Product Review: Perugina Bittersweet Chocolate Bar

Perugina bittersweet chocolate bar is a dark, silky, slightly sweet chocolate treat. Perugina chocolates are truly international, as they are owned by Nestle European Chocolates, made in Switzerland, and have an Italian name. Perugina's symbol is the Griffin, which is the medieval symbol of the Italian city of Perugia. If their bittersweet chocolate is an example of Italian style chocolate, I will make it a point to travel there one day and sample for myself.

The bar itself is simply wrapped in gold foil with a dark burgundy and brown wrapper. The bittersweet bar is free from nuts or any other filling, although it's made on equipment that processes nuts and peanuts. It's certified Kosher though. When you take a small bite and let the dark, slightly sweet chocolate melt against your tongue there is nothing else in the world. Its texture is delightful, without any graininess or chalkiness to detract from the flavor. It would be perfect to offer as a dessert with fruit and cheese, but it would also be decadent to add chunks to cookies, brownies, and cakes. This chocolate would also make deliciously smooth truffles or other candies.

Each bar of bittersweet chocolate is 3.5 ounces (or 99.2 grams) and a serving size is one-third of the bar. There are 3 servings per bar and each serving contains 170 calories, 11 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 mg of sodium, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 12 grams of sugar, 3 grams of protein, and 210 mg of antioxidants. So you see, dark chocolate really is good for you in moderation! There is no added sodium in this chocolate bar and there is also 12% of the RDA of fiber and a good dose of antioxidants for good health. Of course, the fat is slightly high but you can make up for that by eating less fat in your other meals. The Perugina bars also come in other flavors such as Milk and Dark Chocolate with Almonds, Milk Chocolate with Raspberry or Cappuccino filling, Dark Chocolate with Caramel filling, White Chocolate, and After Eight Dark Chocolate with Mint Filling