Hazelnut Praline Chocolate Bar (M&S)

Last week I reviewed the M&S Intense Cappuccino bar, and mentioned at the time that I'd made use of the current 2 for £1 deal. Today's review is of the other bar I bought: Hazelnut Praline. It was recommended to me months ago, but I'd since forgotten about its existence. That was until I was lured in by Marks & Sparks' tempting offer.

"Milk and dark chocolate bar with hazelnut praline centre (51%) and roasted almonds (4%)." 

I had been informed that it tasted like Nutella, but in all honesty I hoped it would taste slightly more grown up and less sweet than the chocolate hazelnut spread. The knobbly bar's appearance didn't give much away until I sliced it in two. M&S have a habit of layering the chocolate round the outside of their truffle style bars, and this one revealed the hazelnut centre enrobed in a layer of dark chocolate and covered by milk. Normally I think this is a bit of an odd choice, and that surely people prefer one or the other, but on this occasion it worked exceedingly well. The resulting flavour was rich without bordering on bitter, and served as the perfect backdrop for the sweet centre. I loved the addition of almonds too, which added crunch to the chocolate and made it far more texturally interesting. 

Now for the star of the show: the hazelnut praline. Did it taste like Nutella? Not to me. It was far better than that, probably due to the fact that hazelnuts rank second down the ingredients list, meaning that it's truly nutty -hurrah! In fact if I'd have closed my eyes, I'm sure I could be been convinced I was eating my absolute favourite (and hard to get hold of) chocolate: Côte D'Or's Bouchée. Wow! It was heavenly. I really didn't think I could find another truffle, or indeed bar that could taste anything like my treasured favourite, but it's been under my nose in good old M&S all this time. Silly me! 

10/10