Godavari Chocolate Inc. - Bon-fiction "Order of the Dark Roast" 91% (bar) - Apr. 16, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Godavari Chocolate Inc.
Bon-fiction "Order of the Dark Roast" 91% dark chocolate (bar)
Good ++
Weight: .485 oz. (13.75 g.) / 1.94 oz. (55 g.) in total bar
Calories: 85 calories in 1/4 bar
Cost: $8.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Sigona's Market, Palo Alto, CA  

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and India Week.

Today's Bon-fiction "Order of the Dark Roast" 91% dark chocolate (bar) was made from tree-to-bar in India, and imported and distributed by Godavari Chocolate Inc. (Folsom, CA).

The cacao used to make this bar was "hand-picked from farms in the Godavari region of Southern India."

Aroma notes for this single origin 91% bar included: faint dark roast cacao/dark chocolate and subtle and relatively pleasing umami and roasted notes (faint oven-roasted/barbecued earthy greens).   

Flavor notes for this India-grown and made chocolate included: rich, roasted ultra-dark chocolate, with a subtle sweetness, followed by some balanced tart and bitter notes which peaked and then rapidly receded and lingered at a much lower level into a relatively long and pleasant ultra-dark finish.

The texture was smooth and relatively buttery/creamy with a very tiny bit of (surprisingly little) astringency in the finish.

I enjoyed this more than the 99% "Eclipse of the Senses" dark bar (that I tasted yesterday) from the same maker. Just a little sugar (and possibly a different batch/roast profile) made this 91%er a more balanced bar. I like trying dark roasts, as long as I can still enjoy some balanced complexity in the cacao.

Today's 91% "Order of the Dark Roast" bar was fun to try. This chocolate may still be too bold and bitter for some. But, just like wine, and many other things in life, not everyone will agree on what's "best" or even taste chocolate in the same way.* 

As for me, I enjoyed several small bites, consecutively, each more inviting than the last. (That first bite was a bit like jumping into cool/cold water--a little brisk.) I liked that I could taste some additional and pleasing chocolate-y (cocoa) and then very faint spiced hot chocolate notes in the finish after 3-4 bites. 

Savor small pieces...slowly. I also advise exposing this chocolate to open air for 10-15 minutes, after you open the sealed inner package, and before eating. (Yes, that's right; it's like certain very bold red wines. It may need to "breathe" a little first.)

Ingredients: "Cocoa Beans, Organic Cane Sugar."

Allergen-related information: "Manufactured in a facility that also processes: Milk, Peanuts, Almond, Cashew, Walnut, Coconut, Hazelnut, Pistachio."  

*Some of us who have genes allowing us to enjoy more bitter foods, may enjoy items those with more delicate palettes may find off-putting.

Fresco - O'Payo Profundo Nicaragua 70% Recipe 272 - Dark Roast, Long Conche (bar) - Oct. 6, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Fresco Artisan Chocolate

O'Payo Profundo Nicaragua 70% Recipe 272 - Dark Roast, Long Conche (bar)

Good ++ - Good +++

Weight: .9 oz. (25 g.) / 1.8 oz. (50 g.) in total bar

Calories: 136.5 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: Part of a $57 chocolate tasting (that included 5 different bars)

Purchased from: Fresco Artisan Chocolate/Chocolopolis.com

Welcome to Day #5 of Fresco Chocolate Tasting Series (of five different bars), and Day #3 of Chocolate and Central America Theme Week.

Today's O'Payo* Profundo Nicaragua 70% Recipe 272 - Dark Roast, Long Conche (bar) was made by Fresco Artisan Chocolate (Lynden, WA).

The aroma notes of this bar included subtle, balanced bitter, roasted notes with a very faint, fleeting green floral. Any "bitterness" receded quickly--and was cushioned by light, diffuse fruit sweetness, and very faint tart green (oxalis).

The melt and mouthfeel were very satisfying: fudge-y, creamy smooth, almost nut buttery. (This was true for all three Fresco Nicaragua 70% bars in this series.)

