Standout Chocolate - Caramelized Goat Cheese 58% Dominican Republic (bar) - Aug. 31, 2026

Chocolate of The Day

Standout Chocolate
Caramelized Goat Cheese 58% Dominican Republic (bar)

Good ++
Weight: 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 299 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $10.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Caputo's, online order 

Welcome to Day #3 of Savory Chocolates Theme Week.

Today's Caramelized Goat Cheese 58% Dominican Republic (bar) was from Standout Chocolate (Goteborg, Sweden). 

The makers chose to use cacao from Oko Caribe in the Dominican Republic and used Getmese ("a traditional Swedish food") made from "goat's milk whey that has been boiled down and caramelised."

Aroma and flavor notes included: smooth, sweet (caramel) dark chocolate (rich, chocolate-y, slightly earthy) with very slight tangy sweet, very light umami (mild, sweet cheese).

Ingredients: Cacao beans*, Sugar*, Cacao butter*, Goat's Milk Whey; Organic Cacao content: 58%."

Allergen-related information: Contains Milk

Definite - Passion Fruit 69% Cacao Dominican Republic Bhonacao (bar) - Aug. 4, 2026

Chocolate of The Day

Definite Chocolate
Passion Fruit 69% Cacao Dominican Republic Bhonacao (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 1.75 oz. (50g.) in total bar
Calories: 150 calories in 1/2 bar 
Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar & Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate & Passion Fruit Theme Week. 

Today's Passion Fruit 69% Cacao Dominican Republic Bhonacao (bar) was from Definite Chocolate, S.R.L. (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (DR)).

About the cacao...

The cacao used to make this chocolate bar was grown and processed "in country." Cacao (beans) were transformed into chocolate in the same country where the cacao had been grown. Typically sacks of cacao beans are shipped to the U.S., Europe or elsewhere for the final manufacturing steps in bean-to-bar chocolates. 

And, I could actually taste the nuances in this single origin DR chocolate; the passion fruit added a pleasant tart-sweet flavor and there wasn't too much sugar. (Thank you!) What a difference when a chocolate is made with just three, high-quality ingredients.

About the fruit...

Passion fruit is native to South America, but even within the Americas this fruit is known by several different names. In the Dominican Republic it is called chinola. (On the other side of the large island of Hispaniola (that DR and Haiti share), it's known by its Haitian Creole name, grenadya.)

Aroma and flavor notes included: bold, well-executed dark chocolate (chocolate-y with barely detectable and well-balanced earth) and authentic tart-sweet tropical fruit (chinola aka passion fruit).

Texture: smooth dark chocolate; there were no fruit pulp or seed bits from the passion fruit.

Ingredients: "Cacao, cane sugar, cacao butter, freeze-dried passion fruit." 

Allergen-related information: "Made in a facility that handles nuts & milk."

*Bhonacao is a cacao processing organization located in Paraiso in the Barahona province of the Dominican Republic.

Definite Chocolate - Jalao Chocolate with Coconut & Ginger (bar) - Jan. 30, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Definite Chocolate
Jalao Chocolate with Coconut & Ginger (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 240 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Definite Chocolate, online order 

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate, Warm Spices & Maple Theme Week.

Today's Jalao* Chocolate with Coconut & Ginger (bar) was from Definite Chocolate, S.R.L. (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic).

The company is a family-run business that makes bean-to-bar chocolate. They source their cacao from local producers in the Dominican Republic.

The packaging for this bar was adorned with colorful images of "Diablos Cojuelos" (aka catarrones) wearing colorful, fierce and smiling masks. These characters have roots in Santa Domingo as far back as the 1500s; and today they can be spotted during Dominican carnivals. I'm hoping these spirits--and the warm ginger--can help me kick the cold/flu I have to the curb.

Aroma and flavor notes for this DR bar included warm cocoa; smooth coconut milk chocolate; and warm spices (ginger).

Texture: smooth, relatively creamy base chocolate with tiny, chewy bits of coconut and candied ginger.

Ingredients: Cacao, cane sugar, coconut sugar, coconut, cacao butter, coconut milk, candied ginger.

Allergen-related information: "Contains: Coconut. Made in a facility that handles nuts & milk."

