Without Pretense, Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao Chocolate Bars Thrill Chocolate Lovers!

The Good: Great dark chocolate flavor, Wonderful ingredients, Good corporate ethics
The Bad: Nothing!
The Basics: Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars are perfect!


Every now and then, I have a concern that I am unable to enjoy the simple things in life and that my high standards prevent me from truly accepting simple things for what they are. Sometimes, simple things completely live up to all they promise to be. This concern came up as I sat down to review the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars. I was concerned that I would be too harsh on such a simple candy bar, but the truth is, even with the higher initial cost of the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars, there were nothing wrong and everything right with them!

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars are perfect for anyone who loves dark chocolate!

Basics

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars are one and three-eights inch by one and five-eighths inch rectangles of chocolate that are about three-sixteenths of an inch thick and connected side by side and in rows, to form a bar of ten segments. Each bar comes unified in a foil wrapper. The foil-wrapped chocolate bar is sealed in a cardboard package.

Each chocolate bar is sold in a way that it is easy to segment and control portions. In this form, the 3.17 oz. bar, the chocolate bar represents two and a half servings. Each bar appears solid and smooth on the bottom and is stamped with the Green & Black's logo.

Ease Of Preparation

These are candy, so preparing them is as simple as opening the cardboard and then opening the foil wrapper from around the actual chocolate. There is no trick to eating Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars.

Taste

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao bars are quite aromatic. The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao bars smell delightfully of dark chocolate and the scent is clear and inviting.

In the mouth, the Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao bars are rich and chocolatey. The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars have a flavorful and slightly dry flavor. The impressive aspect of the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao bars is that they are not at all bitter, but not so sweet that they lose any of their dark chocolate, cacao flavor!

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bar have virtually no aftertaste to them, which is a surprise given how impressive the rich chocolate flavor of the bars actually are.

Nutrition

These are candy, so health aspects are seldom one's top concern. That said, the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars are made of pretty great ingredients, justifying their expense. The sole ingredient is bittersweet chocolate. There is nothing unpronounceable in these candy bars.

A serving from the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars is considered four rectangles from the overall bar, which is a somewhat silly serving size for a bar that is segmented into ten pieces (as that means one whole bar is two and a half servings). From four squares, one takes in 210 calories, including 160 calories of fat. There is no sodium and 2 grams protein in each serving. There is a decent amount Iron (25% RDA) in each bar, but no significant quantities of any other major nutrients. The biggest nutritional detraction in the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao are the 19 grams of fat per serving and the 55% RDA of saturated fat that comes from the 11 grams of saturated fat!

These are not Vegan-compliant, nor are they recommended for anyone with a nut allergy as they are manufactured on equipment that processes tree nuts and milk. They are not specifically marked as kosher (I'm not sure why), but Green & Black's uses sustainable cocoa farming for their cocoa, which is nice!

Storage/Clean-up

The bars of these Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars remain fresh for quite some time. The bars we picked up two months ago had an expiration date of April 2, 2018, though they will certainly not last that long as I will have consumed mine well before then! One assumes that if they are kept in a cool, dry environment they will not melt or go bad. It is hard to imagine just what it would take for these to go bad outside melting and refreezing.

As for cleanup, just throw the packaging away when you're done! These chocolate bars are made such that there is no real cleanup needed, unless one is eating them in a hot environment. Under that circumstance, it is likely one would need to wash their hands, though these bars do not melt as easily as cheap or milk chocolates. When this chocolate melts into most fabrics, it will stain.

Overall

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao chocolate bars are rich and flavorful without betraying the dark chocolate nature of the bars.

For Green & Black's chocolate reviews, please check out:
Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond Bar
Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut Chocolate Bars
Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars

10/10

For other chocolate reviews, please visit my Chocolate Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond Chocolate Bars Are A Tough Sell!

The Good: Good dark chocolate flavor, Decent ingredients, Good corporate ethics
The Bad: Expensive, High fat, Nuts are not overly flavorful
The Basics: Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bars left me unimpressed as they have good ingredients, but a higher fat content without an accompanying flavor benefit to them.


