Choco-Lisa Classic Bio Ziegenmilchschokolade

Choco-Lisa Classic Bio Goat's Milk Chocolate.
I don't know about you, but there's nothing "classic" about organic goat's milk chocolate to me.
Made by Choco-Lina, they also produce a lactose-free chocolate, as well as several other types. This Austrian company offers chocolate made with sheep's milk, using bourbon vanilla and other natural ingredients.
That said, I hated this chocolate. Functionally, it was fine - it melted smoothly, looked and smelled like chocolate. The scent was a little on the mild side, but not bad for a milk chocolate.
The aftertaste left me with the clear knowledge that this was not a typical chocolate. The aftertaste was unpleasant, and stayed around much longer than I like.

Reviewed: Choco-Lisa Classic Bio Goat's Milk Chocolate
Personality: more goat than chocolate
How to enjoy: Best left on the reformhaus shelves

Rating:
1: Better than sex
2: Little bites of heaven
3: Share with your best friend
4: Will do in a pinch
5: Halloween candy, but only give it to your friends who are willing to compromise on taste in exchange for the goat's milk and organic ingredients
Where to buy:
Germany: Reformhaeuser. Also check out http://www.chocolina.com/

Cafe Stolz cakes

There's just no point in telling those of you outside of Stuttgart about Cafe Stolz, because there's no konditorei like it anywhere else in the world. The Konditor was the German vice-master of Konditors and Patissiers in 2005. So you know where I'm coming from when I tell you we have two of the best slices of cake in town today for our coffee time.
And, to make it even better, I just ordered my birthday cake from these master bakers from Fellbach.
The first piece is a chocolate and hazelnut mousse with a sponge in-between the layers, and the mousse is filled with many good things, especially the nuts. The second is a decadent chocolate mousse cake named Jupiter, layered with a lovely chocolate sponge. Don't think twice about the size of the pieces in the photo - we have to share these things, so these are two half-pieces instead of two whole pieces.
Pieces of heaven. I can't wait til my birthday next week to find out what's next.

Reviewed: Cafe Stolz Jupiter cake, plus one I forgot the name of.
Personality: A master, really professional.
How to enjoy: Best for a special occasion, like a Saturday. Or a Sunday.

Rating:
1: Better than sex
2: Little bites of heaven
3: Share with your best friend
4: Will do in a pinch
5: Halloween candy

Where to buy:
Germany: http://www.cafe-stolz.de/

More Sprüngli Top Ten

We went back to our Top Ten box from Sprüngli last night. See http://talkalotachocolate.blogspot.com/2008/01/confiserie-sprngli-top-ten-pralines.html for the first posting.
We tasted the palet and a dark truffle. Both perfectly smooth and delicious. The palet is the piece 4th from the left and the dark truffle is the one on the right.
All of the judgements from the previous post apply, so I won't repeat the chart here.

Droste puur pastilles

Droste chocolate is a staple of Dutch culture. The pastilles come in at least 3 styles: dark, milk and half-half dark/milk. My favorite is the dark, but I'll eat any flavor anytime.
The pastilles are the perfect size for a little piece of chocolate that you might want to eat at any point during the day, and the aluminum foil packaging keep the rest fresh for the next time. Now that Droste is putting 2 rolls in a double pack, this package lasts a long time, 2 weeks or more when I eat a little at a time. Of course, when I'm reading and want a little snack, several pastilles go down very fast.
The dark chocolate is a beautiful color, and has a mild aroma that might be more associated with a lighter-colored chocolate. The taste is always perfect, nice and dark, yet not overwhelming.
Each pastille is easy to savor, melting smoothly on the tongue.
I just discovered that there are now several more flavors of Droste pastilles. Check out the Droste website for more info on flavors like Stracciatella and Orange. http://www.droste.nl/data/content/engels/assortment/pastilles/index.php

Reviewed: Droste Puur pastilles
Personality: My "go-to" chocolate
How to enjoy: Enjoy this any time you want just a bite of chocolate.

Rating:
1: Better than sex
2: Little bites of heaven
3: Share with your best friend
4: Will do in a pinch
5: Halloween candy

Where to buy:
Germany: some grocery stores, but we just drove to The Netherlands and bought from the source
USA: http://www.chocolateapothecary.com

Wafer cookies covered in chocolate are a particular weakness of mine. Whether they are made by Keebler Elves, or by Swiss bakers, it can be hard to resist an open box of the things set right in front of me.
The Swiss kind, though, feature more real chocolate, while the Keebler are coated in a very sweet fudge coating. The Swiss taste better.
At a budget price, they are a great way to get a tasty cookie anytime.

Reviewed: Kaegi-Fretli wafer cookies
Personality: Pure comfort, just like Grandma
How to enjoy: Don't keep them in the house. You'll just eat them all, all the time.
Rating:
1: Better than sex
2: Little bites of heaven
3: Share with your best friend
4: Will do in a pinch
5: Halloween candy


Where to buy:
Germany and Switzerland: major grocery stores

Lindt Sauerkirsche

Sour, spicy, peppery - you name it, companies are adding it to chocolate nowadays. Today I've got a Lindt Sour Cherry bar in front of me.
It's a dark chocolate with a cherry yogurt cream inside. I love how they can make these bars quite thin, even though they are filled.
This particular bar is tart, not really sour, and the yogurt isn't a strong taste, but adds a nice touch. It's a good everyday chocolate, with a fruity twist.

Reviewed: Lindt Sauerkirsche
Personality: Good and tart
How to enjoy: Eat this anytime you want a little more than just plain chocolate. Try keeping it in the freezer - it just makes it better.

Rating:
1: Better than sex
2: Little bites of heaven
3: Share with your best friend
4: Will do in a pinch
5: Halloween candy

Where to buy:
Wherever Lindt is sold, pretty much worldwide

Confiserie Sprüngli Top Ten Pralines

Confiserie Spruengli is one of the grand traditions of Zurich. Read more about Sprüngli and Lindt and Sprüngli here.

We went to the shop on the Paradeplatz and enjoyed a coffee and one of their special recipe hot chocolate drinks. The coffee was served in solid silver pot, with its own little paper hot pad, and the hot chocolate was simply out of this world, not too sweet with a dose of very sweet caramel sauce. Make sure you don't suck all the caramel down first.
We escaped the shop more or less financially intact, giving into only an Engadiner Torte and a Top Ten box selected from the most popular of Sprüngli's pralines.
The first praline we ate (second from the right) was a white chocolate nougat - creamy white chocolate with bits of fresh nuts. Yum! Unable to resist (it was New Year, so worth the indulgence), we also melted into the layered nougat, third from the left.
Honestly spoken, though, the Engadiner torte was not my favorite. The crust was simply a shortbread, and I prefer the Engadiner from, of all places, a Konditormeister selling in eBay.
If the link expires, look for cafe_tiefburg as a seller. It's a Heidelburg bakery, in case you're in the area. http://www.cafe-tiefburg.de/

Reviewed: Sprüngli Chocolates from Zurich
Personality: Swiss to the core
How to enjoy: Perfect for New Year's Eve, accompanied by a delicious Belevedere Cremant de Bourgogne sparkling wine. This wine had the most amazing bubbles!

Rating:
1: Better than sex
2: Little bites of heaven
3: Share with your best friend
4: Will do in a pinch
5: Halloween candy

Where to buy:
Online from Switzerland: http://www.spruengli.ch (you can buy the Top Ten box in the online store)