Cachet Vanuatu

The brand Hageland (which I really enjoy) seems to be called Cachet now, but the packaging looks the same. I found this bar when looking for a baby shower card at a local superstore. I never thought to look in the greeting card aisle for chocolate, but there it was.

Cachet has a wide variety of "Limited Origin" chocolate bars from milk chocolates in the 30% range to very dark at 80%. The beans in this bar were from Vanuatu, an archipelago over 1000 miles east of northern Australia.


The bar had a strong cocoa smell with a bit of smokiness. The flavor was rich and just slightly bitter, with a wonderful hint of toasty caramel. Though I usually prefer darker than 44% cocoa, this bar was quite delicious.

The back of the box mentioned hints of coffee (along with spice, caramel, and smoke), but I wasn't refined enough to taste the coffee. Still, I was very pleased with the bar, especially since it was only $2.

A-

Hageland Website

Hageland Pear & Almonds

Up until now, I've only tried Hageland's limited origin bars, but the last time I was in the candy aisle at Wal-Mart, the Pear & Almonds bar called out to me. Pear is one of those fruits that I love as a fruit but not as a flavoring, but based on my history with Hageland, I convinced myself that this time would be different.

According to the back of the box, the Hageland County in Belgium is famous for growing pears. The natural pear flavor joins almonds, 57% dark chocolate, and an unexpected emulsifier: soy lecithin (non-GMO, less than 0.5%). Right away, I noticed the bar was softer than other dark chocolate Hageland bars.


The bar smells of roasted almonds and bitter cocoa, but the first taste is all pear. It's so strong that it reminds me of banana, and that's not a good thing. Luckily, the pear taste fades very quickly, leaving behind only almond and dark chocolate. The chocolate is of the quality I've come to expect from Hageland, and the almond flavor has melded with the chocolate for a lovely mixture.

The snap of the chocolate must be affected by the other ingredients, as the bar was softer than expected. The slivered almonds and pear granules are so crunchy that it almost seemed like the nuts were candied. The texture was certainly pleasant and aside from the first hit of pear, the flavor was pretty good, but I much prefer Hageland's standalone bars. I think it all comes down to how you feel about pears in chocolate.

B-

Hageland Website

Hageland Peru 64% Dark Chocolate

By now, I've come to trust that any Hageland bar I try is going to be pretty good at least. From the very light (not my favorite) to the very dark (too dark for daily enjoyment), they've all been pretty tasty.

The Peru bar lands somewhere in the middle at 64% cocoa. Unlike the other bars, there was no information on the type of cocoa beans used, other than that they were grown in Peru. The ingredients, as I've come to expect from Hageland, are just the essentials - no fillers or artificial/superfluous flavors.


The bar smelled nutty and a bit like a campfire. It had a great snap, and at first, I was hit with fruitiness, and even a hint of a flavor that reminded me of graham crackers. As it melted on my tongue, it was slightly cool, a little sweet, and rich with a fairly clean finish.

This might be my favorite Hageland bar yet. The sweetness from the lower cocoa percentage was a perfect mate for the still slight bitter flavor, and I loved the complexity. It had plenty of sweetness without the sticky, cloying feeling milk chocolate gives me. Hageland's Peru bar just might become a chocolate staple in my house.

A+

Hageland Website

Hageland Costa Rica 71% Dark Chocolate

Remember Hageland, that surprisingly tasty line of chocolate bars available at Wal-Mart? Curiosity overtook me, and I bought the Costa Rica bar for myself a few weeks ago. When it comes to dark chocolate, anywhere around 70% cocoa suits me well, and the brand had already proven itself worthy.

Like all Hageland bars, the ingredients were minimal (cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, vanilla) - perfect for a good chocolate bar. The Costa Rica bar was made with Trinitario cocoa beans, which are a hybrid of the common Forastero and rare Criollo beans. Because of this, chocolate made from Trinitario beans are said to have better flavor than that made with Forastero beans. I'll have to add a direct taste comparison to my list of things to do!


