The Truffes Fondant Intense are somewhat more like a traditional truffle. They are still fairly obviously mass produced (conveyor belt marks on the bottom), but have a better texture and mouth feel than many truffles from large companies. They have an outer layer of cocoa powder, followed by a thin chocolate shell, and then a somewhat creamy filling. The initial impression is just bitterness without much flavor from the cocoa powder, followed fairly quickly by an almost carmel/chocolate flavor from the shell. This gives way to a mildly strong but somewhat generic chocolate flavor from the filling. The first ingredient on the list is sugar, and you can tell. It definitely has a lot of sweetness, I would say too much. After it finishes melting it leaves you with a very sugary finish.
Overall, even with the flaws, it is probably one of the better mass produced truffles. The mouth feel is relatively good, as is the speed and consistency of the melt. If they knocked the sugar content down so the chocolate could play more of a role, I would rate it even higher.
So, I give it a 6 out of 10.
Now for the Lindor 60% Extra Dark. These are fairly similar to the other Lindor truffles you see in stores. (especially around holidays) They are darker in color than the normal Dark Lindor Truffles. The mouthfeel is basically identical to the milk and dark versions. The outside doesn't have a great deal of flavor, but has a nice snap to it if you bite into the truffle. The filling doesn't taste terribly different from that of the dark chocolate, and the slight differences aren't really positive. There isn't really any bitterness, but the filling lacks a typical dark chocolate taste.
Overall, fairly typical for a mass produced truffle.
I give this one 4/10
Considering some of Lindt's bar dark chocolates, I would hope that in the future they can manage a bit better with the truffles. We shall see.
