Pure Chocolate - 70% Dark Chocolate with Lemongrass (bar) - Oct. 13, 2026

Chocolate of The Day

Pure Chocolate
70% Dark Chocolate with Lemongrass (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 90 calories (per label) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar & Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate & Jamaica Theme Week.

Today's 70% Dark Chocolate with Lemongrass (bar) was made by Pure Chocolate Ltd. (St. Ann, Jamaica, West Indies).

The company, founded in 2017 by two pastry chefs, offers a variety of attractively packaged* bars created with Jamaican cacao, including several chocolates with locally grown flavor additions--such as today's Lemongrass** bar. 

Aroma and flavor notes for this bar included: smooth dark chocolate; light and bright citrus (lemon, lemongrass); sweet, refreshing herb; and very faint milk chocolate molasses cookie. (There were no milk ingredient(s) in this bar.)

Texture: smooth texture with a satisfying, even melt--with a very faint (not unpleasant) astringency in the finish.

I liked the smooth, dark chocolate flavor and blend with the lemongrass. Nothing was too overpowering in this well-balanced chocolate. I kept "leaning in" to taste the chocolate and gentle lemongrass flavors.

I also appreciated the short list of quality and single origin ingredients.

Maker's tasting notes: "citrus, berries, herbal". Maker's beverage pairing suggestions: Champagne, Moscato d'Asti, rose.

Ingredients: "Jamaican cocoa beans, unrefined Jamaican cocoa butter, cane sugar, lemongrass"

Allergen-related information: "made in a facility that handles peanuts, tree nuts, dairy & gluten."

*The striking illustration on today's packaging was from Taj Francis.

**Lemongrass (originally from South Asia, and known as "fever grass" in Jamaica) likely first arrived on the Island via colonial trans-Atlantic trading ships/routes in approximately 1799. Today it's common to see it growing wild and cultivated in gardens. It's used in teas and as a cooking/culinary and medicinal herb.

Siamaya Chocolate - Tom Yum Classic Thai Recipe 70% Dark Chocolate (bar) - Sept. 2, 2026

Chocolate of The Day

Siamaya Chocolate
Tom Yum Classic Thai Recipe 70% Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good++ - Good+++
Weight: 1.3 oz. (37.5 g.) / 2.6 oz. (75 g.) in total bar
Calories: 170 calories in 1/2 bar 
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Touring Chocolatier, online order

Welcome to Day #5 of Savory Chocolates Theme Week.

Today's Tom Yum Classic Thai Recipe 70% Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Siamaya Craft Co. Ltd. (with a chocolate factory and shop in Chiang Mai, Thailand.)

This 70% bar was made in Thailand--using single origin cacao from Thailand.

Aroma and flavor notes included: sweet dark chocolate; aromatic tart-sweet citrus (orange, lime, lemongrass); balanced and flavorful umami (chili, tomato and soup) and a small zing of refreshing galangal.*

Texture: The base dark chocolate was well-tempered (broke with a snap) with a smooth and appealing rich melt and satisfying mouthfeel. And the chocolate was accented with softly chewy, orange-ish bits of what I assumed were fresh-tasting candied citrus (or maybe even citrus-infused tomato).

I loved this sweet, spicy and slightly savory chocolate packed with authentic citrus flavors and Thai (Tom Yum soup) spices. It was invigorating and delicious, with a mild chili kick. I needed a mid-day picker upper, and this transporting chocolate lifted my spirits and took me on a virtual trip to Thailand.

Ingredients: "Cacao nibs, organic cane sugar, dried tomatoes, cacao butter, Tom Yum powder, lemongrass oil, makrut lime oil, galangal oil" 

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

*Galangal is part of the ginger family and is used in Southeastern Asia cooking.

Cacao Hunters - 64% Limoncillo Lemongrass Dark Chocolate Bars - Jan. 7, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Cacao Hunters
64% Limoncillo Lemongrass Dark Chocolate Bars
Good ++ 
Weight: 2 oz. (56.6 g.) in total package of 2 bars
Calories: 340 calories in 2 bars (1 package)
Cost: $6.99 for 1 package of 2 bars
Purchased from: Whole Foods, Los Altos, CA

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate & Citrus Theme Week; Day #1 of Chocolate and Colombia Theme Week.

