Chocolate-Mint Desserts Taste Test
39 Chocolate-Mint Sweets, Ranked From Worst to Best
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Few things pair better with chocolate (particularly of the dark variety) than cool, refreshing mint. At least that's what we always thought until we started tasting our way through the vast and varied chocolate-mint offerings at the grocery store. While some sweets are superb, others are woefully disappointing; keep reading to see how 39 products stack up, and check back soon as we'll be tasting (and rating) more items.
Heavenly Organics Chocolate Mint Honey Patties
We'll give Heavenly Organics Chocolate Mint Honey Patties ($1) one point for an interesting concept, but sadly the praise ends there. The honey overpowers everything and doesn't make sense with the other flavors, making for a very odd-tasting candy.
Haviland Dark Chocolate Covered Thin Mints
With their sleek packaging, Haviland Dark Chocolate Covered Thin Mints ($2) might look fancier than a classic York Peppermint Pattie, but don't be fooled. There's nothing to praise here besides aesthetics; the mint flavor isn't refreshing, the chocolate isn't properly tempered, and overall they're just no good.
Endangered Species Dark Chocolate With Forest Mint
While we applaud Endangered Species' conservation efforts, we can't recommend Endangered Species Dark Chocolate With Forest Mint ($4). Despite its 72 percent cacao composition, it doesn't really bring the chocolate (or mint) flavor or cocoa butter richness; worse, it has a cardboardy aftertaste.
Lindt Excellence Intense Mint
Lindt Excellence Intense Mint ($4) looks promising but is very artificial tasting, and not minty enough. The chocolate has a good melt to it, but that's the only praise we can muster.
Nice! Dark Chocolatey Mint Bark
Chalky and dry, Nice! Dark Chocolatey Mint Bark ($2) is both unappealing visually and flavor-wise. It's also much too sweet; the only positive we can come up with is that the cookie bits in the bark provide nice crunch.
barkTHINS Dark Chocolate Mint
We didn't hate the flavor of barkTHINS Dark Chocolate Mint ($5) but didn't love it either. Our issue with this sweet lies in the texture: while the chocolate is snappy, the candy cane bits get stuck in your teeth for what feels like an eternity.
Milano Mint Chocolate
We were shocked by how much we disliked Milano Mint Chocolate ($4), as fans of the original flavor as well as all of the holiday candy cane iterations. The mild mint flavor tastes odd (to put it nicely) with the buttery cookie elements.
Seth Greenberg's Authentic New York Brownie Crunch Mint Chocolate Chip
Maybe we're missing something here, but we didn't like Seth Greenberg's Authentic New York Brownie Crunch Mint Chocolate Chip ($6) one bit. Cardboard-like in both texture and flavor, these brownie chips are neither chocolaty or minty enough; sweet is the dominant flavor.
Nice! Thin Mints
We didn't have terribly high hopes for Nice! Thin Mints. Tooth-achingly sweet, they didn't exactly exceed our expectations, but at $1 for a decent-size box, we'll cut the Peppermint Pattie knockoffs a little slack.
Mighty Leaf Chocolate Mint Truffle
Mighty Leaf makes our go-to mint green tea blend, so we were a little sad and surprised to find the tea company's chocolate mint tea, Mighty Leaf Chocolate Mint Truffle ($10 for 15 bags), lacking. You really need to like rooibos to enjoy this tea as that's the dominant flavor, with little to no chocolate or mint to speak of.
Safeway Kitchens Tuxedos Mint Creme Sandwich Cookies
We hate to say it, but Safeway Kitchens Tuxedos Mint Creme Sandwich Cookies ($3) reinforced the stereotype that generic versions aren't as good as the real deal (in this case Oreo Mint Creme). The flavor is so-so, and the texture is weirdly hard to chew.
Lindt Mint Coulis Creation Bar
We give Lindt Mint Coulis Creation Bar ($4) points for a creative concept (as far as we can tell, it's meant to emulate a mint- and chocolate-sauced ice cream sundae). In practice, it's just OK. We had to keep telling ourselves to not overthink the neon-green minty goo oozing forth with each bite.