*Jalao is "a Dominican sweet typically made with coconut, honey and ginger. There are also variations with molasses or cinnamon."

Fruition Chocolate Works - Zorzal Eco Reserve 73% Dark Chocolate with Puffed Quinoa, Candied Sunflower Seeds, Wild Blueberry & Citrus (bar) - June 2, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Fruition Chocolate Works
Zorzal Eco Reserve 73% Dark Chocolate with Puffed Quinoa, Candied Sunflower Seeds, Wild Blueberry & Citrus (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 164 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $15.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Fruition, online order

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

Today's Zorzal Eco Reserve 73% Dark Chocolate with Puffed Quinoa, Candied Sunflower Seeds, Wild Blueberry & Citrus (bar) was from Fruition Chocolate Works (Shokan, NY).

The cacao used to make this bar was grown on a cacao farm in a bird reserve in the Dominican Republic. The certified "Bird Friendly"* cacao farm designated as "forever wild" inspired the makers to create this bird seed bar.

Aroma and flavor included: rich, sweet (slightly fruity) dark chocolate, seed, nut; dried dark berry (blueberry) and very faint citrus. (Note: this bar did not contain nuts.)

Texture: smooth dark chocolate (covered with a dense riot of) softly crunchy sunflower seeds, interspersed with small chewy fruit pieces (blueberries). Tiny rounds of puffed quinoa added additional, subtle texture.

I enjoyed the blend of flavors--an elevated homage to cacao and birds (and very high-quality bird seed).

Ingredients: Dark Chocolate (cocoa beans*, cane sugar*, cocoa butter*), Sunflower Seeds, Wild Blueberries, Puffed Quinoa, Lemon Zest, Sugar, Citric Acid, Citrus Essential Oils (* Organic)

Allergen-related information: Contains sunflower seeds. May contain traces of milk, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, and sesame.

*As designated/certified by the Smithsonian National Zoo and Smithsonian Bird Center. This honor is being bestowed on coffee and cacao growing areas/plantations that meet certain agroforestry and forest conservation criteria.

Loon Chocolate - Lion's Mane Dark Chocolate (bar) & CacaoTeca - Rum Truffles - Dec. 25, 2024

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Loon Chocolate
Lion's Mane 70% Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) / 2.25 oz (64 g) in total bar
Calories: 180 calories in 1 oz. (28.3 g.) of bar
Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar + shipping 
Purchased from: Loon Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and Mushroom Week + a bonus holiday chocolate with rum. And Merry Christmas to all who celebrate this festive, winter holiday.

Lion's Mane 70% Dark bar

Today's Loon Chocolate Lion's Mane 70% Dark Chocolate (bar) (Batch #924-74) was manufactured in small batches by White Birch Living LLC (Manchester, New Hampshire).* 

Lion's Mane mushroom powder was from Dunk Mushroom Products and Foraging LLC (Brentwood, NH)--a farm, processing facility, retail store and education center.

Aroma and flavor notes included: smooth dark chocolate; ripe berry; faint graham cracker; and barely detectable, pleasant woodsy umami.

Ingredients: Organic Cacao, Organic Cane Sugar, Organic Cocoa Butter, Lion's Mane Mushroom Powder

Allergen-related information: "Produced in a Facility That Uses Almonds and Milk. Gluten-Free, Soy-Free, Vegan" 

*Lion's Mane mushroom powder was from Dunk Mushroom Products and Foraging LLC (Brentwood, NH)--a farm, processing facility, retail store and education center.

Cacaoteca Rum Chocolates

Cacaoteca
Chocolate Rum Truffles
Good + - Good ++
Weight: .58 oz. (16.6 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total box of 12
Calories: 88 calories (estimate) in 2 truffles
Cost: $21.00 for 1 box of 12
Purchased from: Bar & Cocoa, online order

Today's box of Cacaoteca chocolate rum truffles were made with cacao and rum from the Dominican Republic.

Aroma and flavor notes included: sweet (milk-y, chocolate-y, fudge-y) filled chocolate with faint, warm spirits (rum) flavor that wasn't too boozy.

Texture: smooth "rum paste" in the center (4% alcohol) surrounded by relatively sweet, creamy smooth chocolate.

