Someone who already likes dark chocolate
If the recipient wants one bar rather than an egg or multipack, a plain 70–75% option is a starting point. Keep an 85–100% bar for someone whose preference for stronger cocoa flavour is known.
Who is the bar for?
Someone receiving a personalised hunt prize
A ginger, mint or fruit-flavoured bar can reflect a known favourite. If you are unsure about the added flavour, choose a plain bar and check its ingredients instead.
An organiser checking dietary suitability
Assess each intended recipient against the exact bar’s current ingredients and allergen statement before hiding or handing it over. Dark chocolate is not, by itself, an assurance that a product is free from milk, soya or nuts.
What should you check?
Start with the recipient’s taste, then confirm the exact recipe and pack format. Cocoa percentage helps distinguish the styles here, but it cannot establish allergen suitability.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Cocoa style | Compare the stated cocoa percentage. Plain 70–75% bars and 85–100% bars offer different choices for known preferences. | I know they enjoy dark chocolate, but I would save an 85–100% bar for someone who specifically likes that style. |
| Added flavours | Check whether the bar is plain or contains additions such as ginger, mint or fruit. Read the ingredients for the exact variant. | A familiar added flavour would make this a more personal prize; otherwise, I would choose plain chocolate. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the current wrapper’s ingredient list and allergen statement, including any “may contain” wording. Assess the exact product against the recipient’s requirements. | I need to know whether this particular bar is suitable before it is hidden or given away. |
| Single-bar format | Confirm that the product is one bar or slab, not a selector or multipack. Check the declared weight if the size matters for one recipient. | One complete bar is what I plan to give, rather than a box to divide among several people. |
| Pack condition | Check the bar in hand before the hunt, including its packaging, date marking and any storage instructions. | I want to choose the actual pack I will give, not rely solely on an earlier online description. |
Choices that need care
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Assuming “dark” means suitable for an allergy
Dark bars can contain soya or carry precautionary warnings for milk, nuts or peanuts. Cocoa percentage does not answer an allergen question.
Read the current wrapper for every bar. If the recipient has an allergy, follow their established avoidance requirements and check any different flavour or pack separately.
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Choosing an added flavour by guesswork
Ginger, mint and fruit change both the taste and the ingredient list. Liking plain dark chocolate does not establish a preference for those additions.
Choose a flavoured bar for a known preference; otherwise, consider a plain bar and still check its label.
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Treating more cocoa as an automatic upgrade
The choice between a 70% bar and an 85–100% bar depends on the recipient’s taste. A 100% cocoa bar is a particularly preference-led hunt prize.
Reserve the higher-cocoa styles for someone who already seeks them out.
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Relying on a product page instead of the pack
Marks & Spencer notes that ingredient, nutrition and allergen information can change. A familiar product name is not a substitute for checking the bar being given.
Inspect the specific wrapper, date marking and pack condition at purchase and again before the hunt.
Brand and range references
These ranges illustrate different single-bar styles; check the exact product rather than treating a brand name as a guide to ingredients or format.
Green & Black’s
Tesco describes the Organic Dark 70% option as a 90g bar with 70% cocoa solids.
- A plain 70% option for a recipient who likes dark chocolate.
- ASDA lists a may-contain warning for nuts and milk on its product information; check the current wrapper.
Divine
Divine lists a plain 70% Dark Chocolate 90g bar and a 70% Mint Crisp 90g variant.
- The plain and mint options give a choice based on a known flavour preference.
- Divine’s Mint Crisp information includes may-contain warnings for gluten, milk and nuts; assess the exact variant.
Lindt
Lindt lists EXCELLENCE Dark 70% as a 100g single bar.
- Its stated cocoa percentage and weight make the format easy to identify.
- Lindt says its EXCELLENCE 70% bar has no milk products but that its facilities also process milk chocolate. Check the exact pack for allergy decisions.
Montezuma’s
Montezuma’s lists flavoured dark bars, including a 70% ginger option, alongside a 100% cocoa bar.
- These options suit different known preferences for additions or cocoa intensity.
- The ginger bar contains soya and carries may-contain warnings for milk, nuts and peanuts.
Hotel Chocolat
Hotel Chocolat lists dark chocolate in several formats, including slabs and filled chocolates.
- A slab may suit someone looking for a different presentation from a conventional bar.
- Its 70% Dark Chocolate Slab Selector is a selector; confirm the format if the hunt calls for one bar.
M&S
M&S describes a 75% Cocoa Single Origin Dark Chocolate option with vanilla and fruity notes.
- The stated 75% cocoa content offers another style within the 70–75% starting range.
- M&S advises shoppers to read the product label because ingredients, nutrition and allergen information can change.
Single-bar options on Joybuy
These are plain dark-chocolate bars for a one-recipient hunt prize. The 70–72% options suit a known dark-chocolate preference without a request for especially intense cocoa; the 85% options call for a more specific taste preference. Check each physical wrapper before giving it.
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Green & Black’s Dark 70% Chocolate 90g
A plain 70% dark-chocolate bar for one recipient who already likes dark chocolate. The bar is 90g; check its current wrapper for ingredients and allergen warnings before giving it.
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Morrisons The Best Dominican Republic 72% Dark Chocolate 100g
This plain 72% bar is an option for a recipient who enjoys dark chocolate. It is 100g; its listing notes soya and precautionary allergen warnings, so assess the current wrapper for the intended recipient.
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Tony’s Dark Chocolate 180g
This is one plain dark-chocolate bar, but at 180g it is larger than the other bars shown here. Check whether that size suits a one-recipient prize, and read the current wrapper for ingredients and allergen warnings.
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Green & Black’s Dark 85% Chocolate 90g
A plain 85% bar to consider for someone already known to prefer higher-cocoa chocolate. It is 90g; check the current wrapper, including any precautionary allergen wording, before giving it.
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Morrisons The Best Ecuador 85% Dark Chocolate 100g
This plain 85% bar is a preference-led choice for someone who seeks higher-cocoa chocolate. It is 100g; its listing notes soya and precautionary allergen warnings, so check the current wrapper for the intended recipient.
Questions about choosing a bar
Can I assume dark chocolate is dairy-free?
No. Lindt says its EXCELLENCE 70%, 85%, 90% and 99% bars have no milk products, but also says its facilities process milk chocolate. Other dark bars carry milk-related precautionary warnings. For a milk allergy, assess the ingredients and allergen statement on the exact current pack.
Should I choose 70%, 85% or 100% cocoa for a hunt prize?
A plain 70–75% bar is a starting point when the recipient likes dark chocolate but has not asked for a more intense style. Choose 85% or 100% for someone whose preference for high-cocoa chocolate is already known; the percentage is not a measure of overall suitability.
What should I check on a prepacked bar?
Check the exact wrapper’s ingredients, allergen statement and date marking, as well as the pack condition. UK food-labelling guidance addresses information on prepacked foods, and M&S cautions that online ingredient and allergen details may change.
Does a best-before date mean the bar must be discarded afterwards?
Not necessarily: GOV.UK explains that sight, taste or smell can help consumers assess certain foods after a best-before date. For a planned hunt prize, check the date and storage instructions when choosing the pack, and do not give away one whose packaging or contents appear compromised.