Chocolove - Filled Passion Fruit Ruby Chocolate 34% (bar) - Mar. 12, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Chocolove
Filled Passion Fruit Ruby Chocolate 34% Cocoa (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 3.2 oz. (90 g.) in total bar
Calories: 160 calories in 1/3 bar
Cost: $N/A - gift (Thank you Megan!)
Purchased from: N/A gift from family member 

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate and Fruits Theme Week.

Today's Passion Fruit Filled Ruby Chocolate 34% Cocoa (bar) was from Chocolove (Boulder, CO).

Aroma notes for this bar: sweet fruits (passion fruit, red berry lemonade), and berry candy.

The creamy ruby chocolate exterior had red raspberry milk tea and sweet berry white chocolate flavor notes, punctuated by pockets of soft, golden, tart-sweet, passion fruit filling.

Yes, it may a bit too sweet for dark chocolate lovers. But, what was enjoyable was the complementary candy-like blend of ruby (berry) + white (vanilla) chocolate and passion fruit filling. The two flavors and textures worked well together. 

And speaking of sweet, Chocolove has continued their tradition of including a love poem on the inside of its chocolate bar wrappers. This one was from "Astrophil and Stella" by Sir Philip Sidney. The last line includes a reference to chocolate.

Ingredients: Ruby chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, milk, cocoa liquor, soy lecithin, citric acid, vanilla), white chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, milk, soy lecithin, vanilla), cane sugar, passion fruit concentrate, passion fruit puree (passion fruit, sugar), organic cream (milk, gellan gum), organic glycerin, tapioca syrup, organic palm fruit oil, invert sugar.

Allergen-related information: "Contains milk, soy. Made in a facility that also processes eggs, peanuts, and tree nuts."

Chocolove - Ruby Chocolate 34% Cocoa (bar) - Jan. 21, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Chocolove
Ruby Chocolate 34% Cocoa (bar)
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.03 oz. (29 g.) / 3.1 oz. (87 g.) in total bar
Calories: 160 calories (per label) in 1/3 bar
Cost: $4.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Michael's, Mountain View, CA

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate, Berries and Vanilla Theme Week. (This is the first of two posts for today: one ruby chocolate bar and one dark chocolate raspberry-flavored bar.)

Today's Ruby Chocolate* 34% Cocoa (bar) was from Chocolove (Boulder, CO). 

If I ever am able to assemble enough chocolates for a Chocolate and Poetry Theme Week, I'd have to include bars/confections from Chocolove. Inside every wrapper is printed a poem of some sort. (Today's was the aptly titled: "Ruby" by Thomas Carew.)

Aroma notes for this bar included: faint berry and even fainter vanilla.

This (Milk of Magnesia) pink-colored bar had a relatively thick cocoa butter texture, melt and mouthfeel. (This was eaten in a cool, 66 degrees F. (18.8 degrees C.) room.)

Flavor notes included white chocolate and berry. There was "no berry flavor added" (but it did contain citric acid). The finish notes: berry jam and/or berry (very faintly medicinal) syrup.

Yes, this 34% cacao bar was (as expected) quite sweet; but was reasonably balanced with the tart-sweet berry flavor. The flavor was uniform with relatively low complexity (red berry with vanilla), due primarily to high sugar (and low cocoa solids) content.

For decorative use and fun and/or pink colored confections, I can see where this might be a hit. Also, for those who like white chocolate, berry and vanilla flavors.

Ingredients: Sugar, cocoa butter, milk, cocoa liquor, soy lecithin, citric acid, vanilla. 

Allergy-related information: Contains milk, soy. "Made in a facility that also processes eggs, peanuts, and tree nuts." ("No artificial preservatives; no artificial colors")

*Swiss cocoa processor Barry Callebaut introduced the pink-hued, Ruby Chocolate in 2017.  Skeptics initially questioned whether this new chocolate contained sufficient cocoa solids to warrant the term "chocolate," and wondered if this was closer to white chocolate. The company indicated that certain compounds were extracted from cacao beans grown in Ivory Coast, Ecuador and Brazil to give it its unique rosy shade. 

Cafe-Tasse - Lait Noisettes (mini bar) - Mar. 15, 2020

Chocolate of the Day:

Cafe-Tasse

Lait Noisettes mini bar

Good - Good +

Weight: 0.31 oz. (9 g.) in 1 mini bar

Calories: 50 calories (estimate) in 1 mini bar

Cost: $ N/A - part of a larger order

Purchased from: Chocosphere.com, online order

Welcome to Day #4 of Milk Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's Lait Noisettes mini bar was from Cafe-Tasse (Belgium). 

As in the previous 34% Cafe-Tasse milk chocolate mini bars this week, this one had very attractive caramel and milk chocolate aroma notes. It was smooth and sweet and contained tiny bits of nuts, giving this chocolate a very slight nutty flavor and texture as well.

Lake Champlain Chocolates - Milk Chocolate Caramel 34% bar - June 1, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Lake Champlain Chocolates

Milk Chocolate Caramel 34% cocoa (bar) 

Good

Weight: 1.236 oz. (35 g.) / 3.25 oz. (92 g.) in total bar

Calories: 170 calories in 3 blocks of bar

Cost: $1.50 (sale) for 1 bar

Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #2 Chocolate and Caramel Theme Week.

Today's Milk Chocolate Caramel 34% Cocoa (bar) was from Lake Champlain Chocolates (Burlington, VT). If you have a sweet tooth to satisfy, you might want to try this "creamy, dessert-style caramel" bar.

As promised—and a bit higher quality chocolate than similar, popular 34% caramel-filled milk chocolate bars—this sweet, smooth milk chocolate bar was filled with soft, golden caramel that politely oozed out every time a bite was taken into each square.