Green & Blacks seems to be expanding in my local market and that has afforded me the opportunity to review much of its up-scale candy bar line. Tonight, I broke open my Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bar. The truth is, I'm not big on candy bars with nuts and the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond bar does not have a very strong nut flavor to it - save as an aftertaste. The dark chocolate in these bars is appropriately dark and bitter, but it does not blend overly well with the nuts. The result is a high-fat chocolate bar that is more bitter than pleasant.

Basics

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bars are one and three-eights inch by one and five-eighths inch rectangles of chocolate that are about three-sixteenths of an inch thick and connected side by side and in rows, to form a bar of ten segments. Each bar comes unified in a foil wrapper. The foil-wrapped chocolate bar is sealed in a cardboard package.

Each chocolate bar is sold in a way that it is easy to segment and control portions. In this form, the 3.17 oz. bar, the chocolate bar represents two and a half servings. Each bar appears solid (the Roasted Almond flakes are embedded, as opposed to acting like a filling) and is stamped with the Green & Black's logo.

Ease Of Preparation

These are candy, so preparing them is as simple as opening the cardboard and then opening the foil wrapper from around the actual chocolate. There is no trick to eating Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bars.

Taste

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond bars are easily one of the most aromatic candy bars I have yet tried. The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond bars smell strongly of dark chocolate and that is very inviting to people like me who love dark chocolate!

On the tongue, the Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond bars are very dry. The dark chocolate flavor is potent and unrelenting. The almonds in the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bars only make the bars more dry tasting. The dryness does not have a salty component to it; this is a bitter, dry candy bar where the nuts manifest as a crispy texture in it. This is a fairly basic candy bar on the flavor front.

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bar has a very strong dry, bitter chocolate and almond aftertaste that endures in the mouth for several minutes after the last of it is consumed.

Nutrition

These are candy, so health aspects are seldom one's top concern. That said, the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bars are made of generally good ingredients, justifying their expense. The primary ingredients are bittersweet chocolate and organic roasted almonds. There is nothing unpronounceable in these candies.

A serving from the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bars is considered four rectangles from the overall bar, which is a somewhat silly serving size for a bar that is segmented into ten pieces (as that means one whole bar is two and a half servings). From four squares, one takes in 210 calories, including 170 calories of fat. There is no sodium and 3 grams protein in each serving. There is a decent amount Iron (25% RDA) in each bar, but no significant quantities of any other major nutrients. The biggest nutritional detraction in the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond are the 19 grams of fat per serving and the 50% RDA of saturated fat that comes from the 10 grams of saturated fat!

These are not Vegan-compliant, nor are they recommended for anyone with a nut allergy as the contain almonds and are manufactured on equipment that processes tree nuts and milk. They are not specifically marked as kosher (I'm not sure why), but Green & Black's uses sustainable cocoa farming for their cocoa, which is nice!

Storage/Clean-up

The bars of these Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bars remain fresh for quite some time. The bars we picked up a month and a half ago had an expiration date of October 7, 2017, though they will certainly not last that long as I will have consumed mine well before then! One assumes that if they are kept in a cool, dry environment they will not melt or go bad. It is hard to imagine just what it would take for these to go bad outside melting and refreezing.

As for cleanup, just throw the packaging away when you're done! These chocolate bars are made such that there is no real cleanup needed, unless one is eating them in a hot environment. Under that circumstance, it is likely one would need to wash their hands, though these bars do not melt as easily as cheap or milk chocolates. When this chocolate melts into most fabrics, it will stain.

Overall

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Roasted Almond chocolate bars are bitter and fatty and for the price, I hoped for more roasted nut flavor to them.

For Green & Black's chocolate reviews, please check out:
Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel Bar
Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut Chocolate Bars
Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars

4/10

For other chocolate reviews, please visit my Chocolate Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Outside The Aftertaste, Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel Chocolate Bars Delight!

The Good: Good general flavor, Decent ingredients, Good corporate ethics
The Bad: Expensive, Sour aftertaste
The Basics: Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars are enjoyable, crispy, salty chocolate treats reminiscent of chocolate toffee bars, more than being an amazing candy on their own.


I review a lot of chocolate. As such, it is natural for me to make comparisons when they are warranted. With Green & Black's chocolate bars, I've found some great flavors and some that are more like higher-quality versions of more common chocolates. The Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars absolutely fall into the latter category. Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars are like more expensive and higher-quality versions of Heath bars . . . which is not bad, but they are much more like toffee than what one expects from a chocolate and caramel bar.

