Fruit-flavoured choc is a matter of taste

I don’t like chocolate with fruit flavourings. I mean, I test it, because I have to, but freeze-dried raspberries in dark chocolate, while ambrosia to some, leave me cold: I can’t stand the juxtaposition of flavours. The whole premise of these bars – dark chocolate with oozing fruit/flora/herb puree – is anathema to me. The exception was the mint, which I would entertain again. But if you do like that sort of thing, these bars are worth trying. They proved super-popular with my testers and the packaging is pretty. However, at £14.99 a bar, you do need to love them. But if you venture on to Melt’s site, and like the hazelnuts and milk chocolate, do look at its wonderful brick of Dark Chocolate & Hazelnut Gianduja Terrine, £12.99, which would make a great present to yourself and any other chocolate hazelnut lover. And the terrine is also really pretty.

While we’re on the subject of acquired taste, I loved Ocelot’s 50% dark milk with toasted buckwheat, £6.99: a gorgeous dark, creamy milk with a little bite of toasted buckwheat. An unusual but not alienating bar, although my husband hates buckwheat. I could easily have eaten the whole thing but thankfully didn’t. Two other dark milks that interested me this week were the 200 Nord 200 Sud Zorzal 55% milk, £8.95 – lovely; and the Mestiço 45% milk, £8.95. Both from Cocoa Runners.