Ritual Chocolate - Orange Cranberry Bar 46% Cacao - Feb. 3, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Ritual Chocolate
Orange Cranberry Bar 46% Cacao 
Good ++
Weight: 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 420 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $11.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Whole Foods, Los Altos, CA

Welcome to Day #14 of Chocolate, Warm Spices & Maple Theme Week.

Today's Orange Cranberry Bar 46% Cacao was from Ritual Chocolate (Heber City, UT). I paired this chocolate with a hot, spiced cider (with an extra dash of cinnamon).

Aroma and flavor notes included: rich, sweet, milk chocolate; caramel; and fruit (dark red berry/cranberry; subtle, authentic citrus (orange)).

Texture: creamy, smooth, orange extract-infused milk chocolate broke with a light snap. About every third bite contained a whole, plump, dried cranberry--that was moist, softly chewy and satisfying. 

The ruby-hued, dried cranberries were sweetened, but weren't overly sweet (thank you).

This was a sweet, holiday chocolate. (When the cacao content of a chocolate dips into the 40% cacao range (less than 50% cacao), relatively more sugar can mask cacao and other flavors.) But the complementary, balanced and authentic cacao, citrus and cranberry elements in this bar helped balance the sweetness.

I appreciated the thoughtful execution behind this orange milk chocolate with cranberries bar and the choice of organic, authentic-tasting ingredients.

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Orange Zest, Cranberry & Light Caramel"

Ingredients: Organic Cacao, Organic Cane Sugar, Organic A1/A2 Whole Milk Powder, Organic Cocoa Butter, Organic Cranberries (Organic Dried Cranberries, Organic Sunflower Oil), Orange Extract (Organic Sunflower Oil, Organic Orange Oil)

Allergen-related information: "Contains Milk." "Manufactured in a facility that also processes Milk, Tree Nuts, and Wheat." 

Compartes - The Beverly Hills Hotel and Bungalows Deep Milk Chocolate (bar) - Nov. 27, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Compartes Chocolatier
The Beverly Hills Hotel and Bungalows Deep Milk Chocolate (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 240 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.95 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Compartes Chocolatier, online order

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate, Movies & Entertainment Theme Week on Chocolate Banquet. Also, Happy Thanksgiving to all who are celebrating and feeling grateful today.

Today's The Beverly Hills Hotel and Bungalows Deep Milk Chocolate (bar) was from Compartes Chocolatier (Los Angeles, CA). 

Compartes offers a wide selection of chocolates with different flavor inclusions, including several with references to Hollywood, movies and/or entertainment. 

Aroma and flavor notes for today's Beverly Hills Hotel-themed bar included: sweet milk chocolate. 

This sweet, creamy and rich 46% cacao milk chocolate was also addictive. It was gone all too quickly--just like the Hollywood stars who've visited The Beverly Hills Hotel since it opened in 1912.

I enjoyed the bar's attractive packaging--with lush greenery and flowers inspired by the hotel grounds (and the wallpaper inside) this pink- and green-tinged Beverly Hills resort. (The hotel may even carry Compartes Chocolatier Beverly Hills Hotel-themed bars. After stopping at the gift shop to check, I'd head to the Polo Lounge for a chocolate souffle.)

I "paired" this chocolate with a classic film: "Designing Woman" (1957) starring Lauren Bacall and Gregory Peck. (Their characters in this film met at the famed hotel.) I also enjoyed a documentary called "The Beverly Hills Hotel: A Red Carpet Glamour House" -- a fitting tribute to the Pink Palace.*

Ingredients: Milk Chocolate (Cocoa Mass, Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Milk, Soy Lecithin as an emulsifier, Vanilla)

Allergen-related information: Contains Milk, Soy. "Gluten Free"

*The choice of pink was allegedly inspired by the colors in southern California sunsets.

 

Froken Frankenstein Chocolatier - Choklad Havtorn Kakaohalt 46% (bar) - Oct. 25, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Froken Frankenstein Chocolatier
Choklad Havtorn Kakaohalt 46% (bar)
Good ++
Weight: .97 oz. (27.5 g.) / 1.94 oz. (55 g.) in total bar
Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $N/A - gift 
Purchased from: N/A - gift from Toni 

God morgon (good morning) and welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and Fruits Theme Week.

