Sirene Chocolate Makers - Limited Edition No Sugar Milk 60% Dark Milk (bar)

Chocolate of the Day 

Sirene Chocolate
Limited Edition - No Sugar Milk 60% Dark Milk (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 2.47 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 191 calories in (estimate) 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA 

Welcome to Day #3 of Unique Chocolates Theme Week.

Today's Limited Edition - No Sugar Milk 60% Dark Milk (bar) was from Sirene Chocolate (Victoria, B.C., Canada).

Why was this bar unique? It contained no added sugar, and yet it was (to my taste) sweet. It was a great opportunity to taste how sweet a dark milk chocolate can be--without added sugar(s). Surprisingly, this was only the third bar I've tried in 18 years like this.

I enjoyed the creamy texture, milk chocolate mouthfeel and melt, the authentic sweetness supplied by the milk and the very slight bitterness toward the finish. The milk mellowed any bitterness (or absence of sugar).

The claims of "no sugar" or "sugar free" chocolates in the past meant artificial sweeteners or some other sweetener sleight of hand. However, today's two-ingredient bar, let us know that the milk (lactose) alone can do the job. I hope I'm able to try more chocolates like this in the future.

Ingredients: "cacao beans, whole milk powder"

Allergen-related information: Contains Milk. "Made In A Nut Free Facility, Soy Free, Gluten Free" 

Sirene - Pure Cacaco Pur 100% Ecuador (Costa Esmeraldas) bar - March 3, 2020

Chocolate of the Day:

Sirene Chocolate
Pur Chocolate Pure - 100% bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) pkg. of 2 bars
Calories: 165 calories (estimate) in 1 small bar
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: missing information

Welcome to Day #5 of 100% Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's 100% Cacao Pure Cacao Pur Ecuador (Costa Esmeraldas Plantation) bar from Sirene Chocolate (Victoria, B.C., Canada) had a relatively mild dark chocolate, a faint, soft green aroma and flavor, and a relatively thick, uniform, creamy melt. The ultra-dark bar had dense dark, roasted cacao flavor with an occasional light earthy/loamy note, and a well-balanced bitterness that lingered in the finish.

Like all 100% cacao offerings with a deep bass ebony color and flavor, today's bar was not for those who prefer sweet or delicate chocolate. However, if you savor and appreciate the unadulterated essence of 100% cacao, you'll want to include this Sirene bar in your personal lineup.

Sirene Chocolate - Vanua Levu, Fiji 73% Dark Chocolate bar - July 6, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Sirene Chocolate
Vanua Levu, Fiji, 73% Dark Chocolate bar
Good ++
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar
Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: missing information

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Island Nations Theme Week.

Today's Vanua Levu, Fiji, 73% Dark Chocolate bar was crafted at Sirene Chocolate (Victoria, British Columbia (located on Vancouver island), Canada).

Cacao used in this bar came from the Dreketi Cocoa Farm (Vanua Levu, Fiji), that raises Amelonado cocoa. Vanua Levu is one of the two largest islands in Fiji* located in the South Pacific.

This bar had a smooth texture, well-balanced dark chocolate, dried fruit (light raisin, mango, other) flavor notes with a hint of green (tea), and a pleasant, lingering finish.

*Fiji is an island nation comprised of 330 islands. Vanua Levu, located in Northern Fiji, is the second largest island, and is also one of the more populated islands. Cacao cultivation in Fiji dates back to the 1800s, when the British likely brought cacao seeds or trees from Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and Trinidad.

The Matasawalevu Cocoa Farm in Dreketi, Makuata, in Vauua Levu, and other farms and groups like Cacao Fiji, are working to spread the word and expand Fiji cacao production and exports. And chocolate makers around the world who make nice bars like this one will also help increase demand for cacao in this island nation.

