PanemPropaganda was lucky enough to receive a spectacular gift from the lovely people at Wild Ophelia. Wild Ophelia and their big sister, Vosges Haut Chocolat have created a whole new line of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire inspired chocolates, and we received The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Library Gift Box of 12 chocolate bars inspired by the districts of Panem. Since Wild Ophelia invites you to explore the Districts of Panem through the medium of chocolate, we invited our friends Samantha and Aaron from Panem Kitchen, where you can explore the world of The Hunger Games through it’s cuisine, to help us taste and review the 12 district-inspired bars.
As you will see, there is something for EVERYONE within the range (and the three of us clearly have very different taste in chocolate.)
District One: Rare Harvest Cashews in Milk Chocolate
Molly: The back of the bar says the cashew is “the diamond of the nut industry” and goes on to explain how rare and difficult they are to harvest - a very clever way to infuse “luxury” into this chocolate bar. It’s very tasty milk chocolate, with fine bits of cashews sprinkled throughout. I think I got a lot more nuts in my bar than Sam and Aaron as mine were visible and definitely noticeable.
Samantha: I think I expected more nuts. I mean, they’re in there, but they’re chopped so finely they don’t add much to the taste. Also, I’m really curious as to what makes them rare. It’s still tasty, though.
Aaron: Something to note is that the bars are quite thin, so there’s little room for filling. The cashews are so finely chopped that they’re barely noticeable and certainly don’t add much flavour. Disappointing as milk chocolate and nuts are a wonderful combination.
District Two: Fire Roasted Caramel and Pecans in Milk Chocolate
Molly: Delicious. Caramel and milk chocolate - hard to go wrong here. And it’s stepped-up by the roasted, slightly toffee-ish flavor.
Samantha: Had a good laugh over “fire roasted” caramel. I hope they really were back there standing over giant fires, stirring great vats of caramel. This was, however, pretty exceptional - the caramel is delicious. There’s a subtle pecan flavour, but I didn’t come across any pecan pieces.
Aaron: Good quality caramel with a tasty and moreish burnt flavour. The pecans are there in spirit only - something I was initially dismayed by, but I’ve gotten over it. The pecan notes are subtle but complement the overall sweetness nicely.
District Three: Arabica Coffee and Crystal Salt in Dark Chocolate
Molly: This is fantastic. Unique and interesting, with a great subtly crunchy texture that makes you feel like you’re eating coffee grounds, but in a GREAT way, not in a “crap, my coffee filter is shot” way. If you like coffee and chocolate together, you’ll adore this one.
Samantha: This was GOOOOD. There’s no fake coffee flavour. It legitimately tastes like coffee. I was surprised by how good the addition of salt was, too. Really liked this. A contender for my favourite.
Aaron: Coffee flavouring is usually a warning sign but this seems to be the genuine article. The ground coffee taste works exceptionally well with the deep cocoa while the salt adds a perfect contrast without being overwhelming. Definitely a bar I’d buy.
District Four: Sea Salt and Coconut in Dark Chocolate
Molly: If you are a coconut fan, run and grab this one. It’s a subtle essence of coconut, not flakes or chunks. Very sophisticated, very refined, and quite lovely.
Samantha: I loved it from the moment it went into my mouth (ha). The coconut is really subtle, and - not to get weird-sounding, but it tasted like summer feels? I mean dang. This one is good. This is my favourite.
Aaron: It’s almost impossible to go wrong with sea salt and dark chocolate, so this was an instant hit with me. The coconut is in the nose rather than on the palate but with the classic combination of salt and chocolate it’s best not to complicate matters. A perfect balance all around.
See the rest of our tasting AND where to order after the jump!
District Five: Crispy Crunchy Caramel Corn in Dark Chocolate
Molly: I sort of wished this one was milk chocolate rather than dark. I didn’t get much “Caramel Corn” taste. Fine, but not one of my tops.
Samantha: The only “caramel corn” I got out of this was that it got stuck in my teeth a bit. I didn’t taste caramel corn, just .. weird sticky bits in dark chocolate. Overall, I’ll say it’s “eh.” I could take it or leave it.
Aaron: The decision to use dark chocolate with caramel corn is interesting bad. Again, the bar’s lack of mass means the caramel corn pieces are so tiny that they can’t possibly compete with the 70% cocoa chocolate.
District Six: Crunchy Runner Peanuts in Peanut Butter in Milk Chocolate
Molly: I cannot be trusted with anything “peanut butter.” This was a favorite, smooth and creamy and like the most grown-up, delicious Reese’s Cup you’ve ever tasted. I will not be able to walk past this one in a store.
Samantha: This was the first one we tried. It’s very good, though in a family (Districts One, Six and Eight) that all taste very similar to me. It’s smooth and peanutty, very pleasant.
Aaron: By now, dear reader, you’ll be noticing a trend. The bars are thin. Thinner than half a peanut. It’s tasty, but if it’s peanuts and milk chocolate you want, seek out your friendly neighbourhood Mr. Goodbar vendor.