Flavor notes included a tart-sweet creaminess, intertwined with flavorful true chocolate (fudge brownie, dark chocolate torte) with accelerating red fruit, jam (strawberry soda with clean mineral water then strawberry milkshake). 

This well-executed, flavorful bar was bright, well-balanced and smooth without being boring or over-roasted. Not every dark roast bar lands in the Goldilocks zone--where flavors are optimally developed without tipping over into the over-roasted zone, where they tend to disappear. For this kind of success you need high-quality cacao, careful fermentation and a skilled and thoughtful chocolate maker.

Fresco's chief chocolate maker, Rob Anderson, described his dark roast profile this way: "...flavor peaks and valleys softened to a melodic harmony."

Maker's general tasting notes for this O'Payo Profundo Nicaragua cacao: "...naturally occurring notes of spice, floral and nuts...incredibly flavorful..." 

Ingredients: Organic cocoa beans, organic cane sugar, cocoa butter. organic cocoa butter. ??

Allergen-related information: "Free from gluten, dairy, nuts, soy"

*O'Payo Profundo Nicaragua cacao  is "an organic fine cocoa variety (grown in) the Waslala municipality, within the Basawas Natural Reserve in the northern mountains of Nicaragua." (Fresco maker, Rob Anderson, also mentioned: "O'Payo is a farmer's name.") 

"Profundo" may refer the the relatively long fermentation time for this cacao. (Anderson also worked with producer Ingemann Fine Cocoa in Nicaragua to obtain these single origin cacao beans.)

 

Fresco - O'Payo Profundo Nicaragua 70% Recipe 271 - Medium Roast, Medium Conche (bar) - Oct. 5, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Fresco Artisan Chocolate

O'Payo Profundo Nicaragua 70% Recipe 271 - Medium Roast, Medium Conche (bar)

Good ++ - Good +++

Weight: .9 oz. (25 g.) / 1.8 oz. (50 g.) in total bar

Calories: 136.5 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: Part of a $57 chocolate tasting (that included 5 different bars)

Purchased from: Fresco Artisan Chocolate/Chocolopolis.com

Welcome to Day #4 of Fresco Chocolate Tasting Series (of five different bars), and Day #2 of Chocolate and Central America Theme Week.

Today's O'Payo* Profundo Nicaragua 70% Recipe 271 - Medium Roast, Medium Conche (bar) was made by Fresco Artisan Chocolate (Lynden, WA). 

This (Recipe 271) bar the second of three O'Payo Nicaragua 70% bars--each with different roast and conche profiles--featured this week. (All three were initially sampled, side-by-side, in a recent online Chocolopolis.com + Fresco chocolate tasting, 3 days ago.)

The subtle aroma notes of this bar included (in order of appearance) very faint balanced savory (lightly smoked sea salt); green (green tea, light seed and mild nut); very light, faint (diffuse) fruit; and faint tart-green notes.

The melt and mouthfeel for this (and, happily, almost all Fresco) chocolate were very satisfying: fudge-y, creamy smooth, almost buttery.

Flavor notes included (in order of appearance): bright, warm, tart-sweetness (tart sweet, uniform blend of peach, nectarine, ripe persimmon, kiwi), cream, intertwined with a strong through current of true dark chocolate (flavorful fudge brownie, dark chocolate torte with a tiny pinch of warm spice and coffee) and with fleeting very faint tart-green.

Maker's general tasting notes for this cacao: "...naturally occurring notes of spice, floral and nuts...incredibly flavorful..."

Ingredients: Organic cocoa beans, organic cane sugar, cocoa butter. organic cocoa butter

Allergen-related information: "Free from gluten, dairy, nuts, soy"

*O'Payo Profundo Nicaragua cacao  is "an organic fine cocoa variety (grown in) the Waslala municipality, within the Basawas Natural Reserve in the northern mountains of Nicaragua." (Fresco maker, Rob Anderson, also mentioned: "O'Payo is a farmer's name.") 

