The Return of Weird Science

We had another blind taste test yesterday. This one catered more to Kelly's interests than mine, as it was a test of dark chocolates. Jean bought seven brands of chocolate at the store, and then chopped them up into anonymous pieces, each in lettered muffin cups. The choices were:

• A) Hershey's Special Dark


• B) Swiss Bittersweet


• C) Private Selection Milk Chocolate


• D) Lindt Dark Extra Fine


• E) Private Selection Dark Chocolate


• F) Cadbury Royal Dark

The Private Selection brand appears to be a no-name brand from Germany repackaged for supermarkets. The seventh flavor was Dove Chocolate, slipped through the cracks of the initial taste test, and was introduced 'unblinded' after the fact. Oops!

Jean asked Kelly if she wanted to write her name on the form, and Kelly decided that if the chocolates were to be hidden, she would be too, so instead she chose a pseudonym. Trouble is, I can't remember it now, and she didn't write it down. Here's her rankings, anyway:

1. C 'very very'


2. B 'very'


3. A 'good'


4. F 'sortu'


5. G (the Dove)


6. E 'is bad'


7. D

Sweetest: C. Strongest chocolate taste: D. Which would you buy: B.

Jean chose the reviewer name 'Windswept' and ranked things this way:

1. D


2. E


3. G


4. B


5. A


6. C


7. F

Sweetest: C. Strongest chocolate taste: D. Which would you buy: D, maybe E.

My reviewer name was 'Neo', and I my ranking was:

1. C 'Another waxy, malty! Mild aftertaste'


2. F 'Another trace of malt, more chocolatey, sweet'


3. G


4. D 'Mildly bitter, flat, no wax, some aftertaste'


5. B 'Not so waxy, more "milky"'


6. A 'Some degree of wax, aftertaste, but cocoa is there'


7. E 'No real character, almost like eating chocolate "air"'

Sweetest: F. Strongest chocolate taste: A. Which would you buy: C, F, G.

There was a lot of variability, but there were two votes for C and two votes for G in the top ranks, so Dove and Private Selection Milk Chocolate seem to have the best standing.

This has been a Consumer's Union report.