Theo Chocolate - Organic Salted Almond 45% Milk Chocolate (bar) - Apr. 29, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Theo Chocolate
Fair Trade, Organic Salted Almond 45% Milk Chocolate (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 240 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $3.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Farm Fresh to You, CSA box delivery service, add-on item

Welcome to Day #14 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week, featuring chocolates with origins and flavor inclusions that start the letters R, S, T and/or U. It seemed right to end this two-week long, alphabetic exploration with something sweet and salty.

Today's Organic Salted Almond 45% Milk Chocolate (bar) was from Theo Chocolate (Seattle, WA). The company offers a variety of organic and fair trade chocolate bars (and confections), including this one.

The aroma of this bar sent out seductive snack signals: milk chocolate, roasted nuts (hazelnut,* almond) and savory/salted notes. This smelled like high-end, grown-up candy bar territory (thankfully without the additives or preservatives).

And, sure enough, creamy, sweet milk chocolate was interspersed with crunchy almond bits, and punctuated with sparkles of sea salt--creating a rich, addictive blend of sugar salt, fat (cocoa butter, nuts), and chocolate--with a satisfying textural contrast. 

The milk, nuts and salt--present in perfect snack food proportions (heaven help the weak-willed)--outshone cacao flavor nuances that may have been present. But there were no objectionable notes.

The maker's description for this bar: "Smooth. Creamy. Salty. Crunchy. All together perfect."

Ingredients: Organic, fair trade cane sugar; organic, fair trade cocoa butter; organic, fair trade cocoa beans; organic whole milk powder; organic almonds; pink Himalayan salt.

Allergen-related information: Contains milk and tree nuts (almonds). "Made on equipment that also processes wheat and other tree nuts and in a facility that handles peanuts, eggs, and sesame. May contain shell pieces."  

*Despite the aroma, there were no hazelnut ingredients listed.

Sugarpova - Dark Chocolate Cafe Mocha + Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Truffes

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Sugarpova
Dark Chocolate Cafe Mocha Truffles
Good +
Weight: .74 oz. (21 g.) / 4.1 oz. (116 g.) in total package of truffles
Calories: 110 calories in 2 pieces
Cost: N/A - gift from a friend (Thank you Bill) 
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Sugarpova
Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Truffles
Good
Weight: .77 oz. (22 g.) / 3.9 oz. (110 g.) in total package of truffles
Calories: 120 calories in 2 pieces
Cost: NA - gift from a friend (Thank you Bill)
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #13 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week, featuring chocolates with origins and flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U. 

Sometimes the type of chocolate itself deserves a shout-out. For example, chocolate truffles. "Truffles"* in the U.S. are usually round chocolate shells that surround and seal in creamy, chocolate ganache (fillings)--often infused with flavor additions.

Today's 1.) Dark Chocolate Cafe Mocha Truffles and 2.) Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Truffles were created and distributed by Sugarpova LLC (Coral Gables, FL). The company's CEO behind this brand is tennis star, Maria Sharapova.

Dark Chocolate Cafe Mocha Truffles

These almost silky, smooth dark, sweet chocolate truffles had a faint ground nut nougat and dark chocolate aroma, flavor and texture (with hints of nut cookie, coconut, sweet dark chocolate (fudge brownie) and smooth coffee). Tasty.

Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Truffles

A whiff of these milk chocolate truffles revealed a whipped hazelnut butter and sweet milk chocolate aroma. The texture was very creamy; and the flavor was reminiscent of Italian gianduia/gianduja (creamy chocolate and hazelnut blends found in confections, gelatos, chocolate bars and baked good fillings/spreads). These truffles were a bit sweet for me, but it's hard to deny the seductive power behind this flavor fusion.

Ingredients: Dark Chocolate Cafe Mocha 

Dark chocolate (cocoa liquor, sugar, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, ground vanilla beans), organic coconut oil, coffee beans, canola oil, natural coffee flavor. (Cocoa solids 50% minimum.)

Allergen-related information: "Contains soy, coconut" "Processed in a facility where peanuts and tree nuts are present with wheat, barley and egg products."

Ingredients: Milk Chocolate Hazelnut

Milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, milk, chocolate liquor, nonfat dry milk, soy lecithin (an emulsifier) and vanilla), sugar, palm kernel oil, hazelnuts, canola oil, palm shortening, cocoa powder, non fat dry milk, milk, soy lecithin (and emulsifier), maltodextrin, salt, silicon dioxide, natural flavor.

Allergen-related information: "Contains milk, soy, hazelnuts." "Processed in a facility where peanuts and tree nuts are present with wheat, barley and egg products."

**********

*Traditional, French-style chocolate truffles are hard to find. (In San Francisco, CA, there is a shop called XOX Truffles/cafe that makes/sells them.) XOX Truffle cocoa-dusted chocolates look more rough-hewn, and more closely resemble their namesake: the prized, tuberous truffle (fungi) hunted by men (and trained dogs and/or pigs) in the countrysides of France and Italy--and in the Pacific Northwest in the U.S. 

A doff of the hat to the Savory

Both types of truffles are quite wonderful. For a real gastronomic treat, try hunting down the one or two chocolatiers/artisan chocolate makers that make (fungi/savory) truffle-infused chocolate truffles/bars. Savory and sweet. Bella. (Xocolatl de David in Portland, OR, has produced some fun, savory chocolate flavors in the U.S. in the past.)

Mission Chocolate - Umbu Dark Chocolate 70% and Candied Umbu Fruit (bar) - April 27, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Mission Chocolate
Umbu Dark Chocolate 70% and Candied Umbu Fruit (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 297 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 bar (dark purple dot)
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #12 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week, featuring chocolate items with origins or flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U, like Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Umbu fruit.

Today's "Umbu" Dark Chocolate 70% and Candied Umbu Fruit (bar) was created by Arcelia Gallardo at Mission Chocolate (Sao Paulo, Brazil). The company offers a line of bars made with Brazilian cacao, and flavor inclusions from Brazil.

The cacao used to make this bean-to-bar chocolate was from Fazenda Camboa, a family-owned plantation in northeast Brazil that produces "Atlantic Rainforest Cacao."

This bar had an aroma with dark chocolate, mild but aromatic fruit, and very light botanical (cucumber cream, faint mint, aloe, sweet wood/camphor) notes.

The back side was adorned with a mindful grid of small, carefully cut, thin squares of softly chewable, candied umbu fruit.* 

The fruit had an intriguing, but hard to describe, subtle flavor (sweet green plum mixed with green grape plus an expansive, light and airy fruit sweetness that I can't compare to anything else I've had before). The candied squares had the sweet-tartness of plum stone fruit with candied pear + cactus fruit texture (i.e. a blend of soft gel-like fruit pectin with a slight, natural graininess). And just when I thought I had the umbu figured out, there was a burst of lemon-lime candy. Citrus flavor fun.

I was so intent on tasting this new fruit for the first time that I had to take many, small successive bites to taste both umbu and chocolate. Oh yes, the chocolate! It was smooth and dark with medium fruit acidity and seemed well-matched with the umbu fruit.

Thank you Arcelia for the virtual vacation to Brazil this morning via your Umbu dark chocolate. 

Ingredients: Organic cacao, organic sugar, organic umbu (fruit), cocoa butter

Allergen-related information: (Made without gluten, dairy or soy ingredients.) "May contain traces of milk, peanut, coconut, tree nuts, and wheat due to shared equipment."

*"Umbu (Spondias tuberosa) (aka Umb, Imba or Brazil plum) is a soft-fleshed fruit, green/yellow in color, and sweet and sour in taste. It is the size of a large grape, soft like a ripe fig, and juicy like a tomato. The umbu tree is the most important tree in the Caatinga Biome (semi-arid region in Northeast Brazil)"..."It is harvested in the wild by families that deliver (the fruits) to cooperatives to get turned into preserves." 