"Profundo" may refer the the relatively long fermentation time for this cacao. (Anderson also worked with producer Ingemann Fine Cocoa in Nicaragua to obtain these single origin cacao beans.)

 

Fresco Chocolate - Ghana 68% Recipe 261 - Dark Roast, Medium Conche - Oct. 1, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Fresco Artisan Chocolate

Ghana 68% Recipe 261 - Dark Roast, Medium Conche dark chocolate (bar)

Good ++ - Good +++

Weight: .9 oz. (25 g.) / 1.8 oz. (50 g.) in total bar

Calories: 136.5 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $9.00 (+ summer shipping) for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Ghana Week.

Today'a Ghana 68% (Recipe 261) Dark Roast, Medium Conche (bar) was made by Fresco Chocolate (Lynden, WA).

Fresco lets us discover why roasting, conche and other choices in chocolate-making really matter, by crafting single origin bars with different roast and conche* profiles. 

Why is Fresco different? Chocolate makers almost always document choices they make with each origin and batch of cacao beans, creating recipes in the process. Fresco goes one step further and shares their recipe numbers on their labels, and will offer two or three similar bars, but with slightly different recipes.

Bottom line, Fresco's bars (and their backstories) are designed to be compared relative to each other. And there's no better way to learn what you really like than from side-by-side tastings.

Today, I'm tasting and comparing a second Fresco Ghana 68% dark bar--this one with a darker roast and slightly longer conche time. 

Both yesterday's and today's bar had a subtle aroma. Yesterday's 68% bar had a faint chocolate, faint fruit (lingonberry and persimmon (yesterday)) and fleeting very faint spice notes. And the melt and mouthfeel for all three Fresco Ghana bars this week were very pleasing with a smooth and relatively buttery texture.

Today's (dark roast) chocolate's balanced, faintly bitter aroma (not present in yesterday's light roast sibling) seemed to dissipate slightly over time; and it seemed overall slightly nuttier (roasted nuts and a faint, fleeting raspberry note; although it seemed less sweet (bright/jammy) than yesterday's bar with the lighter roast and subtle conche.*

Flavor notes for this single-ingredient bar included (in order of appearance): rich, sweet dark chocolate (hot cocoa), bread and butter, and sustained of true chocolate (fudge, dark chocolate torte and frosting). This dark chocolate had a mild fruit acidity (sweet, tart red berry (red raspberry) that lingered a bit into a chocolate-y, clean mineral finish. 

Not everyone will prefer the same Fresco Ghana 68% cacao bar over the other. Both were well executed. And I feel sure that precise care was taken to optimize each recipe and each resulting bar. As is the case for most chocolates, try re-tasting (both bars) a few minutes and/or hours later, and you may also experience a subtle shift in which bar (or aspects of each bar) you like.

Ingredients: Cocoa beans, cane sugar, cocoa butter

Allergen-related information: "Free from: gluten, dairy, nuts, soy"

*Conching follows the initial grinding process. Fresco describes conching as "heat, motion, aeration and time producing chocolate's final flavor." And the maker explains: "adjusting these variables can produce dramatically different flavors."  

**Note: I could have placed the two Fresco Ghana 68% bar too close together. If so, there's a small possibility I got the two mixed up with regard to red fruit and nut notes. (Disclosure: I also had a dental health issue that could have influenced the ability to distinguish taste this week.) And, some chocolate flavor shape-shifting likely took place over the course of a day or two--something that has been known to happen either after chocolate has been opened/exposed to air, or over time (as the chocolate or my palette changes, e.g. if I eat or drink something. 

Fresco Chocolate - Ghana 68% Recipe 260 - Light Roast, Subtle Conche dark chocolate (bar) - Sept. 30, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Fresco Artisan Chocolate

Ghana 68% Recipe 260 - Light Roast, Subtle Conche dark chocolate (bar)

Good ++ - Good +++

Weight: .9 oz. (25 g.) / 1.8 oz. (50 g.) in total bar

Calories: 136.5 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $9.00 (+ summer shipping) for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Ghana Week.

