Springhill Farm

I love trying snacks in other countries, including Australia, where I spent a significant amount of time for a number of years.  At some point, I picked up these snacks from Springhill Farm, an Australian brand.

Springhill Farm has several product lines, but their dominant products seem to be Slices and Boodles.  All are vegan.  Slices are just healthy bars, and were less interesting to me as that is already a widely covered market.  Boodles however looked more interesting ...

They make several styles of Boodles, all of which are healthy grain clusters featuring soy protein crisps, brown rice puffs, quinoa, and buckwheat, sweetened with coconut sugar, and then embellished. Chocolate clusters are the most decadent chocolate covered confections, "healthy clusters" are made from a combo of grains, nuts, seeds, dried fruits, etc with added adaptogens, and lunchbox clusters are crispy grain puffs with kid friendly flavors like cocoa, vanilla sprinkles, and strawberry.  I tried only the chocolate clusters line.

Boodles Chocolate Clusters

"We keep it light taking the crispy, natural goodness of seeds and grains, like quinoa, buckwheat, soy and rice crisps and smothering them in smooth, creamy chocolate."

Boodles are a form of crispy chocolate cluster, but lower sugar (50% less they claim) and protein bolstered (15g protein) compared to regular chocolate confections.  The protein comes from soy protein cocoa crisps, quinoa crisps, cocoa rice crisps, and buckwheat.

They come in 5 flavors: original chocolate, chocolate and caramel, chocolate speckle (with nonpareils), peanut and pretzel, and chocolate and hazelnut.  I was only able to find the basic chocolate ones, and the hazelnut version, although I really wished I could find the peanut/pretzel or speckle ones!

Chocolate.

These were not bad.  I liked the variety of size pieces, some little bits, some bigger.  All had a great crunch, and good chocolate coverage.  The chocolate quality was decent.  They didn't taste too healthy, mostly just like a chocolate crispy oddly shaped candy bar.  I did want a little salt to make the flavor pop a bit more.  Awesome as an ice cream topping. 3/5.

Chocolate Hazelnut.

"We keep it light taking the crispy, natural goodness of seeds, grains and hazelnuts and slathering them all in smooth, creamy chocolate."

I'm not one who adores all things chocolate-hazelnut.  I don't go nuts over Nutella, etc, but it is a combo that works, and the hazelnut variety sounded a bit more interesting than the plain chocolate.

It really wasn't much different to me.  I didn't taste hazelnut.  But I did enjoy the crispy bits and the great crunch, and the decent quality chocolate.  Again great as a topping on ice cream or pudding.  But truly did not taste the hazelnut. 3/5.

Treats

Classic Rocky Road Slice.

"Jump on a joyride of marshmallow chunks, coconut pieces and chocolate as far as the eye can see – no two bites are the same. It’s not for the faint-hearted."

I wanted to like this so much more than I did.  But there were three issues, one minor, the others more major.

The minor complaint I have is that the milk chocolate wasn't very high quality.  It was "fine", but very sugary, and just not great.  That can be ok in a confection style treat though if the rest of the item is strong enough to carry it.  In this case though, the other elements weren't.

The marshmallows were fine, soft, squishy, sweet. But the ratios were all off here, just far too much marshmallow, and little else.  Another strike.

And then, the coconut.  When I think "classic rocky road", I do not think of coconut.  I think of other nuts.  I wanted crunchy other nuts.  And instead I had soft shards of coconut.  The coconut taste dominated, as did the texture I wasn't into.  

So, mediocre chocolate, poor ratios, too much unwanted coconut.  Low 2/5.

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Christopher Elbow Chocolates

Every day of my life, I start the day with chocolate.  Ok, with a nicely balanced breakfast, a cup of coffee, and chocolate.  To me, a piece of chocolate alongside my morning coffee is just ... essential?  Often times it isn't fancy, just a decent quality piece of dark of milk chocolate, depending on my mood, but there are certainly days that a truffle or chocolate covered nut or toffee feel more appropriate (or, uh, necessary).  Anyway, I eat a lot of different chocolate, which I often don't review.

Christopher Elbow is a chocolatier that launched his own product line in 2003, after starting his career as a line cook at a country club, and eventually working at one of Emeril’s flagship restaurants.  But chocolate was his passion, and thus, a chocolate brand, in his own name, was born.  The brand is based in Kansas City, but has exactly two stores, one there, and oddly, one in San Francisco, which is where I was able to find it.  I only tried three items, but I'd gladly try more.

Confections

"From chocolate-covered nuts and our fan-favorite pecan caramels to rich buttery toffee and small-batch malt balls, these classic confections have been deliciously re-imagined with the highest quality gourmet chocolate and best ingredients from around the world."

While Christopher Elbow does make chocolate bars, it is the confections that I zeroed in on. 

Candied Hazelnuts. $15.

"Oregon hazelnuts that have been freshly roasted and coated with a buttery toffee, then covered in our gourmet milk and dark chocolate blend and dusted with powdered sugar."

The first item I tried was candied hazelnuts.

These.  Are.  Amazing.

The center is a roasted hazelnut, super crunchy, coated in amazingly sweet and crunchy toffee.  Then it is coated in a chocolate shell that is thick enough for the high quality chocolate to come through, but it doesn't overwhelm the nut.  The powdered sugar on the outside mirrors the sweet toffee inside, pulling it all together.

I loved these.  Sweet but balanced by the quality chocolate and nut, crunchy, addicting.  Clearly high quality components.

At $15 for a small bag makes them a splurge, but, a worthy one.  4/5.

Peppermint Bark.

