Sibo - Costa Rica Extra Dark 82% Cacao (bar) + Jean-Marie Auboine Caramelized Almond 65% Dark Chocolate (bar) - Feb. 18, 2026

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Sibo Chocolate
Costa Rica Extra Dark 82% Cacao (bar)
Good ++
Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 140 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.50 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: Missing information 

Jean-Marie Auboine Chocolatier
Caramelized Almond 65% Dark Chocolate Gourmet (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.59 oz. (45 g.) / 3.18 oz. (90 g.) in total bar
Calories: 246 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: N/A - gift from a friend
Purchased from: N/A - gift from a friend

Welcome to Day #15 of Chocolate and Central America Theme Week, featuring a Sibo Chocolate Costa Rica Extra Dark 82% Cacao bar made by Chocoindustria Cinco, S.A. (in Costa Rica)--and a second "bonus" dark chocolate bar from Las Vegas (a gift from a friend).

Sibo Chocolate Costa Rica Extra Dark 82% Cacao (bar)

Aroma notes included: naturally sweet dark chocolate (cocoa, drinking chocolate, dark ganache); with light (and multiple shades of) vanilla--including vanilla marshmallow and barely detectable vanilla tobacco--even though there was no added vanilla listed in the ingredients; and sweet green. 

Texture: This relatively thin bar broke with a hard snap in a cold room, and had a smooth, buttery, slow satisfying melt and mouthfeel.

Flavor notes included: pleasing, rich and smooth hot cocoa with flavor notes similar to the aroma notes (mentioned above), along with faint nut (cashew, almond, nut/seed). This well-balanced chocolate was relatively low in bitterness for an 82%er.

As noted above, I was very surprised this did not contain added vanilla, given the lovely warm spice, and light floral and botanical range of notes I'd associate with vanilla.

Note: This Costa Rica chocolate was similar to Single Estate Guacimo Limon Costa Rica 82% bar that I had 8 years ago in 2018 from the same maker. So, I enjoyed a second new chocolate (below) to avoid a possible duplication. 

Ingredients: chocolate (cacao, organic sugar, cacao butter, sunflower lecithin).

Allergen-related information: May contain traces of milk, almonds and cashew.

Jean-Marie Auboine - Caramelized Almond 65% Dark Chocolate (bar)

This elegantly packaged dark chocolate bar--a gift from a friend--was from Jean-Marie Auboine Chocolatier (Las Vegas, NV). 

Aroma notes included: fresh/lightly roasted nuts (almonds) and chocolate.

Texture: the base chocolate had a smooth, almost creamy texture with a pleasing melt interspersed with crunchy whole, lightly caramelized almonds. 

Flavor notes included: smooth, sweet dark chocolate (chocolate-y, fudge, dark ganache) and nutty: lightly roasted and caramelized almonds.

I enjoyed this well-executed, balanced (approachable and sophisticated) chocolate and almond bar that was sweet enough to be somewhat addicting, but not overly sugar-y sweet.

Ingredients: "Cocoa Mass, Sugar, Almonds, Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin, Vanilla"

Allergen-related information: "Contains Tree Nuts, Soy. May Contain Traces of Milk"

 

Guido Gobino - (Guatemala) 3050 70% Single origin Chocolate bar - Feb. 17, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Guido Gobino 
Guatemala - 3050 70% Single origin Chocolate bar
Good ++ 
Weight: .95 oz. (27.5 g.) / 1.9 oz. (55 g.) in total bar
Calories: 160 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $14.50 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar & Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #14 of Chocolate & Central America Theme Week.

Today's Guatemala - "3050 70% Single origin Chocolate bar" was made by Guido Gobino Srl (Torino, Italy), using cacao grown in Guatemala. (The geographic (GPS) coordinates of the cacao origin were included on the packaging: 15 degrees 49' 24.9" N - 90 degrees 42' 51.9" W.*)

The cacao from Paso Cocodrilo cacao farm/estate* in Guatemala (near the border with Laguna Lachua National Park) is known for its pleasant, sweet, cooked fruit and warm spice notes.

Aroma notes for this bar included a subtle and smooth blend of: dark chocolate, sweet dried fruits (fig, date, mixed tropical fruits), warm earth/clay, very faint buttery nut, gentle wood and sweet green (green walnuts in syrup).

Texture: smooth and buttery with a satisfying melt.

Flavor notes included: very smooth dark chocolate; diffuse sweet dried fruits (mixed fruit, fig and very light citrus (lemon, tangerine), the faintest hints of sweet ripe pineapple and cacao fruit); and brief flickers of gentle warm spice (cinnamon) sweet-green herbal and nut.

I enjoyed the beautiful range of subtle, gentle aroma and flavor notes. This chocolate was very light on bitterness (almost none), and rich in very subtle fruit and other flavors mentioned above.

I appreciated the company's sourcing information; gentle (criollo-like) cacao flavors; the short list of three ingredients; and the choice of the brightly colored packaging that featured a water color design of a  rainbow-hued parrot flying above a misty green stroke of lush forest. It was a cheery bar, in more ways than one.

