When I think of Russell Stover, I think of the big, red Valentine's boxes you can get in your local supermarket which can sometimes leave you with a chalky or unsatisfying chocolate. (If your religion is chocolate, anyway. Most people probably like it well enough.)But I don't turn down free chocolate, so I accepted a square of this Russell Stover Internationale German Black Forest Truffle. The wrapper describes it as: Rich, dark truffle with a hint of cherry, enrobed by bold dark chocolate and finished with silky milk chocolate.
After reading the wrapper and having my previous judgments in mind, I decided that this chocolate seems to be a step up. The cherry flavor is syrupy and unnatural though, akin to the flavor of the typical goo that comes inside a chocolate-covered cherry. That said, it's not incredibly potent and adds a little quirkiness. You can also taste the distinctions between the milk and dark chocolate but they also blend pretty well. It's very soft, and smooth, and not exactly the cheap cousin to drugstore chocolates. It's good, not great, and I'll leave it at that.
As for the Russell Stover Private Reserve Vanilla Bean Brulee, it was also a little gift and how can a girl say no to that?In comparison to the above, it was a little more up my alley being 70% dark. It was however a little grainy, or "chalky" as previously mentioned, but not terribly. It's better than the cheapest chocolate, but not highest quality judging by texture and flavor. It seemed to be a sortof watered down version of 70% cocoa, which could be a result of the layer of vanilla bean goo on the inside.
The goo was pretty creamy, but not especially silky like you'd expect to get from such a fancy package (and as a graphic designer I DO like the package). I have to add that I do think that the dark chocolate was a good pairing with vanilla bean flavor, especially for a Russell Stover kind of audience.
For a not-so-pricey chocolate, I'd say these are pretty decent options if you like your chocolate filled with something. While it may not impress the knowledgeable chocolate connoisseur, it will probably satisfy your sweet tooth or chocolate craving. Sometimes that's enough!
