“Peanut buttery, dark chocolate perfection” is the promise made on the package of Unreal dark chocolate peanut butter cups I purchased last week for $4.49 from a local market. Other claims include gluten free, vegan, fair trade, sustainable ingredients, nothing artificial, and non-GMO. It’s a pumped-up list of claims, which made me wonder if these peanut butter cups could stand up to the hype.

On one hand, there’s the well-known Reese’s peanut butter cup, which has stood the test of time as a favorite of the masses. But what does the Reese’s brand stand for? Not much. It’s just one brand in a list of many that fall under The Hershey Company umbrella. Ingredients include partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, PGPR (polyglycerol polyricinoleate—an emulsifier consisting of glycerol and fatty acids), and TBHQ (a preservative which is a form of butane). Well… that all sounds healthy and delicious... not…

Then there’s Unreal. A brand that stands for real ingredients – no partially hydrogenated oils, no corn syrup, nothing artificial. The label is clean and clear, just like the taste of the dark chocolate peanut butter cups, which IMBHO, are better than Reese’s.

You can feel good about eating this Unreal product. Each peanut butter cup has 6 grams of net carbs and 1 gram of protein. Since I’m Keto, I’m putting these in my freezer and pulling one out to eat when I just need something extra.

As for the story behind the brand, it was started by two brothers whose parents wouldn’t allow them to indulge in their favorite chocolates, so they shifted the narrative, and “a thousand recipes later (for real), they cracked the code to making some of the best tasting chocolate snacks ever”. That’s entrepreneurial… finding a solution to a problem.

Be sure to visit the Unreal website for more information on other products in their line. Unreal can also be found on Amazon and in a long list of retailers, including Whole Foods, Green Acres, Sprouts, Natural Grocers, and Kroger.

PS You can read more about how Unreal started in 2015, from this Business Insider article.