Cluizel - Plantation Mokaya Grand Cru Chiapas 75% Cacao Chocolat Noir (bar) - July 5, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Cluizel Paris
Plantation Mokaya Grand Cru Chiapas 75% Cacao Chocolat Noir (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 2.46 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 203 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $19.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: World Wide Chocolate, online order 

Welcome to Day #11 of Chocolate and Mexico Theme Week.

Today's Plantation Mokaya Grand Cru Chiapas 75% Cacao Chocolat Noir (bar) was from Cluizel (Paris, France). Cluizel is a third-generation, French chocolate maker that's been manufacturing chocolates since 1948.

The cacao used to make this bar was from a plantation (farm) in Chiapas--the southernmost state in Mexico.

Aroma and flavor notes for this bar included: smooth, chocolate-y dark chocolate enriched by faint, soft and diffuse fruits (red fruit, stone fruits (peach, nectarine), very mild mango, banana and cacao fruit); very gentle (balanced) earth; and very faint botanicals and nuts.

Texture: smooth dark chocolate

I liked the faint and diffuse, naturally sweet and complex fruit notes; the very faint and well-balanced cocoa and earth notes; and the very faint botanical and nut (vanilla, almond) notes. (Note: there were just three ingredients in this chocolate, and no added vanilla listed on the packaging.) I also appreciated the short list of ingredients, and lack of soy or other lecithins or additives.

This was a 75% cacao dark chocolate but with balanced bitterness and pleasing, subtle characteristics. No harsh notes.

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Notes of Freshness, Exotic Fruits, Honey, Roasted Almonds and Hazelnuts, Roasted and Peppery Fine Cocoa, Vanilla."

Ingredients: Cocoa from plantation Mokaya* (Mexico), cane sugar*, cocoa butter*.

Allergen-related information: "Product made in a workshop using shelled tree nuts, milk and gluten."

Cuna de Piedra - 73% Mexican Cacao from Comalcalco - July 4, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Cuna de Piedra
73% Mexican Cacao from Comalcalco, Tabasco (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.05 oz. (30 g.) / 2.1 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 100 calories in 1/2 bar (per label)
Cost: $10.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Caputo's, online order

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate & Mexico Theme Week.

Today's 73% Mexican Cacao from Comalcalco, Tabasco (bar) was from Cuna de Piedra* (Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico).

The company is an "homage to Mexican Cacao." And the cacao used to make this bar was from a "single estate bean from a single grower, Malaquias (farm) in the Tabasco region where "several hundred cacao trees coexist with wild black pepper vines and various citrus species." (The cacao beans were part of a "Rainy Season, Harvest 2024".)

Aroma and flavor notes for this chocolate included: dark chocolate (rich and chocolate-y/dark cocoa), very faint earth in the aroma, in the beginning; and very faint but also very balanced bitter flavor toward the end.  

I enjoyed this flavorful, balanced and lightly sweetened dark chocolate. I admired the subtle complexity: diffuse fruit (citrus, dried fruit and barely detectable red fruit), and diverse, well executed very faint dark cacao notes, including barely detectable, balanced earth/olive, and sweet green (young walnuts in syrup)). And I appreciated the thoughtful sourcing and the short list of only two, quality ingredients.

Ingredients: Cacao beans, Cane sugar.

Allergen-related information: "Manufactured in a facility that processes wheat, milk, soy, peanuts, tree nuts and eggs."

*The company name Cuna de Piedra translates to "cradle of stone."

Cuna de Piedra - 73% Mexican Cacao from Comalcalco, Tabaso & Smoked Heirloom Chile (bar) - July 3, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Cuna de Piedra
73% Mexican Cacao from Comalcalco, Tabasco & Smoked Heirloom Chile (bar)
Good ++
Weight: .5 oz. (14.1 g.) / 1 oz. (28 g.) in total bar
Calories: 77 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar 
Cost: $6.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Caputo's, online order

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate & Mexico Theme Week.

Today's 73% Mexican Cacao from Comalcalco, Tabasco & Smoked Heirloom Chile (bar) was from Cuna de Piedra* (Monterrey, NL, Mexico).