The source of text above in quotes was the Mission Chocolate Umbu bar description on Bar and Cocoa's website. (I added the extra information in parenthesis.) 

 

Trader Joe's - Uganda - 85% Dark Chocolate Bar - Apr. 26, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Trader Joe's 
Uganda 85% Dark Chocolate Bar
Good ++
Weight: .875 oz. (25 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 158.3 calories in 1/4 bar
Cost: N/A - gift from family member (Thank you David)
Purchased from: (Trader Joe's) gift from family member

Welcome to Day #11 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week, featuring items with origins or flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U...such as Uganda.

Today's Uganda 85% Dark Chocolate Bar was from Trader Joe's (Monrovia, CA).

A sustained inhalation of this offering yielded deep, dark true chocolate with notes of earthy forest, leather saddle, and faint roasted, salted potato/root vegetable. It was the kind of bold aroma that I would expect when tasting an ultra-dark bar (greater than 80% cacao).

The texture of this bar was luxurious, with a thick, satisfying, creamy-chewy (nut butter-like) melt and mouthfeel. 

The flavor was hearty and bold dark chocolate, a fleeting flicker of green floral, with a subtle hint of very nicely balanced bitterness--and faint earth and true chocolate (very smooth, almost savory brownie) in the finish. A re-tasting also yielded a barely-detectable hint of warm spice (cinnamon) at the very end, and a wee bit of astringency.

Overall, this was very smooth for an 85% cacao chocolate bar. Unlike some high cacao percentage bars--that have sweet, come-hither aromas, but then pounce upon the palette like a jaguar--this was almost the opposite. The aroma was stronger/darker than the taste.

Ingredients: Cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter.

Allergen-related information: "May contain milk, soy, wheat, almond, cashew, coconut, hazelnut, pistachio."

Raaka Chocolate - Oat Milk Unroasted Dark Chocolate Uganda 58% (bar) - Apr. 25, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Raaka Chocolate
Oat Milk Unroasted Dark Chocolate Uganda 58% (bar)
Good + 
Weight: .9 oz. (25.4 g.) / 1.8 oz. (50.9 g.) in total bar
Calories: 113 calories (per label) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $6.00 (sale) for 1 bar
Purchased from: Mollie Stone's Markets, Sausalito, CA

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate and R,S,T,U Theme Week, featuring chocolate items with origins and/or flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U--as in Uganda (Africa).

Today's Oat Milk Unroasted Dark Chocolate Uganda* 58% Cacao (bar) was from Raaka Chocolate (Brooklyn, NY). 

Raaka's chocolate makers use unroasted cacao. Skipping the roasting process can yield smoother, brighter, fruitier chocolate flavors, and can sometimes preserve more delicate notes (such as green and/or floral).

The cacao used to make this chocolate came from Semuliki Forest Cacao, Uganda* (from more than 1,000 smallholder, organic farmers--over half are women). 

This area in Western Uganda is part of a rare (for East Africa) stretch of tropical, lowland forest that includes a National Park, a Wildlife Reserve, and many endangered species. Semuliki cacao is comprised of "mostly Trinitario and Amelonado" (cacao varieties). The flavor profile is described by Cacao Services (consultants in Uganda) as: "rich base cocoa with balanced fruit acidity and sometimes notes of brown sugar and panela."

The aroma of today's Raaka bar conjured up a hot bowl of coconut oatmeal with unsweetened dark chocolate pieces and a drizzle of maple syrup. 

The 58% cacao unroasted dark chocolate had a relatively rapid melt, with a thick and creamy mouthfeel, and a very slight graininess (oat flour) in the finish.

The dark chocolate flavor (from what I could taste) seemed bright and bold, slightly fruity, without being bitter or earthy. Oat flour or oat "milk" (as well as other milks) can be used to calm (or even neutralize) feral or spiky cacao flavors; but no lion tamer services were required with this friendly vegan bar.

Coconut added naturally sweet flavor as did a judicious amount of maple sugar. Vanilla bean added a bit of warmth.

Raaka tasting notes for the cacao/chocolate in this bar: "Chocolatey, panela, fig, cinnamon." 

Note: the inside of this Raaka Chocolate Semuliki Forest Cacao bar wrapper also included transparent trade information for the cacao, including the price paid to farmers: $4.50 per kilogram in 2020. This price includes post-harvest processes and transportation to the departure port in Africa.

Ingredients: Organic cacao beans, organic maple sugar, organic oat flour, organic coconut, organic cacao butter, organic vanilla bean.

Allergen-related information: Vegan, gluten free, soy free; Certified Organic and Kosher by NFC. 

* Uganda is smaller in size than the U.S. state of Michigan, but has a larger population than New York and Florida put together. Agricultural exports include: cotton, tea, tobacco...and cacao. 

Most cacao grown in Africa comes from West Africa, specifically Ivory Coast and Ghana. However, cacao is also grown further east, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Tanzania, as well as Uganda.

Theo Chocolate - Organic Coffee Toffee 70% Dark Chocolate (bar) - Apr. 24, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Theo Chocolate 

Organic Coffee Toffee 70% Dark Chocolate (bar)

Good +

Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar

Calories: 240 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $3.99 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Farm Fresh To You CSA box, add-on item 

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate and R,S,T,U Theme Week, featuring chocolate items with origins and flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U, e.g. toffee. 

Today's Organic Coffee Toffee 70% Dark Chocolate (bar) was created by Theo Chocolate (Seattle, WA).

I used to drink coffee. I loved the taste, and especially the aroma. And the aroma of this chocolate evoked that memory. The aroma: ground coffee, cocoa, fruit, and butter, followed by balanced savory/leather, shading into earthy cocoa notes. 

The base dark chocolate was smooth. (The source of the cacao was Democratic Republic of Congo and Peru; and the coffee was grown in Peru.)

Bits of sweet toffee and coffee yielded textural contrast and flavor (including ground coffee flavor without ground coffee grit). The rich, gem-like, softly crunchy bits of sweet toffee sparkled against a backdrop of bold, deep dark chocolate with a balanced earthiness. This rich mix of flavors lingered into the finish.

Theo Chocolate's description of this bar: "Coffee perks up your body. Chocolate perks up your soul. There's nothing better than this blend of crunchy toffee, dark chocolate, and rich coffee made with organic ingredients."

Ingredients: Organic, fair trade cocoa beans; organic, fair trade cane sugar; organic toffee (organic, fair trade cane sugar, organic butter, organic dried corn syrup, water, sea salt); organic, fair trade cocoa butter; organic, fair trade ground coffee beans. Contains 95% Fair Trade Ingredients.

Allergen-related information: Contains milk. Made in a facility that handles peanuts, eggs and sesame and on equipment that also processes milk, wheat and tree nuts. (No soy, gluten-free, Kosher dairy.)

 

Theo Chocolate - Organic Salted Toffee 55% Dark Chocolate (bar) - Apr. 23, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Theo Chocolate 

Organic Salted Toffee 55% Dark Chocolate (bar)

Good +

Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar

Calories: 240 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $3.99 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Farm Fresh To You CSA box, add-on item 

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and R,S,T,U Theme Week, featuring chocolate items with origins or flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U, such as salt and toffee. 

Today's Organic Salted Toffee 55% Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Theo Chocolate (Seattle, WA). The company offers a wide variety of bars and confections made with organic and fair trade chocolate.

This bar had an earthy dark chocolate and salted toffee aroma and flavor. Smooth dark chocolate enveloped crunchy toffee bits with tiny sea salt sparkles. The earthiness helped keep the sweetness in check and paired well with the salt. 

The deep, dark flavored cacao used to make this 55% bar will likely please dark chocolate lovers as the resulting chocolate tasted more like a 70% cacao bar. 

The finish: a mellowing deep, dark chocolate finish with faint hints of butter toffee.

