I’ve seen the Hanuta Haselnuss-Schnitte in the German supermarkets since I arrived. It’s about time to give it a try, no?
Haselnuss-Schnitte comes out as Hazelnut Slice or Hazelnut Sandwich – and from the packet artwork, that’s clearly what this is. For some reason my brain has always thought of this one as a lesser cousin to the Knoppers slice. Don’t ask me how or why I’ve come to that conclusion… but I can’t say that eating one has changed my mind.
Wikipedia tells me this product has been around since 1959. It’s not bad going really, but it’s also not massively surprising in a country that doesn’t seem to like change.
The Hanuta slices aren’t particularly impressive to look at, though packaging each piece in its own little tray is a nice touch. I’m not entirely sure that’s necessary though… I mean, it’s not a resealable packet so how exactly do you manage to keep one for later? Do German women always have food bags or Tupperware on them?
Two wafers sandwich a filling of cocoa and hazelnut cream in the centre. There’s actually a surprisingly nutty texture to the filling, studded enthusiastically as it is with hazelnut nibbles. The nut itself makes up 13% of the product, so that’s a good start.
With the filling, an initial sweet milkiness gives way to an interestingly strong cocoa flavour. There’s a rather earthy, mildly bitter back edge to it that comes through towards the end. The ingredients lists both vollmilchschokolade and halbbitterschokolade, so both milk and dark chocolates are used to create the taste.
As for the wafer. Well. It’s most definitely not to my taste, being the cardboardy sort of wafer that I dislike. The flavour is fairly well hidden by the pretty tasty filling, unfortunately after the filling has dissipated and you’re getting those last bits of wafer out of your teeth… it comes back. I’d much rather see a version of this product constructed with the wafer that Kagi or Manner use. Y’know. Something I’d like to eat.
Finally, yes it’s sweet but it’s not overwhelming. The nut flavour is good and I like the way the filling develops from milky to cocoa-rich. There’s depth and interest there, something that I do appreciate. For me though, this isn’t as good as a Knoppers slice… which in turn isn’t as good as the Knoppers Bar.
As the Hanuta and Knoppers are thematically similar, I’d love to know if you prefer one or the other. Let me know in the comments below!
(I do like a chat!)
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