The Chocolate Conspiracy - Americano Chai with Milk Chocolate Bar - Apr. 8, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

The Chocolate Conspiracy
Americano Chai with Milk Chocolate Bar
Good ++
Weight: 1.6 oz. (45 g.) in total bar
Calories: 250 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $16.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Conspiracy, online order

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Tea Week.

Today's Americano Chai with Milk Chocolate Bar was made (from bean-to-bar) by The Chocolate Conspiracy (Salt Lake City, UT).

This chocolate was "crafted with organic, unroasted, single-origin Peruvian cacao beans and sweetened with organic coconut palm sugar."

Aroma and flavor notes for this tea-infused dark milk bar included: dark chocolate (relatively dark, bold but balanced, with very faint earth); and subtle infused spices (star anise, clove, cinnamon, citrus (orange peel tea), and faint herbal/fennel*). 

I liked the 1.) small quantity of milk that contributed to a smoother texture, but didn't muffle the cacao and spices--flavors that were mellowed, not overwhelmed; 2.) choice of coconut palm sugar (that added warmth, helped slow/minimize the sugar buzz); and 3.) short list of authentic, less-processed, quality ingredients (no emulsifiers, "Natural Flavors").

Ingredients: Raw Organic Cacao Beans, Raw Organic Cacao Butter, Organic Coconut Palm Sugar, Tea Blend (Black Tea, Orange Peel, Clove, Cinnamon), Milk Powder. 

Allergen-related information: Contains Dairy. Manufactured in a facility that also processes peanuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts, pecans, coconut, and pistachios.

*Note: there was no fennel (or star anise) in the tea blend listed in the ingredients.

 

Fossa Chocolate - Osmanthus & Golden Berries 56% Dark Milk (bar) - Apr. 7, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Fossa Chocolate
Osmanthus & Golden Berries 56% Dark Milk (bar)
Good +++
Weight: 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 251.5 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $14.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Village Market, Ferry Building, San Francisco, CA

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

Today's 56% Dark Milk Osmanthus & Golden Berries (bar) was from Fossa Chocolate Pte Ltd (Singapore).

The cacao used to make this bar was from "Paquibato Village in Davao City" in the Philippines. 

Tiny white Osmanthus flowers also contributed flavor to this dark milk chocolate. These fragrant blooms are used to flavor oolong, green, black and herbal teas, and tea blends. The tiny blossoms have a lovely, sweet, apricot-like scent.*

Aroma and flavor notes included: dark chocolate (bold but balanced), tart sweet fruit (golden berries, sweet, sun-dried tomato, golden raisin, dried apricot), faint floral, and very faint (barely detectable) earth.

Texture: smooth, creamy dark chocolate and chewy pieces of dried golden berries.

As with every Fossa Chocolate bar I've tasted to date, the flavors in this chocolate were very well-balanced, well-integrated and executed, and authentic. Their choices of single origin cacao(s) and teas--as well as fruits, spirits and unique botanicals). Single origin and high-quality ingredients really do matter.

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Delicate floral aroma with morsels of fruity berries"

Ingredients: "Cacao, cane sugar, cacao butter, dehydrated golden berries, milk powder, osmanthus flower"

Allergen-related information: Contains Milk. "Produced in a facility that processes nuts & dairy."

*Osmanthus is a genus of about 30 species in the Oleaceae family. Osmanthus is sometimes referred to as "tea olive" or "fragrant tree olive" as it is in the olive family.

The Osmanthus used in this bar came from Southern China. (It also grows near where I live in California. Its perfume emanates from a tall green hedge with tiny clusters of ivory-colored flowers. The scent is strong and alluring on some days, and dormant on other days.)