Waitrose 1 Indian Ocean Dark Chocolate with Coconut

It's #veganuary, and although I'm not vegan myself I do like to minimize the dairy, and have friends who do too, so I thought I'd mark the occasion with one of the nicest vegan chocolates I have ever tried, made by none other than Waitrose!

This bar is part of the Waitrose 1 Single Origin range, made with fairtrade cocoa beans and consists of 54% cocoa dark chocolate, coconut milk, coconut sugar, and to top it all off ground coconut flakes. This bar is unusual because not many companies make dairy free chocolate with coconut milk.

The bar had a strong rich coconut aroma when I removed it from the cardboard sleeve; each square is imprinted with a cocoa pod. It's a lovely touch and makes it feel like a very special bar indeed. It costs just over £2 in Waitrose, and annoyingly they always sell out fast whenever there's new stock - must be popular!

The chocolate is quite simply, luscious. The coconut flavour is sort of caramelly, almost like burnt caramel but fruity at the same time. That might sound bad but it tastes gorgeous! The chocolate melts in the mouth perfectly, perhaps even better than a chocolate with dairy would. It felt very satisfying after a few squares, so much so I didn't feel the need to scoff the whole bar at once. The extra creaminess from the coconut milk really pays off.

Overall, this is a fantastic dairy free chocolate and it's great to see one that utilizes coconut milk instead of the usual rice milk, which often gives dairy free chocolates a weak flavour. If you're vegan, dairy free or just enjoy good quality chocolate this is definitely one worth seeking out!

9 out of 10.