bunny ears kit kat (USA)

I'm not going to do a review on this because it's common knowledge that regular Kit Kats always score a perfect 10, unless I find them under our refrigerator a year later. This special Easter edition Kit Kat has bunny ears that run the length of the Kit Kat. Amazing! What will Hershey think of next? Anyhow, I love 'em. Blah, blah.

In other news, my latest shipment from Japan came. Jason (my contact in Japan) sent me a large bundle of Kit Kats very nicely packaged, as if they were laid out in some formal style. Huh. It's those little extra things. My next order from him will include several new Aero bars and a few new boxed edition Kit Kats. I can't wait! I also think I'm going to reach out to my Canadian resource, as I'm really trying to get a hold of those Cinnamon Kit Kats. Okay, until later on today when I review the Blueberry Fromage Kit Kat...

choxie chocolate flakey truffles (USA)

God this new camera can't take macros. I should stick to my dSLR... I apologize for the picture. If I have time, I'll shoot another one.

Although Choxie has magnificently packaged goodies in their product line, and their selection of flavors is usually originally large, Val and I don't usually buy them because they cost too damn much! From a graphic artist's point of view I've always loved their "retro" "60's" "simplistic" packaging. They leave the quality of the chocolate itself to do the advertising.

You're going to laugh at me, but I found this package of Choxie underneath our refrigerator while searching for a cat toy that had traveled underneath. Though at least a year old, it looked to be in good shape, and still bore the red "Target Clearance" sticker upon it... According to me, it was still edible. So I ate it.

Let me just tell you up front that this package of Choxie truffles retails for $2.00. Boy was I surprised to open up the box and find a measly TWO pieces inside. Mind you, they looked like two very delicious pieces of chocolate, but still - a dollar each? I would be better off going to Godiva!

So, I finally bit into the truffle. Oh shat. This was heaven! This might actually be worth a dollar per piece. The chocolate truffles were extremely smooth and creamy and the chocolate flakes added to its delightfulness. Could this be the first "10" that I give out? Thinking it through, there wouldn't be a thing that I would do to this chocolate except possibly lower its price! Well kids, you've heard it from me. Go out and buy your own and try it for yourself. You won't regret it.

Choxie Chocolate Flakey Truffles (USA)
Size: 24g Calories: 140 Fat: 9g Carbohydrates: 13g

nestle banana aero bar (Japan)

Sorry for the lack of updates. Val was a bridesmaid in a wedding this weekend and most of Friday night and all of Saturday was taken up. Let me just tell you thought that they had an amazing chocolate fountain at the Viennese (sp?) dessert table. The chocolate tasted as if they had used freshly melted Hershey Kisses for the filling. On another note, I'm expecting a large order of Kit Kats to arrive from Japan. In the meanwhile, I have Banana Aero bars to review. Mmm. I don't even have to taste them and know that they are going to be insane.

I could barely read anything written on the package of the Japanese packaging, but let me tell you, I loved it! For one, the entire box was covered in yellow and orange air bubbles as well as flying bananas. Top that off with a talking poodle on ice skates and I believe we have a winner! The box had a perforation on top and inside were ten single-serving bite-sized Aero bars.

Biting in the (small) piece of chocolate was heaven! Now, let me tell you that bananas are one of my favorite fruits / flavors and I've tried many different banana flavored chocolates and candies before. None of them, not even the banana flavored Kit Kat has come close to the real flavor of a banana as this Aero bar. The Nestle chocolate, combined with the aerated banana flavored middle makes for quite a delicious treat. They really don't get much better than this!

Nestle Banana Aero Bar
Size: 5g Calories: 28 Fat: 1.7g Carbohydrates: 2.9g

mars triple chocolate twix bar (USA)

Ohhh... This one excites me. I've always been a fan of Twix, with the crisp cookie in the middle and the sticky, gooey caramel riding on top. I was very interested in trying this triple chocolate version of the famous bar. One of my co-workers picked it up for me, knowing I'm always fond of trying limited edition chocolates.

