Ritter Sport – White Whole Hazelnuts

Hazelnuts are one of those things that seem really hard to screw up. I haven’t had very many things that include whole or chopped hazelnuts and not at least gone back for a second helping. Something about them just makes them perfect when paired with that sweet, sweet liquid ambrosia that solidifies into chocolate. Except white chocolate…that one I’m still not too sure about. Maybe I’m just old and jaded now, but I’m not really down for super strong flavours that lean in too hard to one side. White chocolate, especially the cheap stuff tends to lean way too much into sweetness. It’s not even real chocolate, if I’m being frank here. But that’s neither here nor there. Moving on.

One of the big reasons I am enamored with Ritter Sport is consistency. No matter how crazy they get with the chocolate, or the filling, the standard bars are always 4 x 4 squares that can be snapped perfectly. They are all the same size, same height, same 16 pieces with the little logo on the top. Something is just so satisfying about buying a whole bunch of them and just stacking them. Perfection. In life, there are always a lot of uncertainties and surprises. Some pleasant, some unpleasant. But at the end of the day we all crave some stability, however small it may be. Ritter Sport provides that comforting stability and consistency in how they deliver chocolate. It’s actually quite a difficult thing to do, but they manage it so well. Maybe that’s why I keep coming back to them.

Anyways, today’s bar is part of their standard lineup. You should be able to find this bar everywhere these days, even in your local supermarkets. They are by no means cheap, but that speaks more to the product itself. I look at it as more of a budget chocolate that is ever consistent, and while by no means premium, it certainly feels like a strong quality product for what you pay. Hazelnuts have never been a cheap nut to use, so keep in mind that the whole hazelnut bars tend to be slightly more expensive. If their past bars are anything to go by though, it’s well worth it.

Texture is actually quite soft in terms of chocolate. Unlike the dark chocolate varieties where the pieces take more effort to break apart and chew, these white chocolate varieties while not soft in a melty sense exactly, do break apart quite a bit easier and are more pliable to the chew. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m no food expert, but I feel like it has to do with all the sugar and fat that goes into white chocolate. I could get into another rant about how it’s not “real” chocolate, but I won’t beat a dead horse. The bar has some nicely roasted, whole hazelnuts which are always a winner in my books, when done right. Along with the small bits of crisped rice, this is a great bar to snack on, and has great crunch. It’s definitely an addictive combo.

Accompanying the fantastic texture is an equally tasty flavour. I don’t usually like white chocolate on account of the sweetness, but this isn’t overpowering or cloyingly sweet as I tend to assume most white chocolates are. The hazelnuts and crisped rice also help to cut the sweetness, as they provide a bit of nutty flavour without adding much sweetness, so it evens out nicely. It almost feels like the hazelnuts are the main focus of the product, and the white chocolate is simply it’s +1, complimenting it while letting the nuts shine. I appreciate that, since white chocolate is usually the loud, obnoxious girl at the party who you can’t help but notice. I guess it takes the right kind of nut to tame her and keep her in check.

While I am not a huge fan of white chocolate, this bar does it well. I attribute that mostly to the generous serving of hazelnuts, which seem to make any chocolate related consumable better. I would highly recommend this to anyone who likes hazelnuts, and people who are on the fence about white chocolate. This may/may not sway you to enjoy it, but if you like hazelnuts then at the very least you’ll enjoy white chocolate as an incidental accompaniment. Of course, they also do this bar in dark chocolate and milk chocolate, so you could always give those a try. Or you could wait a while and read my review on that. Just sayin’. Being a standard flavour, it’s not like these are going anywhere, not like those pesky limited editions.