Wild Ophelia is a chocolate brand produced by Vosges, the noted Chicago chocolatier. Presumably it's also a reference to Hamlet, but the company's website is silent on that topic. This label produces chocolates with some unusual ingredients mixed in, supposedly to highlight "American farms & artisans". I've previously enjoyed the BBQ chip bar they make, which had a good balance of chocolate, crunch, and a bit of heat. This cayenne flavored bar is pretty likely to be a bit hotter.
Price: List price for this 2 oz bar is $4. Not particularly expensive for a higher end chocolate, but I believe prices vary substantially depending on the retailer. I paid at least $5 for the BBQ chip bar at BevMo a few months back.
Packaging: An easy way to tell the difference between a big manufacturer and a little, artisanal shop is the quality of packaging. Unlike the mendiants from last week, the New Orleans Chili bar was professionally packaged and sealed, with a cardboard sleeve holding a sealed foil pouch containing the chocolate. While this preserves the flavor of the chocolate, it also makes it inconvenient to consume in multiple sittings.
Taste:
Sweetness: (3)
The bar is more bitter than sweet, not surprising for a 70% bar. The pepper flavor probably has a hand in reducing the perceived sweetness further. This is unfortunate; a sweeter chocolate would probably do a better job standing up to the heat.
Texture: (2)
In one word, gritty. Again, this is probably due to the cayenne pepper rather than the chocolate portion per se, but the texture and the melt of this flavor are disappointing.
Complexity: (3)
The hot and bitter notes play against each other fairly well, though this one is also too hot for my taste. I'd prefer a sweeter chocolate since I think it would provide a more interesting contrast, but all the flavors are distinguishable without being overpowering.
Finish: (1)
There's basically no chocolate flavor remaining, just a gritty heat at the roof of the mouth. Like eating chips and salsa without the salt flavor to ameliorate the heat.
Conclusion
If you like the spicy chocolates and don't mind a more bitter bar, you may enjoy this particular product. I can't recommend it, as the one saving grace is that I got it at discount.
