L'Amourette -- "Almonds" Dark Chocolate with Salted Almonds 72% Cacao (bar) - July 19, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

L'Amourette Chocolat LLC  
"Almonds" - Chocolat Noir Aux Amandes Salees 72% Cacao (tablette)

(Dark Chocolate with Salted Almonds (bar))
Good ++
Weight: 1.41 oz. (40 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 250 calories in 40 g. of 1 bar
Cost: $8.63 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Market at Edgewood, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #11 of Chocolate & Salt Theme Week, and Day #2 of Chocolate & Nuts Theme Week.

Today's "Almonds" - Dark Chocolate with Salted Almonds 72% Cacao (bar) was manufactured and distributed by L'Amourette Chocolat LLC (San Francisco, CA).

The company's line of bars (including many single origin chocolates) are "handcrafted by Andre V*, who is an experienced European chocolatier. 

The cacao used in today's chocolate was: a "hand selected blend of Rio Caribe and Carenero Superior beans from Venezuela." (I've continued to be impressed that Andre has found ways to continue to feature chocolates made with Venezuelan cacao, given the ups and downs in that country in the last decade.)

Aroma notes included: fudge-y, chocolate-y, dark chocolate with subtle vanilla and faint/diffuse fruit (red fruit, dark blackberry/currant).

Texture: smooth dark chocolate with occasional (whole) almonds.

Flavor notes included: rich chocolate with extra dark fudge-brownie; and very faint fruit (dark berry, currant) and earth. the almonds added an authentically nutty accent flavor. The salt on the almonds was relatively subdued (not overdone, thank you), yet there was enough that it balanced the darker aspects of the dark chocolate nicely. 

I liked the rich and satisfying extra dark flavor in this 72% cacao bar. The chocolate was well managed and well-executed. 

Maker's tasting/aroma notes: "...luxuriant fruit-filled aroma with a hint of black currant..."

Ingredients: Cocoa Beans (Trinitario), Cocoa Butter, Cane Sugar (Vegan), Bourbon Vanilla Beans, Salted California Almonds

Allergen-related information: Contains Almonds; Manufactured in a facility that also processes nuts. Soy and Gluten Free product. Vegan.

*Andre and his wife and business partner Roxanne started L'Amourette in 2011.

Wildwood Chocolate - Salted Brown Butter Texas Pecan Brittle 70% Cacao (bar) - July 18, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Wildwood Chocolate
Salted Brown Butter Texas Pecan Brittle 70% Cacao (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.2 oz. (34 g.) / 3.53 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 180 calories in 1/3 bar
Cost: $14.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Market at Edgewood, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate and Salt Week, and Day #1 of Chocolate & Nuts Theme Week.

Today's Salted Brown Butter Texas Pecan Brittle 70% Cacao (bar) was from Wildwood Chocolate (Portland, OR). The company specializes in fine chocolates with flavors/ingredients inspired by the Pacific Northwest. But, today's bar took us closer to Texas.

Aroma notes included: dark chocolate, faint salted toffee and nut. 

Texture: fudge-y, smooth and buttery dark chocolate was piled high with pecan-studded (toffee-style) brittle hunks (think gold-hued rock candy)--creating a visually substantial look, and a multi-layered tasting experience. 

The toffee brittle was in the Goldilocks zone (texture-wise). It was wasn't too sticky-hard (it didn't yank out a dental filling) and it wasn't too soft and crumbly. 

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (fudge nut brownie, slightly earthy cocoa) topped with crystalline hunks of brittle candy and pieces of pecan.

This was a well executed bar and true to a big Texas experience. Toffee/brittle lovers will enjoy this bar; whereas I would've preferred smaller flecks of toffee. The vanilla level seemed just right, offering a touch of baked goods warmth.

I liked the complementary flavors and the slightly buttery (real butter) flavor. The salt balanced the dark chocolate and brittle, and vice versa. (The whole blend/bar tasted a bit better than the individual elements, a tribute to the bar's creator.)

Ingredients: "Bittersweet Chocolate (cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, vanilla extract), Pecan Brittle (sugar, pecans, butter (cream (milk), natural flavor), organic vanilla extract (water, organic alcohol (35%), organic vanilla bean extractives), sea salt, cream of tartar), Sea Salt."

Allergen-related information: "Contains: Milk, Tree Nuts (Pecans) and Soy. May contain traces of the following if not listed above due to shared equipment: peanuts, wheat or eggs."