Toppo – Bitter Black Chocolate
I’ll be quite frank and say that I’m not entirely sure if this is a regular flavour or this is a seasonal one. I haven’t been keeping up with Toppo enough to be able to say that this is in their evergreen lineup. If it is, that’s great, but if it’s not I feel like it would be a missed opportunity. Then again maybe darker chocolate isn’t a big seller for them. Who knows. All I want to find out is if it’s any good.
The first thing that comes to mind when I open a pouch is cocoa powder. More specifically, I think of those chocolate mixes that come in a steel tin like Nesquik that were so common back in my childhood. What that registers as for people unfamiliar is a sweet, cocoa smell. Like a sweeter smelling version of a hot chocolate powder. Interesting that it reminds me of something that is so sweet while being marketed as being bitter. But I guess maybe that’s a relative thing, like how every fast food chain claims their ghost pepper products are burn your pants spicy when they are less than a baby’s whimper even for someone averse to spice like me.
The texture is classic Toppo form where the outer biscuit is reminiscent of a classic pretzel, but not nearly as dry while having a similar clean snap to it. The chocolate filling is not too thick or hard and along with the rest of the stick has a clean snap to it that makes it very pleasing and addictive, making you want to keep going back for more. I’ve mentioned before, but these are sort of like a reverse Pocky in the sense that instead of the chocolate on the outside as a coating, these are on the inside as a filling. That changes the texture substantially but I personally prefer this. It makes it feel more substantial, while still being overall quite a light snack.
The flavour is that of a semi-sweet chocolate center of around 55 to 60, and the biscuit stick itself has chocolate in it as well. What you end up with is something very chocolatey, and while texturally it’s somewhat light, it feels a bit rich in flavour, which I like. The somewhat richer, heavier tasting chocolate contrasts well with the biscuit stick which is lighter and fairly neutral. While they call it bitter, I feel the need to reiterate that I do not find it to be bitter largely due to my preference for darker chocolate. If you are someone who prefers milk or white chocolate, you might find this a bit bitter, but it just registers as a nice mid range dark.
While there’s nothing particularly flashy or unique about this flavour, it’s an example of a classic formula done well. Sometimes when you do the more common or typical things well, you don’t get the same amount of credit. That doesn’t change that this one is a winner and deserving of a repeat buy.