Sirene Chocolate - 65% Madagascar Soma Plantation Bar - Dark Milk - Nov. 2, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Sirene Chocolate
65% Madagascar Soma Platation Bar - Dark Milk
Good ++
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total pkg. of 2 different bars
Calories: 159 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 package of two different dark milk bars
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Single Origin Dark Milk Chocolate Theme Week.

This morning's chocolate,  a 65% Madagascar Somia Plantation Bar - Dark Milk, was the sibling of yesterday's chocolate from Sirene Chocolate (Victoria, B.C., Canada). Sirene offers some great side-by-side tasting opportunities, with two, individually-wrapped, single origin bars in one package.

The Maker's notes about the cacao beans from Madagascar:

"In the Sambirano Valley of Northern, Madagascar, the Akesson family harvest a bean enriched with volcanic minerals and nutrients. With its strong, fruity flavours, including hints of citrus and berry, the cacao is clearly a product of climate, soil and the dedication of a family that has been farming cacao for generations."

Classic Akesson-farm Madagascar flavor notes, red raspberries and pleasing citrus, were indeed part of this tasting experience. And they were muted only slightly by the addition of creamy milk flavor and texture.

Apologies to Sirene. This bar received a bright intense beam of early morning sunshine right before it was photographed, so it started to melt and the bar, wrapped in gold foil, looks a bit wrinkled. It was certainly crisp, flat and professionally wrapped moments before this.

Sirene Chocolate - 65% Lachua, Guatemala Dark Milk bar - Nov. 1, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Sirene Chocolate
65% Lachua, Guatemala Bar - Dark Milk
Good++
Weight: .53 oz. (15 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total pkg. of 2 different bars
Calories: 79.5 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 package of two different dark milk bars
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Single Origin Dark Milk Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's 65% Lachua, Guatemala Dark Milk Bar from Sirene Chocolate (Victoria, B.C., Canada) was one of two single origin dark milk bars in one package.

This Sirene bar was exactly what you'd hope for from a single origin dark milk bar, it was smooth and flavorful, with an added slight creaminess and a hint of caramel from milk.

The maker's tasting notes about the origin of the cacao beans were as follows:

"In the lush, mountainous department of Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, generations of knowledge and a heritage tracing back to cacao's origin in the Mayan civilization, to into the cultivation of these cacao trees. For these farmers, access to a burgeoning, international market allows them to benefit from a real economic opportunity while producing a beautiful cacao bean."

Sirene Chocolate - Winter Warmer bar - Dec. 27, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Sirene Chocolate

Winter Warmer bar

Very Good 

Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar

Calories: 132 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar

Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate, Holiday Spices and Maple Theme Week.

Today's Winter Warmer bar from Sirene Chocolate (Victoria, BC, Canada) was a delicious creation of dark milk chocolate—made from cacao beans grown in "balmy Tanzanie" (Tanzania*)—

nutmeg and cloves.

The scent of this bar was full of fresh spice and herb notes, despite there being "just" nutmeg and cloves infused into very fine chocolate.

There was no star anise, black pepper, allspice or bay, yet there were whispers of these—and all kinds of heavenly cacao flavors—in this creamy, smooth, very-well executed bar with wonderful depth.

Many holiday chocolates are considered novelties and are not made with the highest-quality (or percentage) cacao. So to sample this bar was to experience much happiness and gratitude.

Sadly, this bar was seasonal and is likely no longer available.

*Tanzania is a republic in East Africa near the Indian Ocean, and the source of some great small batch single origin bars in recent years.

Sirene - 73% Ecuador + 73% Madagascar Bars - Nov. 5, 2017

Chocolate(s) of the Day:

Sirene Chocolate
73% Ecuador Bar
Good ++ - Very Good
73% Madagascar Bar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (56.6 g.) in 2 bars
Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1/2 of 2 bars
Cost: $13.00 for 1 package of 2 bars
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #15 of South American Chocolate Theme Weeks.

Today we're featuring another* side-by-side pairing Sirene Artisan Chocolate Makers (Victoria, Canada). Unfortunately, a bad cold today has reduced my ability to smell and taste. My apologies to the makers for that.