Next up, a seasonal offering, peppermint bark.

It was a bit of a boring, particularly compared to the glory of those candied hazelnuts.

It was fine, a thick layer of white chocolate, a thin layer of darker chocolate, peppermint crunch on top.  Basically, fairly standard peppermint bark.  Some slight peppermint flavor.  It seemed no different to me than the stuff from Williams-Sonoma, or anywhere else slinging it during the holidays.

The high quality of the chocolate wasn't allowed to shine here.

3.5/5.

Fleur de Sel Caramel.

"Far and away our most popular artisan chocolate bonbon, in a box of its own! A deep and rich caramel accented with Sel Gris, unrefined sea salt from the Brittany region of France’s Atlantic coast, and enclosed in our gourmet dark chocolate shell. The perfect balance of salty and sweet, these bonbons make a wonderful gift or indulgent treat."

This had a great snappy dark chocolate shell.  The filling was a nice consistency, sweet caramel.  I wasn't in the mood for caramel, but it was good. 4/5 shell, 3/5 overall for me though

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Honey Mama's Cocoa Truffle Bars

I don't recall why I discovered Honey Mama's cocoa truffle bars.  I suspect I had a coupon for a free product to try?  I do vaguely remember going to Whole Foods to select my flavor.

"Honey Mama's is the Portland, Oregon-based maker of delicious refrigerated raw honey-sweetened truffle bars!

Honey Mama’s is beloved for its one-of-a-kind texture, often compared to brownie batter, chocolate truffles, or fudge – the real treat is discovering each bar is made from only a limited number of nutrient-rich whole food ingredients.

Setting the gold standard for what it means to be a clean label treat, all Honey Mama’s products are free from refined sugar, gluten, dairy, soy, stabilizers, emulsifiers, and additives.

Just imagine your favorite candy bar went to a meditation retreat and came back enlightened!"

The bars are all gluten and dairy and soy free, no refined sugar, paleo and keto friendly, no preservatives, etc, etc.  As such, they require refrigeration, much like Perfect Bars, however those are delicious, and these are not.

The bars come in fun flavors like peanut butter cookie or seasonal specials like peppermint crunch or pumpkin spice.  They also make "Truffle Treats", distinct from the bars, such as peanut butter cups.  I tried only a bar.

The bar I tried was not at all what I was expecting.  I thought it would be a chocolate bar.  "Cocoa truffle bar" to me sounded like a chocolate bar.  Referring to it as my "favorite candy bar ... enlightened" made me think it would be a chocolate bar.  Perhaps one with filling per the "truffle" name.  It was not.  It was more like a healthy nutrition bar.  The texture was firm chalky.  It didn't have a nice snap to it like chocolate, but it was very dense and compact.  Yes, it was "one-of-a-kind", as described, but certainly not "beloved" to me.

I later read more of their FAQ, when I went to write this review, and found more explanation:

"To be called "chocolate", products must contain a specific amount of chocolate liquor and cocoa butter, which Honey Mama's does not use.  Instead, Honey Mama's Truffle Bars start with a base of organic raw honey and cold-pressed virgin coconut oil swirled together with dark cocoa powder. This combination give our bars a soft, fudge-like texture that melts in your mouth like a creamy chocolate truffle.  Traditional chocolate also uses an emulsifier (such as soy lecithin) in order to be shelf stable. Honey Mama's bars do not contain any food additives, and instead use cold temperatures to keep from melting. This is why Honey Mama's is refrigerated and not shelved with other chocolate."

Aha.  Well, I still didn't find the texture "fudge-like", but at least this explains some things.

Pumpkin Spice.

"A custom blend of spices and heirloom pumpkin seeds surround you in all that is fall. This surprise twist on a classic is the sensory experience of the season."

"Remember the feeling of being a kid during the holidays, with the smell of a pie baking in your grandmother’s oven filling the air? Well, this tastes like that. 100% clean, whole food ingredients create the grown-up pumpkin spice you’ve longed for.  Real pumpkin seeds, real spices, no natural flavors, no refined sugar - ever."

So, yeah.  This did NOT remind me in any way of pumpkin pie.  I certainly did not long for it.  I actively disliked it.  It did have plenty of pumpkin spices, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, but the flavor was dominated by other element.

Again, I was expecting more of a chocolate treat, and this was really quite bitter (from the pumpkin seeds?) and tasted of dates.  I dislike the taste of dates.  But coconut oil was really the issue.  I really didn't care for the strong coconut oil taste, and the mouthfeel it left behind.  Amusingly, I didn't taste the namesake honey at all.

So, taste I didn't care for.  Texture that gave off protein bar vibes.  At least it had some good grit and bits within?  

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Hu Snacks

Thank you, JetBlue.

Thank you for introducing me to Hu, a brand I likely wouldn't have discovered on my own, but now regularly crave and seek out.  Hu makes a variety of chocolate products: milk or dark chocolate bars, baking gems, and chocolate covered things (hunks).  The products are all gluten-free, keto, paleo, etc.  All organic, fair trade when possible.  No refined sugars. Vegan besides the milk chocolates.

Bag of Hu!

I've only had one of their products, the parting gift given on JetBlue Mint flights, but I really adore them, and would gladly try more of their products.  (They usually give you just one bag, but, uh, my flight attendant really hooked me up when I said how much I loved them!).

Dark Chocolate Hunks

"Chocolate covered and ready for snacking."

