Saturday, May 10, 2014

Dick Taylor - Black Fig 72% Madagascar bar - May 10, 2014

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

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).

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.

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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