73% Ecuador Bar
This bar, from what I could taste, was a well balanced bar with lots of true chocolate flavor, with more sweetness and brightness than yesterday's 100% Ecuador bar, due to the addition of cane sugar.

73% Madagascar Bar
The second bar had almost the same bright citrus and berry notes (raspberry lemonade) as yesterday's 100% Madagascar bar, and a slight brownie/cookie note toward the end. I'm tempted to say that some of the amazing fruit notes were muted by the sugar (and not by my cold).

Not only was it very interesting to do a side-by-side tasting of 100% versions these two origin bars, it was also great to compare the 100% with their 73% counterparts. As for my taste, if you have a great 100% bar, why dilute them with sugar? But, Sirene did such a nice job with all of these versions, that you can't lose either way.

Sirene founder, Taylor Kennedy, had traveled extensively (as a National Geographic photographer—my dream job) when he founded his chocolate workshop. To be a great photographer and traveler one must be lovingly observant and appreciative/respectful of details. These same traits serve one well in the art and considerable science of chocolate-making.

*See yesterday's (11/4/17) post where we sampled two Sirene 100% cacao bars from Ecuador and Madagascar.

Sirene - 100% Ecuador + 100% Madagascar bars - Nov. 4, 2017

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Sirene Chocolate
100% Ecuador Bar
Very Good
(Paired with a 100% Madagascar Bar)
Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (56 g.) in total package of 2
Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1/2 of 2 different bars
Cost: $13.00 for 1 package of 2 different bars
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #14 of South American Chocolate Theme Weeks. We're sampling bars from Ecuador this week.

Today's offering was a careful co-packaging of two different 100% cacao bars. These rare ultra dark bars contained just one ingredient: cocoa beans, and these two were ideal for a side-by-side tasting.

Both the 100% Ecuador Bar and the 100% Madagascar Bar were hand-crafted by Sirene Artisan Chocolate Makers (Victoria, Canada). The company makes small batches of direct trade chocolate, from beans grown on a limited group of cacao farms around the globe, in their custom workshop.

100% Ecuador Bar
The cacao beans used to make Sirene's 100% Cacao Ecuador Bar came from Camino Verde. A farm description follows:

"In Balao, Ecuador, farmer Vicente Norero treats his cacao beans like fine wine. After carefully nurturing the growth of his indigenous varieties of cacao trees, he harvests the beans and monitors the microbiology of the fermentation process. His exacting control of sugars and acids creates a rich and flavorful bean."

The Ecuador bar was described as having "rich, deep chocolatey" flavor. And, as promised, it was infused with true chocolate, deep cocoa, slightly bitter flavor. It had a very pleasing, homemade hot chocolate aftertaste. The bar possessed a deep ebony dark chocolate color.

100% Madagascar Bar
Sirene chose "fruity, citrus, raspberry-toned Madagascar beans" from Somia Plantation for this 100% Madagascar Bar.

"In the Sambirano Valley of Northern Madagascar, the Akesson family harvest a light red bean enriched by volcanic minerals and nutrients. With its strong fruity flavours, including hints of citrus and berry, this cacao is clearly a product of climate and soil and the special way it is fermented by a family who truly cares about chocolate and who has for many years."

In contrast to the deep chocolate 100% Ecuador Bar, the 100% Madagascar Bar was full of bright notes: very authentic fruit punch, raspberry lemonade, true citrus (not just generic "acidity"), with a wonderful, warbling complex fruit and cocoa finish. Even the color was a brighter, redder color than the Ecuador bar.

What a treat to try these bars, separately and together.

Sirene Chocolate - Bolivia 73% Cacao dark bar - April 21, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Sirene Artisan Chocolate Makers
Bolivia 73 percent Wild Foraged bar
Good +++
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.)/ 2 oz. (56.6 g.) in total bar
Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $7.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and Bolivia Theme Week.

