About > chocolate > Chocolate by country > Which is best?

		We Will Help You
		Learning the history and miscellaneous tidbits about chocolate from these three different countries may be interesting but when it comes down to which one is best the only thing you can do is taste for yourself. If you are too health conscious, impatient, or strange (who wouldn’t want to taste them all for themselves?!) don’t worry, we have gone ahead and done this for you. Not only have we researched other people’s opinions on the subject but also we have made the sacrifice and tasted all three ourselves.
		The Chocolate Bar
		Our first category will be chocolate bars. In one taste test, while a major Swiss brand won out for milk chocolate, something interesting happened in the dark chocolate category. The same major Swiss brand has two different kinds of dark chocolate, one made in France and one made in Switzerland. When compared the dark chocolate made in France won by a fairly significant margin over the Swiss. Belgian chocolate bars were also tested but were so average that they never won or lost when compared to bars from other countries. On another comparison Swiss came out as the sharpest, Belgian as the thickest, and French as the creamiest. In our own personal chocolate bar test we found that if you are looking for a milk chocolate bar the Swiss are the experts. They make a chocolate bar that is so rich and sweet that it will make your teeth hurt. The sugar content is higher, the cocoa content lower. The Belgian dark chocolate bar was quite good, it had a higher percentage of cocoa but again they added a bit too much sugar. It started well, with a bold flavor but it never mellowed out like the French one did. It left a bit of an acidic taste in the mouth. The French dark chocolate bar was the subtlest. The strength of its flavor did not overwhelm right in the beginning but came in the way that it lingered perfectly in the mouth.
		Covered Chocolates or Truffles
		In the category of covered chocolates there are less comparisons made. Most say that the strengths of each of these three are so different that they are hard to compare. One comparison placed Swiss and Belgian chocolate in an overall category of “European-style” chocolate and gave “French-style” chocolate a category all its own. The European chocolate was described as lighter and sweeter with more pronounced flavors and the French as darker and less sweet with subtler flavors. Despite the difficulties we went ahead and conducted our own test and from that we can boldly and proudly say that French chocolate won hands down. They are more inventive, with greater variety in the textures and flavors. Their chocolate gets more to the point with perfectly matched flavors instead of trying to distract you with one overpowering flavor. There is the oxymoron of simple complexity behind French chocolate. They will only combine one or two other flavors with their perfectly made chocolate but they combine them in a way that leaves a wonderfully complex, hard to describe taste in your mouth. The Belgian chocolates came in second with a wonderful rich creamy taste but not a lot of variety. There were pieces here and there that matched the French inventiveness but it was a rare treat as opposed to a consistent finding. The Swiss was the least favored. It had a mass produced flavor to it and again it was way too sweet.
		Milk Chocolate and White Wine
		One thing that became quite clear during our samplings was that the Swiss love their milk chocolate. This is not surprising considering that they are the inventors of milk chocolate and that 80% of the chocolate they produce is milk. During the testing however it brought up an interesting point about the lack of maturity involved in the Swiss chocolate palette. Let me explain by using wine as an analogy. I think of milk chocolate as I think of white wine. If used properly they can both compliment another flavor divinely but they are often times used as a stepping off point. Many people, when they delve into the extensive world of wines, start off drinking white simply because red is too strong for them, not because it goes best with the meal they are eating. Slowly, as their tastes mature, they move up to red wines and eventually, as their tasted mature even further, they are able to appreciate all different kinds of quality wine for the way that they compliment the flavors of the meal they are being paired with. I think that milk chocolate is the same. Many people eat it because their tastes are simply not mature enough to handle the strength of dark chocolate, they need the added sweetness. As taste and appreciation for truly gourmet chocolate matures they are able to move to the stronger but less sweet taste of dark chocolate and then eventually they can marvel at all different types of chocolate being paired perfectly with different flavors.
		Another Level of Maturity
		The French and Belgian chocolate manufacturers, for the most part, reflect an innate maturity in their creations. Their milk chocolate is used well, being paired with flavors that it compliments best. These neighboring countries seem to put equal effort into both their chocolate covering and their creative center. The Swiss on the other hand seem to use milk chocolate as a way to cover up the lack of effort that went into their center. The one difference is that Belgians have a tendency to use fairly equal amounts of milk and dark chocolate coverings for their famed pralines while the French use milk chocolate creatively but more sparingly.
		Try for Yourself
		While you can only really know which you prefer if you try for yourself, we have come to a few conclusions that may help you in your chocolate exploration. Everyone should try a Swiss milk chocolate bar at some time in his or her life; while you may be able to eat only a small amount of it you will enjoy it thoroughly. A Belgian praline should also be tasted by everyone at some point simply because they are the ones that invented it. Our recommendation though is that you try both of these before delving into the ecstasy of French chocolate because once you have, according to our taste testers, you will never be able to go back.