Ahhh, the Perugina Baci in Rosso. A chocolate cherry bomb. The outside is silver foil with red pictures and text, like a Russian ICBM. The dark chocolate casing is punctured to reveal the potent kirsch (cherry) liquor flavor of the ganache inside. Like a radioactive sludge, the taste of the alcohol makes it’s presence felt firmly. Finally, in the center core, is a real cherry that gives this chocolate a nice texture to finish with. It is the fusion reactor at the heart of this weapon of mass adoration.

So, today we have the Frey Supreme Lebkuchen bar.   As you know, I’m a big fan of Frey chocolates so I was definitely looking forward to trying out this unknown flavor.  So, what you are probably wondering, is Lebkuchen?  Well, the answer quite simply is a soft, somewhat large cookie-like dessert with a subtle gingerbread flavor.  You can definitely taste it in each bite of this chocolate.  It’s a great bar and the lebkuchen is a really great addition to a chocolate bar, even not being familiar with the flavor before.  Interestingly, I had a Frey Supreme Tiramisu bar (purchased locally) around this same time, but in comparing the two chocolates the Tiramisu bar tasted very oily and felt waxy compared to the earnest, but dense and rich milk chocolate from the imported bar.  It would not surprise me in the slightest if Frey bars from the States take a few shortcuts to make a cheaper product.

The Stainer company has a website circa 2002.  This Tuscan company produces a lot of exotically flavored chocolates.  Maybe you’re thinking you need some White Chocolate with Madras Curry?  Saffron?  Aloe and Black Currant? The possibilities are endless.

This is a lovely flavor combination.  We’re talking, as the nicely designed wrapper tells us, a mix of pineapple and chili peppers.  It starts slow, with the tropical taste of the pineapple, and then the heat slowly starts to increase…and increase.  Yes, this definitely packs a punch.  I have to admit the chocolate was only average, but the draw here is the flavor combination and I enjoyed having a square of this occasionally since it’s not something you eat all at once.  It definitely woke me up when I would sample one in the morning.

Our next chocolate comes from a small Spanish chocolatier next to Barcelona.  Ludomar produces a number of boutique chocolate products, among them this truffle bar with citrus and ginger.

Visually, this bar will impress.  It has a nice pattern on the front of the bar with a metallic-colored design of paint strokes, as you can see.  In contrast, the underneath side of the bar contains the marks and imperfections of a hand-made product.

Unfortunately, I am eating this bar while enduring a cold, so my impressions are certainly blunted by sinus problems.

My initial impressions were that I really didn’t like this chocolate.  I felt the ginger overwhelmed the chocolate and really didn’t add much to the waxy tasting chocolate.  A few days later, and I am beginning to appreciate its character.  First of all, the bar is a hard chocolate surrounding an inner, less dense chocolate ganache.  The chocolate has notes of coffee in it, but the ginger and citrus will come to the fore as you taste.  It still isn’t my favorite, but this will definitely please those who appreciate ginger and a finely crafted appearance.

In this installment, we’re sampling the incredibly delicious duo of Pralinés magnifiques with both Pear and Balsamic Vinegar from Frey Switzerland.

These are definitely some of the most interesting chocolates I’ve ever had.  These are really truffles in the most basic sense.   In fact, the term Praliné means truffle in many parts of Europe.  For these chocolates, Cocoa dust or powdered sugar coat a hard shell of chocolate that surrounds an inner ganaché spiked with one of the two vinegars.  It’s a very satisfying texture as a result.

Of course, it’s the unusual combination of chocolate with the vingear that makes this special.  Personally, I love this sort of unusual flavor combination since both the sweet taste of pear and the loamy balsamic flavor combined with the dramatic vinegar really makes for a satisfying taste.

Frey is absolutely one of my favorite chocolate producers.  What’s more, they offer a wide array of flavors at your local Target if you’re in the mood to try some great combinations of flavors with some high quality chocolate.

For the second bar to share my impressions on, we have the Bachhalm 1928: Die süße Leidenschaft, which means ‘The Sweet Passion’.  This is a handmade, fine chocolate bearing the distinction of ‘Grand Cru’, a term borrowed from the wine world, but in terms of chocolate means “made with beans of a specific region“.   According to Bachhalm,  that means Criollo beans (the rarest and most expensive bean used in only 5% of all chocolate) from “the best growing regions and plantations in the world, 10 degrees to the north and south of the equator”.

So, enough history!  What does it taste like?  Well, this ‘Sweet Passion’ bar is lightly topped with clusters of sea salt.  The intense punch of the salt pierces through the sweet milk chocolate and enhances the taste of the chocolate itself.  The chocolate itself is wonderful, a simple milk chocolate that tastes less of cocoa and more of cream but leaves with a lingering, persistent reminder.  The chocolate melts easily.  I have another Bachhalm bar upcoming, so stay tuned for that impression, too.

Next up?  Chocolate and Vinegar!

This is a pretty dark chocolate and the taste of the strawberry is very strong.  What I love about this chocolate is the strawberry taste.  It has a very fresh flavor, like just-picked strawberries with an almost earthy taste that comes from the rose pepper.

I give it 7/10.

i want the ducky