Ingredients: Organic, fair trade cocoa beans; organic, fair trade cane sugar; organic, fair trade cocoa butter; organic toffee (organic, fair trade cane sugar, organic butter, organic dried corn syrup, water, sea salt); sea salt; organic ground vanilla bean. Contains 95% Fair Trade ingredients.

Allergen-related information: Contains milk. Made on equipment that also processes wheat and tree nuts and in a facility that handles peanuts, eggs, and sesame. (No soy, Kosher dairy.)

Zotter - Saffron and Pistachios milk chocolate (filled bar) - Apr. 21, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Zotter
Saffron and Pistachios Milk Chocolate (filled bar)
Good - Good +
Weight: 2.47 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 380 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $8.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and R,S,T,U Theme Week, featuring chocolate items with origins and flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U. 

Today's Zotter Saffron and Pistachios milk chocolate bar was a well-balanced, sweet celebration of flavors. The bar was filled with (as advertised) a golden-colored, saffron-infused pistachio marzipan center that was soft and moist without being too gooey-sweet. 

The flavorful center was held firmly in place by the milk chocolate coating. It offered an enjoyable, sweet and upbeat flavor on a cool, April morning. 

Could I taste the saffron,* given the sweetness and other ingredients? Happily, yes! 

And the blend of saffron, vanilla, cherry brandy and chocolate made this a festive, "happy" bar. The ground nuts (pistachios) helped balance the sugars.

Ingredients: Organic cane sugar, organic marzipan (organic almonds, organic sugar, organic invert sugar syrup), organic cocoa butter, dry whole milk, organic cocoa mass, organic rice syrup, pistachios (4%), dry skim milk, milk, butter (cream), organic raspberry vinegar, organic cherry brandy, dry sweet whey, organic anise, organic dark brown cane sugar, organic soy lecithin, organic vanilla bean powder, salt, organic saffron, organic cinnamon.

Allergen-related information: Contains milk, almonds, pistachio, soy.
Manufactured on equipment that processes other tree nuts, peanuts, eggs and sesame.

* Saffron, the pricey spice, harvested from purple saffron crocus flowers, has a very slightly earthy floral, green, slightly sweet, almost grassy-buttery flavor. Words don't do it justice. It adds a bit of heaven to desserts and savory dishes.

Chocolate Naive - Tahini - Organic 47% Milk Chocolate (bar) - Apr. 21, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Chocolate Naive 
Tahini - Organic 47% Milk Chocolate (bar)
Good + - Good ++ 
Weight: 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar
Calories: 309.51 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA  

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week. Chocolate items with origins or flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U (such as sesame seeds and tahini) are featured this week.

Today's Chocolate Naive Tahini - Organic 47% Milk Chocolate (bar) was produced by Mulate UAB (Zietelos, Lithuania).

This rich milk chocolate had a balanced, savory, nutty, roasted seed, aroma.

The base chocolate had a thick, creamy melt and mouthfeel, and rich, (relatively "dark"* but sweet) milk chocolate flavor with a (salt) caramel undertone. A careful smattering of embedded (I think toasted) whole sesame seeds added micro-bursts of crunchy texture and sesame flavor. 

Chief chocolatier, Domantas Uzpalis's inspirations for this bar include Antoine Galland's "Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves" (from a collection of tales told in 1001 Arabian Nights, with origins that stretch back centuries in the Arab world). In this story, Ali overheard a thief utter the famous secret password "Open sesame!" (that allowed access to a cave full of treasure). In this Tahini bar, sesame seeds held the key to a treasured, novel chocolate experience.

Ingredients: Organic cacao butter, organic sugar, organic specialty cacao, organic sesame seeds, organic grass-fed milk powder, sea salt. 

Allergen-related information: "May contain traces of nuts, barley, sunflowers."

*The definition of "dark milk chocolate" is a term I used here to denote more cacao flavor. Generally, it refers to milk chocolate(s) with a higher percentage of cacao (solids) than one would normally expect to find in commercial/bulk milk chocolate. ("Milk chocolate" in the U.S., needs (by law) to contain a minimum of only 10-12% cocoa liquor/solids.)

More cacao in craft chocolate bars usually means higher quality chocolate (or at least less sugar and milk solids).

Some craft/artisan chocolate makers apply the term "dark milk" to chocolate(s) containing at least 50% cacao solids, whereas a few will dip down to 45-49% cacao. Some vendors use 55% or even 60% as their definitional dividing line for their dark milk offerings.

Raaka Chocolate - Tahini Swirl Unroasted Dark Chocolate 62% Cacao (bar) - Apr. 20, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Raaka Chocolate
Tahini Swirl Unroasted Dark Chocolate 62% Cacao (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.8 oz. (50.9 g.) in total bar
Calories: 285 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $8.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Raaka, online order

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week, featuring chocolates with origins and/or flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U. Today was a seed celebration.

This Tahini Swirl Unroasted Dark Chocolate 62% Cacao (bar) was made by Raaka Chocolate (Red Hook, Brooklyn, NY). Raaka offers a variety of bars made with cacao that is unroasted that "captures the brighter, bolder, and fruitier side of cacao."

To create this Tahini* bar, Raaka partnered with Seed + Mill--a New York-based, women-owned, tahini and halva maker. Seed + Mill's "extra silky tahini (was) crafted with Ethiopian sesame seeds, into (Raaka's) signature unroasted dark chocolate." 

The cacao source was: Reserva Zorzal, Dominican Republic. It had bold cacao flavor with some fruit acidity. However, because it was unroasted, more subtle green, floral and other cacao flavors were also preserved.

This unique bar had a deep dark chocolate aroma with green floral, green seed (jaguar cacao) notes. The melt and texture were smooth and the dark chocolate and tahini flavors were skillfully integrated. And the back of the bar was visually stunning with the dark brown and golden seed butter colors swirled together.

The tahini seemed to mellow and complement fruit acids in the chocolate. (Imagine nut and fruit pairings like peanut butter and jelly.) Flavors were elevated and not dimmed. Together, these two ingredients were relatively vibrant and compatible, and lasted into the finish. Pleasant green floral and green "waxy" seed notes that were detected (noted above) in the initial aroma returned toward the end of the finish. And 30 seconds after I thought the finish had ended, there was a gentle flourish of sesame seed flavor.

The Seed + Mill tahini was, thankfully, made with just roasted, ground, hulled sesame seeds and nothing else. If there was salt in this tahini bar it must have been a very small amount. Too much salt in a chocolate with a "condiment" type flavor inclusion create salty-sweet sparklers, but subtler flavors are trampled in this kind of snack food formula revelry.

This was unadulterated, great chocolate partnered with authentic tahini--resulting in a executed bar with satisfyingly nuanced flavors.

Ingredients: organic cacao, organic cane sugar, organic cacao butter, organic toasted coconut, organic tahini, organic sunflower lecithin

Allergen-related information: (Contains sesame); "Vegan, Gluten Free, Soy Free"

*Tahini is a popular condiment from north Africa and the middle east typically made with toasted, hulled sesame seeds. 

Not that different than cacao really. However, the cacao seeds (beans) are typically fermented first. Thank goodness for seeds. Chocolate Banquet, and much of life on this planet, wouldn't exist without them.

Anthony's - Organic Superfood Smoothie Mix - Chocolate Flavor - Apr. 19, 2021

Chocolate of the Day 

Anthony's

Organic Superfood Smoothie Mix (Chocolate Flavor)

Good 

Weight: .848 oz. (24 g.) / 8 oz. (227 g.) in total package of mix

Calories: 110 calories in 1 serving (3 TB) (+ milk)

Cost: $7.99 for 1 package

Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week, featuring items with origins or flavor inclusions that begin with the letters R, S, T and/or U.

Today's Chocolate Flavor Organic Superfood Smoothie Mix was from Anthony's Goods (Glendale, CA). 

The aroma of the dry mix had light cocoa, and faint, pleasant vegetable root/tuber (tigernut, maca) and celery notes.