Today's Cacao Hunters 64% Limoncillo chocolate (bars) were manufactured by Cacao de Colombia in Colombia. The package contained two, individually-wrapped (sealed) bars.

Aroma and flavor notes for these bars included: sweet, smooth, dark chocolate; light citrus (lemon); light green herbal/spice (vanilla*); and very faint lemon profiterole cookie.

Texture: The chocolate was well-tempered (broke with a snap); and it was smooth textured--with an even, satisfying melt. The relative thinness of these bars allowed better/quicker access to flavors and texture.

I liked the smooth texture and blend of gentle (Tumaco, Colombia) cacao and herbal lemongrass** flavors. I also appreciated the relatively short list of ingredients.

Ingredients: "Chocolate (cocoa beans, cane sugar, cocoa butter, emulsifier (sunflower lecithin)), Lemongrass."

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

*Note: There was no vanilla; no vanilla appeared in the ingredients list.

** While native to South Asia and Southeast Asia, lemongrass (Cympobogon) has been cultivated for over a century in other tropical areas--that often overlap with cacao growing areas in South American and Central American countries like Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay and Guatemala.

Maui Ku'ia Estate Chocolate - Dark Chocolate & Dark Milk Chocolate Lemongrass (squares) - Mar. 27, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Maui Ku'ia Estate Chocolate
1.) Dark Chocolate Lemongrass 65% (square) - Good ++
2.) Dark Milk Chocolate Lemongrass 60% (square) - Good + - Good ++
Weight: .36 oz. (10 g.) in 2 squares / 8.5 oz. (240 g.) in total box of 48 pieces
Calories: 58.3 calories in 2 squares 
Cost: $58.50 for Assorted Dark and Dark Milk 48-piece (16 flavor) box
Purchased from: Maui Ku'ia Estate Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Hawaii Theme Week.

Today's individually-wrapped, Dark Chocolate Lemongrass 65% and Dark Milk Lemongrass 60% chocolate (squares) was made in Maui by Maui Ku'ia Estate Chocolate (Lahaina, Maui, HI).

Today's Dark Chocolate Maui Guava 65% Cacao, Costa Esmeraldas, Ecuador (bar)

These two lemongrass infused chocolate squares were part of a larger, 48-piece (dark chocolate and dark milk chocolate) assortment box. Each chocolate square was individually-wrapped.

Aroma and flavor notes for the dark chocolate 65% lemongrass-infused squares included: citrus, (herbal lemonade), lemongrass and relatively robust but smooth, almost creamy dark chocolate. 

The 60% dark milk version was creamier and sweeter; and the milk muted some chocolate and lemongrass flavors. (Think rich, creamy gelato.) Milk chocolate fans will enjoy this creamier taste and texture.

I enjoyed the crisper, purer flavors in the darker (65% cacao) version. 

Ingredients: Cacao Beans, Cocoa Butter, Sugar, (Dark Milk square contained Milk), Natural Flavors.

Allergen-related information: Today's Dark Milk square contained Milk.  

Stone Grindz Chocolate - Crystallized Ginger Coconut Milk Chocolate 55% Cacao (bar) - Nov. 5, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Stone Grindz Chocolate
Crystallized Ginger Coconut Milk Chocolate 55% Cacao (bar)

Good + - Good ++

Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar
Calories: 127 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 (+ shipping) for 1 bar 

Purchased from: Stone Grindz, online order

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate and Coconut Theme Week.

Today's Crystallized Ginger Coconut Milk Chocolate 55% Cacao (bar) was made from bean to bar by Stone Grindz Chocolate (Scottsdale, AZ). Chocolate makers Kasey McCaslin and Steven Shipler craft small batch single origin chocolate bars, and several chocolates with flavor inclusions.

The award-winning coconut milk-based chocolate was made using cacao beans grown in Peru.

Aroma notes for this 55% cacao exotic chocolate included: relatively faint but rich, smooth chocolate; ginger; tart green-lemon herb; and very faint coconut milk and vanilla.

