Why I buy this one ?
- Mix with Hot Milk
- Makes 12 servings per can
- Great Gift!
- Made with real chocolate

Specialty Gourmet Goodies offers this stuff with condition New, new for:

Price : $6.99 Usually ships in 1-2 business days

The Beverage Gourmet offers this stuff with condition New, new for:

Price : $6.99 Usually ships in 2-3 business days

Candy Crate offers this stuff with condition New, new for:

Price : $7.75 Usually ships in 1-2 business days

What our customer's say!

"Non-Dairy...PERFECT!!!", This Ghirardelli Double Chocolate mix is absolutely a Godsend! For someone who is lactose-intolerant like me, it was almost impossible trying to find a hot chocolate mix that didn't already have some sort of powdered milk in it. This mix does not. You add it to your own hot milk (in my case, the lactose-free Lactaid brand milk.) I actually also tried it in just hot water and it was still good. It is thick, rich, not too sweet and wonderful! I am thrilled that I can enjoy hot chocolate again. Thank you Ghirardelli! Two thumbs up!!!

"too sweet, but there's a cure.", No,this isn't the "old fashioned" cocoa mix, there's just too much sugar in it. However, you can buy unsweetened cocoa in bulk and mix it in 50/50 and now you're getting a real hot chocolate. Of course, you can adjust the ratios to taste, 50/50 is kind of hardcore.
Ghiradelli, you're not doing America any favors by making this product so sweet.

"THE BEST", This is absolutely THE BEST hot chocolate I've ever had! It is so rich and chocolate-y. We love it. It is also delicious in a cup of coffee to make mocha. You're going to love this and after you've had it, you'll never want any other kind of hot chocolate mix. Enjoy.....

"New Recipie: Less servings More Sugar Not recommended (I used to)", I'm not a member of the food police. However; I get really mad when a company short changes their customers hoping they will not notice. ESPECIALLY a supposed higher end "GOURMET" producer like Ghirardelli!

The quick and dirty for those who don't want to read my detailed review.
**Is it better than "Swiss Miss," YES.
**Did it used to be better before they over-sweetened, cut the # of servings from 20 to 12 and generally ruined a decent product? YES!
**Is it over-priced and resting on the Ghirardelli name? OH YES.
**Is it a way to impress people who don't know any better albiet for a price? Probably.
**Do I still recommend Ghirardelli Hot Chocolates. NOPE Not Any More. (want to know why? read on)

For years I have enjoyed the Ghirardelli line of hot chocolates. That is about to change!
NOTE: Until this year they have born the subtitle "Old Fashioned." That designation has been dropped for reasons which will soon become apparent. They have also quite conspicuously dropped the Product Satisfaction Guarantee along with the Ghirardelli address for applying for reimbursement if you the consumer were dissatisfied. Does this bode well for us? You be the judge and by all means let Ghirardelli know. I cannot include the address due to Amazon review policies. You may however contact them by email at their website.
Something I strongly encourage. As a hot chocolate lover I want the original recipie back. I hope after reading my review you will too.

What is Ghirardelli doing? Quite simply boosting the sugar levels to astronomical levels and engaging in what I call "shorting."
Before a serving of any Ghirardelli hot chocolate mix consisted of (3) Tbsp., (22g) yielding twenty, (20) servings per 16oz. can.
NOW one serving is (4) Tbsp., (39 grams) yielding only TWELVE (12) servings for the same 16oz. can. This gives us 40 percent LESS servings per can. And at an average of $5.50 per can less s&h an increase from 27.5 cents/serving to 45.8 cents/serving. -- Some may say this is gourmet hot chocolate why quarrel over a few cents. Fair question, but lets be sure were talking about chocolate and not cheap fillers.

I have a few cans still left from the "Old Fashioned" style which is what Ghirardelli has marketed for years. It IS different and I can taste the difference. However, I will post both Nutrition labels side by side for you to compare and add my analysis at the end. Hopefully the facts will be as clear to you as they are me.
NOTE: the nutrition label is a requirement of the USDA. Further they are reprinted everywhere so I am assuming that this is PUBLIC DOMAIN information. (That doesn't mean that Ghirardelli will like me telling you about it.)

I will be comparing Ghirardelli OLD FASHIONED HOT CHOCOLATE "DOUBLE CHOCOLATE" to the new replacement Ghirardelli PREMIUM HOT COCOA "DOUBLE CHOCOLATE." Note it is now called Hot Cocoa & not Hot Chocolate.

I have Chocolate Mocha and Chocolate Hazelnut to compare as well and that the differences are negligible. It is usually only 0.5g of fat but mostly 1 - 2g of sugar is the usual difference. And of course both use natural & artificial flavors.

