I have a minor obsession with Ritter Sport chocolate.  I think it has something to do with the colorful wrappers--I have a compulsive urge to collect every single one, stack them in my pantry, and gaze upon my personal chocolate rainbow.

Of course, Ritter Sport is also very good chocolate.  I was introduced to it on a study abroad trip to Germany, and since then it keeps serendipitously crossing my path.  One of the best flights of my life was a trip home from Portland seated next to Ritter Sport's U.S. brand representative--he regaled us with jokes about chocolate business ("What's the difference between male and female chocolate? Male chocolate has nuts.") and gave us limited edition Christmas-themed Ritter Sport bars.  During our Baltic cruise, we happened across Ritter Sport Colorful Chocoworld on an excursion to Berlin, and my biggest regret of that trip is that it was too hot to stock up on chocolate bars.  In the Twin Cities, I've found that Kramarczuk's has the best selection, with 16 of the 19 varieties available in the U.S.  For national retailers, Cost Plus World Market carries 12 varieties plus Ritter Sport minis, Target stocks several varieties, and I occasionally find a bar or two at Trader Joe's.

Because I am the sort of person who reviews Peeps and compiles lists of pumpkin products, I have spent the past eight months systematically sampling Ritter Sport bars in an attempt to review all of the varieties currently available in the U.S. (it was a tough job, but someone had to do it).  I've rated each bar on as a GET IT, YOUR CALL, or SKIP IT.

• Alpine Milk Chocolate (light blue wrapper): 30% cocoa milk chocolate made with milk from the Alps.  A high-quality chocolate, but with too much milkiness and not enough cocoa for my taste.  YOUR CALL.


• Butter Biscuit (brown wrapper): milk chocolate wrapped around tiny squares of a shortbread cookie.  If you've always wished that chocolate dipped cookies had more chocolate and less cookie, this is the candy bar for you.  Since I found the cookie quality to be somewhat mediocre, this is YOUR CALL.


• Cocoa Mousse (light brown wrapper): milk chocolate with a whipped cocoa cream filling, divided into 9 pieces instead of the usual 16.  Disappointingly, this bar just tasted like milk chocolate--the dark chocolate mousse has little to no flavor of its own.  SKIP IT.


• Coconut (pale blue wrapper): milk chocolate with coconut flakes in a milk and coconut filling.  The pieces of coconut provide an interesting texture, but I think a bittersweet dark chocolate would have been a better pairing with this sweetened filling.  YOUR CALL.


• Cornflakes (yellow wrapper): milk chocolate with bits of cornflakes.  The cornflakes provide a hint of crispiness, but no additional flavor, so I'd SKIP IT.


• Dark Chocolate (burgundy wrapper): 50% cocoa dark chocolate.  A decent dark chocolate, but for the price I prefer a higher cocoa percentage.  YOUR CALL.


• Dark Whole Hazelnuts (brown wrapper): dark chocolate with whole roasted hazelnuts.  This bar is packed so full of hazelnuts that it's like eating a handful of high-quality chocolate covered nuts.  Definitely GET IT.


• Espresso (dark brown wrapper): milk chocolate with a creamy coffee filling.  This bar packs a potent coffee punch--the chocolate plays a supporting roll.  Enjoy a square or two after dinner for an easy version of dessert with coffee.  GET IT.


• Extra Fine Dark Chocolate (black wrapper): 73% cocoa dark chocolate, divided into 36 pieces instead of the usual 16.  An intense, slightly bitter, smooth dark chocolate, very reasonably priced for the superb quality--GET IT.


• Extra Fine Milk Chocolate (royal blue wrapper): 35% cocoa milk chocolate.  I'm not typically a fan of milk chocolate, but Ritter Sport's version has a deeper chocolate note and creamier texture than the average, making this a GET IT.


• Marzipan (red wrapper): dark chocolate with a marzipan filling.  The almond flavor overwhelms the chocolate (which may be a plus or minus depending on how much you like marzipan), so this is YOUR CALL.


• Milk Chocolate with Raisins and Hazelnuts (red-brown wrapper): milk chocolate with raisins and hazelnut pieces.  Although the raisins add minimal flavor, their chewy texture combine with the extra-creamy chocolate and appealingly crunchy bits of hazelnut to make this a GET IT.


• Milk Whole Hazelnuts (brown wrapper): milk chocolate with whole roasted hazelnuts.  Packed full of hazelnuts, this bar is basically Nutella in chewable form.  Most definitely GET IT.


• Peppermint (aqua wrapper): dark chocolate with a peppermint filling.  The creamy filling packs a breath-freshening minty punch--you'll never want to go back to those weak foil-wrapped chocolate mints again.  GET IT.


• Praline (indigo wrapper): milk chocolate with a creamy hazelnut paste filling.  I was expecting something similar to Nutella, but the hazelnut flavor is actually quite faint.  Since this bar mostly just tastes like milk chocolate, albeit high-quality milk chocolate, this one is YOUR CALL.


• Strawberry Creme (pink wrapper): milk chocolate with a strawberry yogurt creme filling and crispy rice bits.  The combination of a dairy-based filling, strawberry, and chocolate is reminiscent of Neapolitan ice cream minus the fake fruit taste, while the crisp rice provides an interesting texture.  GET IT.


• White Whole Hazelnuts (cream wrapper): white chocolate with whole roasted hazelnuts and crispy rice bits.  Unlike the dark and milk whole hazelnut bars, the white version includes crisp rice for a pleasantly lighter texture.  Since the white chocolate itself is fairly bland, this is YOUR CALL.


• Whole Almonds (dark green wrapper): milk chocolate with whole roasted almonds.  Like the hazelnut bars, this nut-dense bar is like a handful of chocolate covered almonds--GET IT.


• Yogurt (white wrapper): milk chocolate with a yogurt filling.  This is Ritter Sport's most unique bar, and the sweet milk chocolate is a pleasing contrast to the tangy yogurt.  If you're in the mood to try something different, GET IT.

More Ritter Sport reviews:

• Ritter Sport-Summer 2016 Flavors
• Ritter Sport-German Edition (post from 2017 featuring German flavors I couldn't track down in the U.S.)
• Ritter Sport Review: 2017 Edition
• Ritter Sport Review: 2017 Winter Edition Flavors

I wasn't compensated by Ritter Sport for this or any of my other Ritter Sport reviews—I just really like their chocolate!