Endangered Species - Smooth 72% Dark Chocolate (bar) - Sept. 9, 2023

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Endangered Species
Smooth 72% Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 255 calories in 1/2 bar (170 in 1/3 bar)
Cost: N/A - gift from family (Thank you Megan!) 
Purchased from: N/A - received as a gift from family

Welcome to Day #8 of Dark Chocolate Theme Week--a week that ends with primarily U.S. made chocolates and transitions into the first day of a Chocolate and Scandinavia Theme Week. 

(Note: See the next post for a write-up on today's second chocolate, an assortment of Summerbird Chokolade Amber Chocolates from Denmark.)

Today's "Smooth" 72% Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Endangered Species Chocolate, LLC (Indianapolis, IN). 

The company has been supporting wildlife preservation work for many years. And 10% of annual net profits are donated to organizations supporting habitats for wildlife. Each Endangered Species flavor/bar includes information on an endangered species, e.g. today's wrapper included information on the plight of the chimpanzee.

Aroma notes for this dark chocolate included: smooth, sweet, roasted dark chocolate and light, warm spice (vanilla).

This well-tempered dark chocolate broke with a snap in a cool room and the texture was smooth, thick and relatively creamy.

Flavor notes included: smooth, bold, dense dark (Forastero-like cacao variety*) roasted cacao (bold drinking chocolate with faint, warm vanilla); well managed, slight bitterness; and very faint green herb (oxalis).

Maker's description: "Dark, silky and deliciously bold, this chocolate is packed full of pure cocoa flavor, free of all artificial sweeteners or additives..."

Ingredients: "Bittersweet Chocolate (Chocolate Liquor, Cane Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin, Vanilla)."

Allergen-related information: "Contains Soy. Produced on Equipment That Also Processes Products Containing Milk, Peanuts and Tree Nuts."

*Forastero is the most common variety of cacao grown worldwide, and this type is associated with relatively bold, robust flavor that can be moderately bitter, acidic, deep and "dense" in flavor, depending on where its grown and how it is processed.