Kingdom Milk Chocolate & Cappuccino Coffee Centre

Product name: Kingdom Milk Chocolate & Cappuccino Coffee Centre
Calories: 168 per 30g serving (559 per 100g bar)
Country of origin: England

I received this bar of Kingdom Milk Chocolate & Cappuccino Coffee Centre as part of my prize from their Facebook page and, as a lover of coffee-flavoured chocolate (although not actual coffee!), I couldn’t wait to try it.

The overall concept and design was the same as the Dark Chocolate Lemon & Lime Centre, but this bar came in a dark brown and spearmint wrapper (which I thought gave the impression of mint-flavoured dark chocolate!), and featured coffee beans in the background and an image of a coffee cup.

Since the coffee centre also consisted of milk chocolate, it accounted for a huge 94% of the bar. Within this, 38% of the chocolate was sugar, and it also contained a minimum of 34% cocoa solids and 27% milk solids. Once again, the chocolate formed part of the Cocoa Development Project, and natural flavouring was used to achieve the coffee taste.

The slab had the same ridiculously chunky appearance but, obviously, was paler in colour than the dark chocolate. The filling was almost indistinguishable from the shell but it was just about possible to work out which bit was the core.

The aroma wasn’t very strong but there was an element of slightly bitter coffee about it. This bitterness was also present in the taste but the chocolate’s sweetness overruled it, with the two components combining to form a decent coffee chocolate experience.

 

To chew, the bar had the same texture, and I just loved the silky, smooth and creamy melt of the shell as the milky chocolate gave way to the coffee centre.

The best thing about this bar, for me, was that the emphasis was on the chocolate rather than the coffee, making it preferable to the Ritter Sport Espresso. That’s not to say that the coffee didn’t make a good impact – it did – it just wasn’t so strong that the chocolate became superfluous.

This was another great quality product from Kingdom and my appetite is now well and truly whetted to try the final bar from my bundle – thanks, guys!

Appearance: 7/10
Aroma: 6.5/10
Taste: 8/10
Texture: 8/10
Overall score: 7.38/10

Ritter Sport Espresso

Product name: Ritter Sport Espresso
Purchase details: £0.75 for a 100g bar (99p Stores)

Calories: 567 per bar
Country of origin: Germany

As much I don’t like to drink coffee, I love it in chocolate and cake, so I was delighted to find this absolute bargain bar of Ritter Sport Espresso.

Coming in a rich dark brown wrapper with images of chocolate and coffee, it was made ‘with robust Arabica coffee’ which, I’ve got to admit, meant nothing to me! The ‘milk chocolate with a coffee cream (45%) filling’ sounded a lot more up my street, though. There was no nutritional information provided but, thankfully, I was able to obtain this from Ritter Sport's website.

The bar had a very similar appearance to the Kakao-Mousse but it was split into 16 smaller squares instead of nine larger ones. The filling did look mousse-like, though, and this caused the bar to break apart softly too. It was also considerably darker than the chocolate shell despite the wrapper giving the opposite impression.

On peeling open the packaging, I was greeted with a scent that was just like opening a jar of instant coffee – it was very strong (I couldn’t smell the chocolate over it) but didn’t give me the headache that fresh coffee does.

The bar contained 4% espresso powder and I couldn’t believe how strong the coffee flavour actually was. I’ve tasted the odd granule here and there (as you do) and it tasted exactly like that. However, the chocolate (containing a minimum of 30% cocoa solids and 18% milk solids) meant there was no intense bitterness like in a real cup of coffee.

Texturally, the chocolate had an incredibly thick but soft melt that needed the tongue to spring into action in order to get each square to completely disappear. Eating the bar in this way allowed the almost dirty flavour to be eased into, having worked through the creamy and slightly sweet chocolate. Alternatively, chewing the bar weakened the power of the coffee, allowing the chocolate flavour to come out a little more.

No one could claim that this bar lacked flavour but, for me, it wasn’t my favourite kind. Its ‘coffeeness’ was a lot stronger than your average assortment box coffee creams but, equally, it was far better quality. I definitely liked this Ritter Sport Espresso but the emphasis was very much on the coffee rather than the chocolate and I would have preferred it to be the other way around.

Appearance: 8/10
Aroma: 7/10
Taste: 7/10
Texture: 8/10
Overall score: 7.5/10

Müller Corner: De luxe (Mississippi mud pie)

Product name: Müller Corner: De luxe (Mississippi mud pie)
Purchase details: £1.00 for a pack of two 130g yoghurts (tesco.com)
Calories: 251 per yoghurt
Country of origin: UK

Following my enjoyment of the Müller Corner: De luxe (crème praline), I couldn’t resist trying this new Mississippi mud pie version.

