(Ragusa) Blonds Have More Fun

Ever since I first heard about it a couple of years ago, the idea of blond chocolate has intrigued me. On the one hand, I am a white chocolate connoisseur, so almost any decent variation will pique my interest. On the other hand, I am generally averse to caramel. I find it to be superfluously sweet and overpowering, even when accompanied by chocolate and nuts.

I recently met with a friend for a “Sweets Swap,” where we exchanged and sampled a smorgasbord of sweets. We both raved about the Ragusa Blond, and it inspired me to write this review.

An interesting aside - “...Bloch discovered blond chocolate during a trip to Quebec at the beginning of 2013. Impressed...Bloch asked his team in charge of innovation to produce a Ragusa Blond.” Go Canada Go! 🇨🇦

👀 Appearance

The version I purchased was entitled “For Friends” (no relation to the classic TV show). This name is derived from the fact the chocolate has been conveniently split into 12 individually wrapped bite-sized pieces that are perfect for sharing with one’s friends, which is exactly what transpired during my Sweets Swap. The bright, bold packaging is definitely eye-catching and is helped by the enlarged product photographs that show off its terrific texture (more on that later).


🍽️ Taste

The richness of the Ragusa Blond is the first thing that hits me. This richness is probably also the reason why despite registering “only” 48 grams of sugar per 100g on the sweetness spectrum, it tastes noticeably sweeter than that. It ventures very close to being too sweet although luckily it doesn’t quite cross that line.

In terms of flavour, while white chocolate can sometimes taste synthetic, Ragusa Blond tastes authentic (the website promotes the product as being "100% Natural"). The caramel infusion is incredible and elevates the white chocolate to heavenly heights. The simplest way I can describe the Ragusa Blond is that they took the best attributes of white chocolate and infused it with the optimal amount of caramel flavour, conceiving a truly unique tasting confection. 

The hazelnuts were not flavoured at all but given the fact that the chocolate component was sufficiently sweet, this was definitely the right decision.


⚖️ Execution
As awesome as it is taste-wise to eat a Ragusa Blond, it is an equally enjoyable experience texture-wise. The super soft, creamy chocolate melts in your mouth like butter. Meanwhile, the hazelnuts' crunchiness provide the perfect compliment to the chocolate's smoothness.


💰 Cost
I purchased this on sale for $3.99; the regular price was $7.99. The best compliment I can pay is that I would pay the regular price without any hesitation.



🏆 Verdict
Correction from the previous sentence – the best compliment I can bestow Blond is that it is one of the best chocolates I have ever eaten in my entire life! (My friend wholeheartedly agreed – he bought his own pack right afterwards!). The only reason I docked half a star is because of its richness. After about three pieces, I'm sufficiently satisfied. Although that is probably a good thing, since these are so sublime that I want to savour them until the end of time!

4.5 Sweets Swaps out of 5

⏩ Epilogue
Not to be outdone by my friend, I was so bedazzled by (this) blond chocolate that I have ordered seven other variations to try out. It’s safe to say there will be (more) blond (reviews to come)!

Under the Radar

As the full NBA schedule was recently released, much attention was devoted to the respective returns of the superstars that switched teams (LeBron, Kawhi, DeMar, etc) and deservedly so. However, there are also some under the radar match-ups that are worth consideration.

For me, the Trae Young/Luka Doncic duels should be super spicy. Both rookies have a considerable contingent of critics to disprove already, with many believing that the Hawks gave up too much in their trade for Trae, whereas the Mavericks’ Doncic has been saddled with similar skepticism that most top European prospects are faced with. And of course, the fact that they were traded for each other just increases the intrigue!

The NBA season cannot start soon enough!