Why is Swiss chocolate bought in Switzerland better?

I don't know about the Swiss brands in particular, but I recall reading at some point that European Godiva chocolate is different from American Godiva chocolate.

It's possible freshness might be part of the answer.
Years ago I chatted with a person in a chocolate shop in Brugge. She didn't bother eating chocolates that were more than 3 days old!

Freshness is a good theory. I’ve heard that Guinness Stout tastes better in Ireland, for the same reason. Of course, it could also be an effect of the enjoyment of being there.

The US uses mostly corn syrup, in Europe they use cane sugar which tastes better than corn syrup. Soda and “American” cereal and candy (Twix for example) always tastes better in Europe to us because it’s made with sugar, not corn syrup like it is here. I don’t know specifically about Swiss chocolate, but that could be why.

In the US a lot of people prefer Mexican Coca-Cola because it’s made with sugar vs American Coca-Cola made with corn syrup.

Not only corn syrup in American Coke, but chemically altered, HIGH FRUCTOSE corn syrup, which many doctors recommend against ingesting.

Yes, this is true, although I think the Toblerone in the US is imported from Switzerland.

Are some Swiss brands made in the US for US stores?

Cadbury is owned by Hershey.

Fresh chocolates, like the kind you get in chocolate shops, taste completely different than any bar you find in a store.

And yes, Guinness tastes a lot better in Ireland.

Lee, you're right, high fructose corn syrup.

I've had this same thought and actually checked out the nutrition information on some Swiss chocolate brands when in the US to compare. Mostly the same, but I noticed the Swiss versions have a slightly higher fat content while the US ones had a slightly higher sugar content. There must be some small variations in the recipes/ingredients. I know that Lindt has a big manufacturing plant in New Hampshire, so I assume most if not all of the chocolate they sell in the US is made there?
But for all you Läderach fans, they do have stores in the US now and I believe all the products are still produced in Switzerland.

Cadbury is owned by Hershey.

Actually it is owned by Mondelez.

Among others they own Nabisco and many others but not Hershey.

A quality chocolate shop with handmade chocolates in Europe will tell you the goodies have to be eaten within three weeks and never refrigerated. Also, some don't produce chocolates during warm summer months. Also, if I remember correctly European law requires higher levels of cocoa in the product.

Now compare that to the waxy, cloying, over sweetened bar you can buy at the gas station.

You're right Nigel. What I should have written was Cadbury USA is owned by Hershey. They solely manufacture and sell Cadbury chocolates in the USA. They have also, technically, gotten the British version of Cadbury banned in the US.

I guess there is a lot of psychology involved!

when in the UK I was always playing the game of trying to sync up the candy bar name with what I was expecting, they don't always match

These big companies do their research and know their market. If US customers prefer more sugar and less fat, thats what they're going to give 'em. Just like white bread and bologna. We've always brought chocolate home from our trips, and yeah, not everyone here likes them better.

Speaking of products tasting different here vs in Europe, my favorite beer when I'm in Germany is Weißbier. And it's usually the least expensive. Over here, I just don't think it tastes the same. Here, I'd rather have a Paulaner Märzenbier than a Weißbier. And for some reason, here, Weißbier is more expensive.

@Lee, One of the supermarkets in France where I shop has Bud on the shelf next to the Belgian beers.

I doubt it tastes better in France

It would be an interesting study to do a comparison of Bud purchased in France to Belgian beers. Perhaps Beer Advocate could sponsor that.

Frank II, that’s very interesting to hear. I grew up on British Cadbury and have tried American Cadbury. Because the American one didn’t quite taste like I remember it as a child, I thought I’d just lost the taste for it. Now I know why… it’s not the same. Thank you for that info.

Susan, my daughter always insists I buy her Cadbury at Heathrow....

The Swiss chocolate made in Switzerland for sale in Switzerland is better than the chocolate made there for export, even to neighboring EU countries. I found that out when I was on the RS Alpine tour. I vaguely remember that either the tour guide or bus driver told us that. Tasting confirmed it.

Pat, smart girl. I’ll get some next time I’m in England. Another good reason to go, lol.

In Diccon Bewes book "Swiss Watching" he relates a chocolate tasting he conducted with swiss friends and some expat brits. Included several swiss brands and a couple of British. Most favored Cailler but the next favorite was the store brand from Coop called Prie Garantie. We were there a few weeks ago and bought the more expensive Cailler for gifts but several of the store brands for ourselves - about a third the price and excellent chocolate.

Diccon Brewes led a tour of Bern on our 2017 RS Swiss Tour.

I will never eat American chocolate again. My stack of chocolate bars that I purchased for gifts aren't leaving this house! Question : Is the Swiss chocolate sold in the US going to be as good?????

Pat, have you tried See's chocolates. Maybe they aren't as good as Swiss, but they are still very good and reasonably priced. Always get some when I'm in the US.

I hope you people are not talking about milk chocolate. Yuk.

As for dark chocolate, it is not true that all US brands are made with high-fructose corn syrup. My husband buys Ghiradelli’s 86% cacao dark chocolate, made with pure cane sugar (and not much of that). There are others as well, but he likes that one for a low-sugar staple.

