Tuesday, June 18, 2019

Raphio Chocolate - 72% Nicaragua bar - June 18, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Raphio Chocolate, LLC
72% Nicaragua (bar)
Good+
Weight: 1.1 oz. (31.5 g.) / 2.2 oz. (63 g.) in total bar
Calories: 170 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

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

Today's 72% Nicaragua bar was made by Raphio Chocolate, LLC (Fresno, CA), using cacao beans from Matagalpa, Nicaragua. The inside flap of the bar included a map and information about the origin of this cacao.

Founders, Elisia Otavi and Yohanes Makmur, have roots in chocolate and Indonesia*—and recall visiting family and cacao farms there. Otavi was inspired by her two sons (Raphael and Rio) to name their chocolate company "Raphio," and to make healthy dark chocolate bars with natural ingredients.

This Nicaragua bar had a nice aroma with fruit and faint roasted malt notes. It had a creamy melt, fruit, earth/dirt and fleeting roasted nut and cinnamon flavor notes, and some astringency in the finish.

It was not too sweet (thank you!) and the sweetness that was there seemed to be more natural and less sugar-forward than in many 70 percent bars.

Maker's notes read: "Flavor notes you may taste: Pecans, dates, molasses."

This bar was gluten free, vegan and made with Non-GMO ingredients and no soy. Ingredients: Organic cacao, Organic cane sugar, Organic cacao butter.

*Indonesia is a fairly large producer of cocoa (approximately 240 thousand tons in 2017/2018 season). However few single origin bars made from Indonesian cacao can be found in the U.S., to date. Perhaps we might taste a single origin Indonesia bar from Raphio in the future? 

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