The Aldi Chocolate Bar That Just Isn't Worth Buying

If you're a regular Aldi shopper, then you know that this chain has some pretty delectable chocolates to choose from. There's everything from European chocolate truffles to peanut butter cups to simple chocolate bars. While many of these treats will leave you craving more, there's one chocolate bar that's, sadly, entirely skippable — Moser-Roth's 85% dark chocolate.

Daily Meal taste-tested Aldi chocolate bars to find which were the best and worst. Unfortunately for Moser-Roth, this one came out at the bottom of the pile. The main reason why this chocolate is a no-go is that it's quite low in sugar. While that might not sound like such a bad thing, it leads to a bar that's overly bitter. Plus, it has unpleasant earthy flavors that overpower the little sugar the chocolate bar does contain. Although it contains 85% cacao, the chocolate bar tastes like it could be 100%.

The main problem with Moser-Roth's 85% cacao dark chocolate bar is that it isn't balanced. This bar contains just 3.5 grams of sugar, which is much less than the 10-15 grams you'll usually find in bars with this cacao percentage. The result is that it has a much darker flavor than you'd expect, and has a bitter profile that more closely resembles that of baking chocolate than a sweet treat you'd want to snack on.

Dark chocolate can have as low as 55% cacao, which means that 85% is on the higher end of the spectrum. The higher the cacao percentage, the more bitter the chocolate will be, which needs to be balanced with sweetness. When you pair very high cacao percentage with relatively low sugar content, you wind up with a treat that just isn't worth sinking your teeth into.

Dark chocolate lovers need not despair when shopping at Aldi — the chain still has a couple of options out there that actually taste good. For one thing, Moser-Roth's 70% cacao bar isn't a bad choice. At just 15% less cacao, this chocolate bar already tastes noticeably sweeter and more balanced. It's got 7 grams of sugar, which is still quite a bit less than the standard 25 grams in milk chocolate. However, it's enough to prevent the bar from becoming overly dark.

Moser-Roth also has a couple of nice flavored dark chocolate bars. The peppermint dark chocolate is decent, although the mint flavor isn't as prominent as some other popular options like Andes mints. Or, go for the cranberry dark chocolate which pairs tart fruity flavors with deep, bitter cocoa notes.

For those who'd rather avoid Moser-Roth altogether, Aldi has a few other brands that offer dark chocolate. Schogetten's Dark Chocolate bar is a balanced option. Or, try Choceur's sea salt dark chocolate which balances sweet and salty. So, while Moser Roth's 85% cacao chocolate might not be Aldi's best option, there are plenty of treats available for dark chocolate lovers at the grocery chain.