Tirol Chocolate – Florentins Almond Caramel
Today is another entry into the world of Tirol. It should be a surprise to no one by now that my fairly recent foray into Tirol has been a slippery slope, to put it kindly. A dark obsession that has dragged me down a deep, dark rabbit hole, a downward spiral, and a precursor to abject poverty. I guess that makes it a good thing that Tirol chocolates are relatively inexpensive (by local standards) and small. It could be worse, I could be drinking or smoking. Maybe. My waist may beg to differ.
The object of my Tirol desire today is what they refer to as Florentins Almond Caramel. I could be wrong, but I believe it’s supposed to be their way of recreating that lovely Italian biscuit, the Florentine. From what I remember as a child, they were cookies that combined sugar, honey and chopped nuts or fruits. The one I am most familiar with just so happens to be the almond version. I’m assuming this is their way of trying to recreate that experience. My understanding is that this is a new release, but I’m not sure if it’s a rehash of a flavour that was released before. Tirol has been around for a while, and it wouldn’t surprise me if they bring back a limited flavour every now and again. It would make sense if the flavour turns out to be popular. Even if it isn’t all that popular, they could use it as a way to market something that just isn’t all that great. I’m looking at you McRib. Leave it to the big wigs at the golden arches to successfully market and sell something that shares ingredients with yoga mats.
Something to note about Tirol chocolates. Most of their chocolates come in the standard square size. They also have special ones that tend to be slightly larger than the standard size, and I believe they are sold individually. I don’t have any standard size ones to show a comparison, but these ones are the slightly larger ones. If I had to wager a guess, I’d say their probably between 10 to 15% larger? I’ll need to fight against my instinct to consume these and save one so I can show the scale in another review. Without how quickly Tirol releases new flavours, you know that’s coming.
These didn’t come in the standard sealed pack of 7. As I mentioned before, these came individually packed. Even without opening the wrapper, I get a strong smell from it. If I didn’t know what I was looking at or opening I might have thought it was time for some french toast. There’s a strong maple syrup type of smell coming from it. The smell is quite inviting, and I’m ready to tear into this thing.
So the interesting part about this piece is that it has two clear sections to it. The bottom is where I can see the chocolate part with all the minced almonds sticking out. Flipping it over to the top I see the light brown section which I imagine is the caramel-ish chocolate, along with more diced almonds and a few dark brown spots. I’m hoping they’re caramel/toffee pieces. Otherwise, I might have to take this thing to a dermatologist and get it checked out like my strangely shaped mole. It’s at this point I feel the need to reiterate how strong the smell is. Not that I mind, since maple syrup is greatly cherished on this side of the map. I’m talking the real stuff, not that Aunt Jemima nonsense that the yanks market as maple syrup. Gross.
The little illustration on these bigger pieces leads me to believe that they have a standard number of templates for these, and just stamp it on top. Not that I’m complaining. It’s got a cute little charm to it. The almond bits are poking through everywhere and it seems like it’s packed to the brim with almond bits.
It’s a good thing I opened two pieces. These things were harder to cut in half than I thought. I blame all the almond bits for that. The mere act of trying to cut one of these in half is already creating expectations in my mind of how this will all turn out. I just hope I won’t be let down. A wise man once told me, hope is a dangerous thing.
The expectations I had were somewhat high before biting into this. Not surprisingly, I was not disappointed. Tirol has yet to truly disappoint me, and that may play a part in why I have a strong preference towards them. They seem quite consistent so far.
Texture can best be described as biting into bowl of roasted and diced almonds, with some chocolate and caramel with it. It has a delightful crunch to it without being hard. Anyone who has nearly chipped a tooth on an almond can attest to how hard those buggers are. My dentist once told me to ease up on the almond consumption. Sure they’re a healthy snack, but they’ll wreak havoc on your teeth. I can’t be entirely sure, but I feel like there’s crunch coming from some sort of toffee bits in the chocolate as well as the almonds. Either that or the almonds themselves were candied.
I can’t tell if the caramel flavour is coming from small pieces inside the chocolate, or it’s from the chocolate itself. Maybe it’s both? The flavour is quite close to what it smells like – a bit like maple syrup. The flavour definitely reminds me of those florentine cookies I had as a kid, though with different toppings instead of almonds. The rest of the cookie, i.e. the melted sugar and honey part is definitely captured well in this chocolate. On second bite I’m fairly certain it’s toffee/caramel bits mixed in with the almonds. It’s quite addictive actually. I try to let chocolate melt in my mouth instead of just chewing it, but it’s a bit hard not to with this one.
I’m fairly certain that if you enjoy almonds, you will enjoy this. If you enjoy florentine cookies, you’ll probably enjoy this. Hell, if you enjoy Tirol in general, this will probably be a treat as well. It’s a relatively safe choice as far as chocolates go and it’s anything that new or innovative. That being said, it was still a pleasure to experience and I would recommend anyone who can get their hands on these to at least get one. Or two. Or get like 4 or 5 and be a generous chap and share one with your ol’ buddy. Who has two thumbs and likes Tirol? This guy.