The chocolate had a sweet cocoa aroma with hints of anise and allspice that really reminded me of root beer. It tasted a little fruity, and the cocoa flavor was subtle and delicate. The chocolate was very mild in general, and it even tasted a bit toasty.

The texture was glorious; the melt was cool and not at all sticky. I enjoyed this bar, but not as much as the Chocolove 70% bar that I tried last month (though I couldn't find any info on what type of "premium" beans are used to make it). Still, Hageland has yet to disappoint, so I'd recommend this brand to anyone who hasn't tried it.

A-

Chocablog also reviewed this bar late last year.

Hageland Website

Hageland Madagascar 32%

Finally, I've exhausted my chocolate bar supply. I put off trying the Madagascar simply because it sounded too light for my tastes, and I thought it might be too sweet. After trying my other two Hageland bars, I should have had more faith.

My husband was eagerly awaiting this bar, and when I did open it, I was really surprised just how light it was. It was a pretty caramel brown color that reminded me of the Meiji Royal Milk Tea chocolate I tried last summer.


The bar smelled rich and just a bit toasty, and from the first bite, it exceeded my expectations. It was milky and caramel-like with a smooth texture and a wonderfully chewy, sticky melt. The bar had a soft snap, but it was perfect for the mild chocolate.

The cocoa flavor was subdued and well balanced with the milk and caramel notes. The sweetness I so feared was not a problem at all. Although I'm not a milk chocolate convert, this bar was a refreshing change of pace, and I liked it much more than I would. My husband and I both thought it was delicious, and we are both very impressed with Hageland chocolate.

A-

Hageland Website

Hageland Ecuador 43% Milk Chocolate

This is the second of three Hageland bars in my possession, and it also falls into the middle as far as cacao percentage. Earlier this month, I had the 80% cacao from Uganda, and I have a 34% bar from Madagascar on deck.

Like the other Hageland bar, the ingredients list was simple: cocoa butter, sugar, whole milk powder, cocoa mass, and skimmed milk powder. According to the box, there is a minimum of 43% cocoa solids and at least 22% milk solids. The flavors of cacao from Ecuador were described as rich, intense, and acidic with hints of flowers and herbs.


The chocolate smelled nutty, milky, and very sweet. Luckily, it was not as sweet as it smelled. The melt was smooth, cool, and creamy, and the chocolate had a nice, traditional cocoa taste that I enjoyed very much.

The bar was well tempered, and though I prefer a little darker, this was a very tasty milk chocolate bar. My husband really liked it, and described it as some of the best milk chocolate he'd ever had (he would give it an A). The cocoa flavor was quite strong, but it was well-balanced by the creaminess.

B+

Kim's Chocolate website

Hageland Uganda 80% Dark Chocolate

This is yet another bar from my holiday stash, and I have to say, I was really looking forward to this one. I am a fan of dark chocolate, but don't usually go in deeper than 70%. It's not on purpose, I just don't seek the products out for myself. Luckily, some friends picked up my slack and got me this bar (along with two other Hageland bars).

I had a very difficult time finding information on the Hageland brand, but I do know it's a Belgian company and that you can buy the bars at Walmart. Even full (English) reviews of the brand were hard to come by, and I couldn't find any for this particular bar. UPDATE: Hageland's website is now up and running, and the link is at the end of this review.


The ingredients list looked promising: cocoa mass, sugar, coca butter, and vanilla. It doesn't say anything about this being a single origin bar, so I'm going to assume it isn't. The box says that the forastero beans from Uganda "renowned for their classic cocoa flavor and low acidity." The opened bar smelled woodsy and earthy, which was also promised by the back of the box.

The chocolate had a very firm snap, and right away tasted a little bitter (but not unpleasantly so). It had a crumbly melt, and as it warmed, it tasted fruity and a little sour or lemony. The finish was earthy and clean (like a chocolate umami, perhaps), with no oiliness or weird aftertaste. The bar was thoroughly interesting, and actually, very good. I wouldn't want to eat it all the time, but I really enjoyed it, and am now looking forward to trying my other two Hageland bars!

A-

Hageland Website