Something delightful arrived at my doorstep. Need a hint? Think: the candy bar reinvented. Think: hand made, vegan, gluten-free, all natural, GMO free chocolate. Think: Bixby Bar. Since I’m a great friend, I waited for my housemates, Jasmine and Sierra, to arrive home before I opened up the box to inspect the treats.
Before I break down each bar and give you my opinion about each flavor, I want to share a little bit about Bixby Bar as a brand. Kate McAleer, founder of Bixby Bar, was the member of New York University’s first women’s golf team. As an athlete, she realized that candy (the snack of choice for most golfers) was extremely unhealthy, but she learned in culinary school how to make chocolate in such a fashion that delightful and far more healthy (sorry Snickers!). Each Bixby Bar has a combination of fruit, nuts, spices, and brown rice crisps that add crunch.
I’ll start with the aestethics. The packaging is absolutely wonderful. There is an obviously quaint, throw-back style to each of the bars (and their names). The vibrant coloration and the high-class vibe of each bar had us in a tizzy before we took our first bite.
Birdie Chocolate Bar
The Birdie Bar consists of dark chocolate (72%), hazlenut, black currants, and fleur de sel to spice. This bar featured an interesting interplay of flavor. The black currant introduced a level of bitterness that was perhaps too much in a dark chocolate bar. I think if the base of the bar was milk chocolate (or even white chocolate), the black currants would not have appeared to be so overwhelming. Jasmine, Sierra, and I decided that raspberry or something of that sort would have been fabulous. We all agreed that the hazlenut was delicious, added to the texture of the bar.
To The Nine’s Chocolate Bar
I don’t want you guys to get the wrong idea… but this bar was a party in my mouth. A combination of white chocolate, pistachios, almonds, goji berries, and cardamom that was unlike anything that I had ever had before. The pistachios and goji berries share center stage; the cardamom flavor enhances but is not distracting. Take my word for it: the bar smellled delicious and did not disappoint. Easily, my favorite bar.
Heart’s Delight Chocolate Bar
The interplay of dark chocolate (72%), almonds, strawberries, and ceylon cinnamon fell short of my expectations. The strawberry taste was masked by the strong flavors of cinnamon as well as the trademark dark chocolate flavor.
Mulligan Chocolate Bar
Can I take a mulligan please? Can I please have another? Milk chocolate (34%), walnuts, zante currants, vietnamese cinnamon–what more could you ask for in your chocolate bar? The cinnamon is at the forefront and rightfully so. This bar had such great flavor, comparable to that of the To The Nine’s Chocolate Bar.
Whippersnapper’s Chocolate Bar
The whippersnapper’s chocoalte bar features dark chocolae (72%), wild maine blueberries, walnuts, and tellicherry black pepper; the blueberies flavor was drowned by the other components of the bar. I was not a really a fan of this bar; some of the ingredients seemed superfluous, not all of the flavors were complementary.
Knockout Chocolate Bar
What a throwback! Sweet and spice are always welcome in my book and that still applies in regard to chocolate. The chipolte pepper, bing cherries, peanuts, and milk chocolate (34%) are outstanding and have a very classic taste. This bar is actually fabulous, amazing, perfect. I don’t know how to be more enthusiastic.
Overall: If you’re looking for a treat and you want to avoid the candy that is currently on the market / in the vending machines that definitely packs more of a wallop, Bixby Bar is the best choice.
Disclaimer: Bixby Bar is the best stop for the health conscious individual looking for original chocolate bars. Materials refered in the article were sent to Ajibike as a gift, all opinions are her own.