Venchi Cuor di Cacao 85% Cocoa Dark Chocolate Bar

On a trip to a 'fine foods' store recently, I purchased an extravagant looking brand of chocolate as a treat to share with my other half when I got home. I'd never heard of Venchi before, but it looked very much like an artisan brand of chocolate, so I decided to make the pricey investment of £5.50 for a 100g bar.

I had high hopes for this chocolate, and those hopes were elevated when I peeled back the wrapper. The smell was very intense, which should point towards a high quality chocolate. However, when I tasted it, I was extremely underwhelmed. The cacao had little to differentiate itself from other more mainstream brands. I expect a chocolate of this price to be distinctive, but this certainly wasn't. It was bitter as well - even though it is 85% cacao, high quality brands will usually offset the bitterness with a little vanilla or a milder bean - Green and Black's do this perfectly, but unfortunately, Venchi do not.

I definitely won't be buying this chocolate again, as it just does not compete on quality with my favourite brands. Some may enjoy it, but for me it is a mainstream chocolate bar marketed as an artisan product.