Lindt Chili Dark
May 15, 2009 - chocolate
This chocolate is a tantalizing conundrum.
If we look at this from the chocolate point of view, then this dark Swiss chocolate is what one would hope to have for a mass-market gourmet chocolate: it’s silky smooth, with a tantalizing mouthfeel. It’s dark – not sure exactly how dark since no cocoa percentages are on the package – and creamy. It has a nice transition as it melts in your mouth to creamy goodness (omg – this starting to sound like something perverted) – and does not overwhelm with too much complexity. This is a straight-shooting, solid dark chocolate, from a chocolate addict’s perspective, that you want to curl up with in the company of nice cabernet.
Alright, now that we have the cocoa-based perspective diagrammed, let us proceed to dissect the chili angle. More concisely, this chocolate is more acute than obtuse with the heat. I don’t mean like 45° acute, I mean like 15°. It’s there, it comes, it goes, it’s gone. Lest we are misled by the illustration of a nice-sized chili pepper on the cover of the product, examination of the ingredients list reveals: “chili extract.” I freely admit to being a snob here, but when I see that, and then see vanillin – an artificial flavoring – I simply have no choice but to breath a deep sigh and shrug: ok, well, it’s Lindt chocolate. It’s not perfect, but it’s pretty damn good.
In short, I’d recommend this for anyone with an itch for a chocolate with some mild heat, who may be concerned with a boutique, micro-batch (compared to Lindt, anyway) chocolate packed chock full of chili and exotic spices.