Ingredients: Cacao Mass, Powdered Milk, Cane Sugar, Cacao Butter, Rum 

Allergen-related information: Contains Milk.

Venice Organics - Stress & Immunity Support - Reishi & Chaga 70% Chocolate (Dominican Republic) Bar - May 9, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Venice Organics
Stress & Immunity Support - Reishi & Chaga 70% Chocolate Bar
Dominican Republic - Single Origin 
Good ++ 
Weight: 1.325 oz. (37.5 g.) / 2.65 oz. (75 g.) in total bar
Calories: 206 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Farm Fresh, online order

Welcome to the last day (Day #7) of Chocolate and Virtual Caribbean Cruise Theme Week.

This virtual cruise week has been relaxing. Today's Dominican Republic cacao chocolate even offered stress and immunity support--an appreciated dose of dark benefits before rejoining a more hectic life back on the virtual mainland next week.

Today's Organic "Stress and Immunity Support" Reishi & Chaga 70% Chocolate Bar was made from cacao bean-to-chocolate bar--by Venice Organics (Los Angeles, CA), using single origin cacao from the Dominican Republic.

Aroma notes for this single origin dark chocolate included: pleasing dark chocolate; sweet green (coconut sugar, almost floral); and very faint, herby botanicals; and slightly woodsy almost-coconut shell. (There was no shell in this bar.)

Texture: smooth, almost creamy, fully incorporated ingredients (with zero detectable graininess from any mushroom particles in case you're wondering).

Flavor notes included: rich dark chocolate (dark brownie, extra dark ganache), and some well-balanced, very faint earth-toned complexity (very faint woodsy, coconut sugar, and umami/mushroom); and all these harmonious flavor notes tapered off together into a pleasant finish.

Ingredients: *Chocolate (*Cocoa, *Coconut Sugar, *Cocoa Butter), *Cocoa Butter, *Reishi, *Chaga (* = Organic) 

Allergen-related information: Processed in shared equipment with products containing nuts. 

 

Zotter Chocolate - Opus 5 - Cuvee 72% Dark Chocolate (2023 Edition) - May 8, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Zotter Chocolate
Opus 5 - Cuvee 72% Dark Chocolate (2023 Edition) 
Good ++ 
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 2.47 oz. (70 g.) in total package of 2 bars
Calories: 210 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $8.99 for 1 package of 2 bars
Purchased from: Zotter, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Virtual Caribbean Cruise Week.

Today's Opus 5 - Cuvee 72% Dark Chocolate (2023 Edition) was made in Austria and distributed by Zotter US LLC (Fort Myers, FL).

This "island hopping" bar was made using a blend of five cacaos from Madagascar, Sao Tome, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Belize. Zotter describes this cuvee as having "Caribbean flair...and a harmonious, and at the same time incredibly exciting aroma profile." 

Each cacao variety was individually roasted (with their own roast profile), and then combined together, and the chocolate was conched for 20 hours.

Aroma notes for this 72% chocolate included: bittersweet chocolate; faint, fleeting molasses; diffuse fruit (cherry, faint salted lime). 

Texture: smooth texture with a very faint, barely detectable astringency/fruit tannic acidity toward the finish.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (with very, very faint aromatic wood) and  a complex and delicious fruit blend (dark, ripe-sweet berry; sapote; dried tropical fruits; elderberry juice/sangria with a little squeeze of citrus, and warm spice).

Maker's tasting notes: "...The intense fragrance and flavor of speculoos, spices, and citrus fruit take center stage. In the nose, you'll experience especially festive accents of spiced shortbread and almond marzipan, enhanced by strong notes of orange and lime. On the palate, you'll initially perceive a mildly roasted flavor or biscuits, almonds, and cream, which eventually culminates in a spritz citrus fruit aroma (oranges, limes, and grapefruit) with herbal and mildly spicy characteristics. The finish gracefully fades into subtly roast accents and gentle notes of wood.

Ingredients: Cocoa Mass**, Cane Sugar**, Cocoa Butter** (** = Organic and Fair Trade)

Allergen-related information: "Manufactured on equipment that processes tree nuts, peanuts, milk, gluten, soy and sesame."

