Top 8: Choc's away with the best shop-bought hot chocolate

Our winners today are deliciously chocolatey and have a satisfying richness. Good in banana milkshakes and sprinkled on buttered toast, pancakes, sieved onto cakes – even leftover mince pies.

Fri, 29 Dec, 2023 - 02:00

Roz Crowley - @rozzogram

Hot chocolate is what you make it. Frothing the milk and serving with an added sprinkling of the chocolate on top makes it special. Children nearly always ask for marshmallows, and I mete out no more than two tiny ones as an occasional treat. A sprinkling of cinnamon or ginger is delicious and a spoonful of that orange liqueur at the back of the cupboard or some Baileys can add a festive warmth for grown-ups on New Year’s Eve.

Most instant hot chocolate powders have low chocolate content, anticaking agents and flavourings and are less satisfying than hot chocolate made with milk. Adding hot water reduces the danger of burning milk in saucepans. But the best solution is to use a meat thermometer such as Ikea’s Fantast (€8), which you can set to your required temperature. Sit the long shaft into the milk and it will beep when the required temperature has been reached (65C for children, 70C if adults like it hotter).

Use for frothy cappuccino toppings and small cups of hot chocolate for kids.

Our winners today are deliciously chocolatey and have a satisfying richness. Good in banana milkshakes and sprinkled on buttered toast, pancakes, sieved onto cakes – even leftover mince pies.

Have a healthy and happy new year.

NearyNógs House Blend Drinking Chocolate 185g €9.95 (€5.37/100g)

Dairy-free and suitable for vegans, I saw the ethically sourced chocolate beans being ground for the powder in this Newry workshop – a true bean-to-cup product. The highest chocolate content at 60%, it’s at a different level to other samples. The cardamom and clove flavour is also deliciously warming. Top marks from all. From Chocolate Shop English Market, Cork, and online at nearynogs.com

Score: 10

O’Conaill Milk Hot Chocolate 200g €6.95 (€3.47/100g)

These milk chocolate flakes were lucky to get as far as the hot milk as it was tempting to eat them straight from the spoon. With a decent 33% cocoa solids, all sugars come to one of the lowest at 51.8%, with soya lecithin and vanilla added. With a rich, creamy texture, tasters loved it. Made in Cork, we bought in Bradley (cheaper than some other outlets).

Score: 9.5

Dunnes Stores Simply Better 150g €5.99 (€3.99/100g)

Top of the commendably short list is cocoa beans. Next is cane sugar, which delivers a low 40% sugar. Sunflower lecithin is added as an emulsifier. The result is a deliciously rich, satisfying, not oversweet powder liked by all adult tasters. From the Hazel Mountain chocolate company in Co Clare.

Score: 9.5

Tesco Finest Indulgent Hot Chocolate 250g €5 (€2/100g)

52% cocoa powder, sugar 48%, some of which is visible as granulated sugar throughout for a slight crunch which is good on cappuccino. Nothing else added is a plus. Tasters liked the creaminess and simple flavours.

Score: 8.5

Bewleys drinking chocolate 250g €4.55 (€1.82/100g)

Cocoa powder is 40%, which includes 40% cocoa solids. Sugar amounts to a high enough 60.1%. No other ingredients are added, which is good. Granulated sugar can be seen throughout the powder, which tasters liked when we frothed the milk and sprinkled extra powder on top.

Score: 8

M&S Drinking Chocolate 250g €3.75 (€1.50/100g)

Sugar is top of the list, which can be seen as granulated sugar, with 41% cocoa powder. The two simple ingredients deliver a pleasant, clean taste that adult tasters liked more than the younger team (who prefer more sugar). Very good for flavouring cakes.

Score: 8

Cadbury hot chocolate 250g €3.39 (€1.35/100g)

It’s difficult to know if the familiarity of this drink won the taste buds of younger tasters (even tasting blind), but they liked this sweetest of our samples. Adults didn’t favour the very high 73% sugar content. Cocoa powder containing 25% cocoa solids. The acidity regulator is potassium carbonate, and there is unlisted flavouring.

Score: 7

Starbucks Signature Chocolate includes 330g €5.49 (€1.66/100g)

Ten per cent fat-reduced cocoa powder and 88% chocolate powder, which has 32% chocolate content, leaving room for 56% sugar, with soya lecithin, the emulsifier and natural flavouring also listed. Made under licence to Nestlé. A sweet drink, younger tasters liked it, but not top of the selection for adults. We bought in Dunnes.

Score: 7

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