The package beared the phrase, "Chocolate Cookie, Chocolate Caramel, Covered in Milk Chocolate. Really, how could you go wrong? I ripped open the package and gave the bar a whiff. The familiar smell of the Twix emanated from the wrapper. So far, so good. My first bite into the Twix bar was one of delight and disappointment at the same time. Could it be possible that there was something as "too much" chocolate? This bar had everything right, but there was still something off. I liked it so much, yet thought that it was just a bit much. I think perhaps it was the cookie. It was the cookie that was throwing the whole thing off. One of my mottos I've stuck to over the years is "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." And that's the problem with Twix. It ain't broke and there was really no need to try and mend what was already a great chocolate bar. Oh, well. Until the next Twix special edition...

Mars Triple Chocolate Twix
Size: 56.7g Calories: 280 Fat: 14g Carbohydrates: 36g

ferrero noggy (Puerto Rico)

One of my friends brought this back for me on a recent visit to Puerto Rico. Really, how many hazelnut-based chocolate candies can Ferrero come up with? I think I remember reading something about this a while back on Candyblog. Seriously though, a dozen chocolate / hazelnut candy combinations is enough, isn't it? Anyhow, let's get on with this review.

Unlike most Ferrero package designs, this one didn't really impress me. Maybe it's just me, but the design of the package usually "adds" to the virtual flavor of the chocolate by enhancing the entire experience. Upon opening the wrapper, five individually wrapped Whopper-sized spheres rolled out onto my desktop. The milky chocolate looked a bit cheap, like what you would expect from a bag of chocolate eggs during Easter. A few specks of hazelnut scattered the surface of the chocolate. The chocolate smelled quite sweet and nothing what I would normally expect from a Ferrero chocolate. Ahh... Now I understood why the chocolate looked and smelled differently. It wasn't chocolate at all, but a chocolate candy coating, a la M&M's or Smarties. The inside was filled with pieces of compressed chocolate and hazelnuts.

I think the Noggy doesn't really live up to the chocolate quality that I've come to expect from Ferrero products. The chocolate tasted cheap, the candy shell ruined the flavors contained inside and I think there the ratio of nuts to chocolate was too high. While this one may be a novelty to eat every now and again, I would recommend others spend their money on a Rocher.

Ferrero Noggy
Size: 21g Calories: 110 Fat: 6g Carbohydrates: 13g

the a. panza & sons ice cream trade show...

I can't eat anymore. That seemed to be the phrase of the day, as my wife and strolled the aisles of the A. Panza & Sons Ice Cream Trade Show. Ice cream machines and freezers lined all available walls as their attendants begged the passersby to try their wares. Booths were filled with tables of ice cream toppings (pictured above), ice cream cones (pretzel, cookie, waffle, sugar, etc.), and anything else you might find in an ice cream store.

My hat goes to the Columbo Frozen Yogurt stand that was hiding in the corner of the building, but doling out some of the best frozen yogurt I've ever tasted. Thanks to A. Panza & Sons for the invite and for that delicious all-you-can-eat Italian buffet.

dark apple cider chocolate bar (USA)

After two years of waiting, today was the day of the bi-annual A. Panza and Sons Ice Cream Trade Show. I took a few pictures while I was there and ate way too many frozen products than I would care to share, but you'll hear about all of that tomorrow.

Today's entry is about Hebert's Dark Apple Cider Chocolate Bar. Now, a couple of weeks ago, Justin did a review on another Hebert's bar, the Dark Bananas Foster. As you can recall, he wasn't too impressed with the bar and asked for a wake up call when the flavor improved. I'll go into this review unbiased.

Upon first opening the bar, I could smell the overwhelming aroma of dark chocolate. Not a bad thing at all. However, I didn't smell anything that even closely resembled the apple cider. The bar was broken down into 10 sections and had even diagonal lines running across it. My first bite was one of awe. Whereas the Bananas Foster bar came up short, this one hit the flavor right on the money. The chocolate was delicious and the apple cider filling, though a tad on the sweet side, was en pointe. This is a bar I could see myself buying again. Good job on this one Mr. Hebert.

Hebert's Dark Apple Cider Chocolate Bar

Size: 64g Calories: 290 Fat: 15g Carbohydrates: 43g

new rating system...

