Vixen Chocolate - Vanuatu 72% Dark Malekula Island (bar) - July 27, 2026

Chocolate of The Day

Vixen Chocolate
Vanuatu - 72% Dark Malekula Island (bar) 
Good ++
Weight: .97 oz. (27.5 g.) / 1.94 oz. (55 g.) in total bar
Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $18.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Xocolatl Garden, Carmel, CA

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate, Fire & Passion Theme Week.

Today's Vanuatu - 72% Dark Malekula Island (bar) was created by Vixen Chocolate (Portland, OR). This was part of a "Terroir Magic Series" of chocolates.

"Stay Bold" (the inky black and flashy magenta foiled) a label for this bar tells us. (We will, responded the dark chocolate lovers drawn to bold flavors--and intriguing packaging.)

This bar had a subtle and smooth dark chocolate aroma, and balanced dark chocolate flavor with gently attractive succulent, sweet fruit (dragon fruit, pear/cactus pear chocolate torte) with very faint warm spice (mulled red wine), barely there earth/tobacco, and a satisfying light, lingering chocolate-y finish.

Texture: smooth, almost creamy, satisfying dark chocolate

I enjoyed this Vanuatu chocolate and its subtle lushness (hidden fruit)--an experience I associate with a single origin/terroir chocolate. And I appreciated the short list of (just three) ingredients.

Maker's Tasting Notes: "creamy and bold, with notes of sweet tobacco, worn leather, and a whisper of black fig--refined yet untamed."

Ingredients: cacao beans, cane sugar*, cacao butter*, 852 Hz, LOVE (*organic)

Allergen-related information: (No allergen-related information found on bar packaging)

Cacao & Cardamom - Coffee & Cardamom 66% Cacao Single Origin (bar) - May 26, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Cacao & Cardamom
Coffee & Cardamom 66% Cacao Single Origin (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.75 oz. (50 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 272 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Cacao & Cardamom, online order

Welcome to Day #14 of Chocolate and Coffee Theme Week. 

Today's Coffee & Cardamom 66% Cacao Single Origin (bar) was made by Cacao & Cardamom (Houston, TX). Their chief chocolatier is Annie Rupani.

The Caraibe single origin cacao used to make this bar refers to a blend of single origin Trinitario cacao from Valrhona (France).*

Aroma and flavor notes for this warm and flavorful dark chocolate included: aromatic cardamom; dark chocolate (relatively sweet 66% cacao chocolate and authentic "100%" cacao nibs and coffee beans); additional warm spices (cinnamon, vanilla); and mild coffee (beans).

Texture: a blend of smooth, relatively creamy dark chocolate and softly crunchy cacao nibs and "Espresso beans" (no coffee grit, thank you).

I loved the blend of cardamom, chocolate and coffee--all relatively aromatic and bold flavors that work very nicely together. The cinnamon and vanilla added more warmth, depth and come hither flavors to the whole blend.

Ingredients: "66% Caraibe Dark Chocolate (Cocoa beans, sugar, cocoa butter, sunflower lecithin, natural vanilla extract), Cardamom, Cinnamon, Espresso Beans"

Allergen-related information: "Made in a facility that handles tree nuts"

*Valrhona's Caraibe chocolate is crafted from a blend of Trinitario cacao beans from four countries: the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Jamaica, and Togo.

Cacao Hunters - 53% Tumaco Leche Milk Chocolate Bars - May 19, 2026

Chocolate of the Day

Cacao Hunters
53% Tumaco Leche Milk Chocolate Bars
Good ++
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) / 2 oz. (56 g.) total box of 2 bars
Calories: 170 calories in 1 of 2 bars
Cost: $6.29 for 1 package of 2 bars
Purchased from: Whole Foods Market, Los Altos, CA

Welcome to Day #18 of Chocolate & Colombia Theme Week, and Day #7 of Chocolate & Coffee Theme Week. Colombia is well known for specialty cacao and coffee, thus the considerable overlap of these two themes this month.

Today's Cacao Hunters 53% Tumaco Leche Milk Chocolate Bars (package of 2 bars) were manufactured by Cacao de Colombia (Popayan, Cauca, Colombia). 

Cacao Hunters offers several bean-to-bar chocolate bars that highlight regional Colombian/cacao flavors and the company is committed to ethical sourcing and helping small stakeholder farmers. Today's cacao was from Tumaco (located in southwest Colombia, near the Pacific Ocean).

