Grass-Fed Milk Chocolate

The brand Alter Eco reached out to me and I was so excited to hear from them. I've seen their products around, but until they sent me some, I didn't know how many types of chocolate creations they made and sell. Check out the packed box they sent that included not only chocolate bars but also truffles and granola. I'm also hoping to have an interview with one of their employees so we can all learn more about them. Before that, we need to get the legal details out of the way. I was sent all these products to test and then share my honest experience with them here on The Chocolate Cult; no other form of compensation was received. Now to the first set of Alter Eco chocolate bars!

We're going to start off the series of articles focused on the brand with their Grass-Fed Milk Chocolate. What does grass fed mean? According to the USDA, for an animal's byproducts (meat or milk) to use that label, the animal upon being weaned off mother's milk will only eat the following types of food: "forage consisting of grass (annual and perennial), forbs (e.g., legumes, Brassica), browse, or cereal grain crops in the vegetative (pre-grain) state. Animals cannot be fed grain or grain byproducts and must have continuous access to pasture during the growing season." While we could debate how much "better" such farming and ranching techniques are for the animals, the planet, and for humans, you probably just want me to get to the bars themselves, right?

Both bars' wrappers say that they use at least 78% fair trade ingredients and all ingredients are listed as organic. Both wrappers also state that they contain at least 46% cacao, so these should be on the more intense side of milk chocolate for the USA market. The nutritional information is a bit confusing. The bars are the same weight and say that they have the same amount of calories per four sections. However the total amount in the bars are listed differently; the Rice Crisp at 410 with the Almond at 440? Each bar has 10 sections, so basic math would say that each bar should have 425 calories... What's going on? 

We'll start with the Rice Crisp Grass Fed Milk Bar. As you can see in the photo the rice crisp pieces are visible on the back but not the front. As expected, the chocolate scent is stronger than in the average milk chocolate bar. I get no hint of the rice or milk; which we love here on The Chocolate Cult. The sections take some strength to break apart. Biting into a square creates a loud crunch that continues with each bite because the rice crisps are so evenly spread out. The flavor is a lovely darker chocolate and the rice mostly provide sound and texture. I really love that I start to get a cocoa buzz with a few bites. 

Now let's try the Almond Grass Fed Milk Bar. This has fewer almond slivers visible on the back and the bar itself was broken into more pieces. The inside wrapper was even more of a challenge to peel off. The sections are easier to break apart but the existing breaks continued to break a bit too easily. This bar has a slightly darker chocolate scent and I'm surprised that I don't smell the almonds because they are often so strong that they can overwhelm some milk chocolate and dark chocolate in both fragrance and taste. This makes a softer sound when I take a bite, only crunchy when I encounter an almond. By the third chew, I get a salt flavor that builds up until it becomes the lingering flavor in my mouth by the end of just one bite. That really slows me down in terms of eating this. The almond flavor itself is mild and the chocolate would be wonderful if not for that salt intensifying. I'm not a big salt consumer; I don't add it to most food I cook or prepare until it is necessary for the recipe, as with baking. This is still good but I suggest  you love salt to love this bar.

Between the two grass fed milk chocolate bars, I loved the Rice Crisp. I see having this bar in my house is going to require that I really control the desire to eat it. I did like the square of the Almond bar that I tried for this review, this will be one I want to share with visitors to my house. As a result, I'd give the Rice Crisp Grass Fed Milk Chocolate Bar Sacrament status for flavor and for the consideration of Alter Eco in regards how the ingredients they use are grown and how the farmers are treated.