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Distinct bitter notes and marked astringency are balanced by sweetness, which adds complexity and balance. Intense cocoa aromas, accompanied by spicy nuances, emerge on the nose and palette."

Ingredients: "cocoa mass from Guatemala, sugar, cocoa butter."

Allergen-related information: "Gluten Free". "It may contain Hazelnut, Almond, Milk and Soy."

*Guido Gobino description: "Il Cacao Paso Cocodrilo nasce nel cuore di una foresta rigoliosa, coltivato con cura dalle comunita indigene. Un'eccellenza della nature che diventa emblema di regenerazione del territorio e custodes della sua biodiversita." 

*My translation into English: (The) Paso Cocodrilo Cacao was grown in the heart of a lush forest, carefully cultivated by indigenous communities. It is a natural treasure that has become a symbol of regeneration for the region and a guardian of its biodiversity.

Chocolate Tree - Belize Black 100% Dark Chocolate (No Sugar) (bar) - Feb. 16, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Chocolate Tree
Belize Black 100% Dark Chocolate (No Sugar) (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: 1.25 oz. (35 g.) / 2.5 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 177.1 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar & Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #13 of Chocolate & Central America Theme Week -- a week with several dark bars crafted by small batch makers using cacao grown in Belize.

Today's Belize Black 100% Dark Chocolate Bar was made by Chocolate Tree (Knowes Farm, Scotland), using "ancestral and rare" (Belize) cacao: "Native Criollo (varieties), Upper Amazon Hybrids". 

Aroma notes for this ultra-dark chocolate included: dark chocolate, sweet dried fruits (fig, date, mixed tropical fruits, tart raisin), faint candied yam, and barely detectable sweet green botanical.

Texture: smooth and buttery with a satisfying melt.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (chocolate-y, slightly roast-y), tart sweet dried fruits (mixed fruit, fig and citrus marmalade), and brief flickers of warm spice (cinnamon) and sweet-tart lemon in the lingering finish. Low in bitterness for a 100% cacao chocolate (with no added sugar(s)).

I appreciated the company's thoughtful sourcing; the mold/form they used to create the beautiful interlocking birds pattern on this bar (and other bars); the short list of two organic ingredients; and the chocolate-y flavor with diffuse, balanced fruit notes.

Note: I experienced an added bonus from this 100% cacao bar. I wasn't feeling well. A few bites of this ultra-dark bar and my airways opened and my cough disappeared.*

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Figs, Pineapple, Raisins"

Maker's Pairing Suggestions: "Pair With: Single Malt Whisky"

Ingredients: "Organic cocoa beans, organic cocoa butter."

Allergen-related information: "Nuts and dairy are used in our factory." 

*I've found ultra-dark chocolate to be a great bronchodilator.

Yojoa - Chocolate Oscuro Anejado en Barril de Whisky 70% - Feb. 15, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Yojoa Chocolate
Chocolate Oscuro Anejado en Barril de Whisky 70%

(70% Whisky Barrel Aged Dark Chocolate (bar))
Good ++ 
Weight: 1.1 oz. (30 g.) / 2.2 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 180 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Dispensary, online order

Welcome to Day #12 of Chocolate & Central America Theme Week.

Today's Chocolate Oscuro Anejado en Barril de Whisky 70% (aka 70% Whisky Barrel Aged Dark Chocolate (bar)) was made and distributed by Yojoa Chocolate S.A. de C.V (Honduras).

Yojoa chocolate is "made in a traditional way"--from tree to the bar--with single origin Trinitario (variety) cacao that has been grown on their farm in the Yojoa lake region of Honduras.

Aroma notes for this bar wrapped in beautiful (blue) packaging with bird images included: dark chocolate with aromatic, diffuse fruit(s); faint, warm spirits (whisky); vanilla and brown sugar (panela).

Texture: relatively smooth with a touch of fruit astringency.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate, shortbread cookie; faint diffuse fruit (pear, light citrus, other barely there tropical fruits (pineapple)), and faint, warm spirits (whisky, rum, malted grains). This 70%er dark chocolate was low in bitterness, and had balanced fruit acidity.

This was definitely a dark chocolate; but the makers were able to achieve a unique, uplifting, flavor profile with this bar that included malted grains, shortbread cookie and/or vanilla rum cake with the use of stone-ground panela, and vanilla.

I appreciated this well-executed, well-balanced chocolate. It was like having multiple, tasty desserts in one flavorful bar. 

Mild, malty spirits mellowed the blend of spiked chocolate fudge, vanilla cake and faint nut (almond) flavors. And delicate, tart-sweet fruit compote notes gave it some mild zing.

Ingredients: "Cacao anejado, Dulce de panela molido, manteca de Cacao, Vainilla."

Allergen-related information: This product could contain particles of nuts.

*I've been featuring a new/different chocolate every day for 19+ years here on Chocolate Banquet.

