I was eating some chocolate when I imagined a world where Hershey’s was widely accepted, even by elitists, as the best chocolate.
Is consumer elitism just a facade for pretentious contrarians? Or are there things where even most snobs agree with the masses?
Also, I mean that the product is intrinsically considered to be the best option. I’m not considering social products where the user network makes the experience.
Edit: I was not eating Hershey’s. Hershey’s being the best chocolate is a bizarro universe in this hypothetical.
Hershey’s isn’t very well liked outside the US, I believe. It’s an acquired taste - to many foreigners it tastes like vomit because of the butyric acid in it.
US chocolate generally isnt well liked outside the US, there are preservatives they used that make it smell oily (and effects the taste) that the rest of the world bans because they have actual standards and functional regulatory framework
Tastes like vomit to me too. To be clear, I was NOT eating Hershey’s. I was playing make-believe.
Can confirm, it’s marketshare is tiny. Though having to compete with like 3+ huge local companies doesn’t help.
People love to bring up the vomit thing, but butyric acid is also naturally found in milk, butter, Parmesan cheese, and even papaya. Things a lot of Hershey’s detractors would claim to like.
I like don’t hate Hershey’s nor do I think it’s the best. I also like European chocolate like Cadbury, Tony’s, etc as well but they do seem a bit flat or one-note in comparison. Sometimes that’s what I want. I can also understand how if that’s what you’re used to any deviation could be off putting.
Just containing some chemical doesn’t mean it will have same effect as it does in a different product.
Chocolate, milk, butter, cheese, and papayas are each a chemically distinct environment, so what this acid does to chocolate may be mitigated or completely offset by the chemical makeup of those other environments.
A more appropriate comparison to chocolate with butyric would be to chocolate without it, and between those two, the difference is a subtle acrid flavor reminiscent of vomit. If you don’t personally pick up on that flavor, you should count yourself as lucky - once you notice it, it really does ruin the experience.
That was the comparison I made. I thought I was pretty explicit about that in my comment. I count myself lucky that I can taste it and I enjoy it. Some folks just prefer a simpler flavor profile.
I’ll readily admit I’m a bit of an odd duck, though. I can appreciate and enjoy more challenging foods than most.
Those are low-to-mid tier at best though. Good chocolate is stuff like Callebaut
So is Hershey’s. It seemed fair to me to compare like to like
Eh, good point.