Gourmet Hot Chocolate

Gourmet and mail-order hot chocolate

As mentioned above, most of the hot chocolate taste tests we found tend to concentrate on more expensive brands, either domestic or imported. Prices for fancier varieties reach $15 or more for a 12-ounce can (or roughly $2 per serving), so choosing the right mix has a direct impact on one's wallet. These hot chocolates can be roughly divided into two categories: lower priced domestic or imported brands that are (sometimes) available in supermarkets, and expensive imported brands that are only stocked in specialty food shops (or have to be ordered online). Gourmet hot chocolate mixes are generally made from bar chocolate, which means they contain cocoa butter, and hence a higher fat content, than hot cocoa mixes from the supermarket.

One less expensive gourmet brand that's praised by both Cook's Illustrated and Good Housekeeping (but doesn't pop up in any other roundups) is Lake Champlain hot chocolate. Cook's likes the "dark chocolate" flavor and "rich and sweet" taste of Lake Champlain All-Natural Traditional Hot Chocolate (*Est. $8 for 21 servings) , while Good Housekeeping's pick is the more expensive Lake Champlain Old World Drinking Chocolate (*Est. $12 for 5 servings) (*est. $12 for 5 servings) for its "big, thick texture." The traditional mix is sold as a powder, while the Old World drink is sold as chocolate shavings. Serious Eats also praises Lake Champlain's traditional blend, but tasters say they got the best results by doubling the amount of powder for each serving.

Another brand that has wide circulation is Ghirardelli Double Chocolate (*Est. $7 for 20 servings) . Some reviewers love this mix -- it's the top choice of one major national consumer magazine, and is selected by Food & Wine taste testers -- but other sources don't like it as much. For example, Cook's Illustrated ranks Ghirardelli dead last in its roundup: "Almost all tasters thought this cocoa was too sugary -- one called it 'candy-like,' while another declared it 'undrinkable.'"

Godiva Milk Chocolate Hot Cocoa (*Est. $10 for 12 servings) is another American brand that doesn't quite make the cut. Although this is a top pick in the Good Housekeeping taste test, where its called it "silky" and "like liquid chocolate pudding," and at CandyAddict.com, which says it's "like drinking melted chocolate," we gather from these comments that Godiva might be a bit heavy (and a bit expensive) for most tastes. For that reason, we chose to include Lake Champlain in ConsumerSearch Fast Answers over both Ghirardelli and Godiva hot chocolate mixes.

Once you get past the mid-priced brands like Lake Champlain, the real action in the hot chocolate world is in imported mixes, which foodies, bloggers and professional reviewers sample with the intense focus oenophiles give to fine wines. Most of these hot chocolates -- from companies like Enric Rovera, Callebaut and E. Guittard -- are as expensive as you'd expect, costing $2 per serving and up.

Because imported hot chocolate is such a competitive field, we were impressed that Schokinag is top-picked more often by the sources in our All Reviews chart than any other gourmet brand. Real Simple praises the "intense flavor" of Schokinag Extreme Dark (*Est. $13 for eight servings) , comparing it to "a melted chocolate bar;" an opinion seconded by the Gourmet Food guide at About.com, while StarChefs.com likes the "good chocolate flavor and hazelnut overtones" of Schokinag European Drinking Chocolate (*Est. $13 for eight servings) . On the downside, however, some reviewers say Schokinag can be a bit thin in texture compared to other gourmet brands.

Other gourmet hot chocolates have their fans as well, most notably Jacques Torres, MarieBelle Aztec and Scharffen Berger. Jacques Torres Wicked (*Est. $18 for 9 servings) , which includes ground-up ancho and chipotle peppers, is a big hit with Real Simple, as is the MarieBelle Aztec (*Est. $18 for 8 servings) , described as "not too sweet and not too bitter." MarieBelle Aztec, made with single-origin Columbian cacao, has also been touted by Oprah as one of her "favorite things," and is a top ten pick of About.com's gourmet foods guide. Jacques Torres is also a top pick of Cookie magazine, which (echoing Real Simple's blurb about MarieBelle) describes it as "not too sweet or too bitter."

On the whole, reviewers have only good things to say about Jacques Torres and MarieBelle Aztec -- just not enough good things to supplant Schokinag the top gourmet pick in ConsumerSearch Fast Answers. Scharffen Berger (*Est. $9.50 for 7 servings) is another story; this imported hot chocolate has its fans, including Food & Wine testers, which describe it as "dark, with depth," and TastingMenu.com, which rates it well above Schokinag. In its February 2008 taste test, however, the San Francisco Chronicle places Scharffen Berger next to last, right above Safeway's house brand. (Unfortunately, the writer doesn't say why the tasting panel panned Scharffen Berger, or any of the other downgraded brands.)