Chocolate of the Day:
Dick Taylor Craft Chocolate
Black Fig 72% Madagascar bar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (56.6 g.) in total bar
Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 (estimate)
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic0UheLK8Ddl6uu79_l-nTuLCO4WrciiaJ0qAsJWVgae3zgv6hwAC5O7mJJkSMVdTLoZTZcZve5XJQ4QCWUhY4byfa2tSdR02LV0NjmNhHFyIfWh85X_gUEtUbsV60QfOJXxAx1055F0yS/s1600/DickTaylor.BlkFigBkPkg.5.10.14.600.jpg)
Today was Day #5 of Chocolate and Fig Theme Week.
Previously, in 2012, I featured a black fig bar from this same craft chocolate maker,
Dick Taylor (Arcata, CA); however, that 70% dark bar was made with cacao beans from Ecuador (vs. Madagascar).
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg06XzG09X2r-swArAGETzu0iwe4Qb4DAF2jCGjf754W8ECQc40hczgpFccP9q4TGQ3Wb0WJ8aRMEdq24K9rAfsz3eoZwtWFnFMGVhZ2IYa4pCdmRFOR9jh3-cEgtBzbbY50QJXgC3tHDCU/s1600/DickTaylor.BlkFigMadgBarUnwrppd.5.10.14.600.jpg)
Since I've set out to eat a different chocolate each day, what follows is my justification for counting today's Black Fig bar as a "different" chocolate. With small batch, bean-to-bar chocolate-makers, like Dick Taylor, one year's batch of chocolate from one origin can't really be compared with another single origin bar the following year -- anymore than you could compare a 2012 California Chardonnay to a 2013 New Zealand Pinot Blanc. Too many factors vary from year to year (weather, fermentation conditions, to name a few); and different grapes, or in this case cacao beans, grown in different soils/countries yield different flavor profiles.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzByC_-VQ64Ib-6YKiJMJOXRd_QxM3OprRYZ7u-pBatR8sjMRUaFhNeYc6gdhE8v0p_v7pgA7Zv7Llcb5-pPWiFhv5-x66viRz0oaBtgZkeusbtnnhbrsdI9VySFy6G-hOARWQdy4hKH4e/s1600/DickTaylor.BlkFigMadag.Pcs.5.10.14.600.jpg)
I liked the previous Black Fig Ecuador 70% bar. So, it was with interest that I took my first nibble of today's Dick Taylor (batch # 13270) Black Fig 72% Madagascar bar. Sadly, the Black Fig 70% Ecuador bar was long gone, so a side-by-side comparison was impossible. However, I rated the two Dick Taylor Black Fig bars similarly -- the first was a
Good + - Very Good and this one I gave a similar rating of Good ++ - Very Good.
The elegant lattice pattern stamped, three-ingredient bar (organic cacao, organic cane sugar and organic Black Mission figs) had a rich, dark fruit flavor with balanced acidity. Rather than bright red fruit notes found in some Madagascar bars, this one had a ripe dark, (earthier) dried fruit note from the fig. The flavorful bar, with a surprisingly buttery mouthfeel, was great by itself, or with a handful of fresh raspberries to brighten up and/or complement the dried fig.
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