Monday, June 20, 2022

One One Cacao - Clarendon 71% Jamaican dark chocolate - June 20, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

One One Cacao 
Clarendon 71% dark chocolate (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: .35 oz. (10 g.) (estimate) in 1 sample bar
Calories: 55 calories (estimate) in 1 sample bar
Cost: N/A - Part of a six-bar tasting kit (A full-size bar was $10.00 USD.)
Purchased from: Happy Chocolate Experiences, Palo Alto, CA

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

Today's sample Clarendon 71% bar from One One Cacao (Kingston Parish, Jamaica) was the second of six sample bars from One One Cacao* (Kingston Parish, Jamaica). 

Tasting these Jamaican chocolates was made possible by Sunita de Tourreil** at Happy Chocolate Experiences. (Kits with sample bars were sent out in advance to participants, before a video conference and tasting with the makers at One One Cacao.)

Sunita's shared, online tasting experience with Nick Davis and Marta at One One Cacao yielded some great information on how the company was built. Davis, an ex-BBC correspondent, also discussed how he's developed partnerships with farmers in the different growing areas (parishes) of Jamaica, and evolved their own tree-to-bar chocolate making process over time.

One clear take-away: flavors vary among regions within this island nation. This is the case in other cacao-growing countries as well where there are different topographies, micro-climates, soil types, and farming and fermentation methods. As such, collaboration between farmers and makers is often very important.

Clarendon 71% dark chocolate

The cacao used to make this 71% dark bar was from Clarendon Parish, located in south central Jamaica, west of Kingston. 

Today's dark tasting square had subtle, complex and balanced aroma and flavor notes, including of molasses spice, faint dried fruit (rum raisins), gentle wood and naturally sweet fruity roast coffee notes.

The dark chocolate had a slightly dry, granular (faintly astringent) texture/melt. This was a subtle distraction that did little to interfere with the pleasure of tasting the relatively soft, nuanced flavors.

Maker's description: "Working alongside our partners at the Jamaica partners at the Jamaica Cocoa Farmers Association we source these beans in this central Parish of the island. Fermented up the wonderfully named Morgan's Valley area the chocolate has a wonderful summer fruit, cane rum, and all-spice flavour with hits of wood, carob, and coffee; a medium body, finely acidic/slightly tannic."

Ingredients: (Not listed on small sample bar packet)

Allergen-related information: (Not listed on small sample bar packet)

* The company name was inspired by an old Jamaican proverb: "One one cocoa, full basket" that conveys the notion that little by little, cocoa pods and beans fill baskets, baskets are filled, and goals can be met.

**Sunita de Tourreil founded The Chocolate Garage in Palo Alto, CA. Happy Chocolate Experiences provides windows into happy cacao--places, makers and (travel) destinations linked to learning about and enjoying wonderful bean-to-bar (sometimes tree-to-bar) chocolates.


  

One One Cacao - Sorrel 51% bar and Jamaican mocha almond ice cream - June 19, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

One One Cacao 
Sorrel 51% White Chocolate bar
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: .35 oz. (10 g.) (estimate) in 1 sample bar
Calories: 55 calories (estimate) in 1 sample bar
Cost: N/A - Part of a six-bar tasting kit (A full-size bar was $12.00.)
Purchased from: Happy Chocolate Experiences, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate and Jamaica Theme Week. 

Today's sample Sorrel 51% bar from One One Cacao (Kingston Parish, Jamaica) was made with Jamaican sorrel (hibiscus*)--the first of six sample bars from Jamaica chocolate maker and One One Cacao founder, Nick Davis. Tasting these bars was made possible by Sunita de Tourreil** at Happy Chocolate Experiences.

This small tasting square was full of rich, balanced aroma notes: sweet as well as botanically tart and slightly savory (green leafy) notes. The scent promised a range of flavors; and the color was intriguing. (It wasn't the typical ivory-hued white chocolate. It was a light cocoa color with a pink hue that shimmered in the sunlight.) 

This chocolate had a true, rich cocoa buttery texture with a smooth, even melt.

The flavor was full and complex, in all the right ways. Bright tart hibiscus (aka Flor de Jamaica, sorrel) notes conveyed the full authentic floral flavor of this Jamaican flower--that brightened up the flavorful Jamaica cacao butter base. This was the best white chocolate I've had in years; and it wasn't too sweet (thank you!). 

Maker's description: "Sorrel adds a wonderful fruity flavour and ruby like colour to this most Jamaican of flavours. It's not called Flor De Jamaica for nothing! We love white chocolate but can kinda be a bit meh for lots of purists, but locally pressed cacao from our trinitario trees have so much flavour, combined with this hibiscus make for a match made in chocolate haven."

Ingredients: Not listed on small sample bar

Allergen-related information: Not listed on small sample bar

For those who remember that I don't "count" white chocolate as a Chocolate of the Day, I did pair this lovely white (mauve-hued) chocolate with a small bowl of homemade Jamaican Jamocha almond fudge ice cream. It had the flavor of an affogato (a shot of espresso over vanilla gelato), only with a shot of Jamaican coffee over coffee ice cream plus 82% Sail Shipped Belize cacao dark chocolate and toasted almonds.

And for you botanical-philes, the color "mauve" is derived from the color of mallow flowers (several are purple-pink). Fittingly, in today's case, the edible members of the mallow (Malvaceae) family also include hibiscus and cacao. 

**Sunita previously founded Chocolate Dividends, and was proprietor of (and a wonderful chocolate concierge at) The Chocolate Garage in Palo Alto, CA. Happy Chocolate Experiences provides windows into happy cacao--places, makers and destinations--and of course wonderful chocolate.


 

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