The base chocolate had a creamy, almost silky melt and texture. And a generous array of chewy candied ginger pieces added texture as well as flavor.

Flavor notes included: smooth chocolate, sweet spikes of candied ginger, lemongrass (oil) and a barely detectable dash of sea salt. There was a lot going on with this bar, but the flavors were balanced. 

Stone Grindz Makers' Tasting Notes: "Notes of candied ginger, coconut cream, lemongrass"

Ingredients: "Cacao*, Cacao Butter*, Cane Sugar*, Coconut*, Ginger*, Vanilla Bean, Ginger Oil, Lemongrass Oil, Sea Salt (* = Organically Farmed)

Allergen-related information: "Soy Free, Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegan"

 

Siamaya Chocolate - Thai Peanut Curry (bar) - Sept. 15, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Siamaya Chocolate

Thai Peanut Curry (bar)

Good ++

Weight: 2.65 oz. (75 g.) in total bar

Calories: 334 calories (estimate) in 1 bar

Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate Surprise Theme Week.

Today's Thai Peanut Curry (bar) was from Siamaya Chocolate / Siamaya Craft Co., Ltd. (Chang Mai, Thailand).

Siamaya makes bean-to-bar chocolate. They blend locally grown, pesticide free Thai cacao beans with locally inspired, and for us perhaps surprising and unique, Thai flavor inclusions. 

Today's gluten free and vegan Thai peanut curry bar was inspired by Thai massaman peanut curry. The maker(s) have layered sweet dark chocolate with chilies, cinnamon, lemon-grass and candied ginger.

This bar had an aroma with sweet and spicy peanuts fresh out of the roaster, and subtle chocolate notes.

After the first taste, the peanut bits were soon relegated to textural elements with faint nutty notes. Why? When I bit into the bar, pieces of candied ginger stole the show. And just when I thought the ginger might becoming too bossy, sassy upticks of chili sizzle and spice heat rose to the forefront. The finish was calmer, with hints of lemongrass and ginger. 

This hearty chocolate highlighted authentic Thai flavors, and offered an exciting, fun, full flavor ride. The chocolate was sweet, but not too sweet.

Peanut history

Peanuts are a culinary staple in many countries in Asia, and around the globe. This humble legume originated in South America (Peru, Brazil), and likely overlapped with the original cacao-growing regions. Indigenous people may have even ground nuts, cacao seeds (aka cacao beans), chilies and spices (allspice, vanilla) together for inclusion in beverages and foods (think early mole sauces).

Europeans (Spanish, Portuguese, English) brought peanuts back to Europe and elsewhere. The Portuguese likely brought peanuts to Africa from Brazil as early as the 1600s. Peanuts were also introduced to Asia. (The earliest written records of planting peanuts in Thailand date back to the mid-1800s.)

By the 1700s, Africans (slaves) had brought peanuts back to the Americas, specifically to North America; and peanuts were planted and cultivated, especially in the southern U.S. They were, at first, thought of as a food for the poor and for livestock.

Sometimes foods, things and people come full circle, or are discovered and popularized in another culture before they're appreciated in their home town or country.

Ingredients: cacao nibs (44%), organic cane sugar (24%), peanuts (17%), candied ginger (9%), cacao butter (4%), spices (1%), chilies (0.7%), sunflower lecithin (0.3%).

Goodio Craft Chocolate - Ginger and Lemongrass 59% bar - Apr. 24, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Goodio Craft Chocolate
Ginger and Lemongrass 59% Cacao (bar)
Good - Good +
Weight: .85 oz. (24 g.) / 1.7 oz. (48 g.) in total bar
Calories: 124.5 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $8.50 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate, Plants and Herbs Theme Week.

Today's Ginger and Lemongrass 59% Cacao (bar) was made by Goodio Craft Chocolate (Helsinki, Finland).

The authentic aroma of lemongrass in this raw, organic and vegan bar was heady and wonderful without being overwhelming. It smelled like a favorite Thai soup.

Although the brain started thinking savory, the flavor  of this bar (lightly sweetened with coconut palm sugar) brought our awareness back to chocolate. Ginger and lemongrass gave this chocolate a bright flavor lift, without the harsher processed sugar buzz.