Hunks are just the brand name for (dark) chocolate covered things.  They are available in only 3 varieties: almonds + sea salt, sour goldenberries, and cashews + vanilla bean.  Pretty simple concept that is done a zillion times over.  Chocolate covered nuts and dried fruit.  Yup, been there, seen that.  Or at least, that is what I thought, until I tried these.

I've only had one kind of Hunks, but I found them exceptional.  Yes, they still *are* just chocolate covered nuts, but they are done very, very well.

Cashews + Vanilla Bean.

"Think of Hunks as the perfect marriage between our signature 70% dark chocolate — the same we use in our Simple Dark Chocolate Bars — and organic nuts."

Yes, the product I'm raving about is just chocolate covered cashews.  And while I like cashews, I certainly don't generally get excited about them, chocolate covered or not.  But these I get excited about.

The ingredients are pretty simple: cashews, cacao, cocoa butter, coconut sugar, salt, vanilla bean.  No palm oil used in the chocolate coating, which makes them less shiny that most other brands. The coconut sugar used to sweeten is unrefined.  Simple.  Just basic chocolate covered nuts.  They shouldn't be special right?

But they are so good!  The chocolate coating is less creamy and shiny compared to traditional chocolate covered items, and the layer isn't particularly thick, which all sounds like it would be a negative, but actually, allows the quality of the dark chocolate and the nut itself to really shine.  The chocolate is deep, dark, and intense, and not too sweet.  The nut is nicely roasted, tastes quite fresh.  The touch of sea salt makes them pop.

These are just really quite good.  Not much more to say than that.  A great snack, a nice little treat to sneak alongside my breakfast, likely great paired with red wine too.  Love them.  ****+.

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Harry & David

Update Review

I had a big realization about Moose Munch, the classic Harry & David caramel and chocolate popcorn and nuts mix, which I've reviewed several times before (below).

You know when you were a child, and loved something super sweet, and adults made dramatic statements like, "it makes my teeth hurt just thinking about that"?  I never knew what they meant, and just rolled my eyes dramatically back ... until I had Moose Munch.  The caramel covered pieces in this do literally make my teeth hurt if I have more than a few.  I enjoy it, don't get me wrong, but they are just too much.  This mix really needs some plain pieces mixed in.  *** for those pieces, just, too much.  The dark chocolate coated pieces though I do truly love (****) and same with the very candied nuts (****), but those caramel pieces ... just, too much, even for me.  ***+ overall, brought down by the caramel pieces.

Iced Gingerbread.

"Our Gingerbread Moose Munch follows our classic Caramel Moose Munch, then we had bits of Gingerbread cookie pieces to create this delicious holiday treat. We add a white chocolate drizzle to remind you of the flavor of the royal icing piping."

Danger.  Danger, danger, danger.  *That* is what the warning label on this should read.  Because, zomg, danger.

I would have never sought this flavor out, not being all that excited about gingerbread, but my sister gave it to me for Christmas.  I'm so very glad she did.  But, um, oops.  Danger.

The base is the standard totally addicting and way way way too sweet caramel Moose Munch.  It is the type of caramel corn that even makes your teeth hurt from all the sugar.  And, the kind, that at least I cannot stop eating.  So, super decadent base, but then they drizzle it with sweet and creamy white chocolate, and add in bits of gingerbread cookies.  The cookies provide occasional pops of molasses flavor, the white chocolate makes it even sweeter, and it turns out even more impossible to stop devouring than the original.  I liked the assorted size clusters, some just popcorn, others with all the goodies in them.  Like the original Moose Munch, it has bits of nuts (almonds, cashews) in there too, mostly entirely candied, that make you say, "hey look, I'm being responsible, eating protein too!".

I adored this, and finished the bag, that is supposed to be something like 16 servings, in, let's just say, fewer than 16 servings.  I'd gleefully get it again.

****+.

Update Reviews, Holidays 2020-2021

Since I've reviewed Harry & David many times before, I'll leave you to read my previous reviews for general info about the brand.  This year, while I got to try a few good chocolate products, sadly, no signature Moose Munch was delivered alongside, and I missed my favorite Harry & David treat.

Truffles

Milk Chocolate Truffle.

"When it comes to memorable treats, our rich chocolate truffles represent the top tier of sweet decadence. The silky smooth center of each truffle is cloaked in a layer of chocolate that melts in the mouth with a flavor that is timeless and delicious."

Milk Chocolate
Such a rich truffle!!! A delicious truffle, but so very rich. And so very creamy. And a lovely milk chocolate flavor. Really, this was a nice product. It was almost like a soft fudge, or perhaps a slightly more solid center of a chocolate lava cake.

The shell was not what I anticipated - I expected a snappy chocolate shell, this was soft, and not that distinct from the inside. But all so good.  ****.

Milk Chocolate Mint
The mint one was even better. Same rich base, creamy, luxurious, fudge like, this time with a lovely mint backdrop. The mint was powerful but not overwhelming, and it was truly just delicious. ****+.

Pretzels

"Our premium gourmet pretzels come in an array of flavors including perennial favorites and special, seasonal flavors. Choose from yogurt-covered pretzels, peanut butter pretzels, our own delectable gourmet chocolate pretzels, and more. "

Milk Chocolate Covered Pretzel Twists.

Since these were part of a gift box, I didn't get to pick the variety, so sadly they were the kind I'd probably pick last: milk chocolate. Not that there is anything *wrong* with milk chocolate, but, with options like peanut butter milk chocolate and even dark chocolate, they seem like last place.
They were fine. Crispy pretzels, well coated in decent enough milk chocolate. Nothing particularly notable about them in any way, positive or negative.

I enjoyed them as a little treat, but I'd still like to try the other varieties more. ***.