This gluten-free, vegan smoothie mix tasted refreshingly un-sugared.* It did contain some coconut sugar, but did not taste sweet. 

The powder was shaken and stirred with a variety of liquids. (Coconut milk or frozen fruits and water, are good choices that provide a little touch of natural sweetness.) If you're not vegan, organic, dairy milk works too. 

Smoothie tip: If you're not using an electric blender, you might let the smoothie rest in the refrigerator for a few hours (or longer) before drinking. This allows the chia seeds (number one ingredient) to more fully absorb the liquid, to maximize smoothness in the mouthfeel.

Ingredients: Organic chia seed, organic coconut sugar, organic tigernut, organic cocoa, organic flaxseed, organic black maca

Crunchies - Freeze-Dried Strawberries in Milk Chocolate - Apr. 18, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Crunchies

Freeze-Dried Strawberries in Milk Chocolate

Good

Weight: 2 oz. (57 g.) / 5 oz. (142 g.) in total package

Calories: 300 calories in 2 servings

Cost: $3.49 for 1 package

Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA 

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week, featuring items with origins and/or flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U.

It was impossible this week not to include both raspberries and strawberries. Both these berries have a long history of being combined in sublime ways with chocolate.

Today's Freeze-Dried Strawberries in Milk Chocolate were from Crunchies Natural Food Company, LLC (Calabasas, CA). The company offers a variety of freeze-dried fruit and vegetable snacks.

Freeze-dried* fruit pieces and powders have become popular* flavor inclusions for chocolates. They offer bursts of concentrated, authentic fruit flavor and a unique texture. 

The resulting pieces/powders are bright and flavorful, but they need to be sealed off from air and moisture to retain their light, airy, crunchy texture. Today's strawberry Crunchies achieved this level of protection in two ways: by being 1.) covered in chocolate, and 2.) stored in a (re-sealable) air-tight pouch. Both measures helped preserve the berry freshness. 

These thickly-coated/glazed milk chocolate pieces gave off the aroma of a sweet, strawberry milkshake. The milk chocolate + the concentrated sweetness of the strawberries were on the sweet side, but were tasty nonetheless. The strawberry pieces on the inside retained their tart-sweet berry flavor and naturally bright, rosy red color.

Ingredients: Milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, whole milk chocolate liquor, soy lecithin, vanilla), freeze-dried strawberries, natural flavor, arabic gum, sugar, confectioners glaze. 

Allergen-related information: Contains milk, soy. Made on equipment that also processes peanuts, tree nuts, wheat and eggs.

*The Incas (who knew their way around cacao) practiced an early form of freeze-drying at higher altitudes. Food reserves were frozen by cold, dry climate. And at high elevations these frozen items would also have dried out.

Modern freeze drying of foods began over a century ago. Later in the 1900s, pictures of astronauts eating freeze-dried ice cream appeared; and light-weight, freeze-dried food entrees in silver pouches became more widely available for outdoor enthusiasts. For backpackers and climbers with 50+-pound (22.67-kilogram) packs on their backs, this was welcome news. (I still remember (happily) buying those pouches freeze-dried food and ice cream from army surplus/outdoor stores.)

Fast forward to today's high-end examples of freeze-dried culinary items (exotic, sublimated vegetable bits in five-star restaurants; or, closer to home, craft chocolate maker Dick Taylor's first limited edition raspberry bar), and I'm grateful for this medium and to the creative chefs, taste-makers and chocolate makers who have used this technology to bring us great food.

Theo Chocolate - Organic, Fair Trade Raspberry Cocoa Nib 55% Dark Chocolate (bar) - Apr. 17, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Theo Chocolate

Organic, Fair Trade Raspberry Cocoa Nib 55% Dark Chocolate (bar)

Good +

Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar

Calories: 240 calories in 1/2 bar 

Cost: $3.99 (estimate) for 1 bar

Purchased from: Missing information 

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week, featuring items with origins and flavor inclusions that start with the letters R, S, T and/or U.

Today's Organic, Fair Trade Raspberry Cocoa Nib 55% Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Theo Chocolate (Seattle, WA). The company was an early advocate (and provider) of fair trade chocolate. (This bar bore the "fair for life"* symbol.)

This was a flavorful bar, but I had to lean in to catch the full aroma. A nose-to-bar inhalation revealed deep, dark chocolate and authentic red raspberry notes. 

Cacao nibs and raspberry bits gave this chocolate a hearty, crunchy texture and a blend of rich, robust cacao and bright red berry flavors that lingered into the finish. Ground vanilla bean added a bit of upbeat, floral warmth.

The maker's notes read as follows: "...fruity, bright and crunchy."

Ingredients: Organic, fair trade cocoa beans; organic, fair trade cane sugar; organic, fair trade cocoa butter; organic freeze-dried raspberries; organic ground vanilla bean.

Allergen-related information: USDA Organic, fair for life, no soy, kosher dairy; "Made on equipment that also processes milk, wheat, and tree nuts and in a facility that handles peanuts, eggs and sesame. 

*Fair trade standards and programs have helped highlight the need for fair/better pay and conditions for cacao (and other) farmers, who are often being paid very little. And better pay and infrastructure (e.g. access to local cacao fermenteries, agro experts, water, etc.) not only help farmers, but also can help preserve and enable production of fine cacao (and great chocolate).

More information specifically on Fair for Life can be found on their website: https://fairforlife.org.

Raaka Chocolate - Rose Cardamom Unroasted Dark Chocolate 70% (bar) - Apr. 16, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Raaka Chocolate

Rose Cardamom Unroasted Dark Chocolate 70% (bar)

Good +

Weight: 1.8 oz. (50.9 g.) in total bar

Calories: 266 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $6.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Raaka, online order

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate and RSTU Theme Week, featuring chocolate items with origins and flavor inclusions starting with the letters R, S, T, and/or U.

Today's Rose Cardamom Unroasted Dark Chocolate 70% (bar) was made from bean-to-bar by the makers at Raaka Chocolate (Brooklyn, NY).

This bar had a lovely warm floral and spice aroma, and smooth, dark 70% Cacao (unroasted) chocolate texture and flavor, with a barely detectable fruit/spice astringency.

The single origin cacao used to make this Limited Batch chocolate bar was from Kokoa Kamili (a cacao growers organization), in Tanzania -- "steamed over rose petals and cardamom...Celestial and dreamy."

The flavors were a bit clearer/stronger (than the aroma), and it was easier to tease out the rose flavoring, which was followed by a balanced and sustained (but still relatively subtle) cardamom note.

Ingredients: Organic cacao beans, organic cane sugar, organic cacao butter, organic rose petals, organic cardamom

Allergen-related/additional information: Vegan, Gluten Free, Soy Free, Nut Free, Non-GMO Project Verified, USDA Organic, Transparent Trade

Puchero - 50% Mexico Pinon Soconusco (bar) - Apr. 15, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Puchero 
50% Mexico Pinon Soconusco (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.235 oz. (35 g.) / 2.47 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 223.3 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Bienvenidos a (welcome to) Day #9 of Chocolate, Trees and Bees Theme Week. Today's focus is back on the wondrous things that trees give us, including cacao trees (cacao) and pine trees (pine nuts).

Today's 50% Mexico Pinon Soconusco (bar) was crafted from bean-to-bar by the makers at Puchero (Valladolid, Spain). Puchero is focused on producing high-quality, specialty coffee and craft chocolate.

This chocolate had a faint aroma. Pine nuts (aka pinones, pignoli) have a subtle, delicate scent and buttery texture and flavor. The ground pine nuts in this bar softly muted the scents of the cacao. 

The cacao used to create this chocolate ("Criollo, Trinitario") were grown in Soconusco, Mexico. The cacao chosen (more delicate and nuanced than some bolder Forastero cacaos) was also a good match with the pine nuts. The cacao did not eclipse the more subtle nut/seed flavors.

