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Queen Anne is one of the most popular makers of Chocolate Covered Cherries Their basic recipe has been around since 1948. You can read about them by clicking here.
And just because they show up at my local 99c only Store doesn't mean there is a problem with the brand. Queen Anne also makes Chocolate Covered Blueberries and Peanut Clusters with Dried Cherries, so I think they know what they're doing. The candy is gluten free.
A few weeks before Valentine's Day I noticed them again and figured I might get a romantic holiday blog post out of these Cordial Cherries for a cheap$kate review. Well, read on to see if they made a passing grade.
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Chocolate Covered Cherries, or Cordial Cherries, are made with preserved maraschino cherries. You've seen the bright red cherries in small jars on the grocery shelf, or floating in a boozy cocktail called a Manhattan. Even the lowly canned fruit salad will sometimes have a few included.
They are over-the-top sweet, but somehow retain the flavor of cherry. I have the feeling that there is a lot of artificial flavors and color involved, so best to not indulge in these bonbons very often.
But for a romance inducing aphrodisiac, they are a lascivious way to start a fire. Of course, as a gift to my true love I would first buy Cordial Cherries from a better confection purveyer than a local dollar store. But if you need a sugar fix, these will satiate any sweet tooth.
For candy I prefer chocolate covered fruit like Raisinets. Once, I even got my hands on fresh strawberries covered in white chocolate - wow, what decadent bites.
This 99.99 cent box of Cordial Cherries holds 5 bonbons. I bought a couple boxes to review, milk and dark chocolate covered cherries.
The hard chocolate shells are standard flavored, nothing special, but nothing objectionable. Milk chocolate is mild and sweet, while the dark chocolate is more intense with a slight bitter bite. I liked both types. And they will melt if you hold them for any lenght of time, like it did while I animated with them.
The chocolate shell is thin but holds up for a couple of bites. That's half the story. The inside is filled with milky sweet sugar. The syrup is a mix of white and clear. Both are pure sugar sweet with a slight cherry fruit flavor. Some people prefer clear sugary liquid centers, but I bet there is little difference in taste from milky white syrup.
The preserved maraschino cherry is firm, plump and whole, no cherry stem of course. The cherry is bright red and loaded with cherry flavor (probably enhanced by chemicals.)
Queen Anne's Cordial Cherries are a flavor bomb. I'm sure there are finer made brands out there like Godiva (about $10 for 6 pieces,) but these pass my chintzy test for tastiness.
So how do Chocolate Covered Cherries by Queen Anne rate on my Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best? Well just watch the video below to get all the tasty details and rating.
Chocolate Covered Cherry - Video
Play it here. video runs 1 minute 24 seconds.
My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.
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