THE COMPARISON

OLD FASHIONED HOT CHOCOLATE_________PREMIUM HOT COCOA
Serv Size 3 tbsp (22g) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Serv Size 4 Tbsp. (39g)
Serv Per container about 20 . . . . . . . . . . . . Serv Per container about 12
Per Serving
Calories 80 Cal from Fat 15 . . . . . . . . . . . Calories 140 Cal from Fat 20
Total Fat 1.5g . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Total Fat 2.5g
Saturated Fat 0.5g . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Saturated Fat 1g - - -Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 0mg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Sodium 55mg
Total Carbohydrate 19g . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Total Carbohydrate 34g
Dietary Fiber 1g . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dietary Fiber 2g
Sugars 17g . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Sugars 29g
Protein 1g . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Protein 2g
Vitamin A 0% - - C 0% . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vitamin A 0% - - C 0%
Calcium 0% - - Iron 2% . . . . . . . . . . . . . Calcium 2% - - Iron 6%

Ingredients: Virtually Identical for old and new. All are in same order except for some grammatical changes with ONE exception. The Unsweetened Chocolate does not list being processed with Alkali on the new formula where it was on the old.

Now the uncomfortable facts: (given Fat = 9 cal/g, Carbohydrate and Protein = 4 Cal/g)
Serving Size UP: . . . . . 17g (77.27% increase) ******
Servings DOWN: . . . . . . 8 (40% Decrease) ******
Calories UP: . . . . . . . . 60 Cal (75% Increase)
Calories from fat UP: . . 5 Cal (33% Increase - about 1/2 g worth)
Total Fat UP: . . . . . . . . 1g (66% Increase ~ 9 Calories)
Sodium UP: . . . . . . . . . from 0
Total Carbs UP: . . . . .15g (79% Increase 15 x 4 = 60 Calories) ******
SUGAR UP: . . . . . . . . .12g (71% Increase 12 x 4 = 48 Calories) ******
Fiber UP: . . . . . . . . . . .1g (100% Increase)
Protein UP: . . . . . . . . . 1g (100% increase 4 Calories)

BOTTOM LINE: I am no food scientist and I know sometimes the numbers don't always add up exactly but it is painfully obvious that most of the extra 60 calories went into sugar.
However, others have complained about the Ghirardelli mixes being too sweet. To my taste the NEW formula is much too sweet!
The Nutrition label bears out my biggest gripes with this REFORMULATED product:
(1) It was sweet before. Now by UPPING the SUGAR so dramatically and adding salt as a sugar booster I no longer like it.
(2) Not enough fat and other ingredients were added to convince me that any REAL gains in CHOCOLATE were made.
## The TASTE of the new formula bears this out. (I have taken to cutting the serving size and adding Cocoa powder to get more Chocolate and less sugar.
(3) I DESPISE the shorting (Pumping it full of sugar and Cutting the servings by almost HALF.)
(4) And the price stays the same for less. That really frosts my goblet

I can no longer recommend this product.
Ghirardelli You had a decent thing going and you blew it.
PERSONALLY, I'm forwarding this review to the company and since Hot chocolate is just that. I'm going to experiment making either a home-made ganache syrup (melted chocolate & cream) or trying to find a way to finely grate or powder high quality chocolate to make my own brand. That's Really All The Old Style Was. Hot "Chocolate" not Cocoa. I'm sure for people with way too much money there are Hot chocolates available through boutiques where price is no object or... it IS the object. I'm not that rich. Besides if I come up with a home version that curls your toes then I may go into business myself or just enjoy it with a few friends.

"Great cocoa flavor like none other, but waaaaay tooo sweeeeet", Whoah! I just peeled myself off the ceiling after drinking a cup of this. This might be better named "Double Sugar" Flavor Hot Chocolate mix.

First, the good stuff. There is no doubt in my mind that Ghirardelli continues to make a distinctive, excellent quality chocolate. The cocoa used in this mix is smooth, dark, fruity and aromatic. Nothing else like it that I've ever tasted.

Now, the criticism. There is just too much sugar in the mix. The recommended proportion of mix to 8 oz milk is four tablespoons. (By the by, there is no powdered milk in here. You must add your own milk--or soymilk or rice milk--great option for lactose-intolerant types.)

People, you are using a quarter cup of mix at 4 Tbs and most of the mix seems to be granulated sugar, which you can taste and crunch in your mouth if you sample the dry mix. Cutting down fifty percent on the mix gave me an acceptable cup of cocoa but...it was no longer double chocolate and it had naturally a poorer mouth feel and aroma.

