Valrhona Dulcey Chocolate Review

Product Description: Valrhona Dulcey chocolate is touted as the first blond chocolate with creamy and toasty flavors and a “unique composition, production process and flavor profile.” Dulcey has a delicately sweet taste that marries intense biscuit flavors with a pinch of salt, a creamy texture, hints of caramelized milk and unique blond color. Direct from Valrhona, it comes in two different packages: 1.1-pound bag of feves or a 2.99-ounce bar.

Ingredient List: White chocolate (32% cocoa minimum, pure cocoa butter), cocoa butter, sugar, whole milk powder, dried skimmed milk, whey, butter, emulsifier (soya lecithin), natural vanilla extract.

Test Kitchen Overview: To our palate, we first tasted butter/dairy, then a shortbread flavor creeps in, giving way to the toasty caramelized flavors and finally ending with a hit of salt. It is sweet, but not as sweet as most white chocolates. Valrhona Dulcey is essentially cooked white chocolate and was created by mistake when Frédéric Bau, the company’s corporate chef, left some white chocolate in a bain-marie for too long and it caramelized, creating these new flavors. It works well with flavors such as coffee, butterscotch, rum, hazelnuts, walnuts and fruits like bananas and mangoes.

We are mad for chocolate around here and now it feels like we have a whole new playground to explore. Dulcey comes in Valrhona’s unique “feves” shape, which is a thin oval disc, as well as a bar. The feves are perfect for weighing, snacking or melting.

Pros: Dulcey melts very smoothly and is creamy on the tongue when eaten out of hand. It is a new flavor for us that is exciting, yet seemingly a comfort-food experience at the same time.

Cons: Availability. This product is not easy to find in stores.

Suggested Use: We particularly like it when used in recipes that accentuate its smooth mouth appeal, such as a simple ganache made with cream, used for a pudding or in ice cream.

Where to Buy: Dulcey can be ordered directly from Valrhona.com. Chocosphere carries it, along with other great chocolates you might want to order at the same time and you can also look for it in some specialty stores in smaller quantities. These stores often buy bulk and then create smaller retail packages.

Price at Time of Review: (Valrhona pricing) $25.99/1.1 lbs feves; $7.99 /2.99 oz. bar.

Have you tried this product? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

_{Image: Peter Muka}

Bakepedia received this product as a gift for review. All opinions are the reviewer’s own.