Originally at The Green Man Review!

Scharffen Berger is an American chocolatier that’s been crafting all sorts of chocolatey goodness since 1996. They’re very popular in the restaurant community, but I’ve rarely seen them in stores. What can I say, I don’t frequent the gourmet establishments.  For I am cheap. But getting a hold of this bar has me wanting to check out more from this company.

Why? Well, it’s simple. They’ve got a way with their chocolate. This bar has got a nice creaminess to it, while still keeping the “snap” of a seriously good dark chocolate. (Okay, so true dark chocolate is typically touted as relatively healthy at 70%, but stay with me for a sec.) Then there’s the quick & dirty list of ingredients. Five ingredients, to be specific. Chocolate, sugar, sunflower lecithin, and whole vanilla beans.Which makes it not only comforting to snack on – hey, I understand every word in that list – but makes it unintentionally vegan. Note to hardcore vegans; as this company makes lots of stuff with dairy items, it might not be 100% vegan. But at least the recipe is. Win? Win-ish? It’s also gluten-free, for folks who look for that bit of info.

Typically, I leave the chocolates I need to review in the fridge, so they won’t turn white or gray from separation. But I’d left this bar in a bag of non-edible items (okay, typically not edible items), and it looked and tasted just fine when I decided to dig in. The bar has a fun harlequin-esque pattern to it, allowing you to select the piece that best serves your hunger level. Tiny triangle, larger triangle, or a big honkin’ center diamond that would probably make for one heck of a tasty s’more tidbit. I started with a smaller piece, but found myself reaching for a few more pieces, just to get my facts straight. What can I say; the things I’ll put myself through for an accurate review.

There’s a nice chew to this chocolate, and the cocoa butter and lecithin percentages allow for a cocoa-forward taste that dark chocolate fiends such as myself really go for. I didn’t feel too bad for munching so much, as at 6 grams, the saturated fat is much lower than the typical chocolate bar. Heck, this bar even has three grams of fiber per serving! With three servings, that’s 9 grams…is this a health food? Lie to me if you have to.

With the smoothness of a lower-cacao bar and the rich cocoa taste, this bar can go with just about anything. Currently, I’m having an almond milk latte with my tasting, though this could go with just about any beverage you choose, with the exception of citrus juices, as they’d war with each other. You could grate this on top of desserts, add to chilis (don’t knock it), or just settle in and nosh straight out of the package. This is a bar I’ll revisit. And perhaps I’ll look into their 70% cacao collection. Their chocolate, cherries, almonds and salt bar is calling my name…