The texture was divine. Today's ground nut/seed fusion (like gianduja/gianduia, a finely ground hazelnut + chocolate blend) had an incredibly smooth and rich melt and mouthfeel. 

I imagined spreading this creamy 67% cacao chocolate on a warm croissant or freshly baked roll with a butter knife. A very judicious pinch of salt added an addictive quality to the chocolate, which was effortlessly consumed in one sitting.

The pine nut bar had a clean taste and finish. (There was no odd semi-metallic flavor or "pine mouth" after eating this pine nut blend, that occasionally occurs with pine nuts from other sources.) 

Puchero chocolate makers--based in Valladolid (the largest city in Castilla y Leon ("land of medieval castles") historic region in northwest Spain)--selected premium pine nuts from the Pinon-sol co-operative in this area of Spain for this chocolate.

Ingredients: cacao, raw pine nut (25%), sugar, cocoa butter, salt.

Allergen-related information: May contain traces of nuts, milk and gluten

Chocolate Naive - Ambrosia - 67% Dark Chocolate with Bee Pollen, Honey (bar) - Apr. 14, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Chocolate Naive

Ambrosia - 67% Dark Chocolate with Bee Pollen and Honey (bar)

Good +

Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar

Calories: 165.5 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate, Trees and Bees Theme Week.

Today's Chocolate Naive Ambrosia 67% Dark Chocolate with Bee Pollen and Honey (bar) was produced by Mulate UAB (Vilnius, Lithuania).

This bar had a very interesting aroma with come hither, forest, mossy botanical, honey, beeswax, and light cocoa/milk chocolate notes. (There was no milk in this bar.) 

The melt and mouthfeel were creamy and luxurious.

The flavors were fairly uniform, and sweeter than the aroma; however, authentic and balanced honey notes floated to the forefront at least twice during the tasting experience. 

The finish was deceptively subtle. It conjured ghosts of peanut butter and honey sandwiches and honey and peach jam on buttered toast from childhoods past. Slightly fruity, slightly nutty along with creamed honey.

Chief chocolatier, Domantas Uzpalis, carefully selected this honey and bee pollen from a biodynamic apiary near the forest where bees connect their nectar. (Enclosed in the bar's package was a photo of local hives and beekeepers.) The results: a thick honey with a dark amber color and mossy earth, forest...and "floral acidity" flavors. (I would also add: a very faint green floral beeswax note).

Uzpalis noted that blending the bee pollen and honey with chocolate required a fairly technically sophisticated approach. I believe that. The different textures, flavors, and sweetness level(s) must have called for several test batches. Honey varies a great deal, and bee pollens can be even more variable. Thank you to the chocolate maker for sharing this culinary, bee-enabled, sense of place with us.

Ingredients: specialty cacao*, sugar*, cacao butter*, bee pollen (7%)*, wild forest honey (5%)*, and sunflower lecithin. (*wild or all natural farming)

Allergen related information: May contain traces of milk, barley or nuts.

Ritual Chocolate - Honeycomb Toffee 75% Cacao (bar) - Apr. 13, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Ritual Chocolate
Honeycomb Toffee in Dark Chocolate 75% Cacao (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar 
Calories: 162 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate, Trees and Bees Theme Week. Once again we pay homage to bees and honey this week, in the form of honeycomb toffee.

Today's Honeycomb Toffee in Dark Chocolate 75% Cacao (bar) was from Ritual Chocolate in Park City, Utah--also known as the beehive state.

Are you a dark chocolate fan who is not fond of sugar, much less toffee? Fear not. This 75% cacao (Belize) dark chocolate had a rich, ultra-dark, roasted, chocolate flavor. Its balanced bitterness off-set flecks of house-made, sweet, honeycomb toffee. 

Rather than the traditional, three-dimensional chunks of airy, crunchy sugary, honeycomb toffee, there was a thin projection of toffee pieces onto the back of this ebony-colored bar, that winked at us like shining sugar stars in the night.

Ingredients: Organic cacao, organic cane sugar, honeycomb toffee (organic cane sugar, raw honey, baking soda)

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

Ritual Chocolate - Juniper Lavender Chocolate 70% Cacao (bar) - Apr. 12, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Ritual Chocolate

Juniper Lavender Chocolate 70% Cacao (bar)

Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 162 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate, Trees and Bees Theme Week. We can thank, in part, juniper trees (berries), for today's featured bar.

Today's Juniper Lavender Chocolate 70% Cacao (bar) was from Ritual Chocolate (Park City, UT).

The aroma of this bar--redolent of lavender flower buds and juniper berry--could be bottled and sold. It was heavenly. 

The flavor of these two powerfully aromatic botanical inclusions were skillfully blended with a relatively bold, dark cacao. There was a slight astringency that brought me back down to earth (often a natural component of juniper berries). Still an amazing bar though. I enjoyed the touch of unexpected red berry fruitiness and nicely balanced tart acidity and faint pine/evergreen/citrus (similar to edible Douglas Fir tree branch/needle tips).

A big thumbs up to the makers for orchestrating all these powerful flavors together so successfully.

For a super luxe tasting experience I look forward to buying this special bar again (if, fingers crossed, it is available); and using pieces or shavings to add to/garnish high-end desserts (or as a surprise guest square on fruit and cheese platters, small food plates).

Ingredients: Cacao, organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter, dried juniper berries, culinary lavender.

Ritual Chocolate - Pine Nut Chocolate 55% Cacao (bar) - Apr. 11, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Ritual Chocolate

Pine Nut Chocolate 55% Cacao (bar) 

Good + - Good ++

Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar

Calories: 165 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar

Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate, Trees and Bees Theme Week.

Today's Pine Nut Chocolate (Ground Pine Nuts and Dark Chocolate) 55% Cacao (bar) was made by Ritual Chocolate (Park City, UT). The company crafts a variety of chocolate bars high in the mountains (7,000 feet/2,134 meters altitude).

Pinyon pine trees in pine and juniper forests in Utah and the Great Basin area of the U.S. are wonderful to look at and offer many benefits. They're also a source of pine nuts.* These ivory-colored seeds are delicate and buttery and have served as a food source for many animals, including humans for a very long time.

Ritual makers have created a great blend of pine nuts and dark chocolate. This bar had a relatively subtle dark chocolate aroma with chocolate cookie and faint nut (cashew shortbread cookie) notes. If you really focus, you can sense a bit of woodsy, pine/oak forest.

The texture was heavenly, with a rapid creamy, velvety melt and mouthfeel, made possible by finely ground pine nuts, added cocoa butter, and what seemed like the perfect amount of conching (cocoa mass grinding) time.

This 55% chocolate tasted bolder, richer and less sweet (thank you!) than most other 55% bars. And yet, the more delicate (and easily eclipsed) pine nuts still contributed an important role in texture and flavor. 

This ebony-colored bar had some deep dark, grounded, forest flavor--that in less skilled hands (and without finely ground pine nuts) might have headed more toward earthy/tannic or very slightly bitter.

Instead, this result was almost perfectly balanced smooth, rich, luxurious chocolate flavor (with faint forest, nut and fruit acidity); a suave, dark, roasted green nut and cocoa finish; and an almost undetectable, fleeting, astringency tickle at the back of the throat after the first few bites.

This pine nut chocolate was wonderful by itself. I'm guessing it would also make a great addition to a chocolate tasting flight or dessert plate; and/or the basis for a dark chocolate pot de creme or dark chocolate gelato. 

Ritual Chocolate tasting notes read as follows: "Nutty, pine-y, earthy"

Ingredients: Cacao, pine nuts, organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter

Allergy-related information: "Contains pine nuts, may contain traces of peanuts, tree nuts, and wheat"

*Plant seeds come in a remarkable variety of shapes and sizes. Some are edible; most are not. Technically edible pine "nuts" are seeds (of several species of pine trees worldwide). And cacao beans are actually cacao seeds. I'm grateful for both of these seeds; and today's Pine Nut Chocolate bar shows they can be lovely together.