Basics

Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars are one and three-eights inch by one and five-eighths inch rectangles of chocolate that are about three-sixteenths of an inch thick and connected side by side and in rows, to form a bar of ten segments. Each bar comes unified in a foil wrapper. The foil-wrapped chocolate bar is sealed in a cardboard package.

Each chocolate bar is sold in a way that it is easy to segment and control portions. In this form, the 3.17 oz. bar, the chocolate bar represents two and a half servings. Each bar appears solid (the Caramel flakes and sea salt are embedded, as opposed to acting like a filling) and is stamped with the Green & Black's logo.

Ease Of Preparation

These are candy, so preparing them is as simple as opening the cardboard and then opening the foil wrapper from around the actual chocolate. There is no trick to eating Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars.

Taste

The Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel bars have a strong aroma that is salty and buttery, having a scent reminiscent of toffee. The blending of chocolate and toffee aromas is very inviting for anyone who loves either of those things.

On the flavor front, the Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel bars are sweet and buttery, possessing a flavor like toffee and an oddly sour hint in the chocolate. The blending of milk chocolate and caramel - which is appropriately salty and slightly crispy, much like toffee - ends up having a flavor that is both sweet and bitter, buttery and chocolatey, making one think they are consuming something analogous to a high-end Heath bar. The overall flavor is pleasant, but less distinctive than one might hope for.

The Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bar have an oddly sour aftertaste that lasts in the mouth for several minutes after the last of the bar is consumed.

Nutrition

These are candy, so they are not overly nutritious. That said, the Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars are made of generally good ingredients, justifying their expense. The primary ingredients are milk chocolate, organic raw cane sugar and organic glucose syrup. There is nothing unpronounceable in these candies.

A serving from the Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars is considered four rectangles from the overall bar, which is a somewhat silly serving size for a bar that is segmented into ten pieces (as that means one whole bar is two and a half servings). From four squares, one takes in 200 calories, including 110 calories of fat. There are 100 mg sodium and 3 grams protein in each serving. There is a smattering of Iron (4% RDA) and Calcium (8% RDA) in each bar, but no significant quantities of any other major nutrients. The biggest nutritional detraction in the Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel are the 12 grams of fat per serving and the 35% RDA of saturated fat that comes from the 7 grams of saturated fat!

These are not Vegan-compliant, nor are they recommended for anyone with a nut allergy as they are manufactured on machinery that processes tree nuts. They are not specifically marked as kosher (I'm not sure why), but Green & Black's uses sustainable cocoa farming for their cocoa, which is nice! They do have an allergy warning for wheat, soy and milk.

Storage/Clean-up

The bars of these Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars remain fresh for quite some time. The bars we picked up last month had an expiration date of September 22, 2017, though they will certainly not last that long as I will have consumed mine well before then! One assumes that if they are kept in a cool, dry environment they will not melt or go bad. It is hard to imagine just what it would take for these to go bad outside melting and refreezing.

As for cleanup, just throw the packaging away when you're done! These chocolate bars are made such that there is no real cleanup needed, unless one is eating them in a hot environment. Under that circumstance, it is likely one would need to wash their hands, though these bars do not melt as easily as cheap milk chocolates. When this chocolate melts into most fabrics, it will stain.

Overall

Intriguing, but not distinct and unique, Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars are worth trying for anyone who loves chocolate toffee bars.

For other Green & Black's chocolate reviews, please check out:
Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bar
Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bar
Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars

7.5/10

For other chocolate reviews, please visit my Chocolate Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Marginally Disappointing, Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel Chocolate Bars Do Not Live Up!

The Good: Good flavor, Decent ingredients, Good corporate ethics
The Bad: Expensive, Not at all indicative of a true caramel flavor
The Basics: Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars are more like chocolate toffee bars than salted caramel bars.


I have been enthusiastically going through a little slipcase of chocolate bars I recently got in. The packaging for the Green & Black's chocolate bars instantly intrigued me when I saw them at my local discount store. Tonight, I decided to take a break from my work to enjoy the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars from the slipcase of chocolate I bought. Unfortunately, the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars did not quite live up to my expectations or hopes for what a good caramel chocolate bar could be . . . especially for one with dark chocolate.

