The Heath bar is not one of Hershey’s more talked about products, but it certainly is known throughout the world. Without thinking twice, people recognize it as “that toffee in chocolate bar.†That simple description is pretty accurate. Yes, the Heath Bar is a piece of English toffee, made of almonds, sugar and butter, coated in milk chocolate.
The bar debuted back in 1928 as the lead product for Heath Brothers Confection. Like many retro candies that amassed a following from that time, the Heath Bar sprang onto the national scene during the Great Depression, when candy was consumed in large amounts due to its abundance and reduced cost.
Sales for the product took off during WWII, after the army became one of the leading purchasers because the bar had an amazing resiliency and could be carried to the battlefield. After the war, soldiers helped spread the news of the candy. It wasn’t long after that this candy became entrenched in the confection world by becoming a leading ingredient in everything from cookies to ice cream.
I have consumed a good deal of various toffees recently, so I was interested in returning to what I remember as my first piece of toffee and comparing it to my recent experiences.
The Heath Bar that I picked up had a strong chocolate aroma, signaling it was fairly fresh. Taking a bite, I was instantly reminded of my memories of the candy. The toffee center is bold, and a bit strong on the sweet side, with nice coffee notes. The piece is slightly bitter, but that’s more of a result of the chocolate than the toffee. The chocolate coating, while not very prominent, isn’t bad.
One of the downsides of the Heath Bar is that its toffee center is sticky, gritty, and breaks into small pieces that love to get lodged between your teeth. I think these would probably have tasted better back in 1928, when they were handmade and undoubtedly abstained from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.
Candy Addicts like to argue the merits of this bar with its cousin the Skor Bar. Both are produced by Hershey and are respectable candies that aren’t going to blow you away, but are great for their price tag while offering a nice variation from the traditional chocolate bar.
Buy Heath Bar Online:
- at Candy Direct
- at Old Time Candy
- at Amazon.com
I love Heath bars! Once when I was babysitting around Halloween the family had a box of them to give out to trick or treaters. I think I ate 7 or 8 of them and was never hired again!! It was worth it!
May 5th, 2009 at 8:48 am[...] to a mouthful of jumbled textures that all taste like toffee. Personally, I’d rather eat a Heath bar and call it a [...]
May 6th, 2009 at 2:00 amIn the summer we would put them in the freezer and eat them on a hot afternoon.
February 28th, 2010 at 6:04 am