Update Review: Holiday Season 2018-2019

Another year, more gift boxes from Harry & David (previous reviews here).

This year, along with more and more Moose Munch (yes!), I got to try a few chocolate items, and finally, the signature, famous pears.

The Moose Munch remains my favorite.

Chocolates / Truffles

"Expertly crafted in our own candy kitchen using a proprietary blend of chocolate, our truffles are a chocolate lover’s dream."

Milk Chocolate / Coffee / Cherry Truffles (front row)
Raspberry (back row). 

"There's nothing quite like biting into the creamy center of a premium quality gourmet chocolate truffle. We've been using our signature truffle recipe for over 30 years, and it hasn't changed for a reason. Made in our candy kitchen in Southern Oregon using a proprietary blend of chocolate, these exquisite treats come in an array of flavors, like milk chocolate, white coffee, and dark chocolate cherry. Timeless and delicious, these silky truffles are a chocolate lover's dream."

This box is their Signature Assortment, with one each of milk chocolate, white chocolate coffee, dark chocolate cherry, all dark chocolate, dark chocolate raspberry, and milk chocolate almond.

I tried the "Cherry" first, hoping it was going to have a juicy cherry inside, but alas, it was just a dark chocolate shell, drizzled with red white chocolate, with a mildly cherry flavored dark chocolate ganache inside.

The ganache was smooth, the entire thing was fine, but the cherry flavor wasn't that pronounced, and the dark chocolate shell didn't seem particularly high quality. ***.

Milk Chocolate Almond.

The milk chocolate almond was a lovely piece.

The exterior shell was thick, soft, creamy milk chocolate, with a few bits of almond stuck on.  This was good, but it was the filling that was great.  Such smooth rich ganache, with a slight subtle flavor to it (was it almond accented?) that I found really pleasing.

I really quite enjoyed, and savored, this piece. ***+.

Peppermint Bark: Top View.

"Dark chocolate, white chocolate, and candy canes collide in this legendary peppermint treat."

The peppermint in the peppermint bark comes solely in the form of crushed candy canes, covering the entire top of the confection.  I did not detect any peppermint flavor in either of the chocolate layers, only the topping.

The mint was intense though, but the flavor not any more interesting than your standard candy cane. ***.

Peppermint Bark: Side View.

  "Creamy white chocolate layered over rich dark chocolate and topped with crushed peppermint candy is a delightful old-fashioned sweet indulgence. This will quickly become a favorite among candy gifts."

From the side you can see the other components, the dark and white chocolate.  Both were fine, smooth, creamy.  I wanted to taste more dark chocolate however, I found the amount at the base fairly minimal, and not as ... chocolatey as I wished.

So overall, a fairly boring peppermint bark for me really, the mint just candy canes, the chocolate didn't quite deliver either.  But non-offensive.

Fruit

Royal Riviera™ Pears.

"The pears that started it all. Our founders, Harry and David, called these pears "so big and juicy, you eat them with a spoon®." That was 80 years ago, when the brothers started selling Southern Oregon-grown Royal Riviera® Pears as gourmet gifts. Royal Riviera® Pears are delicate and require warm days and cool nights to grow, making Southern Oregon ideal for cultivating this famous fruit. The sweet flavor, buttery texture, and extreme juiciness of these pears are what make them so delicious. Every one is handpicked and packed to arrive at your door in perfect condition.

It's a time-honored tradition for families to decide who gets to enjoy the gold-wrapped pear when they receive a box of our famous fruit."

I finally got a chance to try the very famous pears, even though, um, pears were not exciting to me in any way.

Every box of Harry & David pears comes with a single pear wrapped in gold foil.  It is their signature thing.  It creates an element of uniqueness of that one pear.  Who gets it?  Of course I did.

Magical Gold Pear?

"Expertly grown and handpicked, these premium pears have a soft, buttery flesh that's so sweet, you might want to save them for dessert."

I unwrapped my gold fruit.  It ... looked like a pear.  It looked just like any other pear.

It tasted ... like a pear.  Like any old pear.  It was a bit beat up, which certainly didn't help make it seem special.  It was a bit mushy.

Sorry, this pear was not magical to me in any way.  I'll stick with the Moose Munch. ***.

Moose Munch

Moose Munch® Premium Popcorn - Milk Chocolate (January 2019).

A year later, it was time for another gift basket from Harry & David, and this time, I knew I wanted to snatch up the Moose Munch.  Again we had the same milk chocolate variety as the year before.

I'll just warn you now.  This stuff is dangerous.  While the caramel bits are just *too* sweet to eat by more than one handful at a time, I found it way too easy (as in, oops, it happened) to eat every single piece of chocolate coated popcorn and every single candied nut in a single sitting.  Note that this bag was listed as 7 servings, each fairly indulgent.  Ooops.

But I really love the milk chocolate coated pieces.  The milk chocolate is creamy and smooth, a really good quality chocolate.  And the nuts, while not many in the bag, just kept me hunting for more.  I appreciated that there were almonds and cashews in here, not just standard peanuts.  Some of the nuts were caramelized, some chocolate coated, some on their own, others attached in clusters.  I sought them all out, just like when eating a bag of Chex mix, when you decide you want all of one particular item.  That was me and these nuts, and, the chocolate coated pieces.

The caramel pieces were good to sneak a few of in alongside my coveted items, but, once the other things were gone, I was left with a bag of seriously rich, seriously sweet, seriously indulgent popcorn that was just a bit too much to handle.  ***+.

