Lauden Chocolates 12 Mixed Box
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Sometimes I just fall for beautiful looking chocolates. And I’ve done it again here. On this occassion, however, it wasn’t just how they looked; it was also the flavours in this mixed chocolates box that got me excited. I just love fruity chocolates and they’re very much dominating the variety available – it was a no brainer really to choose these.
When they arrived they looked fantastic, you’ll get a nice “menu” that details exactly which chocolates are which. It may actually be like a child’s game to work match the descriptions up to the actual chocolates, but that’s half the fun. What did flummox me was actually how to get into them. I should have just taken my time as all you do is peel off the little bit of tape and slide the clear perspex top backwards. If you ever had a set of dominoes as a child, it’s just like opening up one of those.
My problem was knowing where to start as there were just so many that looked absolutely fantastic. In the end I went for the lime as generally this is my favourite type of citrus chocolate. As with all them they individually look great but it’s the aroma that really attracted me. Flavour-wise this will knock your socks off. You can tell that it’s made with real limes and not flavouring as there’s a bit of a rindy note to it along with the very slightest saltiness at the beginning that descends into a sweet zesty taste. This is real chocolate and not like the mast produced stuff you’ll get at Christmas.
Secondly I tried the mint one. Again you can tell this was made with real mint and there’s a touch of bitterness whereas as if this was factory made I’m sure it’d be sweeter with a more archetypal mint taste. Here it was imperfect, but all the better for it. These ones are as far away from After Eight Mints as you’re ever likely to get.
The third was the Blackcurrant and Redcurrant which had a slight pub aroma but this was just brief. As you try it you’ll get delightful citrus flavours all combined in a jelly-type centre. Wonderful.
The sour cherry carré had a similar aroma to the previous, but the flavour was significantly more sweet and robust. If you wanted a sharper chocolate at a level of the first two then you won’t be disappointed as your taste buds will be stunned.
The passion fruit chocolate had a very earthy foretaste, an incredibly fruity middle and a zingy aftertaste that just hangs around on your tongue. The texture here was a much more soft and gooey than the others. If you wanted your taste buds to be assaulted again with citrus zinginess then this one is also for you.
The six of the session had quite an acidic aroma but the flavour was actually milder than I expected. As with all the others so far the actual chocolate casing was incidental to the filling but still nice, crisp and thin. As you start to nibble at it there’s more of a salted caramel flavour to it which was very welcome. I thought this was especially fantastic.
And then I was on to the Raspberry & Rose which also had a bitter / sweet taste which was accompanied by natural texture that just reminded me blamange and was like being injected with English summer and made to sit in the sun. It’s certainly another that will zing around your mouth.
The next was a lot softer in texture and in taste as well. This actually let the flavour of the chocolate come through. I would have expected this one to be harsh as orange obviously can. But in fact, it was nice and mild. I enjoyed this one immensely.
As you would expect from lychee, it was bound to be strange, but the rose flavour balanced off the unusual lychee character and made it much more flowery and passive than the others. It also somehow managed to taste more alcoholic than the others too. Perhaps it’s because of this I liked it a lot.
I then approached the Marc De Champagne which I was saving for near the last as I love Marc de Champagne with chocolate, it seems to lift it magnificently. With these Lauden chocolates they were incredibly rich and moreish. I certainly couldn’t eat too many of them as they’ve do knock you sideways, but overall, very enjoyable.
I’m not the biggest salted caramel fan, but these had a very light texture and flavour. Perhaps it’s because I tried it after the powerful Marc de Champagne, but there wasn’t anywhere near as much intensity or bite. Conversely the caramel flavour was just gentry brought up a notch by the French sea salt. Very nice indeed.
And then lastly the lemon. I purposely saved this one to last as I wanted to book end the reviews with my two favourite flavours. And boy was it delicious?! I love the intense, powerful, sharp lemon flavour of this one as it tastes like sucking on a million lemons whilst bathing in an Olympic-sized swimming pool of lemon sorbet!
These were some great chocolates, not because of the use of fine couverture or anything like that. But because Sun has thought outside of the box by providing chocolates that you can’t find anywhere else. The flavours are sharp, intensely fruity and absolutely perfect for a summer’s day. I loved every single minute of reviewing them. It may be a requirement to have a strong liking for citrus fruits, but if you do then you’ll hit a home run with these.