Today's Choklad Havtorn Kakaohalt 46% (bar) from Froken (Miss) Frankenstein Chocolatier was from Oland, Sweden. 

This chocolate contained havtorn (sea buckthorn)--a plant with small, tart orange fruits (berries).*

Aroma and flavor notes included: creamy milk chocolate with very faint, gently tart-sweet fruit (light persimmon, orange berry, kumquat, sweetened sour orange).

Texture: rich, creamy milk chocolate with a satisfying melt layer of berry-infused sugar on one side. The tiny, crunchy, berry sugar crystals added a bit of texture and very subtle flavor. I also enjoyed the leaf motif on the bar. The "leaves" were gently highlighted with cocoa butter "paint." 

I appreciated the authentically extra-creamy milk chocolate texture; the subtle cocoa; the sugar with the berry juice; and the lovely botanical illustration by a local Swedish artist.** 

I felt very grateful to taste sea buckthorn in a new way, thanks to my friend who brought this bar back with her--all the way from the island of Oland in Sweden. (Thank you Toni!) This was a lovely virtual travel experience.

Ingredients: Cocoa beans from the Dominican Republic, cocoa butter, whole milk powder, sugar, emulsifier (sunflower lecithin), vanilla extract, sea buckthorn juice (from a sea buckthorn garden in Oland).

Allergen-related information: May contain nuts and soy.

*Sea buckthorn (Hippophae Rhamnoides) has been used by humans for thousands of years as a food and for medicinal uses. The berries, leaves and seeds are edible. (Not to be confused with other"buckthorn(e)" berries that are often in a different family and may or may not be edible/enjoyable to sample.)

**Emma Tinnert is a biologist, artist and illustrator that lives in Orland, Sweden.

Taitau - No Sugar Added 46% Milk Chocolate (bar) - Sept. 1, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Taitau (Tai Tau)
No Sugar Added 46% Milk Chocolate (bar)
Good 
Weight: .706 oz. (20 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 100 in 1 serving (3 squares)
Cost: $3.39 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Crossroads Specialty Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Lithuania Theme Week.

Today's No Sugar 46% Milk Chocolate (bar) from Taitau (Tai Tau) Exclusive Selection (Lietuva, Lithuania) was imported into the U.S. by B&I Overseas Trading Inc. (Van Nuys, CA).

This bar was made using "premium quality Granada cocoa beans." 

Aroma notes for this bar included: dark chocolate, subtle vanilla, very faint light spice (cinnamon), and even fainter spice-wood.  

The texture was uniformly smooth and creamy, almost buttery.

Flavor notes were similar to the aroma notes, and included: balanced, dark milk chocolate (cocoa, ganache), subtle vanilla, followed by a sizable uptick in erythritol (slight menthol sensation, overly sweet).

I'd hoped this might be a milk chocolate bar without any sweeteners, i.e. where only the natural sugars in the milk supply the sweetness. (I love the few chocolates that offer this experience.) This chocolate may be a welcome offering for those who can't have sugar; but the taste of erythritol (alternative sweetener) was too strong for me to enjoy.

Ingredients: "Cocoa butter, sweetener - erythritol, skimmed milk powder, cocoa mass, emulsifier - rapeseed (canola) lecithin, flavouring vanillin. Contains naturally occurring sugars. Contains at least 46% of cocoa solids, and 22% of dry milk solids."

Allergen-related information: "Contains milk." "This product may contain traces of hazelnuts and wheat gluten." "Excessive consumption may cause laxative effects."

Hogarth Chocolate Makers - Kumara Milk Chocolate with Sweet Potato Flavour 46% Cacao (bar) - Aug. 12, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Hogarth Chocolate Makers
Kumara Milk Chocolate with Sweet Potato Flavour 46% Cacao (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 2.46 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 204 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate and Surprise Theme Week--a week that includes several chocolates with unique ingredients and surprising blends.

Today's Kumara Milk Chocolate with Sweet Potato Flavour 46% Cacao (bar) was made from bean-to-bar by Hogarth Chocolate Company Ltd. (Nelson, New Zealand).

I was surprised to find a second sweet potato-related (Kumara) chocolate to feature today. This is only the 4th time (in almost 17 years and 6,000+ different chocolates) that I've found a blend of these two ingredients. 