Today'a Ghana 68% (Recipe 260) Light Roast, Subtle Conche (bar) was made by Fresco Chocolate (Lynden, WA).

Fresco offers single origin bars with different roast (light to dark) and conche* (subtle to long) profiles that can be tasted side-by-side. There's no better way to learn what you really like, and to better understand what choices support your preferences.

This approach makes it easier for customers to create chocolate flights and tastings--for a group of friends, or just for one. (These bars are created using recipe numbers, that are also included on the labeling.)

The subtle aroma notes for today's 68% Ghana (light roast) bar included (in order of appearance) dark chocolate with subtle tangy, sweet acidic green and fruit (dried persimmon), very faint vegetable (potato bread), faint brown sugar and very faint warm spiced fruit (peaches and pears heated with cinnamon and other spices).

The texture was smooth and relatively buttery.

Flavor notes for this single-ingredient bar included: rich, "warm," sweet dark chocolate, bread and butter, and a sustained current of true chocolate (fudge, dark chocolate torte and frosting). This dark chocolate had a mild fruit acidity (sweet, tart red berry (lingonberry** jam with a hint of sweet persimmon) that lingered/sparkled a bit into the finish. The chocolate was very low in bitterness.

This bar had a relatively subtle aroma, but was filled with bright, full, sweet and true chocolate notes. The light roast and subtle conche likely helped to preserve or highlight some of these bright, light, sweet flavors.

Ingredients: Cocoa beans, cane sugar, cocoa butter

Allergen-related information: "Free from: gluten, dairy, nuts, soy"

*Conching follows the initial grinding of cacao. Fresco describes conching as "heat, motion, aeration and time producing chocolate's final flavor." And "adjusting these variables can produce dramatically different flavors." 

**Lingonberries, also known as mountain cranberries and cowberries, are popular in Scandinavia and have a sweet, tart, red berry flavor. Lingonberry jam is generally just a bit mellower (naturally a bit sweeter and less acidic) than our cranberry jam/sauce.

Fresco Chocolate - Ghana 100% dark chocolate (bar) - Sept. 29, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Fresco Artisan Chocolate

Ghana 100% light roast, subtle conche dark chocolate (bar)

Good ++ - Good +++

Weight: .9 oz. (25 g.) / 1.8 oz. (50 g.) in total bar

Calories: 127.5 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $13.00 (+ summer shipping) for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Ghana Week.

Today'a Ghana 100% (Recipe 235) Light Roast, Subtle Conche (bar) was made by Fresco Artisan Chocolate (Lynden, WA).

The company's single origin, bean-to-bar chocolate bars demonstrate precisely why and how choices made in chocolate making process matter. You can taste what different roasting and conching* choices/profiles taste like in finished form.

It's easy to assemble "flights" of Fresco bars (e.g. with the same cacao origin(s) but different roast and conche choices), and taste them side-by-side to compare the differences between light or dark roast, and subtle vs. long conching. (Today's bar is the first of three Fresco Ghana bars featured this week.)

The aroma notes for this 100% bar included (in order of appearance) dark chocolate with subtle tangy, sweet acidic green and fruit (dried persimmon), yeast bread and dark chocolate with a faint bitterness.

The melt and mouthfeel were buttery smooth.

Flavor notes for this single-ingredient bar were lovely, and included: beer (porter, stout), bread and butter, and rich, buttery (there's that word again), luscious fudge-y, dark chocolate with relatively mild acidity and relatively low bitterness** for an ultra-dark bar.

While I didn't have a comparable Fresco 100% Ghana bar with another roasting choice, I did really like this "light roast" choice with this particular cacao. A heavier roast might have resulted in the loss of some more delicate notes.

The taste of this wonderful 100% cacao bar was very satisfying; so make sure to savor it slowly.

Ingredients: Cocoa beans

Allergen-related information: "Free from: gluten, dairy, nuts, soy"

*Conching follows the initial grinding of cacao. Fresco describes conching as "heat, motion, aeration and time producing chocolate's final flavor." As with roasting (and most other steps in chocolate making), conching requires great attention to detail. And "adjusting these variables can produce dramatically different flavors."