Nestle Toll House Delightfulls Dark Chocolate Morsels With Mint Filling
Nestle Toll House Delightfulls Dark Chocolate Morsels With Mint Filling ($4) are a clever concept, but in reality they're just OK. The chocolate is cheap, waxy, and too sweet, and while we suspect they'd work baked in a chocolate cookie or brownie (their intended use), why not add chopped-up Andes or Peppermint Patties to the batter instead?
Oreo Mini Mint
Strangely, the cookie component of Oreo Mini Mint ($6) is less flavorful than the full-size version's cookie. Add to that problem that they're way less minty and it's no surprise that they rank much lower than full-size Oreo Mint Creme.
Fiber One Mint Fudge Brownies
Fiber One Mint Fudge Brownies ($4) look scary but are much more palatable than you'd expect. The texture's kind of gummy, and we wish they were mintier, but for a diet-focused item, they're not bad.
Russell Stover Sugar Free Mint Patties
For a sugar-free sweet, Russell Stover Sugar Free Mint Patties ($2) are pretty darn good. The chocolate is glossy and has a good snap to it, and the filling doesn't have off flavors sometimes present in artificially sweetened foods. Would we recommend them in general? No. But if you're diabetic, they're a solid choice.
Nice! Fudge Mint Cookies
Nice! Fudge Mint Cookies ($3) are a decent budget pick. The cookie itself isn't bad, but the chocolate coating isn't crisp and snappy, and the flavor fades fast; there's no lingering minty freshness.
Sugar-Free York Peppermint Patties
Sugar-Free York Peppermint Patties ($3) are unmistakably a different product than a classic York Peppermint Pattie. The chocolate is thicker, the mint center is closer in texture to a Junior Mint, and the overall flavor is less minty and more bitter; that said, they're not bad.
Harney & Sons Chocolate Mint
The pros of Harney & Sons Chocolate Mint ($6 for 20 tea bags): a good dose of mint makes it a refreshing cup. The cons: the overall flavor is a bit artificial and very sweet. We wouldn't buy it, but we didn't hate it either.
York Minis
While we love classic York Peppermint Patties (minor spoiler alert), York Minis ($4) just aren't as good. (The smaller size means that there's more chocolate and less mint than the classic version, which makes for a less satisfying candy.)
Milano Minis Mint Chocolate
Milano Minis Mint Chocolate ($4) are much better than their full-size analogue, thanks to a different ratio of cookie to chocolate-mint filling.
Theo Mint Dark
Theo Mint Dark ($4) is not so much a mint-chocolate sweet but rather a dark chocolate bar with a subtle hint of spearmint. If you like Theo's creamy, bittersweet dark chocolate, this is for you; if you're looking for a York Peppermint Pattie or Thin Mint analogue, not so much.
Ritter Sport Peppermint
Like all Ritter Sport bars, Ritter Sport Peppermint ($3) boasts an attractive grid pattern and is great for snacking. The dark chocolate is decent quality for the price point, and it doesn't skimp on the mint flavor; if anything, it's a touch too minty.
Andes Creme de Menthe Thins
Depending on how you consume Andes Creme de Menthe Thins ($3), they are either delicious or no good at all. If you chew up the nostalgic candy, the texture is waxy, like eating mint-chocolate-flavored crayons. But if you let it melt in your mouth, the full bracingly minty flavor comes through. We also like adding chopped-up Andes to baked goods, as they melt into minty pockets of goodness in the oven.
Thin Mints Coffee-Mate
Thin Mints Coffee-Mate ($3) might sound sketchy, but the coffee creamer both smells and tastes like Thin Mints and possesses a cooling effect that would be refreshing during the warm Summer months. The flavor's a little artificial-tasting and could be mintier, but the stars speak for themselves.
