Valrhona Cao Grande Lait Review

Typical price:

£2.85

We like:

The brilliant taste and texture; the assurance of Valrhona quality; the easy-to-recycle paper wrapper

We don't like:

Not knowing more about the trading standards, worker welfare or how it's made

SmartPlanet judgement:

Good God, this tastes good. We think it's well worth the price, too, especially if you prefer milk to dark but still want to enjoy cocoa flavours. It's beautifully smooth, too, and the organic certification means GMs, chemicals and pesticides are kept out of the picture. We don't know much about its greenie creds, though, and wouldn't mind more info on the company.

Score:

Contact:

Nice Car Company at http://www.chocolatetradingco.com/mainpage.asp?
Telephone: +44 (0)8700 508 244

When Galaxy and the rest make adverts featuring lengths of cool, brown, slippery silk, they're trying to say that their chocolate has a fabulously smooth texture and luxurious taste. It might not be true of that product, but it certainly is of Valrhona's milk chocolate bar. The Cao Grande has an incredibly silky smooth feel in the mouth -- almost cool against the tongue -- and crucially, it has the flavours to match.

The first taste is slightly fruity, with some cocoa character, and then caramel and coconut tones develop. Then, joy of joys, it starts tasting of biscuits. If you're looking for a rounded, long-lasting milk chocolate to appreciate rather than scarf, this is it. You'll need all your willpower to leave some squares for later, though.

Getting our questions answered from France -- where Valrhona's based -- wasn't easy, so we're basing our scores on the information that's out there. Valrhona also makes a 70 per cent organic dark bar, and though the vast majority of its products aren't organic, these two are both certified by Ecocert, via the Agriculture Biologique stamp. Valrhona says: "Today, having pledged commitment to the organic network, Valrhona has begun developing chocolates which take both farming production methods and work organisation into consideration while respecting the environment."

Since we don't know anything more about the Valrhona bar's greenie creds besides its certification, we can't mark it too high there. The only green element we can see in plain sight is the paper wrapper, which can obviously be recycled. But who knows if it's made from recycled paper, or if the company does anything more to limit its environmental impact?

On another note, the 'Valrhona Foundation for Taste' is committed to protecting biodiversity. Its concern surrounds the disappearance of traditional local products and the decline of quality and diversity of chocolate. "The main objective [of the 'taste foundation'] will be to reinstate taste as a factor or sensorial discovery, social insertion, cultural enrichment or awareness of diversity," Valrhona explains on its website. Sounds interesting, but again, we wish we knew more specifics.

Though Valrhona sounds like it's heading in the right direction, it's difficult to see the whole picture without knowing more about any green initiatives. And it's a big company, so we would like to know if they're paying a fair price for their beans. Luckily the chocolate tastes like a dream...

Score breakdown:

 

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