Theo Chocolate - Honey Bee Confection Collection, part 2 - Apr. 10, 2021

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Theo Chocolate
Honey Bee Confection Collection
1.) Honey Saffron Caramel - Good +
2.) Orange Blossom Nougat - Good +
Weight: 1.41 oz. (40 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total box of 7 pieces
Calories: 226 calories (estimate) in 3 pieces
Cost: $13.99 for 1 box of 7 pieces
Purchased from: Farm Fresh to You, CSA box delivery service, add-in item

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate, Trees and Bees Theme Week. Bees create honey; and we are reaping the rewards of the bees' hard work again today.

Today's 7-piece, "Honey Bee Confection Collection" was from Theo Chocolate (Seattle, WA). The company offers a wide variety of fairly traded chocolate bars and confections. 

I tasted two different chocolates (out of four) from Theo's Honey Bee assortment today. (The other two were featured yesterday.) 

The first piece was a Honey Saffron Caramel: A fragrant nucleus of "Organic Moroccon saffron* infused honey in buttery sweet caramel," was enrobed in smooth dark chocolate, and dusted with bee pollen sugar. Yes, this soft caramel was sweet. But there was no stinting on the ingredients. The saffron's aroma and flavor were authentic and wonderful. 

The last piece was the generously-sized, "Orange Blossom Nougat." This confection was filled with a soft honey nougat infused with a delicious amount of authentic orange blossom (think neroli), covered in a generous coating of flavorful dark chocolate (that helped balanced the sweetness), and garnished with a micro strip of candied citrus peel. 

Bees and other pollinators make our culinary lives much richer. Theo Chocolate's packaging reminded us to "give a buzz" about bees, and suggested checking out two bee-related organizations: pollinator.org (San Francisco, CA) and survivorbee.com (Seattle, WA). The latter is dedicated to improving the health of bees through local community education.

Ingredients (listed for all four confections): Organic, fair trade cane sugar; organic, fair trade cocoa beans; organic cream; honey; organic cashews; organic, fair trade cocoa butter; organic corn syrup; glucose; organic milk powder; organic orange zest; water; organic butter; organic egg whites; orange blossom water (distilled water, orange blossom); baking soda; salt; bee pollen; gelatin; saffron.

Allergen-related information: "Contains tree nuts (cashews), milk, and eggs. Made on equipment that also processes peanuts, other tree nuts, wheat and sesame."

*I am biased here. I do love this spice, made of the orange-yellow stamens of the purple, saffron crocus (Crocus sativus). Saffron infused honey over vanilla ice cream, topped with lavender buds, used to be one of my favorite desserts. Happiness in a bowl.

Theo Chocolate - Honey Bee Confection Collection - part 1 - Apr. 9, 2021

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Theo Chocolate
Honey Bee Confection Collection
1.) Honeycomb Chocolate - Good - Good +
2.) Honey Cashew Praline - Good +
Weight: 1.51 oz. (42.8 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total box of 7 pieces
Calories: 226 calories (estimate) in 3 pieces
Cost: $13.99 for 1 box of 7 pieces
Purchased from: Farm Fresh to You, CSA box delivery service, add-in item

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate, Trees and Bees Theme Week. Bees create honey, and that is a good thing.

Today's 7-piece, "Honey Bee Confection Collection" was from Theo Chocolate (Seattle, WA). The company offers a wide variety of fairly traded chocolate bars and confections. 

Confections can be very sweet. Nuts, salt and savory items, and unsweetened chocolate can help balance pure sugar sweetness. Happily, Theo and many other chocolatiers understand this.

I tasted two chocolates (of four) from Theo's Honey Bee assortment today. (The other two will be featured tomorrow.) 

The first "Honeycomb Chocolate" piece was a long rectangle of sweet, crunchy honeycomb candy, blanketed in a thick layer of rich, flavorful dark chocolate--darker and more flavorful than most candy-quality chocolate. This darker, velvety chocolate saved me from sugar overload. Thank you Theo Chocolate meisters.

The second piece was a "Honey Cashew Praline," molded in a honeycomb shape. Multiple steps in the making process insured a tasty treat. "Cashews (were) candied in honey, whipped into decadent praline, (and) enrobed in creamy milk chocolate." Nuts and milk, and likely a little salt, helped balance this second tasty sweet.

Bees and other pollinators offer many benefits to all of us. Theo Chocolate's packaging reminded us to "give a buzz" about bees, and suggested checking out two bee-related organizations: pollinator.org (San Francisco, CA) and survivorbee.com (Seattle, WA). The latter is dedicated to improving the health of bees through local community education.

Ingredients (listed for all four confections): Organic, fair trade cane sugar; organic, fair trade cocoa beans; organic cream; honey; organic cashews; organic, fair trade cocoa butter; organic corn syrup; glucose; organic milk powder; organic orange zest; water; organic butter; organic egg whites; orange blossom water (distilled water, orange blossom); baking soda; salt; bee pollen; gelatin; saffron.

Allergen-related information: "Contains tree nuts (cashews), milk, and eggs. Made on equipment that also processes peanuts, other tree nuts, wheat and sesame."

Rick Jordan Chocolatier - Honey Foam chocolate - Apr. 8, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Rick Jordan Chocolatier
Honey Foam chocolate
Good 
Weight: 1.75 oz. (50 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total package
Calories: 275 calories (estimate) in 1 piece
Cost: $6.50 + shipping
Purchased from: Rick Jordan Chocolatier, online order

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate, Trees and Bees Theme Week, featuring a professional, honey-forward version of a traditional sponge toffee (aka molasses puffs, sea foam, honeycomb candy).

Today's Honey Foam chocolate confection was from Rick Jordan Chocolatier (Creve Coeur, MO).

At the heart of this dark chocolate covered confection was a generous and precise slab of light, airy and crunchy honey candy. The air spaces in this "honey foam" were very uniform (not always true for first time attempts in a home kitchen). And a re-sealable package helped it keep its shape and texture.

Traditional "honeycomb" confections are made with hot caramelized sugar (sugar, or brown sugar, corn syrup and/or honey) and baking soda. The more acidic (lower pH) sugar content foams up when the more basic (higher pH) baking soda is whisked into this sugar/honey mixture.**

Rick Jordan's use of honey as the primary ingredient* was a novel treat. His Honey Foam had  light, uniform, rigid, sponge-like texture and very sweet flavor. 

While the sugar level was undeniable, the light, even texture helped cushion the sweetness, as did the smooth, 70% cacao chocolate, and sodium content from the baking soda.

I could not make out the flavor nuances of the honey in today's chocolate. However, it might be more obvious in a side-by-side tasting with traditional "honeycomb" chocolate (with more sugar, and less honey content).

*Ingredients: honey, sugar, glucose, baking soda, 70% dark chocolate

**On the pH scale a food or beverage with a score that is under 7 is considered acidic, and any item scoring higher than 7 is considered basic. (The average score for honey is 3.9 and baking soda is an 8.)

Puchero - 70% Nicaragua El Castillero (bar) - Apr. 7, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Puchero 
70% Nicaragua El Castillero (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 2.47 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 204 calories (per label) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.50 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Nicaragua Theme Week, and Day #1 of Chocolate, Trees and Bees Theme Week--an opportunity to celebrate trees, bees and honey, and their contributions to chocolate.

Today's 70% Nicaragua El Castillero (bar) was made from bean-to-bar by Puchero (Valladolid, Spain). The company offers a line of single origin bars. (Co-founders, Paloma and Marco, have honed their roasting skills via their involvement in both coffee and cacao.)

The Puchero bars (packaging) I've seen have been graced with a striking image of a cross-section of a large tree. Cacao does grow on trees. This image may not be of a cacao tree, but it was lovely all the same. Tree-grown fruit, nut and sweeteners are common inclusions in artisan bars. However, Puchero, like other craft chocolate makers/magicians, summon these flavors solely via carefully roasted and ground cacao beans and a bit of sugar.