Basics

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars are one and three-eights inch by one and five-eighths inch rectangles of chocolate that are about three-sixteenths of an inch thick and connected side by side and in rows, to form a bar of ten segments. Each bar comes unified in a foil wrapper. The foil-wrapped chocolate bar is sealed in a cardboard package.

Each chocolate bar is sold in a way that it is easy to segment and control portions. In this form, the 3.17 oz. bar, the chocolate bar represents two and a half servings. Each bar appears solid (the Caramel flakes and sea salt are embedded, as opposed to acting like a filling) and is stamped with the Green & Black's logo.

Ease Of Preparation

These are candy, so preparing them is as simple as opening the cardboard and then opening the foil wrapper from around the actual chocolate. There is no trick to eating Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars.

Taste

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel bars have a strong cocoa aroma. The dark chocolate scent is pleasant and inviting for anyone who loves dark chocolate. The aromatic nature of the dark chocolate is uncommon, but very basic.

In the mouth, the Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel bars are dry, with little salty flecks. The sea salt in the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars manifests more as a crispy texture than an actual flavor. There is almost no hint of caramel in the flavor palate of these candy bars.

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bar have a strong, dry aftertaste that lasts in the mouth for several minutes after the last of the bar is consumed.

Nutrition

These are candy, so they are not overly nutritious. That said, the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars are made of generally good ingredients, justifying their expense. The primary ingredients are bittersweet chocolate, organic raw cane sugar and organic glucose syrup. There is nothing unpronounceable in these candies.

A serving from the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars is considered four rectangles from the overall bar, which is a somewhat silly serving size for a bar that is segmented into ten pieces (as that means one whole bar is two and a half servings). From four squares, one takes in 210 calories, including 150 calories of fat. There are 70 mg sodium and 2 grams protein in each serving. There is a decent amount Iron (20% RDA) in each bar, but no significant quantities of any other major nutrients. The biggest nutritional detraction in the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel are the 17 grams of fat per serving and the 50% RDA of saturated fat that comes from the 10 grams of saturated fat!

These are not Vegan-compliant, nor are they recommended for anyone with a nut allergy as they are manufactured on machinery that processes tree nuts. They are not specifically marked as kosher (I'm not sure why), but Green & Black's uses sustainable cocoa farming for their cocoa, which is nice! They do have an allergy warning for wheat and milk.

Storage/Clean-up

The bars of these Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars remain fresh for quite some time. The bars we picked up last month had an expiration date of October 10, 2017, though they will certainly not last that long as I will have consumed mine well before then! One assumes that if they are kept in a cool, dry environment they will not melt or go bad. It is hard to imagine just what it would take for these to go bad outside melting and refreezing.

As for cleanup, just throw the packaging away when you're done! These chocolate bars are made such that there is no real cleanup needed, unless one is eating them in a hot environment. Under that circumstance, it is likely one would need to wash their hands, though these bars do not melt as easily as cheap or milk chocolates. When this chocolate melts into most fabrics, it will stain.

Overall

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel chocolate bars are interesting, but lack a strong caramel flavor to sell the promise of the bars

For other Green & Black's chocolate reviews, please check out:
Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bar
Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bar
Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars

4/10

For other chocolate reviews, please visit my Chocolate Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt Chocolate Bars: An Average Bar At An Expensive Price!

The Good: Good flavor, Good ingredients, Decent corporate ethics
The Bad: Expensive for the quality, Sea salt is not overly evident
The Basics: Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars are decent, but could be so much more for the price.


Recently, I've been getting into Green & Black's chocolate bars. I purchased a lot of them at my local discount store and I have been enthusiastically trying each one. Tonight, I'm reviewing my first milk chocolate bar from the brand! Tonight, it's Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars for dessert and they are all right. The thing is, for the price, "all right" is not great and I was hoping for a bit more from the Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bar.

Basics

Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars are one and three-eights inch by one and five-eighths inch rectangles of chocolate that are about three-sixteenths of an inch thick and connected side by side and in rows, to form a bar of nine segments (eight squares and one half-serving rectangle in the middle of the bar). Each bar comes unified in a foil wrapper. The foil-wrapped chocolate bar is sealed in a cardboard package.

Each chocolate bar is sold in a way that it is easy to segment and control portions. In this form, the 3.17 oz. bar, the chocolate bar represents two and a half servings. Each bar appears solid (the sea salt flakes are embedded, as opposed to acting like a filling) and is stamped with the Green & Black's logo.