The company is an "homage to Mexican Cacao." And the cacao used to make this bar was from the Comalcalco, Tabasco region in southeastern Mexico. (The cacao beans chosen were part of the "Dry Season, Harvest 2023".)

Aroma notes for this chocolate included: appealing dark chocolate with faint, refreshing tart-sweet (vitamin C-rich) fruit aspects (that might have been from the fruit-tree/wood** smoked chile pepper), and wonderfully subtle and rich smoked chile.

This dark chocolate was full of rich, authentic flavor...beginning with a very slightly fruity, high-quality cacao chocolate, that was followed by (about five seconds later) the fiery arc of the lightly smoked heirloom chile that gradually rose, hit peak heat, and then receded. 

I liked the sweetness level. It was just enough sugar to add some brightness; but it wasn't too sweet. And I felt fortunate to try this rare Tres Lomos heirloom chile (from the central region of Veracruz).

**Maker's notes: "Chiles in Mexico, just like cacao, are a fundamental part of our gastronomic identity." The chile was "processed at origin according to the Meridional-Totonacapan method: a pre-Hispanic technique of smoking at ground level for three days using wood from fruit-bearing trees such as guava and wild berries." For more information on chiles: @arodiorea.mx. 

My notes: Consider taking a smaller first bite if you're sensitive to hot foods. 

Ingredients: Cacao beans, Cane sugar, Smoked Heirloom Chile.

Allergen-related information: "Manufactured on equipment that processes wheat, milk, soy, peanuts, tree nuts and eggs."

*The company name Cuna de Piedra translates to "cradle of stone," which immediately made me think of women grinding roasted cacao beans into a paste using a stone metate and mano (grinding stone) in the jungles of Central America.

Cacao Sampaka - Frida Mexico 70% Chocolate Negro (bar) - July 2, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Cacao Sampaka 
Frida Mexico 70% Chocolate Negro (Dark) (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 1.32 oz. (37.5 g.) / 2.64 oz. (75 g.) in total bar
Calories: 255 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Caputo's, online order

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and Mexico Theme Week. 

Today's Frida Mexico 70% Chocolate Negro (bar) was from Cacao Sampaka (Catalunya, Spain).* 

The company offers a variety of bean to bar chocolates and confections with flavor inclusions--as well as single origin chocolates (from cacaos grown in Honduras, Mexico and other countries).

Aroma and flavor notes included: chocolate and delicious ripe and refreshing fruit (white grape, and mixed tropical punch); with sweet green botanical (sweet green fig jam) and nut. 

This dark chocolate was relatively low in bitterness and acidity, but delightfully rich in subtle flavors that I associate with fine-quality, heritage/criollo cacao beans.

Texture: smooth, creamy. 

I loved the balanced complexity, the naturally sweet fruit notes, and the overall mellow nutty chocolate-y flavor. (Note: eat this chocolate soon after opening. I tried eating some of the same bar a day later and the amazing fruit and almost fruit-floral/botanical notes were muted--while the mellow, nutty and very faint balanced earth notes remained.)

Ingredients: "Criollo Albino Cocoa Bean, Cocoa Nibs, Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Emulsifier (Soy Lecithin), Cocoa: 70% minimum."

Allergen-related information: "Our products may contain traces of Nuts (Hazelnut, Pistachio, Macadamia Nut, Pecan Nut), Peanuts, Lactose, Milk and Sesame."

*This bar was made in (a product of) Spain. It was imported by Forever Cheese LLC (New York, NY). 

Jangala Cacao & Selva - Dalia "Women of Cacao" 77% Cacao (bar) - July 1, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Jangala Cacao & Selva
Dalia "Women of Cacao" 77% Cacao (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 98 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $16.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Dispensary, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate & Mexico Theme Week.

Today's  Jangala Cacao & Selva Dalia "Women of Cacao" 77% Cacao (bar) was made by Jangala Frutos De La Tierra S. de R.I. de C.V. (San Cristobol de Las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico). southern Mexico.

The company specializes in fermented native cacaos Criollos and Trinitarios from specific cacao-growing regions of Mexico. 

The cacao origin description: "Fermented white Criollo cacao (from Comalcalco, Tabasco) cultivated by the Magana Peralta family. The name "Dahlia" is a reference to the dahlia flower(s) and to a "project of women guardians practicing regenerative agriculture within agroforestry systems..."

