Raisinets review

Happy National Chocolate-Covered Raisin day!!!

Wait, you ask yourself; that's a thing?! YES it is!

And to celebrate here at Walking the Candy Aisle, we've got another bonus review for you. It's time to look at Raisinets.

Wow, chocolate-covered raisins have actually always been a favorite of mine. They are one of the most popular theater candy, and although in Canada growing up we had Glosette instead of the Raisinets brand I have a real affinity for the concept of chocolate and raisins together.

Let's look at this packaging, because it is seriously busy. Lots of reading involved here. It's "Nestlé classic Milk Chocolate" and "California Raisins" which we all know are the best, not just because they can sing and dance. Although Raisinets seem to be made from green grapes not purple ones. Also, Nestlé seems to want us to know how healthy these are for us. "30% less fat than leading chocolate brands", and "Natural Source of Fruit Antioxidants" I know antioxidants are good from all that time watching Alton Brown so these chocolate covered raisins MUST be healthy right???

Two can play at that game though... Raisinets are 190 calories per serving (there are 2 servings per box), They have 8g of fat, 5 of which are saturated, and as expected the leading ingredient is milk chocolate (ie sugar). Lets not kid ourselves here, chocolate covered raisins aren't the worst kind of candy for you, but its not like they're actually good for you. See the full list of nutrition facts here.


Finally on the packaging though, I have to say I really like the shot of raisins jumping and diving into the pool of chocolate. That's got some real personality. What I don't like is how theater candy always seems to be only two-thirds full. I feel like I'm definitely getting ripped off somewhere.




Also this box has a perforated push to open tab thing on one side that I honestly could not get to work. I started to crush the box pressing trying to get the perforation to open and instead decided to just open the box like a normal human being instead. Advice to Nestlé: perforation doesn't work if the box is too strong.




The raisins themselves look great, lots of big raisins coated and pocked with milk chocolate. There were a few pieces of crumbling chocolate in my box that had either fallen off raisins or managed to get in the box alone sans raisin, but that's not a huge deal, Some chocolates provide for tasty clean up after you've finished the real candy and that's good.

Biting into the Raisinets you'll find some pretty plump juicy raisins inside. They've got good flavor and are packed with juice and raw fruit sweetness. I like how the chocolate kind of falls off the raisin as you bite down, and the flavors mesh well in your mouth. That said, the raisins do leave a skin that can get easily caught in your teeth. Raisins are want to do that though and I see that as the bargain you strike when getting into this kind of a treat. Overall I'm happy with Raisinets, they've got some real sweetness that's not overpoweringly chocolate, and a nice chewy texture.

Probably not something for everyday, but on National Chocolate-Covered Raisin day this is one treat you should indulge in.

Nestlé Raisinets rate: 4 / 5

Raisinets are a Nestlé product, for more on them check out http://www.raisinets.com/