Chocolate(s) of the Day
To'ak Chocolate
Kampot Pepper chocolate square
Good +++
Weight: .106 oz. (3 g.) for 1 square / 1.9 oz. (54 g.) in total bar/package of 18
Calories: 21 calories in 1 square
Cost: N/A - holiday gift from family
Purchased from: N/A - holiday gift from family (thank you Megan and Tony!)
Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and Ecuador Theme Week.
Today's "Kampot Pepper" (2019 Harvest) Ecuadorian Dark Chocolate small square was part of a six-flavor, tasting square assortment--made from tree-to-bar in Ecuador by To'ak Chocolate (Quito, Ecuador). To'ak specializes in high-end, Ecuadorian cacao-based chocolates.
The makers use Ecuador's famed "Nacional" cacao variety, an historically prized cacao. (In the 1900s, disease diminished cacao harvests for decades. Happily, this rare variety still exists.*) And today's chocolate was blended with Kampot Pepper (a black peppercorn cultivar from Cambodia).
Aroma and flavor notes for today's 75% dark chocolate included: subtle dark chocolate; faint spice and aromatic black/green peppercorn; aromatic wood; clean mineral; and very faint nut; and faint, diffuse sweet citrus fruit (orange). The nuanced, aged pepper flavors were fantastic with this chocolate. There was no fiery heat, just lots of wonderful flavor.
The texture of this tasting square was well tempered, uniformly smooth, thick (in a cool room) and relatively creamy.
Sugar was used judiciously; that is less sugar allowed these truly unique and wonderful aged pepper and cacao flavors to really shine. (Thank you!)
Maker's tasting notes: "Black pepper, woody, citrus, brown fruits"
Ingredients: Organic Heirloom Cacao Beans, Organic Sugar
Allergen-related information: "May contain traces of milk, soy or nuts."
*The disease in this case was Witches Broom, a plant gall disease (caused by fungus and other contributing causes) that disfigures plants. It also significantly affected cacao harvests in Brazil in the 1980s.
In the maker's words: "As of 2009, pure Nacional cacao was believed to be extinct. Our journey led us to the secluded valley of Piedra de Plata, where we found some of the last surviving trees..."
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