Nestlé Kit Kat: Chunky (peanut butter)

Product name: Nestlé Kit Kat: Chunky (peanut butter)
Purchase details: £0.60 for a 48g bar or three for £1.20 (tesco.com)
Calories: 259 per bar
Country of origin: UK

The Nestlé Kit Kat: Chunky (peanut butter) is one of my all-time favourites. However, I’ve obviously been slacking as I know for a fact that, since I started this blog 14 months ago, I’ve only had one (and that didn’t even get a review as I ate it on a motorway journey!). This treat was certainly long overdue.

The ‘crisp wafer finger with a creamed peanut topping (19%) covered with milk chocolate (60%)’ came in a red Kit Kat-branded wrapper that feature a yellowy-orange panel to represent the flavour. I also noticed, for the first time, the clever way the recycling image on the back used the logo’s ‘K’ to look like a person putting rubbish in a bin!

The bar had the same outward appearance as the original Chunky but cutting it in two revealed its soft inner secret. The thick peanut butter layer was quite dark in colour and almost looked like a caramel. I also thought that the filling between the wafer sheets looked darker than normal and wondered if this could be peanut butter, too, but it turned out to be chocolate.

As soon I opened the wrapper, the aroma was apparent, with an emphasis on the peanut butter rather than the standard Kit Kat scent. Whilst this was good, it didn’t quite compare to an actual jar of peanut butter.

Obviously, the base flavour and texture was the same as the plain Chunky, but the 10% ground roasted peanuts and 2% peanut flour combined to provide a great flavour. It was nice and salty on the sides of the tongue, there was a peanut aftertaste, but the usual sweetness of the product was maintained.

I don’t know if anyone else ever has this problem, but I sometimes find that the chocolate on Kit Kats tastes a bit odd in places. I did find that here but I know from experience that it does tend to vary from bar to bar – it’s a taste I can’t compare to anything but, at the very least, it’s not a natural one. Thankfully, though, this didn’t spoil my enjoyment of this particular bar and, overall, there was a great balance of salty and sweet flavours.

The soft, fudgy texture of the peanut butter transformed the bar so I couldn’t not give it full marks in that area! I just loved the way it practically collapsed, before the crisp, as I took each bite. Amazing.

I’m pleased to say that my love of the peanut butter Chunky hasn’t lessened – it’s still a fantastic product. The levels of salt and sugar can both seem a bit intense, at times, but I think this is a good thing as it stops me from eating too many at once! I’m still waiting for a white chocolate version, though, Nestlé.

Appearance: 8/10
Aroma: 7/10
Taste: 8.5/10
Texture: 10/10
Overall score: 8.38/10

Ritter Sport White Whole Hazelnuts

Product name: Ritter Sport White Whole Hazelnuts
Calories: 571 per 100g bar
Country of origin: Germany

For some reason, I’ve turned down the opportunity to purchase a bar of Ritter Sport White Whole Hazelnuts time and time again – I wrongly thought that I’d tried it before and that it was a less exciting flavour offering. Thankfully, all has not been lost, as I was sent this bar to sample from an online survey panel.

I thought the bar’s wrapper looked divine since it was designed to look like the creamy white chocolate full of ‘crunchy roasted whole hazelnuts’ within. Apparently, 23% of the product was these nuts, whilst a further 3% was taken up by ‘crispy rice’. Whilst not provided on the wrapper, I was also able to obtain the nutritional information from Ritter Sport's website.

On unwrapping the 16-square bar, it was immediately obvious that the nuts really were whole and scattered throughout the chocolate. Along with the rice, they were visible on both sides of the bar, giving the overall appearance of a chunkier Weisse Cocos. The hazelnuts also took centre stage in terms of the scent, although there was a slightly milky aroma too.

The chocolate’s sweet taste also had a milkiness to it which worked fantastically with the quite juicy and liquidy melt. This texture seemed to be thinner than normal due to how packed full the chocolate was of other stuff which, presumably, meant there was actually less of it! I also found that the white chocolate flavour wasn’t as strong as I’d have liked but, on the plus side, it wasn’t too sweet or sickly.

Due to my passion for white chocolate, I thought I might find this product too busy with the nuts and rice, and it was certainly lumpy when melting and not really worth it for the chocolate itself. However, the chewing texture was fabulous. Whether eating with the chocolate or after it had melted, the brilliantly combined crunchy and crispy mouthful was really tasted and I absolutely loved the toasted aspect of the hazelnuts.

I felt nothing but love for this combination of white chocolate and hazelnuts and, having eaten a lot of nut-filled chocolates in my time, I was particularly impressed by the quality of the hazelnuts that left no funny aftertaste. I definitely should have tried this variety sooner and I’ll certainly be buying it in future.

Appearance: 8.5/10
Aroma: 7.5/10
Taste: 8/10
Texture: 9/10
Overall score: 8.25/10