What countries do we know for their chocolate? The three undisputed leaders include Belgium, Switzerland and Italy. But if you study the global statistics, then Germany takes the honorable third place in the amount of use of this dessert.
The Germans are very fond of chocolate. This is probably why manufacturers in Germany include the fantasy at full capacity. After all, black, white and milk chocolate will not surprise anyone now. In the fight for the buyer, manufacturers from Germany produce amazing flavor combinations: with mint, marzipan, waffle crumbs, fruit yogurts, pralines, whole and crushed nuts, various dried fruits and the like goodies.
In this article, we explore brands of German chocolate. Which ones are the tastiest? Of course, you choose. But it should be said that all German chocolates are of consistently high quality, because they include only natural products.
Museum in Cologne
Germany is associated with gourmet tourists with sausages and beer. Sweet tooth also know the traditional German cake "Black Forest". But few people know that the average resident of Germany eats ten kilos of chocolate a year. Of all the desserts, the Germans prefer this particular sweetness. And even the Black Forest cake consists of chocolate cakes. The reverent attitude of Germans towards cocoa beans is also evidenced by the fact that a unique museum has been opened in the country. It is located in Cologne, occupying a small island on the Rhine, and it is built in the form of a ship.
The private firm Imhoff-Stollwerk, the coryphaeus of chocolate making, opened this museum in 1993 to visually show all the stages of production of German chocolate. The exposition begins with a greenhouse where cocoa beans ripen. The museum visitor has the opportunity to follow in great detail all the stages of chocolate manufacturing, add the ingredients of your choice to the composition , and at the end of the tour and buy the tile that appeared before his eyes. The enthusiastic delight in adult children causes a three-meter fountain. Visitors are given waffles that can be dipped in hot chocolate. A ticket to the museum costs 7.5 euros, but for children under six this tour will be free.
Myths about chocolate from Germany
In Russia, there is an opinion that Europeans, and Germans in particular, poison themselves with unnatural products. Say, in Italian parmesan, Spanish jamon and French foie gras one chemistry. But the cheese "Russian" and chocolate "Alenka" is a thing.
But Europeans are people who are very concerned about their own safety and health. So, in chocolate from Germany you can be sure one hundred percent. Only his extremely indefatigable eating will entail a trip to the doctor - a dentist or a nutritionist. And if the Germans themselves eat ten pounds of chocolate a year, then this dessert is harmless.
Another thing is that it is exported in small quantities. German chocolate in Russia is not so famous. On the shelves you can often find "Milka" - the Swiss brand. Let's review the popular brands of chocolate from Germany, which can still be found in stores in Russia.
Ritter sport
It seems that sports and tiles made from cocoa beans are incompatible concepts? But Clara Guettle, wife of Alfred Ritter, a confectioner from Stuttgart, found that chocolate is a good way to strengthen the body. It was she who proposed in the middle of the twentieth century to make such a tile that would fit in the pocket of a sports jacket. Chocolate wrappers are bright, cheerful, all colors of the rainbow. The classic square tile consists of 16 segments.
Today, Ritter Sport is produced in fifty-five types. Among them there are familiar tastes: milk, bitter, white, chocolate with nuts. But "Ritter Sport" would not have gained its popularity if it had not created completely unthinkable, original forms. Only in this brand you can try chocolate with the addition of oats and banana; honey, salt and almonds; corn flakes; tortilla chips; Neapolitan waffles; peppermint liquor; lemon yogurt; nut bagel; marzipan and other similar flavors. “Ritter Sport” fully meets its advertising slogan: “Square. Practical, Good. ” And if you come to a company store in Berlin, you can order a flavoring of your choice.
German chocolate Schogetten
This brand is better known to Russian consumers. And about practicality, she can argue with Ritter Sport. There the packaging opens by simply breaking the tiles. This is undoubtedly convenient. But pedantic Germans appreciated even more that the Shogetten tile was already divided into eighteen neat squares placed in a box on a cardboard substrate. In pursuit of the title of producer of the most original chocolate, the confectioners of the company also strain their imagination.
Under the Shogetten brand, about two dozen items are now produced. The Russian consumer is familiar mainly with the basic tastes: black, alpine (milk), with walnut pralines or whole hazelnuts. But what a variety can be found abroad! This is German chocolate with pieces of Oreo cookies, and Tiramisu, and Bitter almonds, Cappuccino, Apple Pie, Blueberry Muffin, Cherry Cheesecake and other equally delicious names.
Hussel
This manufacturer is famous for its "confectioners", which can be found in almost every city in Germany. And not only classic tiles are sold there. Chocolatiers before your eyes create hammers, bottles of beer, flowers and even moving jaws and palaces. Needless to say, what serves as material for such works? German chocolate Hussel is not far behind its competitors in a variety of flavors. Here you can find both classic (black, white, dairy, with nuts, raisins), and very original species. For example, only Hussel produces chocolate with the addition of dried tomatoes or chili peppers. The Germans are very fond of this brand. Firstly, because the chocolate is always fresh there. You can buy a tile or souvenir, which is cast before your eyes. And secondly, for the original form of products that can be presented as a present to both children and adults.
Halloren
German chocolate "Halloren" boasts the longest history of its existence. The confectionery factory opened in 1804! The company produces its own chocolates in the form of buttons, which in the 19th century were worn by the Prussian saltworks - halors - on branded tunics. Thus, the balls were already filled from the very beginning with the filling. The oldest and still the most popular is the Original Halloren-Kugeln. Buttons in this form are filled with delicious creamy chocolate caramel. Naturally, now in the arsenal of the company there are many fillers, including such original ones as poppy seeds, rum, raspberries, various yogurts.
HACHEZ
German chocolate with mint can also be tasted with the Ritter Sport brand. However, only at the Ahez Bremen manufactory it is made from exclusive, rare varieties of cocoa beans from South America. The chocolatiers of this company came up with many amazing tastes that will delight the most sophisticated and demanding gourmets. You can find chocolate smelling ... juniper, sage or cardamom in the Ahez brand pastry shops. Of the fillings, you can recall ganache cream, Jamaican rum and other alcohol. Well, you can’t surprise Germans with such species as chocolate with cinnamon, ginger or licorice.
Leysieffer
If you are a lover of white chocolate, you should not lose sight of the products of the company "Leiffer". She produces tiles in other shades of black and brown. But it was German white chocolate that created the glory of this manufactory. The craftsmen working there create incredible flavor combinations. So, you can taste white chocolate with the addition of sage, a mixture of oriental spices, honey, cranberries and other components unusual for such a dessert. It should be said that in Germany not a single holiday is complete without this sweetness. Before Christmas, the Germans buy a special Advent chocolate calendar, on Christmas Eve - Santa Claus, on Easter - hares and eggs, on Valentine's Day - hearts. Such delicious figurines will be a wonderful gift for children.