**Bitterness is a result of several factors including the variety of cacao used (even the soil where the cacao was grown at times), fermentation, and roasting. Over-roasting cacao can lead to a bitter taste-- especially if more volatile fruity, nutty, green and floral notes that might have helped keep the flavor more balanced are "burned" off in the roasting process.

Fresco - Polochic Valley (Guatemala) Medium Roast 70% (bar) - Aug. 17, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Fresco Artisan Chocolate 
Polochic Valley Guatemala Medium Roast 70% (bar)
Good +

Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 1.8 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 136.5 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 + summer shipping for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order 

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Guatemala.

Today's Polochic Valley (Guatemala) Medium Roast 70% (bar) was from Fresco Artisan Chocolate (Lynden, WA,). 

The company makes bean-to-bar, smaller batch chocolate with cacao carefully selected origins. The cacao used to make this bar was grown in the El Valle del Polochic (rio) (Polochic Valley), located in northeast Guatemala (SE side of the department* of Alta Verapaz). 

Every batch of cacao beans calls for tests and tweaks to obtain desired results. However, Fresco maker(s) often will carry this one step further, to make different chocolate bars with the same beans by varying how the beans are processed. And they typically share information such as various roast and conch choices made. 

For today's single origin Polochic Valley Guatemala bar (Batch 20-368), "Recipe 251" called for medium roast and long conch** times.

The Guatemalan cacao was slowly drum roasted for a "medium" length of time for a balanced, flavorful profile. And a long(er) conch time yielded "flavor peaks and valleys softened to a melodic harmony." 

The aroma of this bar included chocolate with tart (citrus/lemon), astringent green (oxalis, sorrel, sour grass); very faint, fleeting sweet, warm spice (lemon pepper cookie, ginger, vanilla); and barely there savory (salt; lemon herb caramel) notes.

How did it taste? The texture and melt were smooth. The perceived acidity was low to medium, the bitterness was relatively low, as was the astringency (despite the aroma that included oxalis and very faint cranberry lemon jam notes).

The flavor was more true chocolate (brownie cookie) than the aroma, as is often the case. The balanced chocolate also included versions of the aroma notes mentioned above. There was a wee bit of lemony herb oxalic acidity made sweet/tempered by the sugar. But, again the flavors were nicely balanced together, and the finish was relatively light, lingering and clean.

The maker's tasting notes included the following: "Our medium roast reveals notes of red fruit and caramel...Our long conche results in a mellow flavor with subtle earthy notes."

Ingredients: Cocoa beans, cane sugar, cocoa butter 

Allergen-related information: (None listed on packaging/label.) However, Fresco's website contained the following sentence: "Our chocolate is dairy free, soy free, nut free and gluten free."

*Guatemala is divided into 22 departments, which are roughly similar to states in the United States. Alta Verapaz is one of these departments. 

Farms in this area also grow sugar cane and oil palms. The country's largest agricultural exports have been coffee, sugar, bananas and beef. Despite the existence of many individual cacao farmers, Guatemalan cacao export volumes have been relatively low, less than 10% of the country's total.

**To conche, or conch, in chocolate making refers to the process of stirring/grinding/breaking down cocoa bean pieces into smooth chocolate. 

A conching machine is so named for its original spiral-shaped blade that resembled/resembles a "concha," the Spanish/Latin word for a type of sea shell and/or "conche," the French word for trough or shell. The machine uses motion/rotations and heat (friction) that results in the melding together of smaller and smaller particles of cocoa butter (fat portion of the bean) and cocoa solids. 

Longer conch times can result in smoother and more buttery chocolates. At the same time aeration is happening, which can result in the loss of certain flavors if the time is too long. So the time selected for this process needs to be carefully managed when making chocolate to arrive at the best possible compromise and the optimal texture and flavor profile for each batch of different cacao beans, each with slightly different characteristics.

