Thanks to Aussie Dave's continued generosity, a new brand and a new nationality of chocolates crosses the Chocolate Republic's privileged borders.  Let's give a round of applause to Butlers, from the Republic of Ireland, so-called "purveyors of happiness."       

Who is Butlers?  I never heard of 'em.  Have you?  As Ireland has ascended to the rich list of industrialized nations thanks to handouts from the European Union and American hi-tech companies opening offices there, Butlers' name hasn't drifted onto the world's lips as the next big thing in chocolate.         

It's not a new company in the least, founded in 1932 by Ms. Marion Bailey-Butler. In 1959, Seamus Sorensen bought it out.  Twenty-five years later, the Butlers Irish Chocolates brand was started. Retail outlets followed 5 years later.  9 years after that, Butlers launched its website. They've since jumped into the chocolate cafe business.  Most of the cafes are in Ireland, but Butlers has stretched its tentacles to include the UK, Pakistan, and New Zealand.     

I started out my Butlers sampling experience with the Mixed Berry.  4% of this white chocolate bar consists of mixed berries -- strawberry, raspberry, lingonberry, blueberry, and blackberry.  The resultant combination was unique, worked, and made for a very satisfying taste experience. Lingonberries in chocolate is something you're likely to see out of Sweden, not Ireland.

That said, I was not blown out of the water based on the quality of the white chocolate alone. I would probably have been disappointed if Aussie Dave had sent the Butlers White Chocolate Vanilla Bar instead. Butlers is trying to position themselves as 'luxury' chocolate, while sticking ingredients like 'maize starch' and 'flavouring' into (allegedly) Marion Bailey-Butler's recipes. Are we really supposed to believe an Irish lady in 1932 had an ingredient called 'flavouring' in her pantry? Read between the lines, my friends. Flavouring, in real English, is artificial flavoring. Surprise, surprise. Butlers is a luxury poseur.