know how to accurately describe it, but the peanut butter tasted funny. Maybe it was too much artificial vanilla or maybe just too much sugar. Whatever it was, it just didn’t taste quite right to me.

Verdict
This was an acceptable candy bar (it’s chocolate and peanut butter after all), but I was underwhelmed. There are a lot Reese’s products I would reach for before this one.

In the interest of full-disclosure, I have to admit that I generally don’t like white chocolate. Since it doesn’t have any chocolate liquor nor cocoa solids, it’s not even really chocolate. On the flip side, I absolutely love Oreo cookies. They’re easily my favorite mass-produced cookie.

Before I try out a new product, I usually guess whether or not I’ll like it. Sometimes I’m surprised. Sometimes the candy bar is exactly as expected; both good and bad. With the Cookies n’ Cream, I earnestly didn’t know what to guess.

Structure
A solid, 12 segment molded bar of white chocolate with little balls of chocolate cookies mixed throughout.

Texture
The white chocolate is very soft; it’s almost not even like chocolate. There’s absolutely no snap when you bite in. Normally, this would be a deal breaker. However, I enjoyed the contrast between the crispy cookie bits and the soft chocolate.

Taste
Again, the white chocolate fails if you apply traditional chocolate rules. It’s very sugary and tastes like artificial vanilla. But, it kind of evokes an Oreo center. The cookie pieces do have some chocolate flavor, but they’re a bit overpowered by the white chocolate.

Verdict
The chocolate in this bar feels and tastes cheap. Any self-respecting chocolate connoisseur would probably thumb their nose at this product. But I’m going to go against traditional wisdom and recommend this product for those who like Oreo cookies. Though, if you’re looking to buy a product called “Cookies ‘n’ Cream”, I’d assume you already are and there’s a good chance you’ll also like this product.

I’ve been eying Chuao (pronounced chew-WOW) candy bars at my local grocery store for a few months now. Of their three products, the packaging for this Spicy Maya bar was the one that immediately jumped out at me. The bold, white lettering on a red, metallic wrapper is very appealing. What’s not so appealing is the $6.29 price tag. But, I felt compelled to try one out for myself because I already know I’m a fan of spicy chocolate products.

Structure
A solid, molded rectangle of dark chocolate with 24 sections. The cayenne pepper, pasilla chile, and cinnamon are distributed throughout the chocolate.

Texture
This is a well tempered bar that produces a nice snap when you bite it. The only textural difference between this and pure chocolate is the bit of crunchiness from the ground spices, which I liked.

Taste
At first, I only tasted dark chocolate, which was by itself, quite good. A couple seconds after swallowing my first bite though, I felt some heat in the back of my throat. After a few more bites, the spicy, peppery taste became more noticeable. Thankfully, it never became overwhelming. All the flavors work well together and I found myself craving more each time I tried to put the bar down.

Verdict
This is a quality product with a unique flavor combination and excellent packaging. I shared it with six friends and it was unanimously liked. Having said that, I will admit that most people probably won’t want to spend more than $6.00 for a product like this. It’s more of a one-time indulgence than the kind of treat the average person will buy often.