Consumer Reports Hot Cocoa Review

Dagoba Saves the Day

Due to spending the last 2-1/2 months non-stop in airports, I've developed a craving for Starbuck's Vanilla Steamers.  Do not fret.  I am still obsessed with Hot Chocolate.  However, I've come to appreciate Starbuck's Vanilla Steamers.  After running my errands, I decided to lazily drive through the drive thru of my local Starbuck's location.  I ordered my favorite combo:  A tall Vanilla Steamer and a blueberry scone.  In my excitement, I decided to order a Grande Steamer versus the Tall.  Yahoo!  This was going to be a wonderful day.

Unfortunately, the scones were already gone.  However, the associate helping me found a blueberry muffin.  SCORE!  After paying for my order,  I hastily took off without sipping my drink.  I just assumed the beverage was correct since the cup was labeled Vanilla Creme.  Oh my joy was stolen when I arrived at the house to heat up my muffin and enjoy my Steamer.  Yuck!  It was a Vanilla Mocha. 

I tried and tried to indulge in this beverage, but anything with coffee traditionally is just horrible for me.  So, it was off to the pantry to select a Hot Chocolate to quench my thirst for something delicious. 

The chosen hot chocolate of the day is Dagoba's Authentic Hot Chocolate.  As an aficionado of their Xocolatl spicy hot chocolate, I knew this selection would be just as fabulous.

The Authentic Hot Chocolate has a subtle blend of flavors leaving a wonderful essence in your mouth. 

It blended together fine, but required a few extra turns of the spoon in both a clockwise and counterclockwise direction to ensure the cocoa powder and milk was mixed together.

In the end, Dagoba saved the day.

Forget green beer! Give me an Irish hot chocolate

Today, I celebrated St. Patrick's Day with a mug of Gourmet du Village's Irish Cream Hot Chocolate.  When an instant hot chocolate is desired, I reach for Gourmet du Village or Ghirardelli.  This was exciting since I never tasted an Irish Cream drink before...not even a shot!

After heating up the milk and adding the hot chocolate packet, I stirred the mixture.  A nice creme layer appeared.  Yum.  I proceed to the backyard to sit out and savor my cup of heaven.

The first sip was very fulfilling and the creme layer added lift to the beverage.  I must say, I will keep a few packets of this one in my cupboards.

Target's own hot chocolate

Who knew Target had a love affair with hot chocolate. They had quite a selection of instant hot chocolates to choose from (Mint, Dark Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, Amaretto).

No hot chocolate for you!

Last night our puppy doo, Wally, decided to bring us box of Target plastic bags to the game room upstairs. It was funny at the time until I realized that the box came from the same shelf I store my hot chocolate and cocoa mixes. Which meant...it was time to reorganize and remove my favorite beverages to a non-reachable location.

A few years back, I went through a major organization of my hot chocolates. Now with Wally being a busy puppy, it is imperative we keep him safe. The cocoa infused teas stayed on the baker's rack and the opened hot chocolates were moved to high shelves. I am still looking for more storage due to the number of tins I have, but at least they have been removed from Wally's reach.

What a hot mess!

Stick with dark hot chocolate

With the recent passing of National Chocolate Milk Day on September 27, 2009, the FDA recall of hot chocolates made with powdered milk and the Food Navigator – USA reporting that Nestle purchases 10 to 15 percent of their milk from a farm owned/seized by Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe, I believe everyone is better off with drinking dark hot chocolate.

Need I say more?

Hot Chocolate of the Day: Maltesers

On one of my many shopping excursions for hot chocolates, cocoas or drinking chocolates, I came across a few interesting selections at World Market, which specializes in gourmet foods and unique items from around the world. One of my finds was Maltesers, a single serving instant hot chocolate from the UK. Maltesers is manufactured by Mars, Incorporated, or the company that makes the legendary Snickers candy bar, Twix and Skittles. Although this product is primarily for the UK market, it is equivalent to the very popular Swiss Miss hot chocolate here in the states.
With that in mind, I prepared myself to try a hot chocolate with what I call the "tri's and di's" or any beverage with large fancy names that we neglected to remember after high school or college chemistry. The bottom line is that Maltesers is not a pure chocolate beverage but potentially an enjoyable one for many.

Since I was running late to work and my boss was flying in preparation for another Release to Design meeting for the next release of the product line I manage (...you know my side job), I took my Maltesers single serving packet with "only 99 calories per serving" to the office. The instant chocolate mix contains milk, soy and barley gluten so any one allergic to anyone of those ingredients should take heed to the product alert.

Upon opening the packet and pouring the contents into a cup, I was surprised at the faint brown color. The mix was primarily cream or white....interesting. I knew this was be milk chocolate beverage but I was surprised by how light the coloring was of the mix. After mixing the contents with water, I proceeded to take a few pictures of this tasting (and hoped my co-workers do not walk in on my obsession with hot chocolate in the office kitchen). I returned to my office to savor the experience, or at least prepare my taste buds for a new experience. On the first taste, I immediately thought it was bitter. The beverage deepened in color by this time and the aroma was a mixture of Ovaltine and Carnation's Malt Mix. Uhh! Duh! This beverage is a parody of the UK version of Whopers called "Maltesers".

After a few more sips, the flavor began to wear on me as I became acclimated to the malted hot chocolate. Would I enjoy this again? Once in a while. I've become enamored of true hot chocolate thus instant mixes have become quite distasteful to me. However, I do prefer Maltesers over other common instant hot chocolates such as Swiss Miss or Carnations.