Seed and Bean Chocolate Review

I can count on one hand the number of people I've met who don't like chocolate. It's a national favourite isn't it? I didn't need to be asked twice about the following review! I was sent a selection of Seed and Bean chocolates, they were: Cornish sea salt and lime milk chocolate, Just ginger dark chocolate, Coconut and raspberry dark chocolate, and lemon and poppy seed white chocolate. I invited some of the girls around for a Friday night feast of Carnitas, wine, and to sample these intriguing chocolates, and they went down very well! But first, who are Seed and Bean?

About Seed and Bean

• The Organic Seed & Bean Company was founded in 2005 by Stephen Rudkin with the idea to create an unusual range of confectionery and snacks, always Organic and Fairtrade when possible. Further to this aim the products must taste superb and be affordable.
• The origins and roots of the brand are very important, with the all the chocolate being handmade in small batches in England. Seed and Bean do not mix their cocoa beans, giving "a much richer, smoother taste".
• They are the UKs only 100% ethically accredited chocolate company, having scored 100% ethical in the Good Shopper Guide in 2011, 2012 and 2013.
• How are they ethical? - All of the bars are made with Fairtrade and Soil Association approved ingredients, ensuring cocoa farmers are getting a fair deal and the environment is being respected via their recyclable wrappers and in some cases biodegradable packaging (made from Eucalyptus leaves).
• They also cater for specialist dietary requirements; vegan and vegetarian.
• Seed and Bean has been awarded 5 ‘Great Taste Awards’ with two from the Academy of Chocolate.
• They're also pretty cool, this year marks the second year of their partnership with Glastonbury Festival as their official chocolate partner. How many chocolate brands can say that?

Sounds good right?

Ethical? Check

Made in UK? Check

Good quality and credentials? Check

Will my veggie sister be able to eat it? Check

So what about the chocolate?

This is the best part... the flavours. Hats off to the people at Seed and Bean they really have outdone themselves with coming up with unique, delicious flavours that make you think, why hasn't someone come up with this sooner? and I HAVE to try that!

There are 18 tantalising flavours on offer:

As mentioned above we tried:

• Organic Coconut and Raspberry extra dark chocolate (66% cocoa) - Vegetarian and Vegan friendly
• Organic Fairtrade Cornish Sea Salt & Lime milk chocolate (37% cocoa) - Vegetarian friendly
• Organic Fairtrade Just Ginger dark chocolate (58% cocoa) - Vegetarian and Vegan friendly
• Organic Fairtrade Lemon & Poppy Seeds white chocolate (30% cocoa) - Vegetarian friendly

As you can see, the flavours they use aren't your traditional flavours. But that's what I like about them. All of the above flavours tasted great, we each had our favourite but the overall winner for us was the lemon and poppy seed white chocolate. White chocolate is usually my least favourite between dark, milk and white, but the lemon and poppy seeds not only tasted great but added a little crunch which was really good.

As we were eating each chocolate I couldn't quite get over how well balanced it was but also really fresh. The Raspberry and coconut one in particular felt like I was eating fresh raspberries with chocolate on! I was impressed.

I also loved the really small crunchy bits of Cornish sea salt in the Cornish Sea salt and Lime milk chocolate. They were almost undetectable because the chocolate is so smooth but you could just pick up on it, again adding to the feeling of freshness.

This also followed through with the Simply Ginger dark chocolate. I've tried ginger dark chocolate before, but this is honestly the best I've tried. It's smooth and light considering it's a dark chocolate (not cloy and heavy as they sometimes can be), and again the ginger tastes fresh! It hits the back of your throat and comes up through your nose as if you're smelling fresh ginger.

(Did I mention they were fresh? They really were!)

Would I buy Seed and Bean chocolates again? Yes, most definitely, in fact I already have my eyes on the Hazelnut and Almond milk chocolate (this sounds amazing!), Tangerine rich milk chocolate, Raspberry and Vanilla creamy white chocolate, and Mint extra dark chocolate... the list goes on! And at between £2.39 and £2.49 a bar they are very reasonably priced. You can even buy gifts hampers from £20.

Try it for yourself.