Chocolate Naive - Kilimamwenza Congo Dark Chocolate 70% (bar) - March 10, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Chocolate Naive

Kilimamwenza Congo 70% Nano_Lot Dark Chocolate (bar)

Good ++ - Good +++

Weight: 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar

Calories: 366 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $15.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: missing information 

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and JKLM Theme Week, where chocolate flavor inclusions-- or in today's case, origins--that begin with the letters J,K,L and/or M are featured. 

Today's Kilimamwenza Congo Dark Chocolate 70% (bar) was crafted by Domantus Uzpalis at Chocolate Naive (Zietelos, Lithuania).*

African cacao cannot be easily summarized. But when people hear African cacao, what comes to mind is typically bold, deep, dark forastero cacao beans grown in a few countries in West Africa and chocolate made using a relatively heavy roast profile. 

Today's award-winning dark chocolate was a relatively eloquent, soft-spoken entree, made with a lighter Trinitario-Forastero hybrid variety of cacao grown on Kilimamwenza farm in Mambasa, Ituri province, located in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in central, sub-Saharan Africa.

This chocolate had a smooth but relatively complex dark chocolate aroma--with light, balanced, fermentation and umami (leather), and very faint fruit and green-floral notes.

The melt and initial texture were fairy uniform and creamy. A mild astringency in the finish led to a mouthfeel with a slight dryness/graininess. This astringency comes from polyphenols and tannins (as in unripe fruits (bananas, persimmons, olives, avocado), tea or red wine). 

While polyphenols have health benefits they also need to be balanced for a positive tasting experience. Heating/roasting/processing tends to diminish their presence.

The lightly roasted (110 degrees C./230 degrees F.) dark chocolate flavor was smooth, with a touch of honey-like sweetness, and a light, lingering finish with delicate green-floral, honey and fruit notes. (A lighter roast helps preserve lighter, more volatile flavor compounds (e.g. floral notes) as well as the polyphenols mentioned above.)

Ingredients: cacao, cane sugar, pure cacao butter

**Sometimes a chocolate maker has a rare, time-limited opportunity to purchase a small amount (a micro-lot) of cacao beans from a certain farm, origin and/or harvest year. This Chocolate Naive Kilimamwenza nano-lot, micro-batch bar was born from such an opportunity. 

Often there are small cacao fermenteries and co-ops involved in small, high-quality batches of bean output as well. This is not dissimilar to coffee projects and co-ops (usually not far from where cacao grows) in equatorial regions. (Chocolate Naive's chief chocolate maker does mention he was inspired by an individual(s) who helped local coffee co-ops export beans and to break into the specialty coffee market.) Who knows how many other pockets of great cacao in the massive continent of Africa are out there, waiting to be discovered?

Baiani Chocolates - Bold Roast 70% Bahia, Brazil bar - Aug. 30, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Baiani Chocolates
70% Bold Roast Bahia Brazil bar
Good +++
Weight: 1.02 oz. (29 g.) / 2.04 oz. (58 g.) in total bar
Calories: 142 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

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

Today's 70% Bold Roast chocolate bar was made tree-to-bar by Baiani Chocolates (Vale Potumuju, Bahia, Brazil).

This bold roast bar was a variation on yesterday's Mild Roast 70% bar* from the same maker, but it was, as expected, bolder and darker (with a slight roasted coffee note).

And this award-winning bar was less fruity and sweet (even though they were both 70% bars (containing cacao from the same family farm and similar amounts of cane sugar). Today's bar also had a bolder finish as well. Side-by-side tastings are always very educational (and in this case delicious as well...Hmm. Maybe we need to re-sample those two again, just to make sure.)

*Tasting notes from yesterday's Baiani Mild Roast bar "a very nicely balanced, dark chocolate bar with fruit, cream and dark notes. It was smooth but also had depth and some complexity as well."

