There’s a famous scene in David Fincher’s 1995 film “Se7en” in which a distraught Brad Pitt stands in a field screaming, “What’s in the box?” at a troubled Morgan Freeman who has, unfortunately, already seen what is in the box. I like to imagine that it was a collection of Oregon-based Harry & David signature chocolate truffles.
These gigantic chocolates looked like they’d been through a war. They were dusty and looked dirty, with flecks of what appeared to be other chocolates marring their surfaces. This translated to an occasionally chalky mouthfeel—when they weren’t waxy instead. The flavor was no better. The shells were thick and chewy, the fillings artificial and overly sweet. A raspberry-flavored chocolate “tastes like cough syrup,” according to Perry, while I found a coffee-flavored confection to be reminiscent of the sludge at the bottom of a frappuccino. Laura said the chocolates in this box “have a plasticky taste and do not seem high- quality.” Kevin was more direct: “GROSS. Dull in appearance and disgustingly sweet in taste. NOTHING SUBTLE OR SOPHISTICATED. Regift!” Though perhaps you should only regift this box to your least favorite cousin who bullied you relentlessly at holiday gatherings when you were kids.
This product evaluation is part of Consumer Reports’ Outside the Labs reviews program, which is separate from our laboratory testing and ratings. Our Outside the Labs reviews are performed at home and in other native settings by individuals, including our journalists, with specialized subject matter experience or familiarity and are designed to offer another important perspective for consumers as they shop. While the products or services mentioned in this article might not currently be in CR’s ratings, they could eventually be tested in our laboratories and rated according to an objective, scientific protocol.