NEWTREE has gotten some great press recently, but we're going to give it a little more! This Belgian company has been named to Oprah's O-List and was also a Snack of the Day on the Rachel Ray show, but that's just a taste of the buzz surrounding this relatively new chocolatier. Founded in 2001 by a biochemist, this company finds a balance between exacting science and fun. On the science side, NEWTREE offers GMO free products, often boasting features such as high iron content, numerous antioxidants and polyphenols. If multi-syllabic benefits aren't your forte, take comfort in knowing someone else has done a lot of research into what you're putting in your mouth!

Their claim of putting the "fun in functional food" really stands out when you survey the list of milk and dark chocolate combinations they have on
offer: Pleasure (pure dark chocolate), Vigor (dark chocolate/coffee), Renew (dark chocolate/black currant), Forgiveness (dark chocolate/lemon), Sexy (dark chocolate/ginger), Blush (dark chocolate/cherry), Refresh (dark chocolate/mint), Tranquility (milk chocolate/lavender), Rejoice (milk chocolate/bitter orange & crisped rice) and Crave (milk chocolate/apricot). The names alone make these clever gifts for those on your list! And in two sizes - one a 70g full-sized bar and the other a mini bar box (3 individually wrapped bars per box, making it easy to slip into a pocket or purse for a pick-me-up), there's a size for every gifting need.

Not to be missed is the 9 bar tasting set which includes Cocoon, a milk chocolate/cinnamon bar not available in full size! With mini versions of 9 different bars, the set is an efficient and fun way to determine your favourite flavours and the tasting set's compact packaging allows it to slip perfectly into a stocking or parcel. Just don't take the tasting set out after a holiday dinner with my family: the entire 9 bar set was gone in about 6 minutes of complete silence (not easy to come by!). That's proof of a glowing review!