**This is a sponsored post**
Take a look at the ingredients of the supermarket hot chocolate you normally buy. What does it contain? My guess is that it uses cocoa powder as the base.
But there’s a better way. That’s where Before Chocolate comes in. Their hot chocolate is real hot chocolate, made using cacao paste and not cocoa powder.
The name came about because before chocolate there was cacao – which is less processed and so more natural. Before Chocolate work with Peruvian growers to select the best cacao beans, which are ground into a rich paste in small batches, and naturally sweetened with unrefined muscovado sugar and agave nectar.
The Before Chocolate team sent me a pouch each of their Original, Orange and Spiced hot chocolates to try. I love the smart branding, and the resealable pouches are a great way to keep the contents fresh. I was impressed with their accolades as well: the Spiced hot chocolate has a 1* Great Taste Award, while the Original and Orange varieties both have 2* Great Taste Awards.
Opening the pouches, you’ll notice how different it looks from your ‘regular’ hot chocolate, with clumps of cacao paste dusted with muscovado sugar. Because Before Chocolate produce their hot chocolate using cacao paste it can clump together, so give the bag a good massage before you open to loosen it.
Preparation is simple: measure out 200ml of milk, place in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. When simmering, add 3tbsp of the hot chocolate, whisk for 2 minutes and serve. I was impressed at how quickly the mixture dissolved when added to the hot milk…but how did it taste?
We started with the Orange hot chocolate, which had a beautifully sweet, perfumed smell as soon as I opened the bag. Once prepared, that perfumed scent definitely translated to flavour. I loved the amount of bitterness in the prepared drink – while it had some sweetness, it wasn’t overly sweet like many commercial hot chocolates are.
The Spiced version features salt, liquorice extract and ginger powder, its aroma far more delicate than I expected. It’s perfect for the colder months with its rich, full-bodied flavour, a good tingle on the tongue and its deep and warming nature.
My favourite, though, was the Original. Open the pouch and you’re immediately hit with a rich, dark chocolate aroma – enticing and comforting at once. The flavour is incredible: it’s smooth, rich and delicious, again with a pleasant bitterness and not excessively sweet.
Whether as a gift for a friend or to treat yourself, I definitely recommend trying Before Chocolate – you’ll never buy mass-produced supermarket hot chocolate again when you’ve tried theirs! Visit their online shop for individual pouches, hot chocolate bundles and more.