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.

I generally poke around for some interesting facts about the candy bars I review before I post. Sometimes, like in this case, I find a useless factoid worth sharing. Did you know that back in the 80’s, the former manufacturer put actual nickels in the PayDay packaging? I suppose this was a play on the term “PayDay”. Not surprisingly, it only last a few years. I doubt it made a difference to buyers and seems like it would have been more of a pain than it was worth.

Structure
A caramel center covered in peanuts.

Texture
On paper, it should work. A soft center covered in crunchy peanuts. But it fails because there aren’t enough peanuts and the ones on there are a bit soft. Peanuts are supposed to be REALLY crunchy and these just aren’t. Worse, the center feels more like fudge than caramel - it’s a bit grainy.

Taste
PayDay successfully combines sweet and salty, which to me is one of the most satisfying combinations imaginable. The peanuts obviously bring some flavor to the mix as well. Again, the caramel center is disappointing. It doesn’t have any actual caramelized sugar notes. It does have a lot of artificial vanilla flavor, which isn’t good.

Verdict
Conceptually, PayDay should be a great bar. It’s obviously a classic that’s been around forever and to many, I’m sure it’s a favorite. However, it needs fresher, higher quality peanuts and a smoother center with less artificial vanilla taste.

In the UK and the Middle East, the Dove brand of chocolate is known as Galaxy. This particular product from them seems very similar to a Flake and possibly an Aero. It seems that outside the US, people like air in their chocolate. I’ve never seen anything like this regularly sold over here in the States. I previously enjoyed Mint Aero, so let’s give this one a try.

Structure
The whole bar is very long and thin. The center consists of thin layers of milk chocolate, separated by pockets of air. The layered centered is enrobed with a thin shell of milk chocolate.

Texture
It crumbles a lot. I had to put my hand below my mouth to keep the small pieces from falling on the floor. The scraps of chocolate do melt quicker in your mouth than a big hunk of solid chocolate would. Overall, it’s very light and delicate.

Taste
It tastes like milk chocolate. In terms of quality, I would put it a half-notch above Hershey’s. Dove (i.e. Galaxy) is marketed as a high-end chocolate, but I’m not convinced it’s all that good.

Verdict
There’s nothing particularly offensive about this bar. It’s just boring. I like plain chocolate bars, but I usually reach for something higher in quality if that’s what I’m going for. If the only distinguishing feature of the bar is that it has a unique texture, it should improve upon the regular feel of chocolate. I’m not sure that Ripple accomplishes this.