Honoka'a Chocolate - 70% Cacao Barrel Aged Bourbon Bar - Nov. 26, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Honoka'a Chocolate
70% Cacao Barrel Aged Bourbon Bar 
Good +++
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar 
Calories: 180 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $16.00 (estimate) (1 of 3 bar trio for $48.00)
Purchased from: Honoka'a Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #20 of Chocolate and Hawaii Theme Week; and Day #2 of Chocolate and Spirits Theme Week.

Today's 70% Barrel Aged Bourbon Bar (bar) was from Honoka'a Chocolate (Honoka'a, HI). Honoka'a is a small town on the scenic (and green) Hamakua coast on the northeast side of the Big Island of Hawaii.

Aroma notes included: subtle dark chocolate; faint sweet green (tree/maple syrup, very faint banana, citrus (orange), and barely detectable (possibly imagined) Mediterranean green walnuts in sweet green syrup/honey); faint, fleeting herbal (sweet, not quite licorice/fennel--but close); and barely detectable warm spice (vanilla).

Texture: very smooth, with a well-executed melt and mouthfeel. 

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (very tasty dark chocolate ganache with faint caramel/brown sugar, bourbon, and subtle, smooth wood (oak)), and citrus (orange).

I really liked the luxurious, silken texture and the subtle and intriguing complexity. The aging/soaking of cacao nibs in spirits and/or oak barrels (that have held spirits) can result in some truly beautiful, rich flavors. And each spirit (in this case bourbon) has its own unique flavor to impart. This bar--and yesterday's Kuleana Barrel Aged Rum Bar from the same maker--were both great examples of what's possible using these techniques.

I also really appreciated the very short list of (two) high-quality ingredients, and the use of Hawai'i grown cacao in all the Honoka'a bars I've tried this week.

Ingredients: "100% Hawai'i island cacao, organic turbinado cane sugar. Cacao nibs and bourbon are aged in oak barrels for 4-5 months before processing into chocolate."

Allergen-related information: ("Gluten Free, Fair Trade, Non GMO, Vegan, Dairy Free")  

Honoka'a Chocolate - 85% Cacao Hawaiian Dark Chocolate (bar) - Nov. 24, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Honoka'a Chocolate
85% Cacao Hawaiian Dark Chocolate (bar) 
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar 
Calories: 180 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $15.00 (estimate) (3rd of 3-bar trio for $45.00)
Purchased from: Honoka'a Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #18 of Chocolate and Hawaii Theme Week.

Today's 85% Cacao Hawaiian Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Honoka'a Chocolate (Honoka'a, HI).

Aroma notes included: dark chocolate (dark ganache, dark cocoa); very faint and fleeting milk/cream, marshmallow, brown sugar, and sweet green herb; and very and faint diffuse sweet green nut and floral--the latter disappeared fairly quickly after exposure to air for several minutes.

Texture: silky smooth, with a luxuriously thick mouthfeel and melt--like other bars from Honoka'a. I'm guessing the cacao(s) were naturally high in cocoa butter. (Often the case in Hawaii, located farther than 20 degrees Latitude (from the Equator).*

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate; very faint, diffuse and fleeting fruit (tropical fruit, very faint and buttery avocado); and barely detectable yogurt/earth (faint loam). Overall the flavor was very smooth for an 85%er. I was really leaning in to try to pick up the more subtle notes--not typical for most high-percentage bars with stronger, more intense flavors.

The sweetness level was relatively moderate-high and the bitterness and astringency levels were relatively low for a high-percentage cacao bar like this.

Oddly, there was less earthy flavor in this 85% cacao bar than the 65% and 70% Hawaiian cacao-based bars from this same maker, featured in the past few days. 

The turbinado cane sugar added a bit of brown sugar flavor and possibly a slightly tangy note. (It was hard to tell if this was from the sugar or the cacao.) I plan to share this 85% bar with a few dark milk chocolate fans who are uncomfortable with high-intensity dark chocolates. 

I enjoyed the subtle, natural complexity; the remarkable buttery texture; the use of Hawaiian cacao; and the short list of only two ingredients. 

Ingredients: "100% Hawai'i island cacao, organic turbinado cane sugar."

Allergen-related information: ("dairy free")  

*Hawaii is sometimes referred to as the North Pole for growing cacao. Almost all of the world's cacao is grown closer to (less than 20 degrees from) the Equator. And most of that (probably at least 70-75%) comes from less than 10 degrees from the Equator. 

Honoka'a Chocolate - 70% Cacao Hawaiian Dark Chocolate (bar) - Nov. 23, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Honoka'a Chocolate
70% Cacao Hawaiian Dark Chocolate (bar) 
Good ++
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar 
Calories: 180 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $15.00 (estimate) (2nd of 3 bar trio for $45.00)
Purchased from: Honoka'a Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #17 of Chocolate and Hawaii Theme Week.

Today's 70% Cacao Hawaiian Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Honoka'a Chocolate (Honoka'a, HI). Honoka'a is a small town on the Hamakua coast on the northeast side of the Big Island of Hawaii.

The relatively light and fresh aroma notes included: mellow dark chocolate, very light green fig flavored marshmallow, and barely detectable light herbal (licorice/fennel). Note: most of the lighter, and floral-leaning "green" notes were gone after the inner wrapper had been open for a few hours.

Texture: silky smooth, with a luxuriously thick mouthfeel and melt.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (dark chocolate ganache with very faint milky caramel/brown sugar; earthy dark chocolate milk); very faint milk (Greek yogurt); and barely detectable earth (loam). (Note: the "dairy" notes were very subtle; and there were no milk/dairy ingredients listed on the packaging.)

I liked the luxe--silken, with an almost chewy caramel-like--texture; the very short list of ingredients: just cacao and sugar; and that there was a bit of intriguing complexity.