District Seven: Smoked Chipotle Chili in Milk Chocolate
Molly: I loved this one. The chipotle chili heat is a creeper, it hits very late in the tasting and was a surprisingly spicy kick of an ending. If you like some heat in your chocolate, it’s amazing.
Samantha: I was way more excited about this than most of them, and it kind of let me down. I don’t know what I was expecting. The heat is there, but it’s at the very end, so at first it just tastes like milk chocolate. It would have been better in dark chocolate. Dark chocolate + heat = perfection.
Aaron: The first thing I noticed was the familiar sickly sweet milk chocolate (in my opinion, the range’s dark chocolate is much better). This confused me. “Why in the name of Finnick’s ghost did they pair MILK chocolate with chili?”, I cried.
District Eight: Caramelized Crispy Rice in Milk Chocolate
Molly: Another bar that felt like a far more sophisticated take on a classic candy bar. This one is like a Crunch Bar, all growed-up. Love the melty texture of this range’s very high-quality chocolate. This one should be a crowd-pleaser.
Samantha: This is like a classy Crunch bar, except tastier. Again, it tastes similar to One and Six, which is weird, because there are no nuts? But hey. I liked it. It has a really nice texture.
Aaron: Pleasant and sweet, a fairly traditional chocolate bar. The caramelised crispy rice seems to be there by coincidence rather than intent.
District Nine: Milled Oats, Vanilla and Hemp Seeds in Dark Chocolate
Molly: Of all the bars, this was my least favorite. Though on a positive note,”the crunchy sweet oats are combined with vanilla and hemp seeds adding to the health benefits of dark chocolate.” So - eat it for your health!
Samantha: Okay, you know the way dry oatmeal smells? Now imagine that with chocolate and you get how this bar tastes. I did NOT care for it. Not at all. It was oddly salty. I only got a hint of vanilla. I didn’t finish it.
Aaron: If this bar were a Hunger Games character it’d be Gale. Nice to begin with, shaky as time goes on, but by the end you wonder why the hell you bothered. I can identify only one of the three flavourings, and it’s the boring one.
District Ten: Beef Jerky and Smoked Mesquite in Milk Chocolate
Molly: My favorite, hands down. I looked actually looked inside the empty package for more after I was finished. Twice. If you like your savory mixed with your sweet this is heaven. There are micro pieces of “jerky” in the bar which aren’t really perceptible, but the taste is a mix of salty, sweet, savory, smoky. BBL, I’m going to the store to get another one.
Samantha: NO NO NO NO NO NO NO. I took a bite, and then tried to pawn the rest off on Aaron. Smoky beef and milk chocolate is nauseating together. Dark chocolate MIGHT have been okay, but … ugh, even the memory of it is making me cringe. Nope. Nope.
Aaron: Offensive.
District Eleven: Harvest Cherry in Dark Chocolate
Molly: Not gonna lie, I’m not a chocolate and cherries person. Next.
Samantha: This was good. I could have done with more cherries - but the sourness was really lovely against the dark chocolate. Having some fruit in one of these was refreshing. But it was also sort of bland. Maybe there just weren’t enough cherries. Maybe I was expecting chocolate covered cherries instead of a bar.
Aaron: What was that about chocolate covered cherries?
District Twelve: Mined Salt in Milk Chocolate
Molly: It’s exceptionally sweet milk chocolate with a hint of salt. A good starting point for the less adventurous chocolate eater.
Samantha: This is the dullest one of all. It’s too sweet, and … the best they could do was salt and chocolate? My half-eaten piece is still sitting beside me. I didn’t want to finish it.
Aaron: We all know that District 12 is the smallest, poorest, dullest, sorriest District of them all, and the bland, badly balanced flavours of this chocolate bar reflect these qualities perfectly.
So, now that I’ve stolen the rest of Sam and Aaron’s District 10 and 12 bars, and given them my District 11, we can conclude that, overall, this inspired collection of chocolate is an imaginative and delightful way to do a movie tie-in. This set of 12 bars comes in possibly the most impressive packaging you will ever see in a box of chocolate. I will keep the Library Box long after the chocolate is gone. This would be an absolutely showstopping gift for the Hunger Games super fan in your life!
Worth noting: Wild Ophelia uses all natural, often organic ingredients, and many bars are gluten free. Beyond the 12 district-inspired chocolate bars by Wild Ophelia, their sister company, Vosges offers an incredible Limited Edition Capitol Truffle Collection and luxury chocolate bars inspired by President Snow, Effie, and Katniss featuring carefully selected ingredients that are both elusive and defining of the characters. To find out more and to order any of the chocolate we’ve mentioned, please go to VosgesChocolate.com or TheHungerGamesCatchingFireChocolate.com where you can also enter a sweepstakes for a YEAR’S worth of chocolate.