Have you felt the bubbles melt...? (Nestle Aero Caramel)

Member Name: ian22

Product:	Nestle Aero Caramel
Date:	19/03/06 (710 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Gooey caramel, nice texture of chocolate

Disadvantages: Expensive

Aero has always been one of my favourite chocolate bars, mainly because of its bubbly, creamy texture. But sometimes that just isn't enough. I want something MORE!! If, like me, you have a sweet tooth, worry ye not. I think I have found the bar you've been looking for. It comes in a brown and orangey wrapper and is called.... Aero Caramel!

This particular flavour has been around for a few years now, but has just recently undergone a relaunch, with the promise that it is now made with 'creamier tasting chocolate'. As you might have guessed from the name, Aero Caramel is pretty much the same as a standard Aero bar, but unlike the original bar, benefits from a delicious layer of soft, gooey caramel. According to the wrapper, the caramel layer constitutes 22% of the whole bar.

* PACKAGING *

For the most part, the wrapper looks like that of a standard Aero bar, with lots of chocolatey bubbles in the background and the 'Aero' name in bold white lettering. But at the far end there is a pattern of golden swirls, denoting that this is actually the caramel flavour, and the word 'caramel' in smaller, brown writing within a banner-like strip.

Because I am greedy, I bought a multipack containing three individual Aero Caramel bars. Visually, the outer packaging looks quite impressive, and if this wasn't enough, there is a short blurb on the back which appeals directly to your senses. It tells you that:

"The bubbles in your Aero have been added especially. First they collapse, then they melt before flooding your mouth with delicious milk chocolate."

There is great use of metaphor here. You can almost feel the chocolate melting in your mouth!

* THE BAR *

Tearing open the wrapper reveals a bar of approximately 13cm in length and 3cm in width. I can only describe it as 'tunnel-shaped' because it has a curved surface and a flat bottom. Although the bar isn't split into sections as such, there are small etchings into the surface of the chocolate which appear to divide it up, and each one of these bears the 'Aero' insignia.

To me, the bar looks and feels smaller than a standard Aero bar, which is a shame really. I can only put this down to the fact that it is from a multipack.

* SMELL & TASTE *

Nestlé milk chocolate always has a smell of its own and the chocolate in Aero is no different. It is sweet and creamy but has quite a strong aroma, which you don't get with other chocolates, like Cadbury's.

As you bite into the chocolate, you are immediately met with a contrast in textures. The caramel layer is soft and gooey and the chocolate base solid and chunky. The caramel is very sweet and a lot runnier than the kind found in Cadbury Caramel, making it a bit messy. However, its toffee-like flavour makes it very moreish and enjoyable to eat.

The milk chocolate, on the other hand, is a bit sickly for my liking, due to its intensely sweet, creamy flavour. I do like its bubbly, velvety structure, though, as this gives it a smoothness that other chocolates don't have. Rather than munch the chocolate, I think the best way to enjoy it is to let it dissolve into naturally, as suggested in the blurb on the packet. My only criticism of the bar is that the bubbles are not as big as those found in standard Aeros. As a result, they lack the same airy delicateness. The chocolate is like that found in the old Wispa bar.

* NUTRITION *

Per bar:

Energy - 205 kcal (calories)
Protein - 2.3g
Carbohydrate - 25.4g
Fat - 10.5g
Fibre - 0.3g
Sodium - Trace

Unfortunately, the wrapper does not specify whether the bar is suitable for either vegetarians or those suffering from allergies, so I cannot advise further on this.

* VALUE FOR MONEY? *

I bought a multipack containing three bars from Morrisons and paid £1.24. This is the same price that Tesco and Asda are charging. I usually buy chocolate bars this way, because they generally work out cheaper in the long run. However, given the small size of each bar in this multipack, I am not so sure whether it is such good value for money after all. Each bar works out at over 40p each, which I consider to be fairly expensive! However, if you buy them separately, they work out even more expensive - 45p each to be precise!! Given this fact, I suppose any saving is better than nothing.

* CONCLUSION *

If you like Nestlé milk chocolate, you are bound to like Aero Caramel bars. I will definitely be buying them again and recommend you try them too. However, overall, I think I prefer the standard Aero bars more for their superior chunkiness and delicate texture.

For more information, write to:

Nestlé Consumer Services
P.O. Box No. 203
York
YO91 1XY

Tel. 00800 63785385 (UK)

www.nestle.co.uk

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