The cacao used to make this single origin bar was "grown by smallholder farmers in agroforestry." (El Castillero is associated with Indio Maiz biological reserve where cacao grows in southern Nicaragua.)

This 70% single origin bar was versatile and balanced. Subtle, sophisticated notes were spun together: faint, fleeting earth, umami, wood, and nut; a flicker of green. It had a natural sweetness to it. The "main course" was a small plate of fruit (light stone fruit, gentle white wine grape, pear), floral (light blossom honey), sweet herb (licorice) and true chocolate (brownie) notes. It was a deceptively simple, and satisfying, dark bar. 

Pay careful attention as this exquisite tiny symphony plays out on your palette. And, as with all fine, single origin chocolate, please do take time to savor, and re-taste, this over a period of minutes. Different aroma and flavor notes appear and disappear.

The finish was delicate. There was a fleeting, very light astringency. The faint honey-floral sweetness, faint licorice* and cocoa notes lingered a bit and then gradually tailed off.

Puchero tasting notes read as follows: "Medium intensity and low acidity. Honey sweetness with pear, licorice and floral notes."

Ingredients: cacao, sugar, cocoa butter.

Allergen-related information: "May contain traces of nuts, milk and gluten"

*Please note: The aroma and flavor notes mentioned were conjured skillfully from just three ingredients. There was no licorice in this bar, or honey, or nuts. These adjectives were merely the perceptions of a grateful reviewer.

Primo Botanica - Mountain Cardamom, Dark Coconut Mylk 60% Nicaraguan Cardamom bar - Apr. 6, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Primo Botanica 

Mountain Cardamom - Dark Coconut Mylk 60% Nicaraguan Cardamom (bar)

Good ++ 

Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar

Calories: 167 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar

Cost: $9.25 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Nicaragua Theme Week.

Today's (Batch #1) Mountain Cardamom - 60% Dark Coconut Mylk Chocolate Infused with Nicaraguan Cardamom (bar) was crafted by Primo Botanica (Troy, NY).

Located in New York State's Capital Region, Primo Botanica got its start in 2017. The company is dedicated to making "the world's most potent chocolate using single origin cacao, unrefined sugar, herbs, fungi and spices."*

This bright, slightly fruity, sweet coconut mylk cardamom chocolate was blessed with a heavenly, complex and full-bodied cardamom scent and flavor. (A seamless infusion, there were no gritty pieces...only a flowering abundance of authentic spice flavor.) The cardamom was harvested adjacent to a cacao-growing area in central Nicaragua. (More on the spice story below.)

While cardamom ruled this bar with a golden scepter, other elements contributed to the harmonious whole. The coconut mylk and cocoa butter helped to create a smooth, relatively creamy texture, melt and mouthfeel. Panela added sweet warmth (very faint caramel). In addition to the cardamom, there was a very faint note of roasted coffee, or perhaps this was inferred.**

The description of this chocolate on Bar and Cocoa's website read as follows:

"Creamy, coconut with the citrusy, minty, spicy - qualities of cardamom. During our last visit to mountainous, Matagalpa, Nicaragua with the cacao sourcing non-profit, Enliven International, we had the privilege to meet several cacao farming families. While the men go out and prune cacao trees, the women wild harvest spices and fruit to buffer sales. Several years later we were able to pay these women directly to harvest, dry and send this very special cardamom through one of the employees of Enliven to include this very special, limited bar. And yes, it's vegan!"

Ingredients: Mexican cocoa beans + cocoa butter (60%), organic Colombian panela (cane sugar), coconut milk powder (dehydrated organic coconut milk, tapioca, organic acacia fiber), ground direct trade Nicaragua cardamom.

Allergen-related information: "Never soy or dairy"

*Disclosure: I am a sucker for innovative, high-quality chocolates with botanicals, spices and edible flowers.

**The rich, roasted "coffee" note could have been from the (Mexican) cacao, the cardamom--or more likely both. Also likely, I could have been imagining this bar made into a coffee drink. Cardamom-infused coffee is not unusual in the Arab world (Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan and elsewhere)--in countries where the spice trade and coffee origins met and intertwined centuries ago.

Green cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) is native to India, but is cultivated in southeast Asian and Central American countries as well.

Triangle Roasters - Dark Rye Whiskey 70% Nicaragua (bar) - Apr. 5, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Triangle Roasters
Dark Rye Whiskey 70% Nicaragua La Colonia (bar)
Good +++
Weight: .85 oz. (24.05 g.) / 1.7 oz. (48.11 g.) in total bar
Calories: 132 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $8.50 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Nicaragua Theme Week.

Today's Dark Rye Whiskey 70% Nicaragua La Colonia (bar) was from Triangle Roasters--a small batch coffee roaster and chocolate maker in Philadelphia, PA. 

Years ago, when I led chocolate tastings with beverage pairings, people assumed wine would be the beverage of choice. They were surprised to hear my preference was usually whiskey.

So, I was excited to taste today's Whiskey bar. The trick was how to eat this bar slowly, when it had such a seductively subtle, clear, sweet chocolate and whiskey aroma. 

The sophisticated tart, fruity, dark chocolate blended perfectly with the Dad's Hat Pennsylvania Rye Whiskey.* This craft chocolate + craft distiller collaboration bar offered the best of both worlds.** 

The base chocolate (insofar as it could be separated from the whiskey) provided bright, sweet fruit flavor, but also offered satisfying glimmers of light earth, umami, and the textural luxury of rich cocoa solids and smooth cocoa butter. 

The finish was lovely and lingering.

Ingredients: Cacao, cane sugar, cocoa butter, rye whiskey

Allergen-related information: Made in a facility with nuts and dairy

*Dad's Hat is distilled and bottled by Mountain Laurel Spirits, LLC (Bristol, PA).

**This chocolate reminded me of a whiskey cocktail with a cherry and a twist of orange and chocolate bitters I had years ago after a long walk along San Francisco Bay. (I don't drink alcohol that often, and a good drink is memorable.) 

Duffy's Chocolate - Nicaragua Juno (Chuno) 70% (bar) - Apr. 4, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Duffy's Chocolate

Nicaragua Juno (Chuno) 70% (bar)

Good + 

Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.11 oz. (60 g.) in total bar

Calories: 176 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $9.50 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Buenos Dias and welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Nicaragua Theme Week.

Today's Duffy's Chocolate Nicaragua Juno (Chuno) 70% (bar) from Red Star Chocolate Ltd (Cleethorpes, England) was made from bean-to-bar using directly traded Xoco* single origin criollo (cacao variety) cocoa beans.

This 70% dark bar had a uniform, sweet dark chocolate aroma and flavor, with a hint of savory (roasted vegetable, potato, nut) and a sweet, faint fruit tartness (red fruit, berry jam). 

Initially, there was a very mild fruit astringency toward the end of the finish. And a moment after the last bite there was a hint of tart, red cherry. The optimal flavor seemed to arrive after the bar was unwrapped for about 15-20 minutes (after three successive bites/tastes). And as I re-tasted this bar, more complexity and faint notes appeared and disappeared (red raspberry jam), and the very faint, roasted veg/potato chip note diminished a bit. 

Duffy's Chocolate maker's notes reads as follows: "A complex mix of fresh hay, mellow red fruit and a roast chestnut aftertaste."

Ingredients: "Cocoa beans, organic cane sugar, cocoa butter and sunflower lecithin"

Allergen-related information: "soya free, gluten free...Vegan-friendly"

*Directly traded cacao implies that cacao beans were purchased directly from a farmer(s), rather than going through a third-party. The implication/hope is that more money goes directly to small family farms and farmers, most of whom are paid very little. 

Xoco, a private company, owns and operates its own farms in Nicaragua and other Central American countries, and offers high-quality, fine flavor cacao beans to makers. The company works with local farmers (partnership contracts with several hundred "out growers") and offers guidance on desired cultivation techniques and fine cacao flavor traits.