Seahorse Chocolate - Belize Fina Chocolat 75% (bar) - Feb. 14, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Seahorse Chocolate 
Belize Finca Chocolat 75% (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: .5 oz. (14 g.) in 1 small bar
Calories: 78 calories (estimate) in 1 small bar
Cost: $25.00 for tasting, sampler pack of 5 small bars
Purchased from: Seahorse Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #11 of Chocolate & Central America Theme Week. (For a second, bonus post for Valentines Day, see write-up on a "Beet-ing Heart" confection from Raaka Chocolate (Brooklyn, NY)).

Today's Belize Finca Chocolat* 75% bar was made by Seahorse Chocolate (Seattle, WA).

Aroma and flavor notes for this relatively intense dark chocolate included: extra-dark fudge, diffuse dried tropical fruit blend (pineapple, raisin, fig, citrus (orange, tangerine)) and a light bitterness (lemon peel in dark chocolate).

Texture: relatively smooth, with a satisfying thick and creamy melt (in a cold room). 

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Reminds us of: Fudgsicle, Dried Fruit, Ice Cream truck in winter."

Ingredients: "Cocoa Beans, Organic Sugar"

Allergen-related information: "Vegan, Gluten Free"

*Fince Chocolat is a 500+ acre (200+ hectare) cacao, timber and spice farm sitting in the shadows of the Maya Mountains in southern Belize.

Raaka - "Beet-ing Heart" with cherry & beet center chocolate - Feb. 14, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Raaka 

Beet-ing Heart - with cherry and beet center chocolate
Good ++
Weight: 1.7 oz. (48.5 g.) / 3.4 oz. (97 g.) in total piece
Calories: 285 calories in 1/2 heart
Cost: $18.00 for 1 heart
Purchased from: Raaka, online order

Happy Valentines Day! We're taking a brief pause today from Chocolate & Central America Theme Week to celebrate this heart-themed holiday.

Today's "Beet-ing Heart" chocolate confection was manufactured by Raaka Chocolate (Brooklyn, NY).

This heart-shaped confection contained single origin cacao (Kokoa Kamili, Tanzania) dark chocolate, beets and cherries (cherry and beet center).

Aroma and flavor notes included: chocolate-y dark chocolate (dark fudge brownie) and red fruit (dark red berry, cherry) and very faint coconut.

Texture: The raspberry-hued, creamy smooth ganache center was surrounded by smooth dark chocolate.

This attractive chocolate heart was a balanced blend of smooth but flavorful dark chocolate; authentic cherry, very subtle sparkles of tasty lime, and barely detectable beet thoroughly incorporated into a smooth, creamy ganache filling.

I enjoyed this tasty (and a little addictive) Beet-ing Heart. I appreciated the rich, smooth, fudge-y dark chocolate; the short list of organic ingredients; the maker's focus on transparent trade; and the use of single origin (Tanzania) cacao.

Ingredients: organic cane sugar, organic cacao beans, organic cacao butter, organic coconut oil, organic coconut milk powder, organic tapioca flour, organic beet root powder, organic cherry juice, organic sunflower lecithin, organic lime powder, organic brown rice syrup.

Allergen-related information: "gluten free, vegan"

Spinnaker Chocolate - 90% Belize Single-Origin Maya Mountain cacao (bar) - Feb. 13, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Spinnaker Chocolate
90% Belize Single-Origin Chocolate Maya Mountain Cacao (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar
Calories: 130 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $14.00 for 1 bar (current price)
Purchased from: Spinnaker, online order

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate and Central America Theme Week, including several bars crafted using Belize cacao from Maya Mountain Cacao.

Today's 90% Belize Single-Origin Chocolate Maya Mountain Cacao (bar) was from Spinnaker Chocolate (Seattle, WA).

Aroma notes for this ultra-dark chocolate included: dark chocolate with a very light, and relatively pleasant, vegetable (potato and greens) note, as well as very faint, diffuse fruit (very mild tropical fruit, berry).

Texture: relatively smooth texture with an even melt

Flavor notes included: ultra-dark chocolate but without the usual bitterness and acidity (fruit or otherwise).

I really enjoyed the uniquely easy-going, very smooth, ultra-dark aroma and flavor in this chocolate; and the lack of sugar. This was one of the least bitter 90% cacao chocolates I've ever tasted. (This belongs in a tasting flight with other high-percentage bars to illustrate the range of intensity (high-to-low) that's possible.)

The mild fruit notes were not the lively citrus, pineapple, red berry one often tastes in "fruitier" Belize cacaos; but rather softer, subtler white and blue fruits lower in acidity (blue pitaya (dragon fruit)) and very mild blueberry.

I appreciated the maker's choice of a short list of just two ingredients: cacao and organic cane sugar--with no added cocoa butter. 

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Super smooth and deliciously fruity. Even at 90% there's no bitterness from the amazing Maya Mountain Belize cacao." "You will like this if...You like our 70% Belize (bar) but just want something even less sweet. You like blue fruits and berries."

Ingredients: Cacao, Organic Cane Sugar

Allergen-related information: "Processed in a facility that uses milk powder and hazelnuts."