Zotter - Labooko Dominican Republic 62% Dark Chocolate (bar) - May 7, 2024 (bonus entry)

Chocolate of the Day

Zotter
Dominican Republic 62% Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 2.47 oz. (70 g.) in total package of 2 bars
Calories: 200 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $8.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Zotter, online order

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Virtual Caribbean Cruise Week. This bar was the second chocolate (bar) featured today--a bonus entry. 

Today's Dominican Republic 62% Dark Chocolate (bar) was made in Austria and distributed by Zotter USA LLC (Fort Myers, FL). It was created with cacao from Zorzal* in the Dominican Republic.

Aroma notes for this Fair Traded and Organic bar included: chocolate-y, faint green-white floral (orchid, lily).

The texture was smooth and creamy, almost like thick, creamy, high-end dark chocolate frosting (on a warm day).

Flavor notes included: rich chocolate-y (hot cocoa, chocolate chocolate frosting; smooth, moist, nut brownie); lots of naturally sweet and chocolate-y notes continued into the finish. The true chocolate notes were bold/flavorful enough to keep this 62% bar from tasting over-sugared.

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Fragrance profile: nutty caramel; Taste profile: very mild and sweet, chocolatey, with notes of walnut, caramel and pickled cherries"

Ingredients: Cocoa Mass**, Cane Sugar**, Cocoa Butter** (** = Fair Traded and Organic) Fair Traded, Fair Trade Content in Total = 100%.

Allergen-related information: "Manufactured on equipment that processes tree nuts, peanuts, milk, sesame and soy."

*Zorzal is a private bird sanctuary and nature reserve that "extends over 412 hectares of land, and 70% of that has been designated to remain wild rainforest. The cacao is grown and harvested directly within this nature reserve. And Zorzal also cooperates with neighboring farmers who are actively included in the project and supply their own cacao....As a result, cacao is an ideal conservation tool: it thrives as a mixed crop and is traditionally well suited to wild harvesting."

Karuna Chocolate - Date Sugar Dolcificante Ai Datteri Dark Chocolate 80% (bar) - June 15, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Karuna Chocolate 
Date Sugar Dolcificante Ai Datteri Dark Chocolate 80% (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 154 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $14.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and Italy Theme Week.

Today's Date Sugar Dolcificante Ai Datteri Dark Chocolate 80% (bar) was from Karuna Chocolate (Velturno, Belzano/South Tyrol, in northern Italy).  

The cacao used to make this bold dark chocolate was from Oko Caribe in El Cibao Region, Duarte Province, in north central Dominican Republic.

Aroma notes included: bold dark chocolate and very faint dried fruit (date and very faint caramelized dried, green banana), and very faint brown sugar.

The chocolate had a creamy, thick melt and smooth texture.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (deep, dark fudge, subtle earth, roasted cacao), faint dried fruit, and very faint sparkles of clean mineral water and barely there dark, bitter stout and dark roasted nuts. Instead of being sweetened with cane sugar, the maker(s) chose to use date powder, giving it a very faint date/brown sugar flavor. 

This made "without added sugar" ultra-dark bar had a balanced bitterness, and a relatively subtle fruit acidity.

Ingredients: Cocoa beans*, date powder*, cocoa butter*; Cocoa min. 80% (* certified organic)

Allergen-related information:  "It may contain traces of nuts."

Karuna Chocolate - Dominican Republic Dark Chocolate 80% (bar) - June 14, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Karuna Chocolate 
Dominican Republic Dark Chocolate 80% (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 157 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

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

Today's Dominican Republic Dark Chocolate 80% (bar) was from Karuna Chocolate (Velturno, BZ/South Tyrol, in northern Italy).  

Aroma notes included: pleasing dark chocolate (dark rich cocoa), subtle dried fruit (plum) and faint brown sugar.

This 80% bar, made with cacao grown in the Dominican Republic, had a creamy smooth melt and texture.

Flavor notes included: deep, rich dark chocolate (cocoa, fudge brownie), balanced stone fruit (plum, nectarine) acidity, very light sweet green, brown sugar, and very faint ale/porter, soft earth and fleeting warm spice, nut, and clean mineral water.