Today's relatively thick, well-tempered Bolivia bar from Sirene Chocolate (Victoria, BC, Canada) broke with a well-tempered, hard snap made very easy with even scoring between segments. In fact, everything about this bar was even and well-made.

The chocolate was made from wild cacao that grows under rainforest canopy in the Bolivian Amazon. The wild cacao beans* (like those used to make yesterday's Wild Bolivia bar from Stone Grindz) were foraged by "intrepid harvesters."

The bar's packaging contains a good explanation of how this is done, i.e. by "boats, canoes, motorcycles and trucks over both land and water..."

And, after making the journey north, these beans were skillfully tamed and crafted into today's chocolate at Sirene's workshop in Victoria, BC.

The aroma and flavor of the Bolivia bars this week has been true chocolate, with an occasional secondary note or two. The aroma for this bar was also very chocolatey (cocoa, fudge, chocolate malt) with very slight green and sweet cream of tomato soup** notes.

The flavor was dark chocolate (homogeneous, not too sweet) all the way through with mild dried fruit and very mild nut (cashew), evenly incorporated. The relatively mild finish lingered a bit longer than expected, with a very slight hint of fruit acidity. There were no off notes in this bar.

*Cacao beans are, or at least start out to be, "seeds" (that can reproduce) from a fruit (or a drupe). During fermentation and processing these seeds lose their ability to grow, and the term cocoa bean makes more sense. 

People in the U.S. and Canada have been referring to the core plant parts inside the cacao fruit as "beans" for many years now. (I've seen the term "semillas" (seeds) used in parts of Latin America; but very rarely in the U.S.) So we may be stuck with the bean origin nomenclature; especially since people (including me) keep writing about cacao or cocoa "beans." In French also, the term used most often is feve (bean).

**Sounds odd, I know. But, it was pleasant. I've had one or two chocolates with tomato as a flavor inclusion in past years, but this was the first time I remember any plant- or green-related aroma with a tomato soup note.

Sirene Chocolate - Lachua, Guatemala duo - Maple Sugar - July 2, 2015

Chocolate of the Day:

Sirene Chocolate
Lachua, Guatemala 73% cacao bar duo pack
1.) Lachua with cane sugar
2.) Lachua with maple sugar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total package of 2 bars
Calories: 159 calories (estimate) in 1/2 of each of the two bars
Cost: $12.00 for 1 package of two bars
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Today was bonus Day #9 for Chocolate and Botanicals Theme Week.

Most bars and chocolates I write about on this site contain botanicals of some sort. And you could argue that cacao/cocoa is a plant-based flavoring agent all by itself.

Artisan bean-to-bar chocolate bars (like today's bars) are often crafted with just two ingredients: cacao beans and sugar.

Such was the case with today's pair of bars in one package, from Sirene Artisan Chocolate Makers (Victoria, British Columbia, Canada). The sugars used in chocolate (from plants, canes, trees) can also impart botanical flavor.

This package of single origin Lachua, Guatemala dark chocolate contained two slightly different bars that could be sampled and compared. This side-by-side tasting approach is very helpful when trying to figure out what you may like best (or least). The only difference between the two was that the first bar (wrapped in silver foil) was sweetened with cane sugar; and the second bar (wrapped in gold foil) was sweetened with maple sugar.

There was a fairly bold, but balanced fruit acidity to both bars. The maple sugar, from maple trees in the Quebec Appalachian mountains in Canada, added another, very pleasant, but subtle flavor dimension, without shifting or masking the underlying cacao flavor profile.

This 2-bar offering was created for The Chocolate Garage (Palo Alto, CA). Owner, Sunita de Tourreil, grew up outside of Montreal, and the result of her collaboration with Sirene is a natural and delicious pairing.

A Bit of History
For an interesting look at the history of maple sugar in the U.S., see this article "Thomas Jefferson and the Maple Sugar Scheme" on history.org.