Lola, I'm with you. We did not buy any chocolate in Switzerland (I know, hard to believe) because most of what we saw was milk chocolate. We like dark chocolate. If I want/need a chocolate fix, I go to my local store where there are lots of varieties of dark chocolate all made with sugar.
We have bought Swiss chocolate on previous trips, and they sat in the cupboard because the wrappers were very pretty. By the time we got around to eating them, I think they were stale.

you can liberate the chocolate, being very careful with the wrapping, then replace with a bar shaped piece of thin cardboard, and tape up the back, put that on display and then find a creative use for the liberated chocolate... you can always mail it to me and I'll solve your problems...

Nigel, you should have told me the solution BEFORE I left Switzerland. I would have gladly bought lots of chocolate 😊

in related news, I was thumbing through Rick's guide to the Best of England and he has an entire sidebar on British candy bars

I just looked at a Lindt candy bar in Target, of all places. It was made in the US.

I once took a chocolate tour in Paris. The guide, an expert on chocolate (though she had not one extra kilo on her lovely body) said:
The best milk chocolate is Swiss, the best pralines are Belgian, but the best dark chocolate is French. One more reason to visit Paris 😜

I discovered my favorite in Switzerland however - dark chocolate with sea salt.

Okay, please do not snicker (well, okay, just do not tell me, please), but after trying chocolate in many countries in Europe, with especially high hopes, at the time, for the super-expensive pieces I purchased at two different Belgium chocolate shops, I just gotta say:

It is hard to beat the big Belgium chocolate bars sold at Trader Joe's. My spouse prefers the one wrapped in pinkish red (I think just regular dark chocolate), and I prefer the one wrapped in a brownish wrapper (I think higher cocoa content)....but I could have the colors reversed.
Unfortunately, we do not have any in the house now. Because covid numbers are so high in TN and vaccine rates so low, I am not dashing into grocery stores like I used to. If any lucky soul has the Trader Joe bars in their cabinet, maybe you could share the sugar vs. corn syrup answer on those?

Slightly off topic: If you have not tried a small handful of Nestles dark chocolate chips popped in your mouth with a few broken-up pieces of Stacy's Pita Chips......melting and merging......it is an addicting guilty pleasure ;o Have a cold glass (best poured over Scotsman soft pellet ice) of milk handy afterward. Good thing I do massive amounts of yard work and long walks with the dog to counter that (sadly that is the sum of my travel these days). Now I gotta go get some chips.........
There WILL be better years ahead!!!!

Lindt (Swiss company) owns Russell Stover (US company). Quality is all about the price point they target.

Maggie - great tips!

Maggie, thank you for mentioning the Trader Joe’s Belgian chocolate bars. Those might be a good option for my husband. I found them on Amazon and checked the ingredients. The red-wrapped bars are higher in chocolate (72%) than the brown-wrapped ones (72%) which also contain almonds.

The red bar wrapper lists cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa powder, and soy lecithin. The brown wrapper bar is similar but adds cocoa butter. Neither has high-fructose corn syrup.

How dos the price (around $24 for 2- 500g bars) compare to the price at TJ’s? That is a kilo of good chocolate!

https://www.amazon.com/Trader-Joes-Chocolate-ARTIFICIAL-PRESERVATIVES/dp/B01CGQF1J0/ref=asc_df_B01CGQF1J0/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312061073410&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2913017404900225672&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9033282&hvtargid=pla-569300217523&psc=1&tag=&ref=&adgrpid=58872081541&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=312061073410&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2913017404900225672&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9033282&hvtargid=pla-569300217523

JUST EDITED...see bottom.

To answer Lola's question re: price of Trader Joe's bars:
The Amazon price is pretty outrageous, though it includes shipping. I "think" they are around $5 each, maybe closer to $6 in the Nashville stores. They are really HUGE, and definitely a very good value/quality. In store, there is a brownish (light brown) wrapped bar that does not have nuts. Seems there is a choice of maybe 3 different types..maybe 4....I just grab our two favorites (usually buy in multiples of each) and do not even pay attention to the others now. I have only been in Trader Joe's twice since the pandemic and not at all since the special senior hour stopped, so long overdue.
While we are on the topic of Trader Joe's and chocolate: If you have not tried their dark chocolate- covered peppermint Jo-Jos, they are to die for. Sold only during the holidays...usually starting before Thanksgiving....approx $4. ...less than dozen...can't recall if 8 or 10 per box. And, they sell out quickly.

EDITED TO ADD: Lola, and any others: I just called my local Trader Joe's because I did not see the bars on the TJoe's web site. Here is the scoop....at least here in Nashville. They normally carry two different dark chocolates with different %s, then an almond one, then two types of milk chocolate (nuts/no nuts). Here is the rub: The one that is pinkish wrapped is the only one they do NOT have in stock right now, and the guy kindly checked the order status and it says it is not available right now...he is guessing stuck on a boat somewhere (since there are so many problems with shipping, especially cargo ships, right now. He GUESSES maybe in a month they may have them at our local store. But, all the others are in stock, including the kind my husband loves...so Wednesday (the day they are less busy) you know where I will be.

The "eat within three days" issue is with chocolates that are filled with fresh dairy fillings. Other chocolates with ganache or praline fillings will last much longer.