Days ago, I featured a Batata (sweet potato) chocolate bar from Arcelia Gallardo (Mission Chocolate, Sao Paolo, Brazil). (Both the cacao and the Batata in Arcelia's chocolate were from South/Latin America.*) 

Today's chocolate included not one but three varieties* of Kumara, in the form of crisps (aka chips in the U.S.) from Proper Crisps (Nelson, New Zealand). 

Aroma notes included: light chocolate, clean mineral, and pleasant botanical green tea and sweet straw.

The texture and melt were smooth and creamy. (All Kumara crisps seemed to be thoroughly incorporated into the chocolate).

Flavor notes included: smooth, flavorful milk chocolate; light sweet potato; light caramel; and very faint botanical: oolong and green teas, sweet cereal, and soft/diffuse fruit.

This was a surprisingly light, and likable, chocolate, in part due to the choice of a criollo cacao variety. The maker (Karl Hogarth) notes that "...our Peruvian criollo cacao...highlights the caramelisation of the crisps, adding caramel and fruit notes..." 

Criollo (heritage) variety cacao(s) are subtle, nuanced and flavorful, and are known for soft stone fruit (think peaches and cream), light caramel, clean mineral, and very faint floral notes. Criollo cacao is lower in bitterness as well. Great choice for this Kumara crisp-flavored chocolate.

Ingredients: Cocoa solids 46% (Cocoa Beans*^, Cocoa Butter*^), Sugar*^, Proper Kumara Crisps, Skim Milk Powder (*Organic, ^ Fair Trade)

Allergen-related information: Contains dairy (milk powder). "Gluten Free, Soy Free"

*Batatas, Kumara and Sweet Potatoes...Many varieties and cultivars, many stories, and at least two different origin stories.

White and red potatoes are part of the nightshade family and developed in South America. Sweet potatoes (part of the morning glory, not the nightshade family), were also thought to originate in South America. Recent research has suggested the morning glory clan (including sweet potatoes) may have originated in Asia, based on 50-60 million year old plant fossils. (Stay tuned for more origin stories from the paleo-botanists.)

More recently, there has been considerable botanical moving and mixing (some by earth changes, some by humans).

We do know that Kumara has long been cultivated in the South Pacific. Some sources say the Kumara is slightly sweeter than our (American) sweet potato; but I can't be sure as I've never done a side-by-side tasting; and I think that would depend on variety/cultivar. (We grow mostly Beauregard variety of sweet potato in the U.S.)

Getting back to today's bar...Crisp maker, Proper Crisps, "make their crisps using seasonally selected (Kumara) varieties, mostly Red Kumara (Owairaka), Gold Kumara (Toka Toka) and Orange Kumara (Beauregard)."

Oodaalolly - Coconut Milk Chocolate with Kasama Rum 46% (bar) - Dec. 26, 2021

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Oodaalolly, LLC

Coconut Milk Chocolate with Kasama Rum 46% (bar)

Good +

Weight: 1.41 oz. (40 g.) / 2.82 oz. (80 g.) in total bar

Calories: 219 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar

Cost: $8.00 for 1 bar ($24 for set of 3 bars)

Purchased from: Oodaalolly, LLC, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Holiday Spirits Theme Week.

Today's Coconut Milk Chocolate (bar) infused with Kasama Rum* was from Oodaalolly, LLC (El Cerrito, CA). This was part of a three-bar Christmas Collection (that also included Kasama Cacao 70% dark chocolate, and White Chocolate with Pineapple Chunks (bars)--all with a very subtle hint of Kasama Rum.

Oodaalolly chocolate maker and company founder, Hernan Lauber, sources cacao from (a co-op) in the Davao region of the Philippines to make his chocolates. 

The aroma notes for this bar included: sweet, rich milk chocolate, coconut, caramel, and faint fruit (pineapple).

The 46% cacao chocolate had a smooth, relatively creamy texture and slow melt (at 65 F. degrees room temperature). The rich coconut milk chocolate flavor was sweet with some interesting complexity (richness from coconut milk, a mild fruitiness), and a relatively low acidity and minimal bitterness. 

The Kasama Rum infused cacao was very faint, but likely added to the subtle complexity. There was no detectable alcohol flavor. 

Ingredients: "Sugar, Kasama Cacao, coconut milk powder, cocoa butter."