Original Review, Holidays 2017-2018

Harry & David is a "gourmet gift" producer, whose products are generally sold via mail order or online, although they also have a handful of retail stores.  They mostly sell gift baskets, fruits, and chocolates.  Not exactly things I'm generally in the market for, yet sometime show up on my doorstep.

Their signature item is "Moose Munch" popcorn.  

"Moose Munch® Popcorn is not your average caramel popcorn. We pay attention to every single detail of our secret recipe. Right down to the way the popcorn looks and sticks together. We make over five million pounds a year. "

Now, 5 million pounds of anything is a lot, but particularly of a lightweight item!  Moose Munch® comes in a zillion flavors, like simple milk or dark chocolate, exotic banana coconut and apricot mango, and even some sugar free versions.  A flavor for everyone.

Harry & David leads the gift basket industry, so every year, I get to try various products when others bring in their gift basket discards to the office (one man's trash is ... my treasure!).  I often fail to write them up usually, as the products are usually already open, or I just grab a snack as I run between meetings.

But I finally got to try the coveted "Mouse Munch", thus, a proper review is in order.

Moose Munch

"Inspired by the Pacific Northwest, Moose Munch® Premium Popcorn is the anytime snack that’s almost too good to share. Carefully made in small batches in our own candy kitchen using real butter, creamy caramel, and crunchy nuts, it took over 160 tries to perfect our special recipe. Add our proprietary blend of chocolate to the mix and you have a snack made in heaven. Enjoy handful after handful during an evening in, or take along for an on-the-go boost of energy when you’re out on your next adventure. 

While you’ll want to keep it all for yourself, Moose Munch® Premium Popcorn is a great snack to share with a buddy, and it makes a delicious gift for fans of chocolate-covered popcorn and caramel popcorn alike. And with a wide array of flavors to choose from, there’s plenty to go around. Chocolate-lovers will rejoice over the many milk, dark, and white chocolate-covered varieties, while other snackers will love inventive flavors like peanut butter, orange crème, cherry vanilla, and more. There are even a fat-free and sugar-free versions."

Moose Munch is not just a popcorn.  Harry & David have build an entire product range around it.  Yes, you can get the popcorn in a variety of flavors, you can get it as part of many different gift packs, etc, but they have also turned it into cheesecake, and even flavored coffee, along with assorted Moose Munch branded gear, featuring the signature moose head (his name is Jasper, apparently). 

Interesting ...

Moose Munch® Premium Popcorn - Milk Chocolate. (December 2017)

"Our milk chocolate Moose Munch® Gourmet Popcorn is the perfect mix of sweet milk chocolate, buttery caramel, and crunchy nuts."

"Popcorn, almonds, and cashews covered in caramel and milk chocolate."

Given my love for popcorn, and caramel corn in particular, it is no surprise that I was excited to try Harry & David's signature "Moose Munch".  The standard Moose Munch is just caramel corn with candied nuts, but I tried the milk chocolate version, with milk chocolate covered pieces in the mix as well.

It was certainly decadent caramel corn.  No piece was left uncoated, no piece even moderately coated, each and every piece was intensely sweet.  I can't imagine eating just a bag of this caramel corn actually, it was just too much.  Good, but, wow, it needed some less coated pieces in order to temper it.

The milk chocolate pieces were great though.  Good quality chocolate, and again, really well coated.  The chocolate did help counter the sweet caramel pieces.

I found myself seeking out more and more of the chocolate pieces, but there were substantially fewer of them than the caramel ones.

The candied nuts were good for a bit of crunch now and then, but, again, there weren't many of them.

Overall, I enjoyed it along side a cup of bitter coffee, but, I think it would be better with some more plain pieces in the mix. ***+.

Moose Munch® Milk Chocolate Bar (August 2014).

"Moose Munch bars are crafted from a rich, smooth fudgy center, plus their signature snake - fluffy white popcorn, buttery caramel and crisp nuts all dipped in decadent milk chocolate."

"Signature snake"?  I do not know this term, but it is on all of their marketing, so I don't think it is a typo.

Cross section.

This one deserves a peak inside.

Every bite was loaded up with goodies: popcorn, nuts, caramel.  The caramel was sweet and very creamy, it almost tasted like really smooth peanut butter at times.  The nuts added a great crunch, and the popcorn ... was, well, popcorn inside my chocolate, a bit strange, but, it worked better than I expected.  It was much better than popcorn inside of other items, like inside the Circus Cookie from Goody Goodie, although it was still a bit strange to have a soft bite inside the bar.  The milk chocolate was smooth and creamy.

Overall, pretty tasty, a bunch of ingredients you don't necessarily expect together, but, I liked it.  The tasting club didn't get to try this one! ***+.

Other Treats

While Moose Munch is Harry & David's signature item, they carry a vast array of products, ranging from fresh fruit, to cheesecakes, and everything in-between.

Peppermint Tree Shaped Yogurt Pretzels  (January 2019).

"The festive meter instantly rises when this pretzel-packed bounty shows up. Premium, yogurt-covered pretzels in the shapes of Christmas trees abound. Crushed peppermint pieces have been sprinkled on the trees for added effect—and amazing flavor."

I tried these at a time when I was really on a yogurt (or white chocolate) pretzel kick.  I was randomly really loving nearly every coated pretzel I put in my mouth.  Crunchy, salty, creamy, sweet ... just loving them.  I'll admit they were often a morning indulgence alongside a cup of coffee.

So I was eager to try these minty trees when a co-worker gave up their Harry & David bounty.  First thing I grabbed.

However they were ... boring?