This bar was labeled raw, organic and vegan.

John and Kira's Lemongrass chocolate - Nov. 18, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

John and Kira's
La Vigne Lemongrass chocolate
Good + - Very Good
Weight: .383 oz. (10.86 g.) / 5.75 oz. (163 g.) in total assortment box
Calories: 57 calories (estimate) in 1 piece
Cost: $ N/A part of a larger assortment box, tower (already recorded)
Purchased from: John and Kira's (online order)

This morning I enjoyed a La Vigne Lemongrass chocolate* from John and Kira's (Philadelphia, PA). This dark chocolate covered square contained a ganache (filling) subtly flavored with "organic and biodynamic lemongrass from Helen and Robert Beck's California farm."

Dark chocolate was the dominant flavor, and as I savored the chocolate, the lemongrass revealed itself slowly and wonderfully. I love natural, botanical flavors like this. I would have been happy with even more lemongrass flavor, but I suspect this subtle hint is to many people's liking.

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate and Lemon Theme Week.

Note: The La Vigne Lemongrass chocolate was part of a 15-piece "Every Flavor" assortment box, and was not sold separately.

Patric Lemongrass-Ginger bar - July 10, 2013

Chocolate of the Day:

Patric Chocolate

Lemongrass-Ginger bar

Good +

Weight: .575 oz. (16.25 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) total bar

Calories: 87 calories (estimate) in 1/4 bar

Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

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

The minute I sliced open the plastic wrapper that enveloped today's bar, I was treated to the smell of good chocolate. I would happily try almost any Patric Chocolate (Columbia, MO) bar for one reason: Alan 'Patric' McClure does such a masterful job crafting his chocolate, from bean to bar. Add a few high-quality flavors or "additions" to this already fine chocolate, and the stage is set for a great bar.

Authentic-tasting sparkles of ginger sugar dominated the first few bites of this Patric Limited Edition dark milk chocolate bar. The lemongrass essence was, initially, more diffuse and served as a fragrant backdrop until the latter part of the tasting arc. That was fine with me, as I was busy enjoying the ginger. Subsequent bites of this (soy and gluten free) bar see-sawed gently back and forth between lemongrass and ginger.

(Apologies: Pictures to follow later this week.)

Coconut Milk Ginger bar - July 9, 2013

Chocolate(s) of the Day:

Madre Chocolate
Coconut Milk and Caramelized Ginger bar
Good +
Weight: 1.125 oz. (32.25 g.) / 1.5 oz. (43 g.) total bar
Calories: 169 calories in 3/4 bar
Cost: $8.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Madre Chocolate, Hawaii

Madre Coconut and Ginger bar
Today's Coconut Milk and Caramelized Ginger bar was handcrafted by Madre Chocolate (Oahu, Hawaii). The company constructed this bar from all-Hawaiian ingredients: 55% dark chocolate made from cacao beans hailing from the Hamakua Coast (on the Big Island of Hawaii); coconuts from Maui and the Big Island; and organic ginger from Hawaii.

Coconut milk and cocoa butter gave this bar an authentic, almost buttery soft and creamy texture. The smattering of candied ginger bits scattered throughout the bar provided chewy, spicy and sweet bits of complementary, natural Island flavor.

Ginger Lemongrass
Yesterday, I mentioned tasting other Ginger and Lemongrass chocolate bars this week. I did re-taste Artisan du Chocolat's (London) Ginger and Lemongrass milk chocolate (40% cocoa) bar, that had a pleasant, mild fragrant flavor. Tomorrow, I will sample Patric Chocolate's (Columbia, Missouri) Lemongrass-Ginger dark milk chocolate bar (sold through The Chocolate Garage, in Palo Alto, CA).

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate and Ginger Theme Week. 

Thai Wonder bar - July 8, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Compartes Chocolatier
Thai Wonder bar
Good
Weight: .5 oz. (14.1 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 60 calories in 1/6 bar
Cost: $9.99 in 1 bar
Purchased from: Compartes Chocolatier, Los Angeles, CA

The attractively packaged Thai Wonder - Ginger and Lemongrass - bar I enjoyed today was part of the Compartes Chocolatier (Los Angeles, CA) World Series collection (Volume 01, Bar 06), that incorporated international flavor blends.