I really enjoyed this satisfyingly complex ultra-dark chocolate. It had very balanced, mild bitterness, and a wonderfully nuanced bouquet of single origin cacao and raw sugar notes.

Ingredients: "Cocoa beans*, raw cane sugar*, cocoa butter* (Cocoa min. 80%) (*certified organic)"

Allergen-related information: "May contain traces of nuts" 

Fruition Chocolate Works - Spiced Rum Dark Oko-Caribe 66% (bar) - May 30, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Fruition Chocolate Works
Spiced Rum Oko-Caribe 66% (bar)

Good ++

Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 164 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $14.50 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Dominican Republic Theme Week, and Day #1 of Chocolate, Spirits and Savory Snacks Theme Week.

Today's Spiced Rum Oko-Caribe 66% (bar) was created by Fruition Chocolate Works (Shokan, NY) at their workshop in the Catskill Mountains.

Maker's description: "This riff on our signature Dominican Republic Oko-Caribe dark chocolate is spiked with local Berkshire Mountain Distillers Ragged Mountain Rum and blended spices." (Cacao origin: Duarte, Dominican Republic; sourcing partner: Uncommon Cacao.)

Aroma notes for this spirited, 66% cacao dark bar included: sweet dark chocolate, caramel, sweet candy wax, warm spices, brown sugar and very faint rum.

This well-tempered chocolate broke with a hard snap. The melt and texture were smooth.

The overall taste was a softly undulating bouquet of balanced sweet, spiced rum punch and dark chocolate flavors that lingered into the finish.

The rum provided a naturally sweet, mellow, aged backdrop, without being boozy; and the subtle but intriguing spice blend infused the 66% chocolate with a warm, spiced rum flavor.

Today's chocolate was enjoyed with a savory snack plate that included: red grapes, Smokey Pepper Fontal Cheese, and savory, roasted almonds

Ingredients: Cocoa beans*, cane sugar*, cocoa butter*, rum, cinnamon, vanilla bean, cardamom, nutmeg, star anise, ginger, black pepper, pineapple essential oil. (* Organic)

Allergen-related information: "May contain traces of milk, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, eggs, soy, sesame."

Nibble Chocolate - Dominican Republic 85% (bar) - May 29, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Nibble Chocolate
Dominican Republic 85% Cocoa bar
Good + - Good ++
Weight: .575 oz. (16.25 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) ttl bar
Calories: 100 calories in 1/4 bar
Cost: $7.29 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Market at Edgewood, 

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Dominican Republic Theme Week.

Today's Dominican Republic 85% Cocoa Dark Chocolate Single Origin Trinitario* (bar) was made by Nibble Chocolate, LLC (San Diego, CA).

Aroma and flavor notes for this well-tempered, ultra-dark 85% chocolate included: dark roast cocoa/espresso, diffuse red and dried fruit, faint spice (molasses, black licorice); faint, fleeting wood/nut; and faint earth (loam).

Instead of making a 70% cacao bar (with more sugar to sweeten the bold, roasted single origin Trinitario cacao), Nibble Chocolate maker(s) chose (to their credit) to make an 85% cacao ultra-dark chocolate, with well-managed (potentially frisky) fruit acidity and bitterness. 

If "nibbled" (savored slowly) as the maker suggests, tasting this bar will unfold like a journey through a deep, dark complex rainforest with occasional shafts of beautiful sunlight and opportunities to taste rare, hidden dark/dried fruits.

Ingredients: Organic cocoa beans, organic whole unrefined cane sugar

Allergen-related information: "Processed in shared equipment with products containing nuts."

*Trinitario (thought to originate in Trinidad, and to be a cross between Criollo and Forastero cacaos) is a variety of cacao that is bolder than delicate heritage (Criollo) variety/ies, and often has (slightly acidic) fruit and light spice and earth notes. However, it is generally less "dark" and dense than Forastero cacao varieties. 

There are many varieties (and hybrids) of cacao, but the three varieties mentioned here tend to be featured often. 

Firetree Chocolate - Hispaniola Dominican Republic 72% Cocoa (bar) - May 28, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Firetree Chocolate
Hispaniola Dominican Republic 72% Cocoa (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.145 oz. (32.5 g.) / 2.29 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 180.5 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online, online order 

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Dominican Republic Theme Week.

