We Tried 10 Bars of Dark Chocolate — And the $4 Winner Swept Them All (It Tastes Way More Expensive!) (2024)

  • Groceries

Mara Weinraub

Mara WeinraubLifestyle Editor, Groceries

Mara is the Senior Groceries Editor at Kitchn. She nerds out over every inch detail of the grocery store, from building a shopping list to unpacking those (reusable) totes. She lives in New York City where she stocks a minimum of three peanut butter jars in her apartment at all times.

Follow

published Feb 10, 2024

facebook

pinterest

email

comments

We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.

We Tried 10 Bars of Dark Chocolate — And the $4 Winner Swept Them All (It Tastes Way More Expensive!) (1)

In This Article

  1. The Best Dark Chocolate Bars at-a-Glance
  2. Winner
  3. Runner-Up
  4. Honorable Mention
  5. Best Budget Buy
  6. How We Tested
  7. Why You Should Trust Us

facebook

pinterest

email

comments

Milk chocolate still reigns supreme as snackers’ chocolate of choice, at least in the United States, but dark chocolate is close on its heels. It’s been “creeping up on the ever-popular” candy for years and is a favorite among many of The Kitchn editors. We eat it on its own; in combination with nuts, sea salt, and other mix-ins (hello, caramel); and add it to some of our very favorite baked goods. Our Editor-in-Chief, Lindsay, is a self-proclaimed “huge fan!” and buys at least one bar once a week.

Like many products today (jarred peanut butter, hot cocoa mixes, even canned pumpkin), there are a lot of dark chocolate bars on store shelves —some might even say too many? In an attempt to narrow down the choices, we set out to taste test as many classic dark chocolate bars as possible on your behalf. (So kind of us, right?)

We kept it simple and focused on dark chocolate bars with around 70% cacao or cocoa (the difference between the two lies in how the cocoa beans are processed). For us, 70% hit the (bitter)sweet spot.

We sourced mostly name-brand bars and from select store brands that are widely available throughout the country. All of the bars had minimal ingredients (as in, you can count them on one hand); some also list vanilla or vanilla extract. Each one was slightly less than $2 to $5 per bar at the time we purchased them (we also noticed several bars were discounted further when bought in pairs). To round out the list of contenders, we asked editors for input, and looked at recent sales data and new launches.

After 10 members of The Kitchn team spent a chocolate-fueled afternoon tasting and tallying, one bar set a new … bar. The winner had the creamiest, dreamiest flavor and tasted way more expensive than its $4 price tag.

Quick Overview

The Best Dark Chocolate Bars at-a-Glance

Best Dark Chocolate Bar: Tony’s Chocolonely 70% Dark Chocolate Bar

The race was a real photo finish. In the end, Tony’s Chocolonely ekes out the win, earning the highest marks across all criteria and receiving more #1 rankings than any other bar in the mix. Patty, our Staff Writer (and resident Costco correspondent), swoons over its “deep chocolate color” and the gemstone cut of the bar, adding “it would be good as chunks in a cookie.” The Belgium-made bar also stands out for its “less shiny, more matte” finish, and “delicious smell.”

Many others agree, noting its creamy — and fudgy! — texture and luxe-like quality, although a few find it on the slightly-too-bitter side. The “smooth” and “fruit-forward” dark chocolate is our Senior Food Editor, Kristina’s, favorite. (She also says it “tastes high-quality.”) Midway through the taste test, Kelli, our Culinary Producer, even called it out by name after.

What’s So Great

Good to Know

  • For some, the level of bitterness is a bit too strong

Buy: Tony’s Chocolonely 70% Dark Chocolate Bar, $4.00 for 6.35 ounces at Amazon

Runner-Up: Ghirardelli Intense Dark 72% Cacao Dark Chocolate Bar

As we mentioned, the best dark chocolate bar competition was fierce. In fact, our first runner-up — Ghirardelli — substantively tied with Tony’s, but falls just a little short in the style department. (Three tasters ranked this as their second favorite.) Many find the bitter notes to be spot-on, compared to other bars in the taste test.

Kristina is also living for the “nice mix of fruit and chocolate,” calling the iconic brand’s dark chocolate bar “super balanced” and “highly snackable.” While Lindsay adds, it’s “a good beginning dark chocolate!”