The coating was flavorless, slightly sweet, but mostly just waxy.  The pretzels themselves not particularly compelling either - slightly stale tasting, even though this was a fresh bag of snacks, opened right then, not old in any way.  The crushed peppermint was basically the only interesting part.

Sad, I thought I was not discriminating in my coated pretzel love at the time, but, it turns out, these were just too mediocre to be excited about. ***.

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Socola Chocolatier

Update Review, 2024 Tastings

Socola chocolates have always looked great, and sounded like they'd be complex and fascinating, but generally have let me down.  I stopped seeking them out, despite the storefront being steps away from my house.  But I received a gift of an assorted box of chocolates, so I gave them yet another try.

For the most part, I enjoyed these more than previous items, and really do like the shells.  But I still don't find the fillings exceptional, and their price is fairly high normally.

Stout Beer.

"Guinness Extra Stout beer, dark chocolate."

Well, I don't like beer, so I certainly would have not picked this piece, but it was in a gift I received.  That said, I barely tasted beer in it.  There was just a bit of a hoppy complexity to the dark chocolate ganache inside.  The ganache was smooth and rich, the shell also deep dark chocolate.  Overall, a very deep dark chocolate piece, it felt, um, hearty, which I think is what people say about drinking a Guinness too?  Interesting, but not one I'd pick again on my own. ***+.

Earl Grey.

"Earl Grey tea with bergomot, vanilla."

Another piece I wouldn't have gravitated towards on my own, earl grey.  But much like the beer piece, I barely tasted the namesake ingredient.  There was a bit of bitterness to it that I suppose could be earl grey, but really, I didn't taste tea, even when I tried.  That said, it was still a nice piece of chocolate: again, a very smooth, creamy, rich ganache inside, snappy shell outside.  Another that I enjoyed, but wouldn't pick again on my own. ***+.

Candied Ginger Peanut.
(Lunar New Year Special).

"Ginger pâte de fruit with milk chocolate and peanut butter, in dark chocolate."

I like ginger.  I like peanut butter.  I like dark chocolate.  I'd never think of putting these together however.

I really liked the bit of candied ginger on top. Really great zing from the ginger, and new bit of chew. The dark chocolate shell was good quality.  Under the chocolate, the top half of the piece was the ginger pate de fruit, which was pleasant enough.  More mild ginger flavor than the candied piece on top.  Again a nice chew to it.  The base half was the peanut based component, which had some bits of peanut for a nice crunch.

Overall, this was certainly unique, and I liked some parts of it quite a bit, but I wouldn't likely combine the ginger and peanut butter again.  Low ***.

Sông Cái Floral Gin.
 (Mid Autumn Special).

"Việt Nam Floral Gin (flavored with 5 flowers) dark chocolate ganache, in dark chocolate."

This was a fairly boring piece.  The dark chocolate shell was decent, the filling fairly smooth but a bit grainy.  The flavor was extremely subtle though ... I truly didn't taste the gin, nor even any floral notes.  It was a fine piece of chocolate, but simple. Low ***.

Matcha.

"Japanese matcha, white chocolate, powdered sugar."

And last, a non-chocolate piece, matcha, which uses white chocolate.  The matcha flavor was strong, the white chocolate not really noticeable.  It had a firm but crumbly consistency, almost like a fudge.  It was tasty matcha fudge, but not what I was expecting. ***. 

Update Review, July 2021

After receiving a gift box from Socola Chocolatier, which I reviewed in April, I was eager to try more of their chocolates, as they seemed really high quality, and, well, are located less than a block from my house.

Too Good To Go Mystery Bag. $5.99.

My assortment this time was a mystery bag from Too Good To Go, a service that allows merchants to sell leftover items (e.g. pastries at the end of a day from a cafe, pre-made deli salads at a deli, about-to-expire packaged snacks from a corner store, etc) at a reduced price.  I paid $5.99 to my bag, expecting to find chocolate blemishes, you know, that didn't look quite right and couldn't normally be sold, but are perfectly edible.

I was pleased to open the bag to find 6 pieces, and all looked totally normal.  No idea why these were the "discards".

My assortment was:

• 2 Give it to Me Guava.
• 2 PB & J Truffles
• 1 Pho
• 1 Cognac Truffle

I had only had one of these varieties before, so I was eager to try the rest.

4 pieces is usually $14.95, plus a cognac truffle ($29.95 for 16) , so value is $20.50, and I paid only $5.99, so definitely a good value. 

Give It To Me Guava.

"Tropical guava pate de fruit layered with our signature 72% bittersweet ganache, glam with a picture of Harriet the flying alpaca."

The guava is the one that I had previously, and, alas, I didn't really like before.  I still tried one of this batch, but felt pretty similar - the dark chocolate shell was snappy and quality chocolate, as was smooth dark chocolate ganache inside, but the guava and chocolate flavors just seemed muddled to me.

I gave the second one to a guava-loving friend, and she enjoyed it.

**+.

PB & J.

"Strawberry pate de fruit + dark chocolate + peanut butter + feuilletine."

I had some reservations about the PB & J flavor, not because I dislike pb & j, but because, much like the guava piece, I was worried about the fruity nature of the pate de fruit combined with the deep dark chocolate not working out well.  That said, well, I love pb & j, and adore feuilletine, so, obviously I was thrilled to try this one.

This was ... ok.  On the plus side, I didn't dislike the pate de fruit and chocolate combination, but that is largely because I just didn't taste the strawberry flavor at all.  I could see it visually, but no fruity quality came through.

But that doesn't mean I was tasting just chocolate either.  The only chocolate was the thin shell, unlike the guava piece that had a dark chocolate ganache within.  So I barely tasted chocolate either.