The very slightly earthy cacao helped balance out the sweetness, and vice versa. Also, the turbinado sugar used was a little less processed than some white sugars, resulting in a slightly more rich (brown sugar) flavor and less sugar buzz.

Ingredients: 100% Hawai'i island cacao, organic turbinado cane sugar. 

Allergen-related information: ("Gluten Free, Fair Trade, Non GMO, Vegan, Dairy Free")

Cacao Hunters - 71% Cacao Elizabeth (bar) - Mar. 21, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Cacao Hunters

71% Cacao Elizabeth Dark Chocolate (bar)

Good ++

Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) / 2 oz. (56 g.) in total bar

Calories: 170 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar

Cost: $7.50 (estimate) for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate and Colombia Theme Week.

Today's Cacao Hunters 71% Cacao Elizabeth Dark Chocolate (bar) was produced by Cacao de Colombia (Popayan, Cauca, Colombia).

For (yesterday's and) today's Cacao Hunters' Colombia bars, I found it best to distinguish between the aroma notes present when first opened, and the aroma notes after the bar was allowed to sit (in an open package) for a few minutes. (Both bars were enclosed in an air-tight "foil" pouch, which helps explain this phenomenon.)

The initial aroma notes for this bar (like yesterday's) included notes I associate with fermentation and anaerobic digestion (slight vinegar and wood mulch notes). However, when allowed to breathe for a few minutes, these notes dissipated, and more pleasant notes came to the fore: chocolate (cookie), green tea, honey, maple sugar, and faint and diffuse red fruit and tropical fruit (fleeting guava) jelly notes.

This well-tempered, 71% dark, single origin chocolate had a buttery texture and melt. The flavor notes were pleasing and echoed the aroma notes above--only with richer, deeper cocoa flavor, with a faint flicker of muted forest/earthy cacao, and small upticks of authentic sweet, diffuse fruit(s), and plant sugars (sugar cane, maple sugar) and fruit-floral honey. 

Ingredients: "Cocoa beans, cane sugar, cocoa butter"

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

Cacaoteca - 51% Negro con Leche Chocolate Dominicano (bar) - Nov. 12, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Cacaoteca 
51% Negro Con Leche 
(51% Dark with Milk) (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: .9 oz. (25 g.) / 1.8 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 145 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $6.50 (sale) for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Hispaniola Theme Weeks, featuring chocolates made with Dominican cacao this week. 

Today's 51% Negro Con Leche (51% Cacao Dark with Milk bar) was from Cacaoteca S.R.L., the only chocolate maker this week to be based in the Dominican Republic. 

This dark milk chocolate bar had a very pleasing aroma--one that encompasses a blend of nutty, faint earth, slight savory, and chocolate notes. (Sea salt brownie and milk anyone?) The milk (powder) contributed a creamy, smooth texture.

The flavors were also very pleasing with chocolate, a slight spike of earth, smooth nut, very faint savory, diffuse fruit sweetness and creamy milk notes. 

Ingredients: Cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, milk powder

Allergen-related information: "Contains: milk...Manufactured in a facility that also processes: milk, peanuts, almond, cashew, walnut, pecan"

Latitude Trade Company - 70% Dark Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Semuliki Forest 2017 Harvest (bar) - Oct. 28, 2019

Chocolate of the Day:

Latitude Trade Company
70% Dark Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Semuliki Forest 2017 Harvest (bar)
Good ++
Weight: .795 oz. (22.5 g.) / 1.59 oz. (45 g.) in total bar
Calories: 120 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $8.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

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

Today's 70% Dark Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Semuliki Forest 2017 Harvest (bar) was from Latitude Trade Company (Bundibugyo and Kasese, Uganda) and was made, from bean to bar, in Uganda, using just two ingredients: cocoa beans and sugar.

Latitude Trade Co. is a self-described "...agricultural development and sourcing company active in the cocoa value chain in Uganda." They are helping to bridge "the gap between rural farmers in East Africa and consumers throughout the world." Their goals include more economic development in country and putting Uganda on the map for great cacao.*

And speaking of latitude, cacao only grows approximately twenty degrees above and below the Equator—an invisible band around the middle of our planet. The world's most delicious ingredients used to make award-winning chocolate are found only in this zone in Africa, South America, Asia and certain Pacific island nations. The Equator runs through Uganda, in the south above Lake Victoria, offering strong geographic potential for fine cacao.

This simply packaged, single origin dark chocolate had a rich aroma with sweet chocolate, slight green vegetation/forest and light spice and fruit notes, with a bit of faint earth.

The bar had a smooth, even texture and taste with well-rounded, complex yet friendly, upbeat chocolate flavor and a pleasing finish with no off notes.

The cacao, harvested in 2017 (and is the custom in chocolate making is often allowed to rest a bit before making it into bars) came from Semuliki, a forested preserve area near a large lake (Lake Albert), near the DRC border, in western Uganda.*

*The Republic of Uganda (about the size of the U.S. State of Oregon, but more heavily populated) is located in East-Central Africa, north of Tanzania—another country that has become known for its cacao; west of Kenya; and east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). 

Many in Uganda earn less than one U.S. dollar a day, so adding value in country that leads to economic development/prosperity for local farmers and workers is important.

Agricultural crops (about 25 percent of GDP) in Uganda include tea, coffee, tobacco and cotton. And in regions where tea and coffee are grown...you can generally find or grow cacao.

Ghana and Ivory Coast are currently the top cacao producing countries in Africa. These two West African nations together supply half the world's cacao. If you include neighboring countries, Nigeria and Cameroon, this 50% number jumps to 70%. Millions of people enjoy chocolate made with cacao grown in Africa.

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