Taza Chocolate - 80% Cacao Crunch bar + Nicaragua Rosquillas cookies - Apr. 3, 2021

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Taza Chocolate
80% Cacao Crunch Organic Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.25 oz. (35 g.) / 2.5 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 200 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $1.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and Nicaragua Theme Week.

Today's featured 80% Cacao Crunch Organic Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Taza Chocolate (Somerville, MA).

This ultra-dark bar was made from cacao from an unknown origin(s). (The country (ies) of origin were not on the label.) However, it was a perfect pairing with the Nicaraguan Rosquillas cookies I made today. (More on these cookies below.) 

This Taza Chocolate bar was everything these cookies were not (except both were crunchy). The chocolate had a deep, dark roasted (yet not roasted),* green aroma. It conjured the feeling of being in a cool, green forest, with almost (but not quite) a mint/menthol note. It was, refreshingly, un-sweet (thank you!).

The even, stone-ground dark chocolate flavor also had depth (with a faint umami hint of leather). Embedded throughout the chocolate was a tiny riot of crispy, crunchy, puffed quinoa particles. 

Nicaraguan Rosquillas, chocolate cookies

Today's effortlessly light, crunchy shortbread style cookies were made using masa harina (finely ground corn flour). These relatively airy but substantial cookies were good with coffee, but could be enjoyed anytime. They were delicious and gluten-free. I made two different kinds. 

The first batch had "flower" petal-shaped indentations around the edges, with small mounds of panela (unrefined brown sugar) in the centers. 

And the second batch was made with an egg (making these cookies a bit lighter and fluffier) and these had Nicaraguan chocolate centers. 

I'm now a fan of rosquillas. They can be made slightly less sweet. (I used less sugar than most of the online recipes I found called for; and that did not seem to make a difference in the outcome.)

Taza Chocolate Ingredients: "Organic cacao beans, organic cane sugar, organic puffed quinoa, organic cocoa butter, organic vanilla beans."

*It's possible to have a blend of different roasted batches, each with a different flavor profile.

If makers heavily roast all their cacao, they run the risk of losing more subtle green and floral notes. (Occasionally more roasting time is used to lose objectionable flavors in lesser quality cacao.) However, if cacao beans are under-roasted, makers may miss out on some of the flavor development that comes with roasting. Some makers mix different roast batches to try to capture the best of both worlds. 

The best chocolate makers create several test roast batches to optimize roast settings/times for a given lot of cacao. Each cacao origin/variety may have different percentages of fat, moisture and various flavor attributes.

Friis Holm - La Dalia 100% (Nicaragua bar) - Apr. 2, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Friis-Holm Chokolade
La Dalia 100% (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: 1.41 oz. (40 g.) / 2.82 oz. (80 g.) in total bar
Calories: 240 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $20.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Nicaragua Theme Week.

Today's La Dalia 100% (bar) was from Friis-Holm Chokolade (Hvalso, Denmark).

La Dalia is a largely rural area (that includes a town) in Nicaragua (near Matagalpa and Jinotega). The sub-tropical forests and volcanic soils in this hilly region are well-suited for growing cacao trees. 

Nicaragua is one of several cacao cradle/origin countries in Central America. Cacao has been cultivated and appreciated here for centuries. Happily, a handful of dedicated farmers and fermenteries have connected with skilled artisan chocolate makers around the world in recent decades--resulting in some great chocolates.

This aroma of this bar had light, pleasant notes of concentrated/dried fruits, raw sugars, nuts, dark chocolate and very faint, freshly mowed sweet, green grass.

The creamy, rapid melt and velvety smooth texture were enjoyable and luxurious.

Over time, the brain learns to be prepared for the surprising disconnect between the sweet aroma and the bitter taste of unsweetened, 100% cacao chocolates. Added cocoa butter* can help cushion the blow.

The flavor of this unsweetened, 100% cacao bar was like landing on a large, silk cushion--which is to say, it wasn't as bitter as expected. The deep, roasted cacao bitter flavor in this two-ingredient bar did surface but it was steady and balanced; there was no scary spikiness to it. 

*Ingredients: Cacao beans, cocoa butter.

Triangle Roasters - Nicaragua - 70% Nicaragua La Colonia (bar) - Apr. 1, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Triangle Roasters
Nicaragua - 70% Nicaragua La Colonia (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 1.7 oz. (48.11 g.) in total bar
Calories: 265 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $8.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order 

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Nicaragua Theme Week.

Today's 70% Nicaragua La Colonia (bar) from Triangle Roasters (Philadelphia, PA) was well executed and complex. Its shimmering aroma and flavor notes held my attention, and sparked joy, from start to finish. 

The aroma was delightfully multi-layered with very faint green tea latte, light sponge cake, brown sugar, light spice (cinnamon, vanilla), subtle fruit (goji berry, golden raisin) notes. A few minutes later there was a very faint umami/savory (leather, mushroom) note.

The bright chocolate flavor was fruit-forward (ripe boysenberry--a cross between a raspberry and a blackberry) with a fleeting but balanced earthy nut (walnut) note. A pleasant fruity tartness bloomed (into tart cherry) after the first chew and lingered into the long finish, that ultimately ended with a polite, earthy nut note. 

The maker's notes read as follows: "toffee, blackberry, hazelnut."

Ingredients: Cacao, cane sugar.

Alfred Ritter - Cacao Selection - Dark Chocolate 61% Cacao Fine with Cacao From Nicaragua (bar)

Chocolate of the Day

Alfred Ritter GmbH and Co.
Cacao Selection - Dark Chocolate 61% Cacao Fine with cacao from Nicaragua (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.75 oz. (50 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 296.8 calories (per label) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $3.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Mollie Stone's, Sausalito, CA 

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate and NOPQ Theme Week, featuring chocolates with flavor inclusions and origin locations that start with the letters N, O, P and/or Q. And we're extending this "week" by ending with a series of chocolate bars that contain cacao from Nicaragua.

Today's "Cacao Selection - Dark Chocolate 61% Cacao Fine with Cacao from Nicaragua" (bar) was from Alfred Ritter GmbH and Co. (Waldenbuch, Germany). 

In 2019, the company launched a series of Ritter-Sport "Cacao Selection" (selected origin) bars made with just 3-4 ingredients.* (Yesterday, the Ritter Cacao Selection 74% Peru bar was featured.)

Today's bar followed the Ritter-Sports packaging tradition. A generously-sized (3.5 oz./100 g.), square bar was molded into a connected array of thick (smaller) squares. Each individual square bore the Ritter logo. To enjoy, just break off the number of squares desired to create your preferred serving size. 

This chocolate was made with Nicaraguan cacao beans,* and had a smooth dark, roasted cacao flavor. As expected this 61% cacao chocolate was brighter, sweeter and a bit smoother than yesterday's (darker, "intense") Ritter-Sport 74% Peru bar. 

Happily, neither chocolate was blandly uniform. (Many high-volume chocolates can be.) They each had plenty of true chocolate flavor, and both possessed some pleasingly complex cacao aroma and flavor nuances. Today's Nicaragua bar had an aroma with concentrated fruit (dried plums, apricots)--similar to yesterday's Peru bar. 

The flavors, however, had a shyer, sophisticated quality--with hints of cream and subtle fruit (peaches and strawberry) and pure cocoa (hot chocolate) notes. These notes are more often associated with fine cacao or heritage cacao beans. (Although the fruit notes were also brightened/elevated a bit by the greater amount of sugar in this bar.)

*Ingredients: Chocolate liquor (made from cocoa beans from Nicaragua), sugar, cocoa butter.

Allergen information: "May contain traces of peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, milk, soy and egg."

*Rainforest Alliance Certified cocoa sourcing. "We purchase a volume of UTZ and/or Rainforest Alliance Certified (tm) cocoa equivalent to the volume used in this product. www.ra.org/mb."