Kad Kokoa - Chumphon 70% Dark Chocolate (bar) - Nov. 16, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Kad Kokoa 
Chumphon 70% Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good +++
Weight: .97 oz. (27.5 g.) / 1.94 oz. (55 g.) in total bar
Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Thailand Theme Week. 

Today's Chumphon* 70% Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Kad Kokoa (Bangkok, Thailand). The company is dedicated to making premium, bean-to-bar chocolate made with locally grown cacao beans--"to introduce our wonderful Thai terroirs and their unique flavors to the world."

Intriguing and complex aroma notes for this bar included: dark chocolate (chocolate brownie); fruit (very faint, pleasing, savory tomato and red bell pepper sauce (that faded quickly); even fainter, fleeting cooked plum and berry); and faint sweet green, almost floral, botanical; very faint sweet tea (green, oolong); fleeting woodsy.

This well-tempered bar broke with a snap and had a relatively smooth, almost buttery melt.

Flavor notes for this unique and special chameleon-like bar included: chocolate (brownie, dark chocolate torte) and a unique, warming, blooming sensation that included, warm sweet molasses, very faint ginger snap cookies; faint vanilla-like green/floral; and...a luscious dive into rich, tasty chocolate.

This well-executed, balanced, complex, Thai-cacao based dark chocolate was sweet, but not overly so (thank you). And even the sweetness had some ice depth and complexity to it. I am a sucker for high-quality chocolate that has a sense of movement and depth to it. 

My favorite chocolates are transporting; and I feel like I took a wonderful, sensory field trip today. This rare travel experience is possible thanks to dedicated makers of single origin/single region chocolates.

Ingredients: "70% Cocoa Beans (and) 30% Organic Sugar"

Allergen-related information: (No allergy-related information listed on packaging.)

*Kad Kokoa provided the following background for this local cacao origin: "Chumphon, the gateway to the south of Thailand, accommodates the Horticultural Research Centre responsible for the R&D of national robusta coffee, coconuts, and cacao beans. We work with the Centre in exchanging the post-harvesting know-how so the farmers in the region can learn from the Centre to improve their production and thus, their quality of life. Strong cacao body with notes of ripe grapes and red berries."

Kad Kokoa - Andaman Blue (bar) - Nov. 15, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Kad Kokoa 
Andaman Blue (bar)
Good +
Weight: .97 oz. (27.5 g.) / 1.94 oz. (55 g.) in total bar
Calories: 165 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

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

Kad Kokoa - Andaman Blue

Today's Andaman Blue (bar) was from Kad Kokoa (Bangkok, Thailand). This bean-to-bar maker is dedicated to offering chocolates made with local (Thai grown) cacao beans, including some bars with Thai-inspired flavor inclusions.

This blue-gray hued (white) chocolate was a tribute to the beautiful, blue Andaman Sea--located west of Thailand.

Aroma notes for this bar included: sweet white chocolate, seed/grain (rice, very faint sesame*), faint coconut milk, and very faint botanical (green). 

The relatively smooth bar had a slightly grainy texture (finely ground toasted rice).

Flavor notes included: white chocolate, subtle coconut milk, rice (mostly textural), and a very faint green note (perhaps the blue spirulina, used for coloration). Overall it had a relatively gentle, sweet flavor, in part due to the absence of cocoa solids.

Nature's Organic Ice Cream - Chocolate Chocolate Chip 

Later, to ensure I had a daily dose of cocoa solids, I enjoyed a scoop of Chocolate Chocolate Chip ice cream from Nature's Organic Ice Cream (Fremont, CA), and a small handful of Thai spiced peanuts.

This local northern California, San Francisco Bay Area-based ice cream maker offers a few exotic southeast Asian and floral flavors as well. They offer high-quality ice cream flavors (dairy and non-dairy options) that don't contain extra additives (e.g. gums or carrageenan). (Thank you!) They also use organic ingredients in this chocolate flavor.

Ingredients: Cocoa Butter, Coconut Milk Powder, White Sugar, Toasted Rice, Blue Spirulina

Allergen-related information: "Made in a facility that handles nuts, dairy, and gluten."

*There was no sesame in this chocolate. Like many tasters (think wine, coffee, craft beer tasting), I may smell or taste things that may activate sense memories, or detect substances that are similar to, but don't reflect exact/literal ingredients. People have different memories and abilities in what they taste, so your experience may differ from mine.

Kad Kokoa - Salted Tamarind (bar) - Nov. 14, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Kad Kokoa 
Salted Tamarind (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.45 oz. (41.25 g.) / 1.94 oz. (55 g.) in total bar
Calories: 255 calories in 3/4 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and Thailand Theme Week. 

Today's Salted Tamarind (bar) was from Kad Kokoa (Bangkok, Thailand).

Aroma notes for this bar included: smooth dark chocolate; faint tart-sweet fruit; iced tea with lemon/citrus; and very faint light green, almost floral (sweet vanilla tobacco).

Texture: Smooth dark chocolate, interspersed with small chewy salted tamarind fruit bits, and the occasional tiny fragment of chili pepper (seed, membrane).

Flavor notes included: smooth, almost delicate bittersweet chocolate (faint, light green floral/sweet botanical notes); tart-sweet chewy sweet-sour fruit with very faint salt, and chili. The dried chili contributed a strong spicy kick toward the end (especially in the bites of chocolate that contained multiple bits of chili-spiced, tamarind fruit).

I liked the incorporation of authentic Thai flavors in this chocolate and how the chocolate and the tamarind bits interacted with each other. 

Warning: The dried chili flakes in this bar packed some serious chili heat. This will warm your palette and tickle your throat on the way down.

Ingredients: "Cocoa Nibs, Organic Sugar, Salt, Cocoa Butter, Dried Tamarind, Dried Chili Flakes"

Allergen-related information: "Made in a facility that handles nuts, dairy, and gluten."