Milk Chocolate

Milk chocolate is chocolate that has a significant amount of milk powder or condensed milk added. The EU is stricter with the level of cocoa solids that need to be present for a chocolate product to be legally labelled as “milk chocolate”. In the United States the minimum level is a surprising 10%! It is therefore not surprising that many within Europe are very disparaging of the chocolate produced across the Atlantic.

The vast majority of the milk chocolate we produce is in the form of chocolate bars which are flavoured with additives such as mint and adorned with fruits and nuts. This is one of the most beautiful features of chocolate – there is just so much variety that there will be a chocolate bar suitable for everybody.

There are dietary requirements, however, and this has meant there has been increased focus on producing milk chocolate that is either dairy-free, wheat-free, sugar-free, gluten-free, soya-free, or egg-free. With this has been the increase of people that choose to restrict their intake of certain types of food which has lead them to search for vegan chocolate or chocolate suitable for vegetarians.

Also in recent years there has been a big increase in Fair Trade chocolate producers who aim to give more back to the local cocoa producers.

Milk Chocolate Gifts
Milk chocolate is a focus of the gift hunters. Whether it’s Christmas, Easter and the lovely milk chocolate Easter eggs you can buy, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day or any sort of national holiday, milk chocolate seems to be the focus of attention for people willing to dive into their purses and wallets.

How To Choose Good Quality Milk Chocolate
Everyone is different. Chocolate I like, you may not. But with trying the vast quantity of chocolate I have over the years there appears to be a constant. That is that if the chocolate is very cheap, it’s likely not to be very good.

Many people say that you should only buy milk chocolate from the main brands. This is utter rubbish. Some of the best chocolate you will find will be from those producers you’ve probably never heard of. My Chocolate Bar, for example make great chocolates and so do Terre à Terre and Ooh La La. Don’t be afraid to try something different.

If you wanted to try gourmet and luxury milk chocolate then try brands such as Valrhona, El Rey, Michel Cluizel, Amedei and Pralus which you can get from Chocolate Trading Co.

If you wanted to buy milk chocolate for others and you wanted to increase your chances of finding chocolate that is more focused on the mass market then consider Hotel Chocolat, Thorntons, Montezuma’s, Chocolate Buttons, Cadbury’s and Handy Candy.

But there are a great number of chocolate shops and I’m working on a directory of them – starting with a tour of chocolate shops in London.

And don’t forget, you can buy milk chocolate in our new, and very raw, chocolate shop.

And don’t forget you can have a look at our milk chocolate Valentine’s gift guide too.