Allergen-related information: "Made in a facility that uses milk, soy, peanuts and/or tree nuts for Oodaalolly LLC..."

*Kasama Rum is produced in small batches by Alexandra Dorda (who has Polish and Filipino roots). Ingredients (sugar cane, other) from the Philippines are sent to Poland for distillation, aging in oak barrels/finishing. Tasting notes: "Kasama has all the flavors of the tropics: pineapple, a hint of vanilla and just a pinch of sea salt." ("Kasama is a tagalog verb that means to be together.") 

Alter Eco Foods - Organic Chocolate Grass Fed Milk with rice crunch - 46% cacao (bar) - Oct. 5, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Alter Eco Foods
Organic Chocolate Grass Fed Milk with rice crunch 46% cacao (bar)
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.325 oz. (37.5 g.) / 2.65 oz. (75 g.) in total bar
Calories: 205 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: Rainbow Grocery, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and Grass-Fed Milk Theme Week.

Today's Organic Chocolate Grass Fed Milk with rice crunch 46% cacao (bar) was made in Switzerland and distributed by Alter Eco Foods (San Francisco, CA). This bar was third in a series of three organic, grass fed milk chocolate bars from the company.

As was the case for the first two grass fed milk bars, the milk was supplied by cows grazing in Swiss Alpine pastures; and the cacao was from farmers in Peru. 

Also, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the long history of Swiss milk chocolate. There was something akin to the space race in the 1800s to arrive at the formula for a shelf-stable, milk chocolate bar. The Swiss, French and British were all in hot pursuit of the process that would allow for successful melding of these two edibles--that was first achieved in beverage form (perhaps by a Brit in Jamaica as early as the 1600s). 

But to create a more durable milk chocolate bar took a bit more tinkering. Although others were involved, Swiss chocolatier Daniel Peter receives a large measure of the credit for solving this problem in 1875-6, using powdered milk developed by Henri Nestle--whose creamery was near Peter's factory.

Today's generous helping of embedded crisped rice in the Alter Eco 46% milk bar balanced the relatively bold chocolate aroma and flavor (similar to yesterday's Alter Eco grass fed milk chocolate bar with salted almonds). Although yesterday's salt and almond inclusions helped balance the milk and cacao and sugar. Today's crisp rice acted as a very pleasing crunchy counterpart to the smooth Swiss milk chocolate, but did not tap the brakes on the sugar as successfully as the salted almonds did.

Ingredients: Organic raw cane sugar, organic cacao beans, organic cocoa butter, rice crisp (organic rice, organic raw cane sugar) organic whole milk, organic butterfat.

Alter Eco Foods - Organic Chocolate Grass Fed Milk with salted almonds (bar) - Oct. 4, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Alter Eco Foods
Organic Chocolate Grass Fed Milk with salted almonds (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 2.65 oz. (75 g.) in total bar
Calories: 440 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: Rainbow Grocery, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and Grass-Fed Milk Theme Week.

Today's Organic Chocolate Grass Fed Milk with salted almonds (bar) was made in Switzerland and distributed by Alter Eco Foods (San Francisco, CA).

The bar was part of a series of organic, grass fed milk chocolate bars from the company, with the milk coming from Alpine pastured cows in Switzerland, and the cacao from farmers in Peru.

All three grass fed bars featured this week had a similar slightly earthy, gamey, balanced bitter aroma. The milk tempered sharp edges, but today's salted almonds, a single flavor inclusion, magically balanced everything. (Today's salted almond version was my favorite of the three bars in the series that I sampled.)

The salt, nut and malt flavor nuts almonds created a great balance, creating hearty, milk chocolate flavors, even for a 46% cacao (dark) milk bar.

Ingredients: Organic raw cane sugar, organic

Alter Eco Foods - Organic Chocolate Grass Fed Milk 46% Cocoa (bar) - Oct. 3, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Alter Eco Foods
Organic Chocolate Grass Fed Milk 46% Cocoa (bar)  
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.325 oz. (37.5 g.) / 2.65 oz. (75 g.) in total bar
Calories: 215 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $4.00 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: Rainbow Grocery, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Grass-Fed Milk Theme Week.

Today's Organic Chocolate Grass Fed Milk 46% Cocoa (bar) was made in Switzerland and distributed by Alter Eco Foods (San Francisco, CA). 