In an effort to make this blog look a little more professional, I've added a new rating system that you'll start seeing at the bottom of the page. Yeah, yeah, so it's a little bit of a bite from Candy Blog, but why not add something that's working really well for her? I've been a long-time reader of the Candy Blog and she's really doing a good job. Hopefully this one will someday be on par with it.

mild bitter & orange kit kat (Japan)

Nice, another fancy flavor from Japan. It seems that Nestle Japan likes to put out a new flavor of Kit Kat each month. But really, who am I to argue with that? So, here we have a Mild Bitter & Orange Kit Kat from Japan. I'm really not sure what to expect from this flavor but I'm quite intrigued.

As I opened up the end of the wrapper, I took a deep breath of the Kit Kat scent. Hmm... It smelled like an orange Starburst with a hint of chocolate. Now I was really interested. I've never been fond of orange and chocolate together, but I was willing to give it a try in the name of Kitters.

It was interesting. The chocolate was a dark, slightly bitter one that wrapped the fresh, crisp wafers. I suppose if I was more fond of orange flavoring, I would like this Kit Kat much better. However, even with my dislike or orange, I still found this Kit Kat extremely flavorful. I'm gonna have to go ahead and recommend this Kit Kat out there to all those Kitter enthusiasts. It's definitely something different.

dark chocolate 100 grand bars (USA)

Happy Valentine's Day to my other two readers out there. Here's another Target limited edition we picked up while shopping on Sunday. I'm a pretty big fan of 100 Grands, being that they are essentially made of the best parts of Nestle Crunch and Milky Way bars. Yeah, yeah, I know I'm always talking about the packaging and really, who cares? But... Aside from all the nonsense advertising usually on the package, I like the really classy gold ends with black Avant Garde lettering. It really screams, "limited edition". Hehe.

There really isn't much to say about this bar. If you've had a 100 Grand bar before, then you know what this taste like. Substitute the milk chocolate coating with Hershey's ever-so-slightly bitter dark chocolate and you get this special edition bar. The only problem here is that the overwhelming sweetness of the caramel kills any ounce of flavor that the dark chocolate may have given this bar. So in essence, you don't need to run out and buy a bag of these so called "limited edition" bars. Buy the originals. You aren't missing much.

white chocolate kit kat (Japan)

The White Chocolate Kit Kat is a staple to the Kit Kat world, but Nestle Japan puts a little bit of a twist on it. In addition to the regular ingredients, I believe that they have added honey to it as well, though one would never know from the taste. I've always been a fan of Nestle Kit Kats over Hershey's ones, and this is one of the reasons.

Grr. My computer crashed and I had to retype this next section from memory.

Anyhow, let's get on with it. I pulled out the first of the two packs and unwrapped the two-fingered delight. There was a an aroma of white chocolate that must be personally witnessed to understand. The chocolate itself was the standard issue white Nestle chocolate - white and not too sweet. The wafer was fresh and crisp. Delicious. Muy delicious. I would recommend this bar to all chocolate aficionados as well as anyone looking for a wonderful tea biscuit replacement.

valentine's cherry kit kats (USA)

Oh man. Yet another limited edition Valentine's Kit Kat from Hershey. Last night as Val and I were shopping in Target, I stumbled across a bag of limited edition Valentine's Cherry Flavored Kit Kats. Now, I'm not really a fan of cherry flavored anything, but I decided to give them a try on behalf of Kit Kat Palace's 3 readers (myself included).

The wrappers are nice enough looking. Nothing special, but what can one expect from Hershey? They aren't the creative geniuses behind the Kinder Bueno or Aero Bar packaging, but whatever. It's a Kit Kat and that's what matters. When I bite into the pink wafer I'll get a sudden rush of pleasure from the crisp wafers and delicious chocolate and be quite satisfied. But boy am I surprised when I take my first real bite. What the hell am I eating? This isn't a Kit Kat. It doesn't even slightly resemble a Kit Kat, except for the wafer in the center which when mixed with the cherry flavored white chocolate taste like I'm eating a breakfast cereal. Yuck. Boy, this one is disappointing. However, I can't give it horrible remarks because I don't really cherry flavor to begin with. Anybody out there care to give me their opinion?

old kit kat commercial....

kit kat best friend hearts (USA)

Technically, I've already covered this one. A few posts back, I did a review on Kit Kat Conversations. This one is similar. This Kit Kat is meant to be shared and has a message on it that reads "Best Friends Forever". It sports a small heart on each half of the Kitter and one large one in the background. I know, there really isn't much to this Kit Kat except for the packaging and the "sweet" message on top, but a Kit Kat enthusiast can never be too thorough. Regardless, it is a special edition, so I'll add it to my collection. On that note, go buy one and share two fingers with your significant other.

