Things I don't understand (2): weird chocolates

 Mint-flavoured chocolates I can just about comprehend. They may be disgusting, especially those ones with the hideous white gunk inside a chocolate shell, but I can see that someone might find a minty taste pleasant with coffee after a special meal. 

But dessert flavours?!

Many years ago, in fact several years BHC (Before Hotel Chocolat), a representative from Thornton's Chocolates came to give a talk at my place of work. Back then Thorntons were the best chocs you could get on the high street. I went along expecting to learn about the component parts and the making process. No such luck! The presenter waxed lyrical about the prizes they had won for their dessert-flavoured creations! Not a word about the interesting stuff, the actual chocolate. I got the impression that they simply bought that in from somewhere else!

And why?, why?, why? would anyone want their chocolate to taste of spotted dick or rhubarb crumble?  Why ruin the exquisite chocolaty taste of actual chocolate with adulterations like gooseberry?! Pumpkin?! Banana?! Custard?! If you like those flavours so much, why bother with the chocolate? Go eat some fruit! 

Even my favourite ever shop, Hotel Chocolat, is up to it!

I concede that there is a (rather narrow) range of flavours that do complement that of chocolate itself. Salted caramel, for example. Hazelnuts and almonds (in the form of praline or gianduja). Marzipan. Amaretto. (HC Cherry Delux isn't bad either.) If it's not one of these then leave the chocolate alone!

Plus - the whole point of a nice dessert - sticky toffee pudding, say, or almond tart (pecan, banoffee, bakewell or cherry pie, Christmas pudding, warm chocolate brownie, New York cheesecake, carrot cake, to name a few more) - is that you get a nice big portion at just the right temperature and cover it with lashings of the appropriate companion - be it cream, ice cream or caramel sauce (or all three). The idea of limiting your intake to just a paltry couple of mouthfuls of flavoured chocolate is ridiculous!

Admittedly my sense of taste is about as subtle as Attila the Hun's diplomatic skills. 

Nevertheless this affords a unique opportunity for me to provide you with a link to Hotel Choc's online shop. I will provide my address on request!