Oh Cadbury, what did you do?
I am not a chocoholic. I can go for weeks at a time without the slightest twinge of desire for sweetness. However, when I do indulge in a chocolate moment I want quality. I steadfastly turn to the dependable corporate entity that supplied so many Easter and Christmas edibles of my youth; Cadbury.
Creamy, rich and smooth with the implied good will of hundreds of luscious willing cows, milked at the cusp of their production cycle. Happy to have passed along the joy of grazing on England's grassy green fields. Brown bovine eyes warmly smiling with the knowledge that they are pleasing so many, and by appointment to Her Majesty, no less.
I tried Hershey chocolate. In my early U.S. days I purchased the brown-wrapped bars several times. The stale, pasty cardboard tinged flavor of Hershey chocolate is distinctively deficient. My lips are curling in distaste just thinking about it.
A recent indulgence in a bar of Cadbury's creamy milk chocolate was a disorienting experience. It didn't smell quite right and the texture and taste were unexpectedly disappointingly familiar. I turned the bar to read the fine print. "Now made under licensing agreement by Hershey USA"
Souls were sold whilst we were not looking!
I tried Hershey chocolate. In my early U.S. days I purchased the brown-wrapped bars several times. The stale, pasty cardboard tinged flavor of Hershey chocolate is distinctively deficient. My lips are curling in distaste just thinking about it.
A recent indulgence in a bar of Cadbury's creamy milk chocolate was a disorienting experience. It didn't smell quite right and the texture and taste were unexpectedly disappointingly familiar. I turned the bar to read the fine print. "Now made under licensing agreement by Hershey USA"
Souls were sold whilst we were not looking!
I blogged about this very thing not so long ago (and in fact in a shameless act of self promotion the link is here. They've despoiled our temple. Nothing is sacred anymore. I may have to move over to Nestle... but a Milky Bar doesn't hit the spot the same as a chunky Dairy Milk. *sniff*
ReplyDeleteCouldn't get past the Hershey company. What about See's or Ghirardelli? I know what you mean, though, nothing like really good chocolate.
ReplyDeleteBad cury's
ReplyDeleteBad cury's
ReplyDeleteSteve, I'm horrified that this is a global problem. I thought it was just in the colonies:) I will read your post. How did I miss it?
ReplyDeleteTechnoBabe, Ghirardelli is not bad. We consume their dark chocolate after dinner. They don't have the "heft" that was to be found in Cadbury's milk. Sigh. Sees is not worth a review.
TFEejit, Lost in translation?
OOHHH NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! I haven't had a cadburys bar for a while, but I know they got sold off to Kraft recently... how can squeezy cheese makers possibly know about chocolate... It was a sad thing indeed to see such a great institution die....
ReplyDelete... and Kraft have already started wielding the axe! Nothing is sacred. Kraft took over Terry's (chocolate orange) of York and closed that all down and sent the production overseas. Grrr! And Hershey's choc is cack!
ReplyDeleteI discovered this same problem a while back!! The trick is to find a 'made in the UK' bar that has been shipped here - as opposed to a bar made here. Yes - they are made differently.
ReplyDeleteThen you can have the proper cadburys experience. Someone recently brought me back a packet of 'Giant Buttons' from Blighty, and the taste is soo different from the Hershey nonsense.
To me Cadbury's is what Herschey's is to you. I like chocolate, real chocolate, not sweet, sticky, greasy stuff.
ReplyDeleteChocolate is one of those foods connected to childhood treats whose taste has to remain constant to continue to appeal.
Much has been made in the Brit. media of the 'Cadbury family of workers' and the long history and connection with the Midlands, but the actual family have long taken the foreign penny and buggered off out of it. The major shareholders have long been American.
C'est la vie or rather business.
Actually....*ducks for cover*...I like Hershey's.
ReplyDeleteNo more be said. I am running away now.....
I'm not a chocolate eater myself. But I will eat up all your Swiss chocolate.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter and I were just talking last night about the candy coming out of China.... and food. As if we are supposed to really eat this stuff.
Watercats, I thought that "under license" meant "to the standards of..fill in the blank" Wrong again, obviously. It should be renamed "Hershey in a Blue Wrapper".
ReplyDeleteArgent, the one good thing about Hershey's is that your dog won't die of chocolate poisoning if he eats it.
Joanna, Steve, who not only commented above and had already written about this it turns out, is a resident of the U.K. It is a more widespread problen than at first assumed.
Friko, of course there are superior chocolates out there, especially in Switzerland, Germany etc. In France, if memory serves, every bar announces the percentage of cacao right on the front. Otherwise it is not real chocolate. I don't care who makes it I just want the taste to resemble my expectations.
ReplyDeleteJean, Childhood imprinting is a valid taste factor.
@Eloh, Yes on the Swiss yummies. Re: China, Just say "No!" to lead!
Dear ER
ReplyDeleteI'll will check the Cadbury's chockies today in my local Leclerc, if they say 'Made in UK' (or maybe more likely with a sticker proclaiming 'Fabriquées au Royaume-Uni') and don't mention Kraft then I will pick a few up and post them off to you. Just Dairy Milk or do you like Fruit and Nut, as well? (No f-ing way will American chocolate be sold here, it's just not good enough!) Think of it as having a standard by which you can then judge other chocolate.
I outed myself a while back as an un-fan of chocolate, except for the occasional Kit-Kat. But since cheese is my chocolate, the Cadbury situation would be like Kraft getting their hands on Gruyere and turning it into one of those plastic-wrapped abominations that North Americans call cheese slices.
ReplyDeleteSo I sympathize, ER. I could send you some good chocolate from France, if you like.
A colleague once brought me back a Hershey bar from her trip to New York. I took one bite of it - when she was out of the office - and the remainder stayed in the bottom drawer of my desk until there was stuff growing on it. Maybe I should have tried another bite then. It might have tasted better!
ReplyDeleteThis is as bad as kitten-drowning. How dare they?
ReplyDeleteKitty & Deborah, thanks for your kind offers of a chocolate infusion, should the need arrise. I can get good chocolate here, it just won't be Cadbury's. Besides, what I miss more are pickled onions. The Cadbury's issue is more one of a betrayal.
ReplyDeleteMartin, International chocolate trafficking?
ReplyDeleteMs. Hill, There's some good old perspective for you:)
The world is obviously spiralling out of control... And do they still make their once famous Cream Eggs ? Woe to us all if not...
ReplyDeleteWell, there is still "La Maison du Chocolat" dans Paris as a last resort...
Oh yes, of course you can get good chocolate in California, it's just, the idea of trafficking in high-milk solids, Cadbury's-branded chocolates held a certain delicious appeal...
ReplyDeleteI will admit to a fondness for Cadbury's, and an ignorance on the brand name 'Hershey'.
ReplyDeleteI'll get back to you with an honest opinion when I've tried some masel.