A few years ago, Matt introduced me to good chocolate. Like the expensive stuff. And now I cannot with Hershey’s. I even started using good, expensive dark chocolate in my cookies, and it makes all the difference. At least to me. So today, we are trying out Ghirardelli Chocolate.
Which Ghirardelli Chocolate Squares are we trying today?
Eggnog
Dark Chocolate Peppermint Bark
Dark Chocolate 60%
Dark Chocolate Mint
White Chocolate Sugar Cookie
Milk Chocolate Caramel
Who is on this rich, smooth, chocolatey quest?
Grace, lover of mint
Madi, hater of mint
Matt, doesn’t believe in white chocolate
Amy, not a fan of caramel
And of course, our subscribers! Thanks to our small, yet coveted group. We appreciate the support. You too can join us on this food journey. All you need to do is… SUBSCRIBE!
The History of Ghirardelli
Domenico Ghirardelli was born in 1817 in Rapallo, Italy to an exotic foods importer and his wife. As a young boy he apprenticed with a local candy maker, where he was introduced to chocolate and the confectionary trade. When he was 20, he moved to Uruguay to continue in the coffee and chocolate business, before moving to Peru to open his own store. However, with the news of the California gold rush, in 1849 at the age of 32, he sailed to America and opened a general store in Stockton, California, offering supplies and confections to miners. He soon opened a second store in 1852, in San Francisco. This eventually became the modern day Ghirardelli Chocolate Company. By 1884, Ghirardelli Chocolate is being shipped throughout the U.S, and to China, Japan, and Mexico. When he died in 1892, Domenico’s sons continued the chocolate traditions and the company continued to grow.
Some other notable dates include:
1999: Ghirardelli launches its filled Squares chocolates.
2003: Ghirardelli introduces Squares stand up bags.
2004: Ghirardelli launches Peppermint bark.
2005: Ghirardelli debuts Dark Squares.
2006: Ghirardelli launches Intense Dark bars.
2007: Ghirardelli introduces the Prestige bar, their first filled-bar line.
2011: Ghirardelli became the No. 2 baking brand in the U.S.
Today, Ghirardelli offers many different flavors, including but not limited to
Caramel
Peppermint Bark
Caramel Trio
Dark Chocolate
Sea Salt Caramel
Milk Chocolate
Mint Dark Chocolate
Intense Dark Chocolate
Dark Chocolate Raspberry
Dark Chocolate Bourbon
Ghirardelli employs 1011 people and their worldwide revenue is $575,000,000.
The Results
**SPOILER ALERT!**
Listen to the episode first if you do not want the results revealed to you yet!
6th Place: Eggnog
Amy: 3
Grace: 1
Madi: 2
Matt: 4
“I wouldn’t say it’s bad… it’s terrible” - Madi
5th Place: Dark Chocolate Mint
Amy: 4
Grace: 1
Madi: 2
Matt: 7
4th Place: Dark Chocolate 60%
Amy: 6
Grace: 5
Madi: 4
Matt: 6
3rd Place: Milk Chocolate Caramel
Amy: 4
Grace: 6
Madi: 6
Matt: 6
“It tastes very funky.” - Grace
2nd Place: Dark Chocolate Peppermint Bark
Amy: 6
Grace: 8
Madi: 3
Matt: 7
1st Place: White Chocolate Sugar Cookie
Amy: 6
Grace: 7
Madi: 6
Matt: 7
There you have it. White Chocolate Sugar Cookie receives the Quest for the Best seal of approval. Check out their website to try them out for yourself.
https://www.ghirardelli.com/
Thank you all for joining us on this episode of Quest for the Best. Let us know what you thought. Have you tried all these chocolates? We would love to hear your rating as well.
Also, do you have any foods you would love to get the coveted seal of approval? Let us know in the comments what you want to hear next.
And of course, remember to subscribe to hear the latest episodes. Additionally, paid subscribers will have access to monthly content where we put two restaurants head to head in a Quest for the Best battle. You definitely do not want to miss out.
SHOW NOTES:
https://www.ghirardelli.com/corporate-info
https://www.sciencefocus.com/the-human-body/does-chocolate-make-you-happy/
https://fortune.com/best-workplaces-manufacturing-production/2021/ghirardelli-chocolate-company/
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/57507/20-things-you-never-knew-about-chocolate
Ghirardelli Squared