Marks & Spencer Organic Fairtrade Milk Chocolate Review

We like:

The forthright flavour profile; the Fairtrade Mark and Soil Association certification; Marks & Spencer's Plan A

We don't like:

The slightly grainy, sticky texture when it melts; that you can't taste the caramel syrup; that there isn't much info on the packaging for prospective recyclers

SmartPlanet judgement:

Marks & Spencer is rapidly becoming an option when we don't want to have to think too hard about the food shopping -- its green initiatives seem relatively sound to us. The Fairtrade Mark is an added reassurance on a product that may ride roughshod over delicate palates. Still, it has its own cocoa-rich character.

Marks & Sparks' milk bar has a surprisingly intense cocoa flavour and rich smell. It's not the smoothest chocolate we've tried, though, and goes sticky and slightly pasty in the mouth as it melts, probably the result of basic processing methods. Caramel syrup is listed among the ingredients, as well as vanilla, but you can only detect them in the aroma rather than in the taste, which we would have preferred. This is not a subtle chocolate -- tested against some more expensive brands, it lacks finesse and character. Continue reading...