What’s So Great

  • “Rich flavor”
  • “Decent level of creaminess”

Good to Know

  • “Tastes like a semi sweet chip”

Buy: Ghirardelli Intense Dark 72% Cacao Dark Chocolate Bar, $4.69 for 32 ounces at Amazon

Honorable Mention: Chocolove Strong 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate Bar

Shiny! Smooth! Creamy! — Lindsay pretty much sums up what tasters loved about this Chocolove dark chocolate bar in three exclamatory words. Finishing just behind Ghirardelli (we’re talking one point) and actually earning two #1 rankings from tasters, we couldn’t not include this bar in the awards ceremony. Fair warning: It’s on the fruitier side of the spectrum of the bars we tasted, which some people are all about (“I love this —a great snack!,” says Rachel, our culinary producer); others find it too overpowering or (gasp!) both too bitter and not bitter enough. Go figure.

If you do find this bar in your cart anytime soon, Patty suggests you add it to your next batch of brownies.

What’s So Great

  • Sleek, glossy look

Good to Know

  • For some, fruitiness is overpowering

Buy: Chocolove Strong 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate Bar, $3.99 for 3.2 ounces at Instacart

Best Budget Dark Chocolate Bar: Moser Roth 70% Dark Chocolate Bar

Don’t discount this budget buy either. Aldi’s store-brand, Moser Roth, more than holds its own against even the most expensive bars in this taste test. (We shouldn’t be surprised; we’ve been raving about Aldi’s chocolate selection for years.)

The bar is noticeably thinner —for better or worse, as several tasters point out — and “very smooth and shiny,” with a “nice, chocolaty scent,” says Christine, our senior recipe editor. Once again the tasters are split on the level of bitterness and sweetness in the bar. Still, its “deep chocolate flavor,” according to Kelli and Kristina, and “such incredible texture,” says Lindsay, won over nearly every taster in the group —including the two who ranked it as their #1 pick.

What’s So Great

  • Smooth and shiny
  • Less than $2, even when not on sale

Good to Know

  • For some, the bar is a little too thin
  • Mixed feelings on the bitterness and sweetness

Find it in stores: Moser Roth 70% Dark Chocolate Bar, $1.79 (on sale!) for 4.4 ounces at Aldi

How We Tested the Dark Chocolate Bars

We held a blind taste test of 10 different dark chocolate bars and recruited 10 dark-chocolate fans who work at The Kitchn, including several culinary school graduates and a former pastry chef (so you know they’re qualified), to participate in an afternoon of tasting.

Each bar was chopped into bite-size pieces by Maya, our studio assistant, and placed in small piles on two parchment-lined baking sheets (we also had extra on standby for additional rounds of “tasting,” which, unsurprisingly we needed). Each bar was a letter to conceal the brands’ identities. Tasters were instructed to sample the bars in random order, to avoid giving any one bar preferential placement over the others. We also had water, seltzer, and other drinks on hand for palate cleansing.

Tasters rated each of the dark chocolate bars on a scale of one to five (1 = No, thanks; 2 = Meh; 3 = Pretty good; 4 = Really like; 5 = Yes, Please!) across four criteria — look, smell, texture, and flavor — and included any specific observations, tasting notes, and general opinions worth mentioning. They were also asked to answer, arguably, the most important question of all: Would you buy this dark chocolate bar?

Why You Should Trust Us

This was a blind taste test, which means tasters had no knowledge of the brands being evaluated ahead of or at the time of the tasting. It was held over one day and tasters were instructed to sample the dark chocolate bars in random order (to stave off palate fatigue and not give any one bar an unfair advantage). The group of tasters included a mix of food professionals and some next-level dark-chocolate-lovers who work at The Kitchn. All participated in the taste test voluntarily, and we thank them for being so generous with their time and feedback.

Speaking of, each taster filled out a score sheet (without discussion or influence) ranking the dark chocolate bars across several criteria (listed above). The results were also tabulated without any visibility into the brands. Only after the numbers were finalized did we reveal which brands corresponded to the winners.

Did your favorite dark chocolate bar make the list? Tell us about it in the comments below.

Filed in:

Grocery Shopping

Product Review

Shopping

We Tried 10 Bars of Dark Chocolate — And the $4 Winner Swept Them All (It Tastes Way More Expensive!) (2024)
Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Virgilio Hermann JD

Last Updated:

Views: 6304

Rating: 4 / 5 (41 voted)

Reviews: 80% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Virgilio Hermann JD

Birthday: 1997-12-21

Address: 6946 Schoen Cove, Sipesshire, MO 55944

Phone: +3763365785260

Job: Accounting Engineer

Hobby: Web surfing, Rafting, Dowsing, Stand-up comedy, Ghost hunting, Swimming, Amateur radio

Introduction: My name is Virgilio Hermann JD, I am a fine, gifted, beautiful, encouraging, kind, talented, zealous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.