Ease Of Preparation

These are candy, so preparing them is as simple as opening the cardboard and then opening the foil wrapper from around the actual chocolate. There is challenge to eating Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars.

Taste

The Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt bars feature a fairly potent milk chocolate scent. The aroma is distinct, much like sweet cocoa. There is no hint of sea salt in the bouquet.

In the mouth, the Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt bars are very sweet. The milk chocolate flavor is sweet and chocolatey, with a creamy texture and taste to it. There is nothing waxy to the chocolate's texture; this is a quality chocolate flavor. The sea salt flavor comes into the flavor palate as more of an aftertaste; the salt flavor does not manifest in a forthright manner. In fact, there was not a very strong sea salt flavor at any point in the bar I tried.

The Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bar has a mild sweet and salty aftertaste to it. The Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bar has a slightly dry aftertaste only for a few seconds on the bites that contain no sea salt, which, ironically, makes the chocolate bar taste more like high-quality chocolate.

Nutrition

These are candy, so they are not especially healthy, but the Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars are not anywhere near as bad as they could be. The primary ingredients are milk chocolate and sea salt. There is nothing unpronounceable in these candies and all of the ingredients could be readily identified by me; this seems to be a delightfully simple chocolate bar.

A serving from the Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars is considered four rectangles from the overall bar, which is a ridiculous serving size for a bar that is segmented into ten pieces. From four squares, one takes in 200 calories, including 120 calories of fat. There are 100 mg of sodium and 4 grams protein, but almost no vitamins or minerals in these chocolate bars. The biggest nutritional detraction in the Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt are the 13 grams of fat per serving and the 40% RDA of saturated fat that comes from the 8 grams of saturated fat!

These are not Vegan-compliant, nor are they recommended for anyone with a nut allergy as they are manufactured on equipment that processes milk, soy and tree nuts. They are not specifically marked as kosher (I'm not sure why), but Green & Black's uses sustainable cocoa farming for their cocoa, which is pretty cool!

Storage/Clean-up

The bars of these Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars remain fresh for quite some time. The bars we picked up last month had an expiration date of September 19, 2017, though they will certainly not last that long as I will have consumed mine well before then! One assumes that if they are kept in a cool, dry environment they will not melt or go bad. It is hard to imagine just what it would take for these to go bad outside melting and refreezing.

As for cleanup, just throw the packaging away in socially appropriate places, as opposed to litter and you're done! Outside that, there is no real cleanup needed, unless one is eating them in a hot environment. In that case, it is likely one would need to wash their hands, though these bars do not melt as easily as less-expensive chocolates. When this chocolate melts into most fabrics, it will stain.

Overall

Green & Black's Pure Milk Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars are objectively average; they aren't bad, they aren't fabulous, they have great ingredients, but are more expensive than normal. The net result is average.

For other chocolate reviews, please check out:
Wild Ophelia District 6 Transportation The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Crunchy Runner Peanuts In Peanut Butter And Milk Chocolate Bar
Trader Joe's Marbled Mint Crunch Chocolate Bar
Russell Stover Freeze-It Vanilla Bean In Dark Chocolate

5/10

For other chocolate reviews, please visit my Chocolate Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Interesting And Enjoyable, Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut Bars Intrigue!

The Good: Good flavor, Decent ingredients, Good corporate ethics
The Bad: Expensive, Could use a bit more raspberry
The Basics: Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bars are a good rendition of dark chocolate, a fair incorporation of raspberries and an unimpressive use of hazelnuts in one very good and expensive candy bar.


When I try a new (to me) product or product line, one of the true testaments to its quality is how quickly I return to the brand to try and review more of their products. I recently experienced Green & Black's chocolates for the first time with their Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars (reviewed here!) and the experience was enough to encourage me to try more. Today, I'm reviewing the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut candy bars and they are such a good use of the promised elements that I did not even mind the nuts in the chocolate bar (which, admittedly, are not something I usually seek).

Basics

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bars are one and three-eights inch by one and five-eighths inch rectangles of chocolate that are about three-sixteenths of an inch thick and connected side by side and in rows, to form a bar of ten segments. Each bar comes unified in a foil wrapper. The foil-wrapped chocolate bar is sealed in a cardboard package.