Today's Hispaniola Dominican Republic 72% Cocoa (bar) was from Firetree Chocolate (Peterborough, United Kingdom).

Aroma notes included: smooth dark chocolate, roasted cocoa, diffuse fruit (red berry), and very faint floral spice.

This well-tempered chocolate had a smooth melt and texture with a barely there fruit astringency.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (roasted cocoa), diffuse fruit (red berry, dried nectarine and fig), spice, and faint sweet green (floral, light banana).

Maker's tasting notes: "...intense chocolate with brown fruit flavours, with spicy and red fruit notes, and a hint of green banana."

Ingredients: Cocoa mass, unrefined sugar, cocoa butter, emulsifier: sunflower lecithin.

Allergen-related information: This chocolate is made in a no nut factory. Dairy free. Halal. Kosher. Suitable for Vegans. 

 

Svenska Kakao - Dominican Republic, Oko Caribe 2021 70% Harvest (bar) - May 27, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Svenska Kakao

Dominican Republic, Oko Caribe, 2021 70% Cacao (bar)

Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 137 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and Dominican Republic Theme Week.

Today's Dominican Republic, Oko Caribe (2021 Harvest) 70% Cacao (bar) was from Svenska Kakao (Osterlen, Sweden). 

Svenska Kakao (Swedish Cacao) is small, family owned chocolate maker located in a red brick building (former school house) built in 1893 near the Baltic Sea. Their goal is to highlight the flavors found in cacao worldwide. They "roast their cacao beans at low temperatures, process minimally and add no unnecessary ingredients."

Aroma notes for today's bar--made with cacao produced by Oko Caribe in the Dominican Republic--included: dark chocolate (iron-rich dried fruits (raisin, plum, berry); faint molasses; faint, fleeting licorice; light green botanical; and barely there graham cracker). Within a five-minute smelling and tasting span other interesting (appealing) dark chocolate and very faint (not-undesirable) light fermentation notes flickered by as well.

The melt was nice; the texture had a very faint fruit astringency/dryness to it.

Flavor notes included nuanced dark chocolate with dried fruit (pear, berry, raisin), honey, sweet green and true chocolate (dark chocolate torte, pudding), notes.

Today's 70% DR dark chocolate was a well-crafted, shape-shifter, with interesting, well-balanced complexity and aroma and flavor notes. (One of my favorite kinds of chocolate to taste.) All the more impressive when one remembers all these nuances were from just two ingredients: cacao beans and sugar. 

Maker's tasting notes: "Dark chocolate with balanced notes of honey, red berries and nuts."

Ingredients: Cacao beans, cane sugar. Cacao: 70% 

Allergen-related information: "May contain traces of nuts and milk."

Ethereal Chocolate - Organic 80% Dominican Republic (bar) - May 26, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Ethereal Chocolate 
Organic 80% Dominican Republic (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.13 oz. (32 g.) / 2.25 oz. (64 g.) in total bar
Calories: 167.6 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Ethereal Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and Dominican Republic Theme Week.

Today's Organic 80% Dominican Republic (bar) was from Ethereal Chocolate (Woodstock, IL).

Aroma and flavor notes for this 80% cacao bar were almost the same and included: dark chocolate, red fruit (berry, cherry, red apple), wood (cedar) and faint nut.

The single origin, two-ingredient chocolate had an enjoyable aroma and flavor, and a relatively granular texture/astringency over the last two-thirds of each bite.

This ultra-dark chocolate was well-balanced, with relatively low bitterness and a sophisticated, natural fruit sweetness/brightness for an 80%er. The fruit acidity was not too strong, and the sweetness level was good (not too sweet, not too bitter).

Maker's tasting notes: ..."cherry, fig, and citrus"

Ingredients: Cocoa beans*, cane sugar* (* Organic)

Allergen-related information: "Made on shared equipment with peanuts and tree nuts."

NearyNogs - Wild Irish Dulaman Gorse Flower & Irish Seaweed (bar) - May 25, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

NearyNogs
Wild Irish Dulaman Gorse Flower & Irish Seaweed (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: .705 oz. (20 g.) / 1.41 oz. (40 g.) in total bar
Calories: 109 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #11 of Chocolate and Flowers Week, and Day #2 of Chocolate and Dominican Republic Theme Week.