Oh man. See what happens to me when I write my blog entries late at night? I'm tempted to look online to see if there are any new flavors available... Ughh. My next shipment is on its way. More wonderful flavors from Japan.

dark bananas foster bar (USA)

Greetings Kit Kat Palace! I would have posted sooner, but I was too busy eating organic, non-fat, sugar-free, whole wheat, all natural Kashi bars and doing speedwork. You know how it is. During Rob's marathon excursion to my place of residence, Miami, I had the pleasure of sampling a "Dark Bananas Foster" chocolate bar. While I am not well versed in the ways of confectionary criticism, even my amateur pallete could sense that something was lacking. Bananas. The dark chocolate was smooth, rich, and satisfying. However, the bar's experience simply did not live up to its name. Although there was a slight trace of banana flavoring, it was reminiscent of the power gels I consumed during the race. Overall Mr. Dark Bananas Foster Bar, you suck. Give me a call when you get yourself together.

fruit parfait kit kat (Japan)

Oh man, here we go with another crazy Japanese flavor. I've had this one for a while, I just never got around to eating it. My gay hairstylist brother came over last night to cut my hair and decided he needed to try one of my specialty Kit Kats. We decided on the Fruit Parfait.

Like other Japanese Kit Kats, this one came in two individually packaged double-finger bars inside a well designed box with pictures of various fruits. The smell and the appearance was very similar to the Cantaloupe flavor that I had reviewed several weeks ago, with white chocolate housing a wafer center with small fruit specks chicken pocking the surface. Unfortunately, this Kitter was a bit of a disappointment. Unlike the Hokkaido Melon, there was no distinct smell or taste. Its flavor was more of a conglomerate. I could taste four or five different fruits, but wasn't able to distinguish any of them. This one is only for the Kit Kat die hards out there. Sorry Nestle, you missed on this one.

ferrero tronky (Puerto Rico)

I picked up these two Tronky bars from Puerto Rico, after horse back riding through a non-existent forest. Apparently, we were supposed to ride for two hours amidst the native wildlife of a rain forest. Instead, we were treated to a dirt trail through fields between local ranches. Nice.

Anyhow, the Tronky Bar is created by Ferrero, makers of Ferrero Rocher, Mon Cheri, & Kinder Bueno. The bar itself is a large puffed wafer that breaks easily. This bar definitely wasn't made to take a beating. The wafer doesn't really have a taste but can be compared to chewing on a piece of thick newspaper. The inside is a hazelnut goo... Nutella! Consequently, Nutella is made by Ferrero as well. Being that Nutella is one of my favorite Churro fillings (don't ask), that would make this chocolate bar(?) a goodie. Basically, the cardboard outer shell acts as a carrier and armor for the delicious Nutella filling inside. Together, they balance each other well and make for a splendid treat. For those of you who are fond of hazelnut chocolates, this one is definitely for you.

back from vacation...

We've returned from our 9-day excursion and all I can say is, it's good to be home. I successfully finished the ING Miami Marathon and my speed-demon, eight-foot-long legged, "waaaah, I have to go do more speedwork" brother blazed home an hour ahead of me.

My long-awaited Kit Kats arrived from Japan the day that we left, so I didn't get to photograph or inspect them as I usually do with new arrivals. I was a bit disappointed in the fact that my trip only yielded two new Kitters, none of them being new flavors.

Oh, before I forget, let me introduce (to the other three people who read this blog) my legs-of-fire brother Justin, and my wife Valerie, who will both be writing entries to keep this blog interesting...