Dove Promises Mint & Chocolate Swirl
Dove Promises Mint & Chocolate Swirl ($5) tastes like mint chocolate chip ice cream, heavy on the chip. (A pretty great thing, if you ask us.) They're a touch sweeter than we'd like and not quite as good as Dove Peppermint Bark, a seasonal flavor, but they're pretty tasty nonetheless.
Safeway Kitchens Fudge Mint
The sleeper hit of the bunch, Safeway Kitchens Fudge Mint ($2), outshone many of the better-known, higher-priced confections and cookies. They're like a bigger, sturdier square Thin Mint, with a thin layer of mint white chocolate sandwiched between the cookie and the dark chocolate coating.
Tcho Galactic Gelato
Remember astronaut ice cream? Tcho took the concept down a playful path in TchoPairings Galactic Gelato ($7), which is dark chocolate studded with bits of freeze-dried mint gelato. (In other words, fancy astronaut ice cream.) The mint bits are a bit gritty, but it's a fun bar to eat, and the chocolate itself is top-notch.
Theo Coconut Bites Coconut Mint
Like a Mounds but made with high-quality coconut and chocolate and, of course, a dose of mint, Theo Coconut Bites Coconut Mint ($2) are mildly minty, adding a refreshing spin to the tropical flavors. We imagine they'd be just lovely frozen.
York Pieces
With the flavor of a less-minty Peppermint Pattie and the crunchy texture of Reese's Pieces, York Pieces ($4) are a fun, addictive mashup.
Keebler Grasshopper Cookies
Similar to Thin Mints in appearance and texture, Keebler Grasshopper Cookies ($4) are almost as good as the coveted Girl Scout cookie, but not 100 percent there. Our issue: they skew sweeter as they don't pack as much cocoa and mint flavor to balance things out.
Dark Mint M&M's
Crunchy, chewy, with a just-right hint of mint, Dark Mint M&M's ($1) are one of our favorite chocolate-mint sweets as well as one of our favorite varieties of M&M's.
Mint Oreo Fudge Cremes
What's not to love about Mint Oreo Fudge Cremes ($5), which are basically the bottom half of an Oreo spread with a thin layer of Peppermint Pattie filling dipped in chocolate? Neither the chocolate or mint flavor dominates, and a dash of salt balances all the flavors out. Try these, and you might have a new favorite Oreo product.
Junior Mints
Junior Mints ($1) are very, very sweet, but we're not faulting this classic for it. Slightly less minty than a York Peppermint Pattie, they have a balanced flavor and a flowing center you either love or hate. Though great at room temperature, they're even better frozen.
Jelly Belly Chocolate Dutch Mints
As far as looks go, Jelly Belly Chocolate Dutch Mints ($2) take top marks. They're no slouch on the flavor front either: they're really minty and sweet, with a satisfyingly crisp candy shell and just enough chocolate to round things out. The texture of the mint center is interesting — slightly chewy — thanks to a small amount of tapioca dextrin in the ingredients list.
York Peppermint Pattie
You know it, you love it, it's the York Peppermint Pattie ($1). The texture is perfectly chewy and dense, and the flavor is kind of like eating sweetened toothpaste but in a great way.
Lindt Mint Lindor Truffles
The rich buttercream center of Lindt Mint Lindor Truffles ($13) boasts a mellower mint flavor than mint fondant candies like York Peppermint Patties and Junior Mints; it reminds us of a pillow mint without the chalky texture. Add to that a decent dark chocolate shell, and it's no surprise that these truffles earned high marks.
Mint Creme Oreo
Mint Creme Oreos ($5) are pretty close to perfect. The mint filling is refreshing, the texture is an ideal balance between crisp and tender, and they smell like Thin Mints (never a bad thing).
Nestle After Eight
If you've never tried After Eight ($5), hop to it. For a drugstore find, the packaging is sleek in a retro way, even giftable. More importantly, legitimately good dark chocolate enrobes a silky, flowing mint center in a just-right ratio. These sweets are meant to be savored.