What did I taste?  Well, a little bit of peanut butter, which was nice, but it too was not a strong taste, weighed down by the feuilletine mixed with it.  

I liked the textures of the piece, the firm gel of the pate de fruit and the crispy pb layer, but the flavors were really quite lost.

**+.

phở #1.

"An aromatic blend of all the spices in this iconic soup: star anise, black cardamom, fennel, coriander, cinnamon, cloves and black peppercorn. beef and noodles not included :)"

Ok, I was overjoyed to get one of these in my box.  It sounded like the most interesting flavor *ever*!  A phở ... chocolate?!

I'm not quite sure how I felt about it, to be honest.  It was certainly an "interesting" piece.  The chocolate was smooth and creamy.

The flavors were complex, although slightly dominated by the peppercorn, and as I don't really like clove, that undertone was a bit strong for me as well.  Mostly the flavors somewhat tasted muddled, but also, it left my stomach kinda feeling funny.  My brain tasted ... uh, beef and broth, and mixed with the strong spicing AND chocolate, I think it just didn't settle quite right.

I'm glad to have tried it, but I certainly wouldn't get another.

**+.

Cognac Truffle.

"Velvety rich dark chocolate truffles infused with Remy Martin VSOP cognac and dusted with 99% dark cocoa powder."

Now this, this I was thrilled to try as well.  I actually like cognac, so the appeal of a smooth, rich, boozy truffle was high.  I saved it for last, intentionally, hoping to, well, "Save the best for last".

It was a good piece.  A totally different style from all all Socola chocolates that I tried, as it had no outer shell, rather, just a firm, thick, rich chocolate ganache, slightly boozy, and covered in the dark cocoa powder.  The booze wasn't quite as strong as I was hoping, but, it was certainly present.

The only thing I didn't quite care for was the cocoa powder, there was a lot of it, and it left my mouth coated.  As it is quite bitter (99%!), it dominated the flavor, and eating experience, leaving a bitter taste in my mouth, rather than boozy one.

***.

Update Review, April 2021

"Based in San Francisco, Socola Chocolatier handcrafts artisanal confections with modern flavors and a fantastic taste of fun."

I first had chocolate from Socola Chocolatier back in 2012, at the SF chocolate salon, as you may have read about back then.  I was impressed by the flavors, but never sought the chocolates out again. I remember being impressed that they used Straus Creamery® cream and butter in their truffles (and, still do).

And then I moved just several blocks away.  I literally walked by more days than I didn't.  And I still never sought them out.

After years of not paying attention to Socola, I was given a small gift box, and realized how much I had been missing out on.  These are quality chocolates!

Catalyst Collection - 4 Piece. $14.95.

"Feast your eyes on The Catalyst Collection. The Eastern flavors are hand selected by Caroline Ticarro of the Catalyst Foundation (www.catalystfoundation.org). 10% of sales will be donated to the Catalyst Foundation which provides vital support to programs that provide access to education, increase economic opportunities and promote empowerment to children and families in Vietnam."

The person gifting these to me selected the Catalyst Collection.

The collection features 4 very distinct pieces: 2 celebrating caffine (jasmine tea, vietnamese coffee), and two fruity (give it to me guava, passion fruit vanilla bean), the later of which is a white chocolate based piece.  At $14.95 for 4 pieces (plus tax, shipping, etc), these are quite pricey pieces, but you can also opt for 12 piece or 24 piece box, still with only the 4 varieties, just, more of each, for a slightly lower per-piece price.

Jasmine Tea.

"Rare hand-picked Chinese jasmine tea. Our grandmother's favorite scent. A flowery and pleasing truffle, the hints of jasmine are soothing and subtle."

Tea.  Meh.  Never my thing.  I'm a coffee girl.  And tea and chocolate?  This sounded like a strange pairing to me.

But hey, I had the piece, so, I might as well try it, right?

It actually was a pretty lovely flavor, really, um, yes, flowery as described.  Subtle.  Jasmine.  The flavor was delicate, and I truly did like it.

The chocolate ganache was quite smooth with a deepness to it.  The shell is minimal.

Overall, surprisingly good, and it made me quite excited for the rest of the box.

***+.

Vietnamese Coffee.

"Our Cà Phê Sữa with a kiss of condensed milk garnished with aromatic French chicory grounds."

I have fairly mixed feelings on this one.

The not-so-good?  I honestly forgot it was supposed to be coffee, and didn't taste ... any even as I tried to savor the second bite, searching for it.  Not a hint.

The slightly better? The ganache was dark and bitter, decent.

The good?  The texture, just, so smooth, so enjoyable to actually eat.

Too bad the flavor wasn't there.

**+.

Give it to Me Guava.

"Tropical guava pate de fruit layered with our signature 72% bittersweet ganache, glam with a picture of Harriet the flying alpaca."

Why, oh why, does this have a flying alpaca on it?  I honestly have no idea.  I also couldn't quite tell what animal it was supposed to be, until I read the description.  

I do like guava, I do like pate de fruit, and I adore dark chocolate ganache but ...  it turns out, I do not like them together.

The dark chocolate ganache was fabulous, no question.  Deep, semi-sweet, lovely dark chocolate.  And the guava pate de fruit also good, although, and this is where the problem was, I could barely taste it. Even though there was significantly more pate de fruit than chocolate, the deep rich chocolate overpowered any fruity flavors.  And it turns out ... the slight chew from the pate de fruit was just, well, odd to have inside chocolate.

I wanted to like this, but alas, it just didn't come together for me in a way that worked.

