Chocolate! Review: Dammenberg Dark Choco, Sugar Free/ Sokerittomia tummasuklaa nappeja

Dammenberg Dark Choco, Sugar Free/ Sokerittomia tummasuklaa nappeja
55% cocoa
Else/muuta: nutfree, gluten-free, eggfree, lactose-free/ pähkinätön, gluteiiniton, munaton, laktoositon
Includes soya/ sis. soijaa
Made in Finland

Dammenberg's dark chocolate pieces ('buttons') come in nice and little cardboard box. Its design is simple and clean, pretty Scandinavian. When you'll open the box (which includes 90g chocolate) there's not chocolate but another package. It's a white plastic pouch, which needs to be torn open before you can taste the actual product. In a way this plastic pouch is a good thing, because it keeps the chocolate safe from everything that can come through the box (for example rain, dog teeth...). However, it also gives you more work with the opening and takes away the feeling of nature friendliness which the cardboard box may have given to you.

The actual product, button-like chocolate pieces are not as shiny as in the picture on the box but you can't really expect shiny chocolate, when they bounce against each other in the package. Still, the buttons look cute like big brown eyes and you could pretty easily imagine giving these for example for present to someone allergic (or not allergic) friend, who likes less sweet sweets. Yes, dark chocolate isn't usually sweet and even tough Dammenberg's Dark Choco doesn't contain but 55% cocoa, it tastes "darker" - probably because it's also sugar free (sweetened with maltitol E965). Product is also certified as Kosher Dairy, which is useful to know, if you have a Jewish friend.

The taste of these Dammenberg's chocolate buttons is slightly butterish, in a good way. They won't melt in your mouth instantly but they won't either transform into sticky mass that covers your whole mouth from inside. The aftertaste is pleasingly chocolatic, not sour or bitter but slightly sweet. It's like you had visited somewhere peaceful, in a place, where you would like to return. I could imagine these buttons wouldn't probably be neither strongly disliked by friends of dark chocolate or even by those chocolate lovers, who mainly eat chocolate with less cocoa. This is not one of the cheapest of dark chocolate products but so pleasing that you wish to try it again anyway.

Points: 4/5

Chocolate! Review: Tupla Dark

Tupla Dark
60% cocoa
Else/muuta: includes nougat - nuts/ sisältää nougaata - pähkinää
Made in Finland

The classic Tupla (Fin. double) has two small bars of milk chocolate covering nougat and almond crush. Tupla Dark is a similar product, except its extremely sweet nougat is covered with darker chocolate. Also, the product's wrapping looks very similar to the classic version of Tupla (also by Cloetta). The main difference is in the wrapping's colours: instead of golden tones, this product has somewhat bronze tones. If you have both the shiny gold and bronze to choose, gold can look more attractive. It's just brighter and therefore maybe lovelier like white Apple devices beside grey standard computers...

The plastic wrapping is clued tightly but it's not impossible to open with bare hands. :) Inside you'll find two bars of Tupla, almost like two little bar-like biscuits. They're on a white cardboard slate, which helps you to keep your fingers and table clean from chocolate. However, the plastic wrapping alone would do that too, so in the end the slate is just on your way and creates more junk.

How does this sweet double bar taste like? Well, because of the nougat filling, it indeed is sweet, sweet like pure white sugar on your tongue with nutty side flavour. The dark cover is very thin, paper thin to be exact, and so also the dark side of this product doesn't quite win over its sweetness. Those, who are afraid of the bittnerness of darkest dark chocolates, wouldn't probably find this double bar too 'offensive' by its taste. But if you're not a fan of nougat crush that sticks between your teeth, stay away from Tupla bars.

It's not easy to judge this product. I've eaten the classic Tupla every now and then since from my childhood and usually just mistakenly, because the wrapping resembles a lot the wrapping of Mars bars. This product could be an introduction to the world of dark chocolate for someone. But it would be more joyful without with these irritating little pieces of almond...

Points: 3/5