 

My first ever review was of Mr Kipling Dessert Classics: Mississippi mud pies but Müller’s take on the pudding was somewhat different since it added both coffee and toffee. I still haven’t had the real thing, though!

These yoghurts came in the same style of elegant packaging as the crème praline variety, and was represented by a purple tinge, as well as photographs of its flavour inspiration. The product was described as ‘velvety smooth coffee and toffee’ flavoured yoghurt that had been ‘made with whipping cream’ (14%, in fact) and contained an ‘alluring hidden dark chocolate layer’. On this occasion, the ‘add-on’ that got mixed into the yoghurt accounted for 12% of the product and was a pot of ‘exquisite coffee infused dark chocolate coated biscuit pearls’.

 

Starting with the biscuit pieces, these were very small and glossy balls (I could see why they were called ‘pearls’!) that had thick chocolate shells and appeared to contain cocoa inside. Trying a couple on their own, they were very bitter and their thick coating was emphasised by the long time it took to melt. This shell produced a cracking sensation, when chewing, and was the dominant texture. As a result, I found the biscuit itself wasn’t that noticeable, and I didn’t think it tasted of much either.

As previously, I didn’t think the layering of the yoghurt was as impressive in appearance as suggested by the packaging, and the chocolate underlayer had the same watery appearance. The yoghurt was a paler shade than the crème praline and, above anything else, it seemed to have a slightly acidic toffee aroma.

The yoghurt was smooth in texture and had quite a dark coffee flavour that was lifted by the toffee. It had the slight tang that you’d expect from a yoghurt but I didn’t think the chocolate flavour was very powerful. However, the crunchy biscuit pieces were the overwhelming element of the product, and they provided a strong dark chocolate taste that gave the impression of a grown-up dessert. The only downside of this, for me, was that the creaminess of the yoghurt was overshadowed.

I can’t say I enjoyed this yoghurt as much as the crème praline but I think that was more down to personal preference – I’ve got a very sweet tooth so these were a little too bitter for my liking. I would have preferred the whipping cream to be more noticeable but this was a pleasant product nonetheless.

Appearance: 7/10
Aroma: 7/10
Taste: 7/10
Texture: 7.5/10
Overall score: 7.13/10

Krispy Kreme Vanilla Cappuccino

Product name: Krispy Kreme Vanilla Cappuccino
Purchase details: £1.75 for a 94g doughnut (Krispy Kreme Doughnuts)
Calories: 409 per doughnut
Country of origin: UK 

I must confess that I was lucky enough to receive this Krispy Kreme Vanilla Cappuccino for free as a thank you for registering my reward card – I promise I’ll start paying for them again from now on!

 

I was really looking forward to trying this new variety but, as my first review of a filled doughnut, I was also a bit gutted I was going to have to cut it open and miss the magic of finding out where the filling was hiding! Prior to this, though, I was impressed by its outer appearance – it was decorated with swirls of vanilla and coffee flavoured icings as well as ‘crunchy shortcake crumble’. 

 

The Krispy Kreme website informed me that this doughnut contained a ‘smooth coffee kreme’ and, on opening it up, I could see that there was a lot of this pale substance. Of course, this excitement came at the cost of calories, but the good thing was that all of the nutritional information was available online so I was able to intentionally have a lighter dinner in order to accommodate this evening treat!

This doughnut wasn’t coated in the famous Krispy Kreme glaze and, as a result, its aroma was more like that of a standard doughnut – sweet and doughy. I found it to be less powerful, and there was no hint of a coffee scent, but it was delicious nonetheless. 

Before diving in, I couldn’t resist trying the different topping components on their own. The shortbread was quite soft but it was crumbly and I thought it tasted like Fox’s Party Rings. The sugary icings had a great texture – slightly crispy on the outside but soft in the centre. The vanilla was very sweet but, alone, had a slight chemical taste to it. The coffee one was better, though, with a decent but not-too-strong flavour. 

The coffee kreme centre tasted just like buttercream but with a hint of coffee thrown in for good measure. It was thick and very smooth. In fact, it tasted so beautiful I would have happily just eaten a jar of it on its own! 

The dough was the same as the Original Glazed (and the majority of other Krispy Kreme doughnuts) and, when everything was mixed together, it was a very tasty experience. It maintained the delicious sweetness that I’ve come to love about Krispy Kremes but added a bit of added interest with a mild coffee flavour. I say ‘mild’, but this was definitely stronger than the Caramel Macchiato that I’ve previously reviewed. 

I had been a little disappointed when I first noticed the absence of a glaze but it definitely wasn’t needed on this particular doughnut. The Vanilla Cappuccino was both sweet and crispy enough from the filling and the topping. 

Now...which one shall I have next?! 

Appearance: 9/10
Aroma: 7.5/10
Taste: 9/10
Texture: 9/10
Overall score: 8.63/10