**+.

Passion Fruit Vanilla Bean.

"Tart passion fruit ganache with a kiss of vanilla bean and white chocolate."

Eh.

That's how I feel about passion fruit items in general (not about real passion fruit, I love the actual fresh fruit, particularly when in countries it grows in, but 'passion fruit flavor' things tend to, um, disappoint to say the least).

Which is how I felt about this.

The ganache was white chocolate based, sweet and fruity, but, had that fake passion fruit taste to it.  It was kinda thick.

The shell was very thin chocolate, lost amongst the rest.

Overall, just very "meh" unless you really like fake passion fruit flavor.

**.

Original Review, August 2012

And another local chocolatier from the SF Chocolate Salon.  They source their ingredients locally, using Straus Family Cream and 72% E. Guittard chocolate.  They make two different styles of truffles, western and eastern.  I got to try some of each.

• Western
• PB & J: "The classic peanut butter and strawberry in one bite".  Tasting notes: Nice peanut butter, nice jam, quite successful.
• Eastern
• Sriracha: "Savory chili and roasted garlic in every bite.  The famous rooster sauce has the kick to make any rooster crow." Tasting notes: Nice heat!
• Matcha Green Tea: "A must for any tea lover.  Let the truffle melt in your mouth and feel its milky texture juxtaposed with the dry sensation of powdered sugar on your tongue.".  Tasting notes: White chocolate with green tea.  Reminded me of mochi.

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Gotta B' Sweet

Gotta B' Sweet.  Yes, that is the brand name.  No I don't understand the ' after the B, but I do know the founder had a previous company, Gotta B' Urban (a cosmetics company), so clearly this is part of her intentional branding.

The majority of Gotta B' Sweet products are, well, candy.  Cotton candy, gummy candy, freeze dried candy, etc.  In addition to regular retail sales on Amazon, they also do corporate branded gifts and wholesale orders.  I didn't actually have any of their candy, and focused instead on snack mix.  You know how much I love my snacks.

Yum Yum Mix: Sweet & Salty.

"Don't settle for boring candy! By choosing Gotta B' Sweet, you make both your taste buds and eyes happy."

The packaging is a core part of the product offerings.  I can't say it made my eyes happy.  But it did indeed make my taste buds happy.   The quality of the components was evident at first bite.  While the blend looked fairly generic, and the packaging honestly a bit garish, I actually loved everything in it.

"Introducing our delicious Yum Yum Mix, the perfect snack for any occasion! The crunchy texture of the pretzels is perfectly balanced by the sweetness of the chocolate and yogurt. "

Gotta B Sweets makes the Sweet & Salty Yum Yum Mix in two varieties, one with chocolate coated pretzels, and one with yogurt coated.  Everything else is the same.  I tried just the chocolatey version.

The bag said 15 servings, and I assure you, having this be more than 2-3 servings would take great restraint.  

Mix Contents.

"Composed of butter toffee peanuts, pretzels, chocolate-covered pretzels, chocolate chip cookie gems, and milk chocolate gems, each ingredient is carefully chosen for its quality, ensuring a top-tier snacking experience."

Here you can see the types of pieces in my mix.  There are 5 different components, although clearly some of the dark chocolate melted off the pretzels and created mega clumps with other items fused on to pretzels, which I designated as a 6th type of piece.  The distribution of ingredients was well done, no item dominated (my piles here are not reflective of the original distribution).

From top left, clockwise:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Gems: 

These were the only things I didn't care for.  Just crisp little tiny chocolate chip cookies.  Yes, they added a different texture to the mix, and they were not bad, but, I just didn't really want them there.  I have not ever had Cookie Crisp cereal, but that is what I picture.  Low ***.  My little niece loved these however.

Chocolate Covered Pretzels w/ nonpareils: 

What's not to like about a chocolate coated pretzel?  Sweet and salty.  Dark chocolate to make it more classy.  And definitely bonus points for the nonpareils that added a tiny bit of extra crunch, and pop of color.  My second favorite piece in the mix.  Clearly quality pretzels and chocolate were used.  ****+.

Pretzels:

Just pretzel twists, but they picked a good brand.  Good salt level, nice butteriness, and tasted very fresh.  Better than average pretzels.  Nice to have a purely savory/salty component in the mix, which also kept the addiction level high, as I didn't get sick of it being too sweet.  Fifth favorite piece in the mix. ***+.

Mixed Pieces:

These are the pile on the bottom left, where the dark chocolate likely melted in transit, and caused other items to get stuck on to the pretzels, creating mega clumps.  I didn't mind, and liked these as special prizes, as I thought of them.  Third pick.  ****.

Milk Chocolate Gems:

Generic M&Ms, but again, a good quality brand was picked (better than actual M&Ms).  Nice snap to the shell, vibrant colors, good color distribution in the bag, creamy milk chocolate center.  They were what you'd expect.  Forth favorite, and I liked having the pure hit of chocolate.  ****.

Butter Toffee Peanuts (not pictured):

You might notice that there are no butter toffee peanuts shown here, but that is NOT because the bag didn't contain any.  It did.  It contained plenty actually, but, um, I ate all of them before stopping to take a photo.  Yes, all of them.  Yes, even those stuck on to the pretzels by melted chocolate.  All of them.  They were that delicious.  Crispy sugary buttery toffee coating on salty roasted peanuts?  Um, yes.  Loved them.  My favorite component, and nothing I'd change about them.  ****+.

Overall, a very addicting mix, definitely better than the sum of its parts, although I did wish the little cookies weren't included.  ****.

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