Double Chocolate Mix is some of the best cocoa I WOULD have had, if Ghirardelli could see their way to making a lower sugar version, and please, no sugar substitute, which I don't like to use.

Summary; great chocolate flavor, unsurpassed. But overly sweet. If you don't like supersweet cocoa, pass this up. If you do love extremely sweet hot drinks, you will absolutely adore this mix.

Read this reviews before You buy...

"The best hot cocoa for those cool evenings by the fire", This is by far the best hot chocolate you can buy. We are not big coffee drinkers and have tried all of the powders that you mix with water. We finally gave up on those and started using Nestles Quik in hot milk or just making our own cocoa from scratch with the Hershey's cocoa. Homemade is always the way to go when you have a crowd, but it takes a lot of time and you have to worry about burning it.

When we discovered the Ghirardelli, we will never go back to Quik or try any of the powders. The Double Chocolate has all the flavor or homemade without all the work. My daughter-in-law likes the white chocolate mocha flavor and thinks it is better than Starbucks.

The beauty of the Ghirardelli's cocoa is that you don't have to spend more than two minutes heating a cup of milk in the microwave. We usually heat enough milk in a large pyrex measuring cup for the two of us, then we pour the hot milk into the cups, on top of the two heaping teaspoons of the cocoa mix. It's great with a little whipped cream on the top.

World Market sells the product for $4.99 a canister, but I have found it there on sale for $4.00, so Amazon does not have the best price. It is very hard to find, if you don't have a World Market nearby, so Amazon may be the way to go.

"VERY CHOCOLATE-EE WITHOUT TONS OF ADDED SUGAR=DOUBLE CHOCOLATE", WHAT IT IS!

The incredible thing about this stuff is that it is very, very chocolate-ee without a ton of added sugar and calories. It is much better tasting than the usual grocery store brands, but it is harder to find, though not much more expensive. Very full bodied, and ideal for adding to coffee to make your very own Hot Coffee/Chocolate treat, or just drink it by itself. It is about the best Hot Chocolate I have ever found.

A great value actually, and it even has its share of iron and protein, a nice touch along with avoiding excessive sugar.

IDEAL GIFT:

This year, this will be a Christmas gift that alot of people will be getting from me. Buying this here at Amazon has really simplified matters and allows me to give away a rare treat that is easily purchased here though not usually at one's local grocery. The shipping and handling policy of this vendor makes the cost of additional items to be shipped, negligible, making it ideal to buy a bunch at a time. What more could one ask for?

"The Best", I love this hot chocolate. It's very rich, and not as sweet as other brands. It's no longer available at my local grocery store, so now I have to order online. But it's worth it!


" You Gotta Love It! ", Compared to a national franchise that has a last syllable of "buck$" (cheap shot, I agree), this easy-to-make mix is just as rich, but perhaps not as overtly sweet. (Plus, you don't have to commute for your chocolate, you get a cool plastic container with "chocolat chaud" written on it, and you know the contents of what you're drinking!) Mr. Domingo Ghirardelli began his company more than a century ago, and today, Ghirardelli hot chocolate mix is made in the San Francisco Bay area (picturesque San Leandro--south of Oakland, north of Fremont). Of course, Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco is a well-known and loved attraction for native and visitor alike, where diners can watch as the giant Wonka-like mixer whips up the potion.

At home, simply microwave milk or water for 3-4 minutes and add the mix, or put liquid and mix into a small pan, and stir until you've reached the desired heat. Whipped cream or marshmallows are traditional accoutrements, although drinking it straight is an experience just as beautiful. Ingredients are sweet ground chocolate and cocoa (the latter contains sugar, cocoa processed with alkali--they are very forthcoming about its manufacture--unsweetened chocolate (also process with alkali), soy lecithin--an emulsifier, and vanilla. C'est tout!

Not counting the milk or water base, 3 tablespoons of chocolate mix has only 80 calories, 1.5 grams fat (0.5 g saturated), 19 g total carbohydrates (of which 1 g is dietary fiber and 17 g are sugar, not clear what happened to the other one gram), and there is even one whole gram of protein, and 2% of the recommended daily value of iron!

OK, so it's not exactly a health drink. But it is relatively low fat, no or very little caffeine, and, most important of all, makes a "bowl of soul," a creamy rich, closed-eyed dreamy experience of fragrance and flavor, that only reminds you of the good things and prepares you for the others. It may move you, as it does me, to rhapsodic heights. Twenty servings per can, give some to your sweetie.

"Wonderful... Every bit as good as you would get from a cafe.", Great! Make it all of the time.

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