Chocolate of the Day
Amano Artisan Chocolate
El Cayo Belize 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good +++
Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 202 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $15.00 for 1 bar (current price)
Purchased from: Bar & Cocoa, online order
Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and Central America Theme Week, including several bars crafted from Belize cacao.
Today's El Cayo Belize 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Amano Artisan Chocolate (Orem, UT).
Aroma notes for this attractively packaged* dark chocolate included: dark chocolate with dried fruits (cacao pulp, pear, red raspberry, cherry, green fig, green walnuts in syrup, and fig + vanilla cookie.
Texture: relatively smooth, thick (in a cold room), satisfying melt and mouthfeel.
Flavor notes included: chocolate-y dark chocolate (fudge brownie), vanilla marshmallow, dried fruits (mentioned above -- red berry/raspberry, red cherry and ripe plum notes arriving first, followed by tiny spikes of dried fig, dried plum, with fig + vanilla cookie (and almost undetectable sugar molasses chocolate cake/Boston Brown Bread and nuts) toward at the end of a wonderfully long finish.
I really enjoyed the flavorful, fruit-forward complexity in this well-executed Belize dark chocolate. Savor this chocolate slowly to fully enjoy all this bar has to offer from start to finish.
Normally, I'm not a huge fan of vanilla (or vanillin) being added to single origin dark chocolates. However, the judicious dose of ground vanilla bean(s) in today's bar, added a cookie/baked goods warmth and very nicely complemented the fruit notes without being too overwhelming (thank you!).
Maker's Tasting Notes: "...strong chocolate base with notes of raspberries, pears, dried cherries, and plums."
Ingredients: Cocoa Beans, Pure Cane Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Whole Vanilla Beans
Allergen-related information: "May Contain Traces of Peanuts, Tree Nuts, Soy, Wheat and Milk Products"
*The colorful artwork on the packaging was by painter Martina Shapiro.