Each chocolate bar is sold in a way that it is easy to segment and control portions. In this form, the 3.17 oz. bar, the chocolate bar represents two and a half servings. Each bar appears solid (the Raspberry & Hazelnut flakes are embedded, as opposed to acting like a filling) and is stamped with the Green & Black's logo.

Ease Of Preparation

These are candy, so preparing them is as simple as opening the cardboard and then opening the foil wrapper from around the actual chocolate. There is no trick to eating Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bars.

Taste

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut bars have a strong cocoa aroma. The dark chocolate scent is pleasant and inviting for anyone who loves dark chocolate. The aromatic nature of the dark chocolate is uncommon, but quite nice and it is supplemented by a very faint raspberry scent that is something akin to an afterscent at the back of the chocolate bar's bouquet.

In the mouth, the Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut bars are sweet and dry; the cocoa flavor is distinct and flavorful. The moment one bites into the Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut bar - one one lets the chocolate melt in one's mouth - the raspberries in the bars assert themselves with a sweet and sour flavor that is easily recognizable as raspberry. The hazelnuts add nothing distinct to the flavor, but they give each Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut bar a crunchy texture.

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bar has a fairly mild chocolate aftertaste that does not endure long in the mouth after the last of the chocolate is consumed.

Nutrition

These are candy, so health aspects are seldom one's top concern. That said, the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bars are made of generally good ingredients, justifying their expense. The primary ingredients are bittersweet chocolate, roasted hazelnuts and sugar. There is nothing unpronounceable in these candies and they do include actual (freeze-dried) raspberries.

A serving from the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bars is considered four rectangles from the overall bar, which is a somewhat silly serving size for a bar that is segmented into ten pieces (as that means one whole bar is two and a half servings). From four squares, one takes in 210 calories, including 150 calories of fat. There is no sodium and 2 grams protein in each serving. There is a decent amount Iron (25% RDA) in each bar, but no significant quantities of any other major nutrients. The biggest nutritional detraction in the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut are the 18 grams of fat per serving and the 50% RDA of saturated fat that comes from the 10 grams of saturated fat!

These are not Vegan-compliant, nor are they recommended for anyone with a nut allergy as the contain filberts. They are not specifically marked as kosher (I'm not sure why), but Green & Black's uses sustainable cocoa farming for their cocoa, which is nice!

Storage/Clean-up

The bars of these Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bars remain fresh for quite some time. The bars we picked up two weeks ago had an expiration date of October 17, 2017, though they will certainly not last that long as I will have consumed mine well before then! One assumes that if they are kept in a cool, dry environment they will not melt or go bad. It is hard to imagine just what it would take for these to go bad outside melting and refreezing.

As for cleanup, just throw the packaging away when you're done! These chocolate bars are made such that there is no real cleanup needed, unless one is eating them in a hot environment. Under that circumstance, it is likely one would need to wash their hands, though these bars do not melt as easily as cheap or milk chocolates. When this chocolate melts into most fabrics, it will stain.

Overall

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Raspberry & Hazelnut chocolate bars are a good blend of fruit and chocolate and while the nuts make an interesting texture, their lack of addition to the flavor made it a pricey gimmick for an otherwise delightful candy bar.

For other chocolate reviews, please check out:
Chuao Chocolatier Maple Bacon Bar
Godiva Chocolate Lava Cake Dessert Truffles
Lindt Dark Pineapple chocolate bars

7/10

For other chocolate reviews, please visit my Chocolate Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Starting Near The Top, Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Chocolate Bars Delight!

The Good: Good flavor, Exceptional ingredients, Good corporate ethics
The Bad: Expensive, Sea salt flavor takes a little longer to manifest than I'd like.
The Basics: My first experience with Green & Black's is overwhelmingly positive with their Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars, which are quite good!


I went on a trip recently and, as is the habit when I return, my wife and I went out shopping almost immediately upon my return. It's a weird pattern, but shopping together is one of the ways we bond and reconnect after I have been away and it helps that there is a local chain of discount stores we like with an ever-changing inventory. So, when we were out at one of those stores and she spied a pretty cool boxed set of a new-to-me premium chocolate, she put it in our cart and got it for me as a little "welcome home" gift. Last night, we broke into the first bar (we all need our Vitamin C, sometimes right before bed!) and it made me very excited to review it today. The first Green & Black bar from my wife's welcome home gift is the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bar and it was pretty wonderful!

