I originally picked up the Lindt Excellence 70% Cocoa Intense Dark Chocolate as an attempt to alleviate migraine pain because to be quite honest prior to hearing that dark chocolate helped migraines I would NEVER have dreamed to try a 70% cocoa chocolate before. I don’t do bitter, I can’t stand the shocking acidity of coffee and I detest the cheek puckering bitterness of grapefruit and I was pretty sure that extremely dark chocolate was going to fall within the same realm. As it turns out, when it comes to Lindt’s Intense Dark chocolate 70% really isn’t that bitter at all.
The Chocolate: Lindt Excellence 70% Cocoa Intense Dark Chocolate
Type of Chocolate: Dark Chocolate
Cocoa Content: 70%
Best Eaten With: Raspberries
Price: $3.50
I found Excellence 70% Cocoa Bar in my local RiteAid drugstore for $3.50. There was a significant selection of Lindt chocolate to begin with but being that I was searching for dark chocolate at the time I settled on the highest cocoa content they had in stock – 70%.
Taste:
I won’t lie to you and tell you that the taste of the Excellence 70% Cocoa Bar wasn’t bitter at all, when it comes to most dark chocolates particularly with such a high cocoa content you are going to run in to at least a hint of bitterness but with this bar it was subtle. It’s the type of dark chocolate where even though a recommended serving is four squares you could be quite happy with just one and not obsess about the other three that sit mocking you in the kitchen.
Upon opening the packet of chocolate there is a very limited chocolate scent which lacks the significantly sweet odor you will smell with milk or flavored chocolates. To the touch the Excellence 70% Cocoa Bar is slightly waxy and upon biting in to one of the significantly large pieces the initial texture is waxy as well but this soon dissipates. The chocolate crumbles as you bite rather than melts immediately and the earthy taste of such a dark chocolate permeates as you continue to chew. There is a slight hint of coffee earthiness to the taste but certainly not a bitter one. Pairing this dull and subtly earthy tone with the sweet acidity of raspberries would most certainly bring out an orchestra of flavor in the chocolate.
The after taste of the Excellence 70% Cocoa Bar is again subtle. While the undertones of sweetness still coat your mouth there is a noticeable lack of the sticky sweetness that is found in so many commercially produced chocolates.
Ingredients:
The ingredients in the Excellence 70% Cocoa Bar are few and include: chocolate, sugar, cocoa butter, and natural bourbon vanilla beans.
The Bottom Line:
As a mass produced chocolate the Excellence 70% Cocoa Bar actually wasn’t too bad, and that’s coming from a new comer to dark chocolate. The bitterness was subtle and the aftertaste was not overpowering or overly sweet. What this chocolate lacks in texture it makes up for in providing a sweet but earthy taste that allows you to walk away at 1/4 of the recommended serving size. This is certainly not a Belgium quality chocolate but as far as commercially produced dark chocolate goes it’s not half bad.
| Overall Rating: |  |
You can buy Lindt’s products from your local retailer which can be found here.
{ 0 comments }