An illustration of a Mexican hummingbird (by Mau Jimenez) on the bar's packaging represented "the strength of the women in their relationship with cacao."

Aroma and flavor notes included: gentle Criollo cacao dark chocolate with faint, diffuse stone fruit (dark and sweet plum); and very faint malty and floral. 

There was a very slight, very balanced (well-behaved) bitterness at the beginning but it softened very quickly into a gentle and subtly nuanced cacao experience. 

Texture: smooth with a very faint and well balanced fruit astringency toward the end. 

Heritage criollo cacao chocolates are rare and special.* They can convey a lot in a whisper; and you find yourself leaning way in to listen, to taste, and to be transported. 

Today's Dalia bar felt like a quiet walk through a lush forest (maybe with an occasional hummingbird zipping by); and, it tasted "lighter" -- more like a 67% cacao than a 77% cacao chocolate. All this was conveyed using just two ingredients.

Maker's tasting notes: "Aromatic notes: Cacao/Floral/Dried Fruits"

"Organic Ingredients: Cacao, cane sugar

Allergen-related information: None listed on package.

*A very small percentage of dark chocolate bars are made with criollo cacaos. They are more delicate, both in flavor and constitution. Yields are typically lower and they may be more prone to certain diseases. (Think heritage roses that typically have subtle, complex scents vs. new roses cultivated for strength, disease resistance and longer shelf life--but with more minimal fragrance.)

 

Jangala - Xocononusco 70% Cacao (bar) - June 30, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Jangala Cacao & Selva
Xoconusco 70% Cacao (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 196 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $16.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Dispensary, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate & Mexico Theme Week.

Today's  Jangala Cacao & Selva Xoconusco 70% Cacao chocolate was made by Jangala Frutos De La Tierra S. de R.I. de C.V. (San Cristobol de Las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico). southern Mexico.

The company specializes in "fermented native cacaos Criollos and Trinitarios from Soconusco," in Mexico. They collaborate with farmers "who cultivate agroforestry systems that regenerate biodiversity; and they offer several "tree-to-bar" chocolates.

Aroma and aroma notes for today's Xoconusco 70% Cacao bar included: chocolate; faint, diffuse stone fruit; and cookie.

Texture: smooth, slightly fudge-y texture and melt at room temperature (68 degrees F.). 

I enjoyed the balanced, well-executed fruits (gentle plum and sweet lemon)/fruit-acidity and natural sweetness of the cacao; as well as the short list of quality ingredients. 

"Aromatic notes: "Chocolate, citrus fruits, plum."

"Organic Ingredients: "Cacao, cane sugar, cacao butter."

Allergen-related information: None listed on package.

Chocolate Spiel - Mexico 88% bars (with and without cocoa butter colors) - June 29, 2025

Chocolate(s) of The Day

Chocolate Spiel
Mexico 88% bar + Mexico 88% bar with painted colors (cocoa butter)

1.) Good + - Good ++ and 2.) Good ++
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) x 2  = 2 oz. (56.3 g.) for two bars total
Calories: 310 calories (estimate) in 2 bars
Cost: $15.00 for 2 bars 
Purchased from: Chocolate Spiel, online order

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Mexico Theme Week.

Today's two Mexico 88% dark chocolate (bars) were from Chocolate Spiel (Seattle, WA).

The cacao used to make these bars was from Tabasco, Mexico.

Aroma notes included: dark chocolate and very faint diffuse fruit.

Texture: very smooth chocolate 

Flavor notes included: subtle dark chocolate aroma with authentic dark chocolate with balanced bitterness (consistent with an ultra-dark (88% cacao bar in this case) bar.  

Today was an opportunity to taste a "painted" (with colored cocoa butter) and an unpainted version of the same high-cacao percentage (88%) single origin bar. 

The two-colored cocoa butter created a beautiful design; and more significantly it gave this (colored bar) a slightly mellower (less bitter) flavor.

I liked the choice of a short list of single origin and quality ingredients, and that these bars weren't too sweet.

Ingredients: cocoa, sugar, cocoa butter (and colored cocoa butter for the 2nd bar/version) 

Allergen-related information: May contain traces of tree nuts, peanuts and gluten.