Divine 38% Milk Chocolate Toffee and Sea Salt

Fairtrade Fortnight is just around the corner so it only seems appropriate to taste a big bar of Divine chocolate in advance. 

Fairtrade Fortnight is an opportunity to celebrate all things Fairtrade running from 24th February until 9th March. This includes anything from chocolate to beer and ale which was a surprise. An even bigger surprise was that Gold is on the list!
To see the full retail list just click here.

Fairtrade is all about better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world. By requiring companies to pay sustainable prices (which must never fall lower than the market price), Fairtrade addresses the injustices of conventional trade, which traditionally discriminates against the poorest, weakest producers. It enables them to improve their position and have more control over their lives.....(this was taken from the Fairtrade Foundation FAQs page)

The Fairtrade mark is an independent consumer label that indicates to the purchaser that a product meets the international Fairtrade Standards. It demonstrates that the product has been certified to offer a better deal to farmers and workers involved. 

Fairtrade facts: 1 in 3 bananas sold in the UK is Fairtrade. In 2012 sales of Fairtrade products reached a staggering £1.57bn. 

Over the years I have become a big fan of Divine even though I didn't really enjoy their chocolate initially. The bright new packaging and flavours has certainly gone down well with me. I was staggered to read recently that on sales of £7.5M they only delivered a profit of £26,000, that's not a promising margin. Apparently, the good times are back so hopefully, Jamie Hartzell, their new CEO will have a positive impact on their business. 

£2.00/100g Divine 38%

As we're all aware sugar is top of the healthy eating agenda since the World Health Organisation (WHO) pointed out that a spoonful of sugar will not necessarily help the medicine go down!  

I'm never been one to run my finger down every ingredient list but you'll probably not be surprised to hear that this bar of chocolate contains 51.2g of sugar. Wow!  

According to the WHO added sugars should not form more than 6%-10% of total dietary intake.

Like a seasoned smoker I will shrug with indifference and continue to break off another chunk of milk chocolate. 

This bar has a double health whammy as it also contains sea salt. The sweet chocolate quickly melts to reveal chunks of toffee and grains of salt that are ever so slightly corrosive and overpowering to the overall caramel taste, especially if you suck on your chocolate like I do.

I think the chocolatiers who created this bar were a little heavy handed with the salt shaker. I enjoyed a few squares but to be honest it wasn't one I'd be reaching for again especially when I think about all that sugar! Back to the dark stuff tomorrow......

Posted by Richard

Divine - Chilli and Orange

The final truffle rolls off the line for 2013!

The final chocolate truffle is about to roll off the production line and for me Christmas can officially start! Blogging has not featured for several weeks as all things chocolate have officially taken over my world. The Christmas decorations and tree are all still in the box, well said tree is still in the garden and has probably taken root.

A few months ago we visited the famous Abergavenny Food Festival where we met the lovely girls from Divine who were dishing out tons of free Divine chocolate samples. The girls were brilliant and were enjoying themselves immensely. The bar has remained in my chocolate sample draw until today.

Divine Chocolate is made with the finest quality Fairtrade cocoa beans cultivated by the farmers of Kuapa KoKoo in Ghana, who are actually co-own Divine. Their cocoa is grown in the shade of the tropical rainforest, it always amazes me how many people do not realise where their chocolate is coming from, and slowly fermented and dried in the sun to bring out the full flavour.

A beautifully decorated bar of chocolate weighing in at 100g. Break off a chunk and pop it in your mouth and let it remain there for a few minutes. Don't chomp on it, just let the flavour flood out.

70% Divine Chilli and Orange Dark Chocolate

The guys and girls at Divine have done a great job with this one. The dark chocolate (70% cocoa) melts quickly and delivers a smooth rich flavoured chocolate with a hint of orange and heat that gently tingles your tongue, not unlike that numbing feeling you get when the dentist has just jabbed you with his needle! The balance of orange and chilli is just right and both couple together to form a perfect union with the dark chocolate. 8/10!

At £2.00 this bar of Fairtrade chocolate is great value, just follow the link.