It's a Mini Adventure (Lindt Chocolate in general)

Member Name: theediscerning

Product:	Lindt Chocolate in general
Date:	27/08/03 (210 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Nice selection of flavours

Disadvantages: Might be too dear, Perhaps more variety and balance would be better

It may well surprise you to see theediscerning, dooyoo's resident poor gubber, reviewing some posh Swiss chocolate, but there you go. As reward for sitting through three quarters of an hour of some silly TV advert over and over again, for market research, he chose some Lindt Excellence Minis as reward, and hereby presents the results of some more market research.

The plastic bag containing them is bright white with a brown blaze presenting the chocolate pieces in the centre ~ you'll recognise it, anyway. Inside are "27 extra fine squares", which are practically the size of After Eights, but smaller and perhaps thicker, and come all individually wrapped. They seem to be just about 5 grammes each, with a little division being done to the pack weight, so they ought to pack a punch of flavour for the price.

There are five kinds of Mini inside, and just for you, theediscerning has counted and found similes for them all, so here goes.

The EXTRA CREAMY Mini, in the blue packaging, is the Cadbury's of the bunch, in that it is the most common, possibly the most popular, the most matching the palate of the majority, and yet there is no harm in any of that. Aptly named, this is a very smooth creamy milk chocolate, which is actually a lot better than Cadbury's (natch); it has none of the cloying, sticking-to-the-tongue quality than chocolate can have, instead it just melts away and leaves a very pleasant sensation.
Theediscerning had 8 of these in his 27.

The MACADAMIA Mini, in the brown, is the Nouvelle Cuisine of the bunch, in that it is very interesting and nice, but you wouldn't try to make it yourself at home (what is a Macadamia nut anyway?!). Tiny shavings of caramelised nut bits add a small proportion of crunch to what is very decent milk chocolate (not the creamy kind as above, but something different again). It tastes suitably nutty, and despite scaring allergists off has to be called a succes
s.
Theediscerning had 6 of these in his 27.

The COCONUT Mini, in the yellow, is the ALBINO of the bunch, in that it is white, not so common, but is very appealing to most (but not all). Yes, some people just don't *get* white chocolate, but this Mini has coconut flakes buried throughout. The smell isn't of coconut much, but when the Mini warms up on the tongue the aromas are released and will reach up through your sinuses to get the whole head on a merry coconut tip. At first, then, it just seems like decent white chocolate, but afterwards you know there's been coconut present. Enjoyable.
Theediscerning had 4 of these in his 27.

The 70% Mini, in the black (well, how else would one portray dark chocolate, specifically?!), is the HIGH BOARD DIVING of the bunch, in that, should you try it without a build-up, or preparation, it might well leave you with a sore head. This is a heck of a bitter chocolate, proof that it contains little in the way of milk, sugar or anything else. It may well appeal to many people to have it as a challenge, or something, as it really isn't one to just knock back willy-nilly. It certainly would be too strong for the tender young palate, so should you have children you want to wean off pinching your chocolate... An acquired taste.
Theediscerning had 5 of these in his 27.

The 85% Mini, in the, er, blacker black, is the VINDALOO of the bunch, in that it might be wiser to prepare the palate for this one. Surprisingly, this isn't the most exceedingly bitter one of the bunch, but unless you have another kind beforehand, the strength of this chocolate hitting the tongue might well be a bit too much. A very nice plain chocolate, that will appeal to general choc eaters as well as the connoiseurs.
Theediscerning had 4 of these in his 27.

So, the whole Mini experience is a pleasant one. The packaging contains no dietary information, so just avoid what you cannot see anywa
y, and go for it. 27 little slivers of melt-on-the-tongue chocolate, that are just ripe for nibbling at, or for scoffing. The flavours present are very nice, none of this chasing round for a hint of coconut. Where they contains extras of the nutty variety, there is no skimping on the chocolate, one would be happy to eat those plain too. And while the 70% is a bit *too* strong, the flavours are generally of a very nice strength.

Yes, there's perhaps a little more in the way of variety that could have gone in, and as usual, there should be a better balance between the numbers of "standard" milk chocolate and the more exotic, but it serves as a good buy. And anyway, Lindt here are sticking to what they know best ~ they *have* been making chocolate since 1845. Whether that was last night or the evening before remains to be seen...

Theediscerning remains ignorant as to what these are supposed to cost ~ couple of quid, perhaps. He just doesn't frequent the places that sell these things. But if his 45 minutes of questionning and TV watching is paid at the national wage, they're something like £3.25 a bag. That's nearly good value.

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