Ok, I'm taking a new tack on things. The mini-reviews that I have done in the past are now being sort of formalized into a regular sort of thing. It's not necessarily that I feel a product isn't worth a full review. Sometimes it might be, but sometimes I might just not have a lot to say about something. Or I might just be feeling lazy (most likely). Anyway, the idea is this: don't read too much into me giving something a Quick Hit as opposed to a full-blown review.

First of the quick hits is the first piece of the Starbucks Chocolate collection that I've sampled, their Vanilla Bean Truffles. The description from the label reads as follows:

Sweet and dreamy vanilla from Madagascar meets exquisite dark chocolate in a lovely pairing

Sounds like a winner. Packaging is a foldy cardboard affair made from at least 35% post-consumer waste (nice) and the individual truffles are wrapped in little wraps so you can have as few or many as you like.. A quick check on the label reveals that there is real vanilla in it, not just vanillin. And when you bite into one of them you will see loads of lovely vanilla bean specks running around in it. Taste wise the chocolate is not super intense, but is nice and pairs well with the vanilla. The "ganache" is white and there is no white chocolate along for the ride so I'm guessing that the palm oil listed in the ingredients plays it's role here. But it tastes good. Tasty, convenient, and not over-expensive. Seems we have a good start for my experience with the Starbucks line. 8.0 out of 10 is what I'm calling it and I'm looking forward to seeing what the rest of the collection has to offer.