Tirol Choco 27 Piece Variety Pack – チロルチョコ２７個入バラエティパック

This selection bag is always on sale but usually one flavour gets swapped out, to keep things fresh. In the past the mix has included a ‘raisin sando’ and ‘lemon cheesecake’ chocolate but the current addition is the ever-popular coffe jelly. With each chocolate being around just 33kcals you can try one of each flavour and still not consume as many calories as in an average chocolate bar＾＾

Coffee Jelly – The bitter jelly’s rich coffee flavour is complimented and enhanced by the only slightly sweeter dark chocolate around the base, while the thin layer of white chocolate on top offsets the stronger flavours. The jelly’s consistency is soft and smooth, like turkish delight, and not chewy like the centers of mochi-themed Tirols. Turn over before eating in order to get the benefit of the white chocolate.

Strawberry Jelly – The scent is perfumey, not like the watery, earthy-sweet scent of real strawberries, yet immediately evocative of strawberry nonetheless. The center has the same smooth texture as the coffee jelly. The pink chocolate layer is strawberry flavoured and although sweet it has a slightly more delicate flavour than the creamy milk chocolate and sugary strawberry jelly, which helps to balance out the overall sweetness of the candy.

White & Cookie Crunch – This chocolate is very similar to Hersheys Cookies ‘n’ Creme in concept but the thicker block makes for a more satisfying bite. The ratio of cookie to chocolate is high, so that the very rich, sweet white chocolate is easily countered by the generous distribution of slightly salty dark chocolate cookie pieces. Bitten it has a satisfying crunch and crumble. This is my favourite from this selection as it is the perfect combination of flavours and textures which means that one is never enough.

Bis(cuit) – This is probably the most basic of the selection. The chocolate lacks sheen and isn’t as creamy or sweet as the coating of the milk Tirol. The biscuit is like a nice or rich tea biscuit, quite dry and without distinctive flavour, serving primarily as a texture contrast to the chocolate. It is my least favourite of any Tirol selection and yet it is often the most numerous. However, I forgive Tirol because the packaging is so cute I like to see it in the mix.

Milk – This sweet combines three chocolate flavours: the base is plain, the outer coating is milk and the center is white chocolate of the very pale, rich variety like the filling of a Kinder bar, due to the addition of cream. The center is very sweet but it is so smooth that it has melted and blended with the other flavours before it can become cloying. Also it contains cream cheese, which gives it the faintest salty and yoghurty aftertaste that offsets the sweetness perfectly. Definitely better to let it melt in the mouth than bite.

Coffee Nougat – This is (as far as I know) the original Tirol flavour and one that is always available as a single, larger square in conbinis and supermarkets. The coffee flavour doesn’t have the bitterness of the coffee jelly but does come through, although it takes a back seat to the sweet milk chocolate and is more like instant coffee. The nougat is nicely chewy and has a good mouthfeel. Altogether this is a delicious chocolate but it won’t provide the hit that a coffee-lover seeks.

Almond – For a small, cheap sweet this has a surprisingly complex combination of flavours and textures. The chocolate is sweet milk but the almond inside is caramelised meaning that when you bite into the chocolate it releases a toasty smell of roasted nut which combines with the salty caramel taste and just perceptible crunch of the burnt sugar coating to make for a highly satisfying mouthful.

Bonus: Shingeki no Kyojin ｘ Tirol  – 進撃の巨人✕チロルチョコ

I will update this rubbish photo soon…

Saw these in Lawsons the other day and picked up a couple of cases (to be honest I didn’t intend to, I just wanted the chocolates so I could put the wrappers in my collection but it’s all part of the deal and the tins are pretty nice) There are 10 different cases and 30 different chocolate designs featuring Eren, Mikasa, Armin et al (some characters appear on more than one design). The chocolates come in three of the existing flavours: Milk, Coffee Nougat and Biscuit. For around 450円 you can choose a tin and any 12 chocolates. I managed to pick up 17 different ones but I’ll have to go back for the other 13 and feel like a massive nerd sifting through them all to get the right ones – yay!