Endorfin Foods - Madagascar 80% Cacao bar - Feb. 21, 2016

Chocolate of the Day: 

Endorfin Foods
Madagascar Single Origin Dark Chocolate bar
Good
Weight: .7 oz. (20 g.) / 1.4 oz. (40 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 105 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $5.00 (was one of 9-bar box for $45.00)
Purchased from: Endorfin Foods table at Fall Chocolate Salon, San Francisco, CA

Today we say good-bye to Madagascar Theme Week, after we enjoy one last bar from this island nation from Endorfin Foods (Oakland, CA).

The company's ultra-dark, 80% cacao, Madagascar Single Origin Dark Chocolate bar was made with organic unroasted cacao and organic coconut sugar. It had a subtle, pleasing aroma, with notes of red fruit, raisin, and faint brown sugar and spice.

Like many bars with a high percent of cocoa solids, the aroma can be "sweeter" or milder than the actual taste.

The Tasting Notes/Profile information printed on the package mentioned: "Raspberry, kumquat, red wine tannin." This bar did have a dark, acidic "tannic" bite to it, but the throat-grabbing quality diminished after the first bite, increasingly allowing other flavors to come to the fore with each subsequent bite.

As they say in Malagasy: Mazotoa homana! Rahampitso indray ary e*—when we'll move on to a Chocolate and Almond theme week.

*This Malagasy phrase roughly translates to: Bon apetit! See you tomorrow.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Antidote - essential vanilla + nibs 84% bar - Nov. 2, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Antidote
essential vanilla + nibs 84% RAW + roasted cacao bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.15 oz. (33 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 200 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $7.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #7 of Cocoa Nibs Theme Week.

Today's essential vanilla + nibs bar from Antidote (Brooklyn, NY) was made with a combination of raw and roasted organic "Arriba" cacao beans, from Camino Verde*,  Ecuador. Antidote offers a line of 50% raw + 50% roasted cacao bars, and 100% raw bars, that are produced in Ecuador.

The aroma of this vanilla + nib bar was smoky, floral and complex. There was a slight powdery quality to the melt, and some nice, soft crunchiness from the nibs pressed into the back of the bar. The second bite I took had fruit (pear?), floral and nutty flavor notes that unfolded all in the same piece; and a subsequent bite had slightly more floral and "green" notes. The bar had a nice clean finish. I also liked that this 84% dark, vegan, gluten-free and kosher bar tasted "sweet" without much sugar.

The company name, "Antidote," was spelled out as part of the bar's design—one letter in each of the 8 squares. (I love bars with letters; it makes me want to play word games with chocolate "tiles." "Health through pleasure," and using chocolate as an antidote to what ails you, is part of the company's philosophy.

*Camino Verde is a restored cacao plantation in Balao, Ecuador that specializes in Nacional cacao.

Arete - Brasil 70% dark bar - April 20, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Arete Fine Chocolate
Brasil Fazenda Camboa 70% Organic Dark Chocolate bar
Very Good
Weight: 1.1 oz. (31.13 g.) / 2.2 oz. (61 g.) in total bar
Calories: 165 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #13 of Chocolate and Brazil Theme Weeks.

Arete Fine Chocolate (Milpitas, CA) is a relatively new entrant to the bean-to-bar chocolate scene in the San Francisco Bay Area. The owners, David and Leslie, have been working to perfect their chocolate for some time, and started selling their bars earlier this year (2015).

I was able to pick up two Arete bars, made from Brasil Fazenda Camboa organic cacao beans, from The Chocolate Garage, near where I live.

These two Arete bars were made with the same beans (from the same large farm or plantation in Brazil), yet were created with different roasts and percentages, yielding noticeably different results in terms of flavor profile.

Today I'm featuring their 70% dark roast bar; and tomorrow I'll try the 75% medium roast bar. I've learned a lot about the complexities of chocolate (and roasting) by eating two similar bars like this side-by-side. I highly recommend doing so if you're interested in learning more about how chocolate is made.

Today's 70% darker roast bar had a pleasant chocolatey, almost fruity aroma. The flavor profile: malty, well balanced fruit-acid, nutty. Very nicely done.