Good candy

In celebration of the email newsletter I am sending out this morning, here are some great Valentine's candy treats voted on by real people, complied by Real Simple magazine.
(By the way, if you are not on the newsletter, you should be!! Sign up at www.cometogethercards.com)

The Best Chocolates on the Candy Stand
Real Simple staffers — and one discerning kid critic — spent a day taste-testing 38 sweet (and semisweet and nutty) confections, then picked favorites in seven categories.

Best Milk Chocolate--Ghirardelli milk chocolate squares

• The contenders
  Hershey's Kisses
  Hershey's Milk Chocolate
  Hershey's Milk Chocolate Swoops
  Hershey's Sugar Free Chocolate Candy
  Nestle Milk

ChocolateSurvey Says: Ghirardelli is the word in milk-chocolaty goodness, our panel agreed. "It melts in your mouth with creamy sweetness," one tester exclaimed. Pass the box! The Kid Critic: Ghirardelli tasted "chalky and smoky" in our littlest critic's mouth. Nestle Milk Chocolate rated best, she said, for being "more milky."

Best Peanut-Butter FixReese's Peanut Butter Cups

• The contenders
  Peanut Butter M&M's
  Reese's Pieces
  Twix Peanut Butter
  White Chocolate Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

Survey Says: Word among our tasters was that Reese's original cups had the "best texture and flavor" and lasted "a perfect time in your mouth." The Kid Critic: She also raved about Reese's but called a "peanut buttery" tie between the original and the white-chocolate cups.

Best with Nuts--Hershey's Kisses with almonds

• The contenders
  Almond M&M's
  Hershey's Milk Chocolate With Almonds
  Peanut M&M's
  Reese's NutRageous
  Snickers
  Snickers Almond Bar

Survey Says: Good old Snickers has many a devotee, but in the end, the almond Kisses cracked the competition. One tester happily volunteered to "eat a dozen daily."The Kid Critic: Our pint-size critic passed on these Kisses ("I really can't taste the almonds"), opting for Reese's Nut-Rageous, which she rated "the nuttiest!"

Best with Caramel--Hershey's Kisses filled with caramel

• The contenders
  Milky Way
  Milky Way Midnight
  Nestle Crunch With Caramel

TwixSurvey Says: Car-mel or ka-ra-mel? However they pronounce it, our testers declared caramel-filled Kisses "rich" and "brilliant."The Kid Critic: These gooey kisses got the high sign from everyone. Our kid critic's resounding comment: "They're the carameliest."The Kid Critic: Cameron Prince, age eight, loves Hilary Duff and American Girls dolls and expects the same sort of sweetness from her chocolate. She scoffs at "chalky, bitter" bars. To win her seal of approval, she says, chocolate must be "sweet, silky, and smooth."

WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE CHOCOLATE???!!