Monday, March 21, 2016

Nestle KitKat Premium Hazelnut (Japan)

KitKat Premium HazelnutNestle is still churning out plenty of limited edition and seasonal flavors of KitKats in Japan, though I don’t acquire them as much as I used to.

This new version, sold in bags of minis, is called KitKat Premium Hazelnut. Japanese confectionery has a successful track record of adapting French techniques and flavors for the Japanese market, so I was very interested to see how the global Nestle corporation did in this version.

The little minis are quite small. It’s not just a shorter, half sized version of the standard four fingered bar. These are two inches long and 1.2 inches wide.

KitKat Premium Hazelnut

The flavor is called hazelnut, but what’s most interesting about the picture on the package, is that it features feuilletine along with some hazelnuts. Even if you don’t recognize the word feuilletine, you’ve probably had a version of it before. Think of a very crispy crepe, or the flaky layers of a sugar cone. It’s a caramelized sort of cookie that’s usually crumbled and added to other things, like chocolate ganache or cream centers.

The ingredients for this version of KitKat unfortunately show that this isn’t a true chocolate product, as many Nestle chocolate items tend to be these days. The chocolate coating includes vegetable oil, though a lot less sugar than the usual chocolate coating, so part of what gives this a premium feel is that it’s not as sickly sweet as the standard milk chocolate KitKat.

KitKat Premium Hazelnut

These little bars smell like sugar cones and roasted hazelnuts. It’s quite appealing. The chocolate coating is rather slick and has a little bit of an oily melt, but also a good roasted coffee and woodsy chocolate flavor. The center looks light and crispy, just like the usual wafer layers, but it has the precise flavor and texture of feuilletine. It’s a little grainy and as a more caramelized crunch to it. Magic. Still, the oily and slick mockolate coating lacks the complexity and texture of real chocolate. In this context, it seems to work on a candy level, but I wouldn’t dare call it premium.

They’re extremely satisfying, or not, because I actually wanted to eat the whole package. Sadly, the package only has 12 little bars (a single serving is listed as 3 bars). It’s an expensive treat and the ingredients don’t live up to the price. But the end result was too tasty to keep from giving it a solid review.

Related Candies

  1. Dove Hazelnut Crisp Dark Chocolate Promises
  2. Nestle KitKat Sakura Green Tea & Wasabi
  3. KitKat Hazelnut Cream
  4. KitKat Otonano Amasa (Adult Taste)
  5. KitKats: Royal Milk Tea, Ginger Ale, Bubbly Strawberry, Kinako Ohagi & Milk Coffee
  6. Eat with your Eyes: The Most Awesome Chocolate Bar Ever
  7. KitKat Temptations: Hazelnut & Coconut


Name: KitKat Premium Hazelnut
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand: Nestle
Place Purchased: Marukai Market (Little Tokyo)
Price: $5.99
Size: 4.8 ounces
Calories per ounce: 135
Categories: Candy, Nestle, Chocolate, Cookie, KitKat, Nuts, 8-Tasty, Japan

POSTED BY Cybele AT 2:37 pm Tracker Pixel for Entry     CandyReviewNestleChocolateCookieKitKatNuts8-TastyJapan

Comments
  1. These appear to be the latest in the Otona no Amasa (Grown-up Sweetness) Kit-Kat line that debuted about three or four years ago—they tend to have a more subdued, less sweet profile than the standard Japanese Kit-Kat, which would seem to have been successful, since many of the seasonal editions of late have been branded as part of the line. Dark, white, and green tea varieties have become the perennial standards, in black, white, and light green packaging, respectively.

    Comment by Charles on 3/23/16 at 7:35 am #
  2. Import prices on Food From Japan are just going to have a high price for sure.

    That is a 2-3 buck package of candy minus the high import price.

    Comment by richard on 3/26/16 at 5:46 am #
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