My real concern with starting with the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bar was that I was worried that I might be starting with the most appealing and that it was all down hill from here. That remains to be seen, but the truth is, the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt was quite good, despite the expense and the "slow burn" of the flavor - the sea salt flavoring does not hit right away. That makes the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt an intriguing chocolate bar!

Basics

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars are one and three-eights inch by one and five-eighths inch rectangles of chocolate that are about three-sixteenths of an inch thick and connected side by side and in rows, to form a bar of ten segments. Each bar comes unified in a foil wrapper. The foil-wrapped chocolate bar is sealed in a cardboard package.

Each chocolate bar is sold in a way that it is easy to segment and control portions. In this form, the 3.17 oz. bar, the chocolate bar represents two and a half servings. Each bar appears solid (the sea salt flakes are embedded, as opposed to acting like a filling) and is stamped with the Green & Black's logo.

Ease Of Preparation

These are candy, so preparing them is as simple as opening the cardboard and then opening the foil wrapper from around the actual chocolate. There is no grand secret to eating Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars.

Taste

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt bars feature an indistinct, but potent aroma. The chocolate smell that emanates from each bar and each segment is strong, but does not hint at all at the salt inside. Instead, this is a potent, dry cocoa-smelling chocolate bar that smells like the 70% cacao it is comprised of with no other aromas to it.

In the mouth, the Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt bars are dominated by the flavor of the dry, dark chocolate. As one who loves dark chocolate, I was very pleased by how dry and flavorful the dark chocolate was without being excessively bitter. The chocolate is hard and dry and does not instantly melt. It takes until the chocolate does start to melt away - or one masticates the chocolate - for the sea salt to ever manifest in the palate. When the salt comes into the flavor mix, it is in competition with the dry chocolate flavor. The blend is nice, but the salt never breaks out to become the dominant flavor and it always seems to take several seconds before that flavor manifests at all.

The Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bar has a strong, dry, aftertaste that endures on the tongue in a noticeable way for at least five minutes after it is consumed. The aftertaste is not horrible, but it is noticeable.

Nutrition

These are candy, so they are not healthy, but the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars are not anywhere near as bad as they could be. The primary ingredients are bittersweet chocolate and sea salt. There is nothing unpronounceable in these candies and all of the ingredients could be readily identified by me; this seems to be a delightfully simple chocolate bar.

A serving from the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars is considered four rectangles from the overall bar, which is a ridiculous serving size for a bar that is segmented into ten pieces. From four squares, one takes in 210 calories, including 160 calories of fat. There are 70 mg of sodium and 2 grams protein, but almost no vitamins or minerals in these chocolate bars. There is a decent amount Iron (25% RDA) in each bar, but not other major nutrients. The biggest nutritional detraction in the Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt are the 19 grams of fat per serving and the 55% RDA of saturated fat that comes from the 11 grams of saturated fat!

These are not Vegan-compliant, nor are they recommended for anyone with a nut allergy as they are manufactured on equipment that processes milk and tree nuts. They are not specifically marked as kosher (I'm not sure why), but Green & Black's uses sustainable cocoa farming for their cocoa, which is pretty cool!

Storage/Clean-up

The bars of these Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars remain fresh for quite some time. The bars we picked up two days ago had an expiration date of October 14, 2017, though they will certainly not last that long as I will have consumed mine well before then! One assumes that if they are kept in a cool, dry environment they will not melt or go bad. It is hard to imagine just what it would take for these to go bad outside melting and refreezing.

As for cleanup, just throw the packaging away in socially appropriate places, as opposed to litter and you're done! Outside that, there is no real cleanup needed, unless one is eating them in a hot environment. In that case, it is likely one would need to wash their hands, though these bars do not melt as easily as less-expensive chocolates. When this chocolate melts into most fabrics, it will stain.

Overall

Green & Black's Pure Dark Chocolate Sea Salt chocolate bars are quite good, even if the sea salt flavor is not nearly as strong as I might like, giving a more delayed flavor than a primary one.

For other chocolate reviews, please check out:
Brookside Chocolate Mango Coconut Crisp Dark Chocolate Bar
Coffee Thins Espresso chocolate squares
Ghirardelli Chocolate Squares Milk Chocolate Peppermint Brownie chocolate squares

8.5/10

For other chocolate reviews, please visit my Chocolate Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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