Today's Wild Irish Dulaman Gorse Flower and Irish Seaweed (bar) was from NearyNogs Chocolate Makers (in their Mourne Coast facility/Newry, Northern Ireland -- with views of the Mourne mountains and the Irish Sea). The company produces a line of small batch, bean-to-bar, stoneground chocolates, some with locally-inspired flavors. 

The two Irish flavor inclusions: 1.) Edible Gorse flowers (Aiteann gallda) seen as small, dried yellow petals) Some species have a faint coconut scent., and 2.) Irish seaweed that added a light salty/umami note. Together, these two unique flavor inclusions were skillfully harmonized with each other-- and with the fruit (red fruit) flavors in the dark chocolate. 

Aroma notes for this well-tempered 70% dark chocolate included: dark chocolate, diffuse red fruit (red grape), evasive floral and very faint salt/savory notes

Flavor and finish notes were subtly complex, with an appealing, smooth but hearty, dark chocolate base (made with single estate cacao from Zorzal, in the Dominican Republic) with natural, balanced ripe fruit sweetness, sweet floral, very faint salt/savory and light caramel tones. 

I enjoyed this bar, with rich, pleasing flavors that included a light touch of endemic Irish floral and marine elements.

Maker's description: "Local foraged Irish channel wrack seaweed, just like the ancients foraged, paired with gorse ("whin") flowers, Irish bean to bar, craft chocolate"

Ingredients: 70% Organic Dominican Republic Chocolate, (70% cacao beans and sugar) seaweed and dried gorse flowers.

Allergen-related information: (None listed on packaging.) 

Standout Chocolate - Saffron 70% (bar) - May 24, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Standout Chocolate
Saffron - 70% Chocolate (bar)

Good +

Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 150.75 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar (yellow dot)
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA  

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate and Flowers Theme Week, and Day #1 of Chocolate and Dominican Republic Week.

Today's (Seasonal Collection*) Saffron 70% (bar) was handcrafted by Standout Chocolate (Kallered, Sweden).

Cacao origin: OKO Caribe, Dominican Republic 

Oko Caribe (Eco Caribbean)--acts as a co-op, central fermentery and organic certifier, and purchases (wet) cacao beans from more than 150 farmers in the Duarte Province. Fermented and dried cacao beans (from DR and other cocoa growing nations) are sold to chocolate makers around the globe. The cacao has been described as having red fruit and subtle wood notes. 

Aroma notes included: dark chocolate (very faint diffuse red fruit and wood) and faint earthy herbal (freshly cut grass) and floral (saffron, chysanthemum). 

The 70% dark chocolate base had a smooth, almost creamy texture, and a relatively bold dark flavor (that tasted a bit darker than 70%).

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate, herbal (freshly cut sweet green grass, earthy root (dandelion)), floral (saffron), and faint, fleeting slightly bitter earth. The chocolate tasted a bit on the darker, bolder side with a very faint bittersweet sharpness. The faint earth notes may have come from the cacao, the saffron, or both.

This relatively complex dark chocolate with earthy botanical and floral notes was interesting to try. The maker did a good job of navigating and trying to harmonize the raw flavors.

Ingredients: Cacao beans*, Cane sugar*, Cacao butter*, Saffron* (* Organic)

Allergen-related information: May contain traces of milk.

*St. Lucia saffron buns are a Christmas holiday tradition in Sweden.

Definite Chocolate - 75% Dark Chocolate (Chocolate Oscuro) Dominican Republic Rum - Dec. 31, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Definite Chocolate

75% Dark Chocolate (Chocolate Oscuro) Dominican Republic, Finca Elvesia

Good ++ 

Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar

Calories: 171 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #11 of Chocolate and Spirits Theme Week. 

Today's 75% Dark Chocolate (Chocolate Oscuro) Dominican Rum (bar) was made by Definite Chocolate, S.R.L. (Santa Domingo, Dominican Republic) with Dominican Republic organic cacao from Finca Elvesia* 

Aroma notes for this three-ingredient, single origin bar included: dark chocolate and faint warm spice and vanilla, woodsy and nut, with even fainter, diffuse caramel, tropical fruit and aromatic tobacco.

