The Good: Great chocolate flavor, Good ingredients
The Bad: Expensive, Malted milk center is virtually flavorless, No real nutritional benefits
The Basics: Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls a good example of how Jelly Belly might be better off sticking to the jelly bean market as they do not quite land on all fronts with this chocolate confection.
On my recent trip East, I stopped at one of my favorite little shops. In Erie, Pennsylvania, right off Interstate 90, there is a whole store dedicated to Jelly Belly products. I made a point of stopping because, living in the middle of nowhere as I now do, I do not have access to the latest Jelly Belly jelly beans or other products. I was super excited when I stopped to find a new (to me) flavor of Jelly Belly jelly bean in the form of Pancakes & Maple Syrup (reviewed here!), but I also found myself pleasantly intrigued by the Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls. I'm a big fan of malted milk balls, so seeing that Jelly Belly now made Milk Chocolate Malt Balls made me excited to try them.
And the Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls are all right. But, for the price, Jelly Belly produced a far better chocolate than a malted milk ball; the center is virtually flavorless, while the outer coating is extraordinary. That made the confection a much tougher sell with me than I anticipated when I excitedly purchased the bag.
Basics
Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls are 3/4" - 1" oblate spheroids made of chocolate and semisolid malted milk filling. Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls come in a 2.3 oz. bag or a full bulk 10 pound box. Trying them for the first time, I went with the smaller bag, despite the environmental implications of it. In my 2.3 oz. bag, I found exactly 10 Milk Chocolate Malt balls.
For those who have never had a Milk Chocolate Malt ball before, Milk Chocolate Malt balls are a firm sugary sphere that is coated in chocolate. Moisture - or saliva - dissolves the ball within the coating, so many people who savor Milk Chocolate Malt balls either let the coating melt away in their mouth and let the malted milk center dissolve without chewing.
The coating of the Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt ball is an impressively hard milk chocolate. The coating is strong enough to prevent the candy from getting crushed and soft enough to melt easily in the mouth. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the coating on the Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls was of a quality consistent with Jelly Belly products - like the Dips line - not at all waxy!
Ease Of Preparation
Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls are candy so preparation is pretty much limited to opening the bag and popping candy into one's mouth. Do not try to swallow all of the Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls whole and you'll be fine!
Taste
Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt Balls smell delightfully chocolate. Smelling the real chocolate aroma that came the moment that the bag was opened was enough to get me actually excited about the Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls.
In the mouth, the Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls are solidly chocolate flavored. The chocolate flavor is delightfully dark and real, not at all waxy or generically sugary. The strong chocolate flavor entirely overwhelms the flavor from the center. The malted milk center is not sweet or flavorful enough to overcome the flavor of the chocolate coating. Instead, is manifests more as a texture than an actual flavor.
The Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls leave a strong chocolate aftertaste in the mouth after the last of them is consumed.
Nutrition
Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls are candy, so one ought not to be living off them. The Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls are made primarily of sugar, chocolate liquor, and milk. Most of the ingredients in the Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls are recognizable, which is a nice change from some of the competitors' products!
Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls have a whopping 310 calories per serving, 150 of which are from fat. That said, the full 2.3 oz. bag is a pretty big serving, so it is easier than one might expect to eat fewer and save on the calories and fat intake. The 16 grams of fat represent 25% of the recommended daily value of fat and they have 50% of the daily recommended saturated fat. There are only 65 milligrams of sodium in a serving and 43 grams of sugars. There are, however, 4 grams of protein in a serving of Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls and it is interesting to note that one gets 10% of their calcium by eating these.
These are not overly nutritious, but the Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls could be far worse on the ingredient and nutrition fronts. Because they contain milk and whey, they are not Vegan-compliant. They are not marked as gluten-free or Kosher, either.
Storage/Clean-up
The Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls store just fine in their bag and as long as they are kept in a cool, dry (preferably dark) place they ought to last for quite some time (I've never had a Milk Chocolate Malt ball of any type go bad). The bag I picked up last month would have expired on February 16, 2018 had I not consumed them well before then!
Because the coating is made of actual milk chocolate, these malted milk balls will melt and have the potential to stain - especially light colored fabrics. If it becomes an issue, consult a fabric cleaning guide. Chocolate stains might be a problem, but it only becomes an issue if it gets melted.
Overall
Jelly Belly Milk Chocolate Malt balls might please those just looking for an intriguing chocolate, but for those who love malted milk balls, this is not nearly as balanced on the flavor and nutrition fronts as one might hope for.
For other Jelly Belly candies, please be sure to visit my reviews of:
Prehistoric Eggs
Sunkist Fruit Gems
Hot Chocolate Jelly Beans
4.5/10
For other food or drink reviews, please visit my Food Review Index Page for an organized listing!
© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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