Mars Delight
When the subject is raised, it is often pointed out that the chocolate available in Europe, the British Isles, etc. is superior to ours in the States. Where fine chocolate is concerned this is certainly not the case. Where pedestrian, everyday, convenience-store chocolate is concerned, however, they have us whipped. As evidence, I give you the Mars Delight.
Presumably everyone who sees this bar in its natural habitat (Ireland) would have an idea of what’s inside, which is important because you wouldn’t know from looking. Pull back the wrapper’s seam, though, and it actually lists percentages. Not cacao percentage (which would be irrelevant), but how much caramel cream, chocolate cream and milk chocolate have been applied to the wafer. Now that’s informative.
The Delight is somewhere between Twix and Kit Kat. The base is a bit of chocolate “cream” which goes unnoticed. Then a ribbon of wafer, folded back on itself repeatedly to create cushions of air. On the top, another “cream” of caramel. The overall experience is a smooth, yielding texture harmoniously side-by-side with crisp, delicate wafer. The decision to use caramel “cream” instead of syrupy caramel was well made, as caramel would have been one texture too many, its drizzliness detracting from the light, smooth qualities of the bar.
Between the “creams” and the substantial shell of milk chocolate, this could be an overly sweet, caustic chocolate bar. If it were being made in the States. For whatever reason, the big companies’ UK/EU products lack the acidic, throat-burning sensation that follows a Snickers or a Hershey bar, and this is their triumph. I think the difference is corn syrup; noticeably absent from the Mars Delight. The bar stops just short of too sweet, giving richness and texture their share of the spotlight.
Tags: confection, mainstream, UK etc.