Today's dark chocolate (73% cacao) bar was infused with a very subtle blend of ginger and lemongrass. I broke off a small edge piece or two to try. These flavors may have been more intense in the middle of the bar.

Ginger and lemongrass combinations have become popular in the past year or two, and I look forward to trying another (new) bar with this blend tomorrow.

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate and Ginger Theme Week.

Pacari Lemongrass bar - June 12, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Pacari Chocolate
Lemongrass (bar)
Good+
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) / 1.76 oz. (50 g.) total bar
Calories: 152 calories (estimate) for 1 oz. (28.3 g.) serving
Cost: $ N/A - sample
Purchased from: N/A - sample from Pacari Chocolate, San Francisco Fancy Food Show, San Francisco, CA

Today was Day #6 of Chocolate and Hibiscus Theme Week.

Combining a few semi-tropical flavors together today, I sampled a refreshing Lemongrass flavored dark chocolate bar from Pacari Chocolate (Quito, Ecuador), with a small glass of hibiscus coconut tea (from Republic of Tea).

Ecuadorian, tree-to-bar, organic chocolate maker, Pacari Chocolate, included this Lemongrass* bar in the company's 4-bar, flavors of the Andes collection (that also included bars with Andean blueberries, pink salt from Cuzco, and merken chili and coriander). Bars were made from "pure Ecuadorian Arriba National Cacao" and were gluten free, dairy free, kosher and soy free.

These flavors conjured up spending time on a lazy summer afternoon in a hammock, enjoying sips of exotic iced tea, listening to the sound of a gentle breeze wafting through palm trees overhead. Not bad; not bad at all.

*Note: Lemongrass is also known as Hierba Luisa in Peru (citron verbena in Germany, and vervaine citronelle in some French speaking regions). The Lemongrass essence in this bar was delightful -- very fresh, not quite lemon, not quite herb. Somewhere in between.

ChocolateBet: July 13, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:

4/5 bar
Artisan du Chocolat
Ginger and Lemongrass (bar)
Good + - Very Good
Weight: 1.27 oz. (36 g.) / 1.59 oz. (45 g.) total bar
Calories: 190 calories
Cost: $6.00 for total bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, in Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #7 of Chocolate and Tea Theme Week. I like to make my own teas. Pouring a cup of boiling water over coin-sized slices of fresh, peeled ginger, and/or chopped lemongrass -- with a drizzle of honey, is an easy recipe for a satisfying herbal tea. So, naturally, I was interested in trying this Ginger and Lemongrass chocolate bar from London-based Artisan du Chocolat.

This 40% milk chocolate bar was a bit too sweet for me; but fairly well balanced in terms of flavorings. It offers something a little fun and different, and nothing that will offend. Findings in a Chocolate Garage tasting: This bar paired surprisingly well with blue/stronger cheese(s), and fruit.

ChocolateBet: May 27, 2010

Chocolate of the Day:
.3 oz.
Jade Chocolates
Krakatoa bar
Very Good - Very Good +
Weight: .3 oz. (8.49 g.)/ 2 oz. (58 g.) in total bar
Calories: 44 calories for .3 oz. (estimate)
Cost: $5.50 for total bar
Purchased from: Jade Chocolates, tasting event, in San Francisco, CA

Sometimes you just have to eat truffles for dinner. Tonight was such an occasion. I attended a Jade Chocolates truffle tasting event, held at Leland Tea Company, in San Francisco this evening. Samples of new Jade chocolate bars were also available. The Krakatoa bar (63% cacao, bittersweet), flavored with black pepper and lemongrass, was one of these new bars (shown above right).

My favorite Jade Chocolates truffle was the Jasmine Tea truffle. I am a sucker for good jasmine chocolates. The other truffle flavors (passion fruit; mint; peanut butter mango; pandan; and several others) were also quite good. Unfortunately, these truffles are not available for sale in stores at this time.