The Good: Tastes great!
The Bad: Somewhat expensive, Environmental impact of the packaging
The Basics: Ghirardelli Peppermint hot cocoa is pretty wonderful for anyone who likes a decent mint hot chocolate beverage!
In visiting my wife over this summer while she has been working over five hundred miles away, she has had a tendency to surprise me with little gifts for when I go home. This last trip, she picked me up some Ghirardelli Peppermint Hot Cocoa. I was surprised to discover this was only the second Ghirardelli hot chocolate I had reviewed, after the Chocolate Mocha (reviewed here!) she picked me up last year! She really does know me; this cocoa was delightful, even if it was not truly extraordinary.
In other words, the Ghirardelli Peppermint Hot Cocoa is good, but not (honestly) great and as one who truly loves mint, it is tough for me to not endorse this more enthusiastically.
Basics
The Peppermint hot cocoa mix is part of the Ghirardelli premium hot cocoa line. The mix comes in a 16 oz. cardboard and metal canister. Each canister has about a dozen servings and these bear a relatively high price in the five dollar range. For a single mug of cocoa, this is expensive when compared to other make-at-home products, especially when one factors in the additional cost of the milk.
Ease Of Preparation
The Ghirardelli Peppermint hot cocoa mix is exceptionally easy to make. It comes in a 1.5 oz. package and requires only 8 oz. of near-boiling water to make it into a hot beverage. There is no fuss with this hot beverage each packet is a single serving. Simply open the envelope, dump the powder in a cup and pour in 8 oz. of hot water!
Taste
The aroma of Ghirardelli's Peppermint hot cocoa is strongly of chocolate. Oddly for a drink that does have a decent mint flavor, the scent is really only that of chocolate. There is no mint in the bouquet.
As for the flavor, the initial taste is lightly chocolate – very sweet and milk chocolate flavored – but then it quickly opens up the nose and throat with a potent peppermint flavor. The mint flavor is strong enough to clearly embody peppermint (not spearmint or any other mint), but not enough of a blast to overwhelm the chocolate flavor.
Nutrition
Ghirardelli Peppermint premium hot cocoa mix is hot cocoa mix and therefore not the most nutritious thing in the world and the ingredients are almost indecipherable near the end of the ingredients list. The primary ingredients are sugar, creamer, and cocoa. There is a milk derivative in this hot cocoa powder, so it is not Vegan compliant.
What is not a mystery is how high this product is in sugars. In each cup of Peppermint, there are 170 calories, forty-five of which are from fat. There are three and a half grams of saturated fat, but no trans fats! There is no cholesterol in the Peppermint Cocoa, a consumer gets 6% of their recommended daily allowance of sodium out of a single serving of this beverage! There is a little protein, but not enough to live off this. In other words, this product is not a nutritious food product.
This product contains soy lecithin and wheat, so one must assume it is not gluten-free. It is, however, marked as Kosher.
Storage/Cleanup
So long as one leaves the Ghirardelli Peppermint Premium Hot Cocoa powder in its envelope, it ought to stay usable. I could find no expiration date on my envelopes.
Cleanup is very easy as well. If the product spills while dumping it into the mug, simply wipe it up or brush it up with a dry or damp cloth. If it has already been reconstituted with milk into hot cocoa, simply wipe it up. Light fabrics are likely to stain if this gets on them, in which case consult your fabric care guide to clean it up.
Overall
Ghirardelli Peppermint hot cocoa is good and nicely minty, but not exceptional, as I hoped it might be. But for those who want a lightly minty chocolate beverage, it certainly fits the bill.
For other hot chocolate drinks, please visit my reviews of:
Land O' Lakes Raspberry And Chocolate Cocoa
Butterfinger Hot Cocoa
Forrelli Rich Chocolate Hot Cocoa
6/10
For other food or drink reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!
© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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