Texture: This 75% bar had a thick melt (in a cold room at around 67 degrees F. (19.4 degrees C.), and a very light (fruit) astringency in the finish.

The taste: Deep rich flavorful dark chocolate and rum with balanced, smoky, distilled spirits (whiskey, rum) in aged barrels notes. There was also a small pop of tropical fruit (mango, stone fruit) toward the finish.

Three ingredients, and all that flavor. I really enjoyed the subtle complexity of this single origin bar. 

Ingredients: Organic cacao, organic cane sugar, rum (less than 1%).

Allergen-related information: Made in a facility that handles nuts and milk.

*Finca Elvesia is a cacao plantation in northeastern Dominican Republic, about 70 miles (112 km) east of Punta Cana. This 150-hectare (370.6 acre) farm is located in "the agricultural community of El Valle, in the Hato Mayor region," according to the background information for this chocolate provided by Bar and Cocoa (the site where I purchased this bar).

Standout Chocolate - Nordic Nature Spruce Shoots 66% (bar) - Oct. 19, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Standout Chocolate

Nordic Nature Spruce Shoots 66% (bar)

Good ++

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

Calories: 144.5 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $11.50 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Botanicals Theme Week. 

Today's Organic and vegan Nordic Nature Spruce Shoots 66% (bar) was handcrafted by chocolate maker Fredrik Martinsson and team at Standout Chocolate (Kallered, Sweden).

Aroma and flavor notes included tart sweet green and citrus as well as very faint evergreen forest notes.

The cacao used to make this bar was grown in the Dominican Republic and it provided dark rich flavor (Forastero-Trinitario hybrid cacao variety perhaps?) with one faint, fleeting flicker of earth. The sugar, chocolate and spruce together created a nicely-balanced red berry-citrus like sweetness.

I highly recommend this unique and tasty spruce tip flavored bar for chocolate lovers who also enjoy botanicals and edible plants. No surprise--coming from an area where evergreens are enjoyed and appreciated--the spruce flavor in this chocolate was particularly wonderful.*

Ingredients: Organic cacao beans, organic cane sugar, organic cacao butter, organic spruce shoots.

Allergen-related information: May contain milk.

*Native Americans also used edible Spruce tips (as well as spruce "gum" (resin) and occasionally inner bark) for medicinal purposes. And European explorers learned to stave off scurvy with these Vitamin C rich botanicals. Occasionally I am able to find Douglas Fir and/or spruce tree tip teas; but they're a rare commercial find in the U.S.

Hogarth Chocolate Makers - Espresso Italian Roast Dark Chocolate (bar) - July 20, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Hogarth Chocolate Makers

Espresso Italian Roast Dark Chocolate 68% Cacao (bar)

Good ++

Weight: 1.235 oz. (35 g.) / 2.47 oz. (70 g.) in total bar

Calories: 83.174 calories in 1/5 bar (1 serving) 

Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #19 of Chocolate and Coffee Theme Week.

Today's Espresso Italian Roast Dark Chocolate 68% Cacao (bar) was from Hogarth Chocolate Makers (Nelson, New Zealand).

Aroma notes for this bar included: true chocolate (dark chocolate fudge), coffee, diffuse faint red fruit, roasted nutty-seed and wood notes (maple sap, very faint green), and very faint warm spice.

The attractively patterned Hogarth bar was relatively thick (in terms of size/depth), and had a smooth texture with a relatively thick, slow melt.

This complex blend of dark, sweet roasted coffee and chocolate--with flavor notes that mirrored the aroma notes mentioned above--was the product of Pomeroy's Coffee dark roasted Italian style blend + 68% cacao Dominican Republic OKO Caribe cacao. 

This 68% dark chocolate was relatively sweet but also had complex, dark and satisfying well-balanced flavor.

Ingredients: Cocoa solids 68% (organic cocoa beans, organic fairtrade cocoa butter), organic sugar, coffee beans.

Allergen-related information: "May contain traces of milk and nuts." "Vegan, Gluten Free, Soy Free"