Full fat milk powder melds with cacao in a satisfying way. Milk softens cacao flavors and often the reverse is true as well (if there are flavors still left in the milk after processing).

This Alter Eco dark milk bar (made with Peruvian cacao) had a smooth texture and melt, and was unapologetically bold (Forastero-like) from the start, with only the sharpest edges burnished down. The aroma of this rich, robust milk chocolate bar had a faint gamey and rich, earthy bitter-bold aroma and flavor. 

The chocolate did have a darker/bolder flavor than one would expect for a 46% cacao milk chocolate and/or Peruvian cacao origin bars we've tasted in recent years. 

The rich, deep flavor notes initially held the bright, sugar taste in check, and were eventually overtaken by the raw cane sugar, and a sweet finish. 

It would be interesting to try versions of this chocolate with different types of milk powder to more accurately determine the milk's flavor contribution. Extra points for going with organic grass fed milk, and for providing an interesting tasting experience.

Ingredients: *Organic raw cane sugar, organic cacao beans, organic cocoa butter, organic whole milk, organic butterfat.

Fruition Chocolate - Harney & Sons Tea Bar - Hot Cinnamon Spice (bar) - Sept. 3, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Fruition Chocolate
Harney and Sons Tea Bar - Hot Cinnamon Spice 46% Milk Chocolate (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 325 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $9.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Rainbow Grocery, San Francisco, CA 

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Tea Theme Week.

Today's Hot Cinnamon Spice 46% Milk Chocolate bar was a collaboration between Harney and Sons Master Tea Blenders (Millerton, NY) and Fruition Chocolate (Shokan, NY). 

This chocolate possessed a warm cinnamon tea aroma and flavor. (The spiciness implied in the "hot" cinnamon name may have been mellowed a bit by milk powder, cocoa butter and sugar.)

The bar had a satisfying, very creamy milk chocolate melt and texture, and a light lingering sweet cinnamon spice finish. 

The cacao (beans) used to make this bean-to-bar milk chocolate were from Chuno, Nicaragua.

Ingredients: Cocoa beans, cane sugar, cocoa butter, whole milk powder, Harney and Sons Hot Cinnamon Spice (tm) tea (black tea, orange peel, natural cinnamon flavor, cinnamon, clove), orange oil, cinnamon.

Pascha Chocolate - 46% Cacao Orange bar - Jan. 4, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Pascha Organic Chocolate / Pascha Chocolate Co.

46% Cacao Orange bar

Good

Weight: .55 oz. (15 g.) / 1.1 oz. (30 g.) in total bar

Calories: 90 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $1.99 for 1 bar

Purchased from: The Market (at Edgewood), Palo Alto, CA 

Welcome to the first day of Chocolate and Peru Theme Week.

Today's 46% Cacao Orange bar from Pascha Organic Chocolate (Toronto, Ontario) was made with organic rice milk and Peruvian cacao.

Co-founder, Simon Lester, had two daughters with food allergies, which helped inspired Lester and his wife to create Pascha Chocolate Co. bars.

Like other Pascha bars, this organic, vegan, plant-based bar was free of most common allergens (nuts, peanuts, wheat, gluten, milk, dairy, soy, eggs, sesame). The Orange bar tasted like a sweet milk chocolate bar with a hint of natural orange (oil).*

*Ingredients: organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter, organic rice milk powder (rice syrup, rice starch, rice flour), organic chocolate liquor, sunflower lecithin, orange oil

Patric Chocolate - Sweet and Sassy Milk bar - Nov. 21, 2017

Chocolate of the Day:

Patric Chocolate
Sweet and Sassy Milk bar
Good++ - Very Good
Weight: 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 345 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $15.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #2 of Milk Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's Sweet and Sassy Milk bar was created by Alan "Patric" McClure of Patric Chocolate (Columbia, MO). Alan has produced several award-winning dark milk (and dark) bars.

This creamy dark milk (46% cacao) chocolate bar offered sophisticated rich buttery caramel sweetness tempered with a touch of sea salt.

The bar was made with a short list of high-quality ingredients (organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter, organic whole milk powder, cacao, sea salt).

Don't reach for this rich sweet and salty confection if you're overly hungry. It will completely vanish in minutes.