Aroma and flavor notes for today's 53% milk chocolate Tumaco Colombia bar included: rich and nutty cocoa, caramel, faint fruit (stone fruit (peach, plum) and berry jam) and very faint, sweet green/ herbal (anethole).

Texture: smooth and creamy

This bar was surprisingly and wonderfully aromatic and flavorful for a milk chocolate bar--a great choice for someone who doesn't care for the flat affect and of many commercially available milk chocolates. The combination of flavors + (cane) sugar and milk also made it relatively addictive.

I paired this bar with a honey-sweetened, chocolate coated, coffee ice cream bar. Both the chocolate and coffee ice cream bar were very tasty. (A double-barreled shot of high-quality, milky sweets for the day.)

Ingredients: "Cocoa beans, cane sugar, milk powder, cocoa butter, emulsifier (sunflower lecithin)."

Allergen-related information: Contains milk. 

Origen Cacao - 80% Putumayo (bar) - May 5, 2026

 Chocolate of the Day

Origen Cacao 
80% Putumayo dark chocolate (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++ 
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 2.47 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 115 calories (per label) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $30.00 for a 6-bar variety pack
Purchased from: Origen Cacao, online

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate & Colombia Theme Week. 

Today's 80% Putumayo dark chocolate (bar) from Origen Cacao was "handcrafted in small batches" at the company's factory in San Roque, Antioquia (Colombia). The company name encompasses nested origin stories.

Putumayo is a department (state) in southwestern Colombia that shares borders with Ecuador and Peru. Rich in forests lowlands, this area is sometimes described as where the "Andes mountains meet the Amazon rainforest"--in a region where cultivation of cacao likely began 1,000s of years ago. 

Aroma and flavor notes for today's 80% dark chocolate included: mild chocolate (especially for an 80% cacao bar), with subtle fruit (cacao fruit), and faint warm spice, nut and sweet herb. (These notes were created with just cacao and sugar. There were no nut ingredients.)

This gentle dark chocolate was low in bitterness and acidity.

Texture: well-tempered, this bar broke with a snap and had a smooth melt.

I enjoyed the subtle cacao fruit and other notes in the aroma--and the naturally mild cacao that made it easier to pick out these notes. 

And I appreciated the short list of authentic and organic ingredients in this bar. 

Today's bar reminded me of other chocolates made with gentle, aromatic, heritage cacaos (Criollo variety cacaos from Central and South America).* 

Ingredients: "Organic Cacao, organic cane sugar, Organic Cocoa Butter"

Allergen-related information: None found on packaging.

*While this bar did not have floral notes, this mild, aromatic cacao reminded me of many heritage roses that still possess their beautiful, complex and delicate scents. The same could be said for heritage and heirloom varieties of fruits, coffees, hops and other plants. Modern varieties bred for disease resistance and vigor seem to lose many of these notes.

Intrigue Chocolate - Peru Ucayali Valley 60% Cacao (bar) Aug. 19, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Intrigue Chocolate
Peru Ucayali Valley 60% Cacao (bar) 
Good +++
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) in total bar
Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $6.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Intrigue Chocolate, online order

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

Today's Peru Ucayali Valley 60% Cacao bar (Batch #000000090424) was made and distributed by Intrigue Chocolate (Chisholm, MN).

The mixed varietal cacao beans from Ucayali River Cacao (that works with 400 farmers) used to make this chocolate were grown in the Ucayali River region (harvested in 2022) in eastern-central Peru. The Ucayali River joins the Maranon River forming a key source of the Amazon River.

Aroma and flavor notes for this Peru bar included: dark chocolate with a seductive complex sweetness that includes mellow, multi-dimensional dried fruit (fig, peach, subtle apricot, honey-ed ripe/dried pear, and cacao pulp); and nut (young/green walnuts in syrup, gently roasted almond/hazelnut).

My favorite foods (and chocolates) are made with three ingredients or less. Fermented cacao seeds (beans) in capable hands can produce outstanding results. 

I loved and appreciated the delicious, well-rounded and thoughtfully executed, aroma and flavors elicited from just cacao, raw cane sugar and cocoa butter in today's bar.

Today's bar also demonstrated why 70% is not necessarily the best choice for every cacao variety and/or chocolate. Just the right amount and type of (less processed) sugar were used to highlight the natural brightness and richness of this 60% cacao banquet of a bar. 

Maker's tasting notes: "This chocolate has notes of ripe pear, white clover flowers, and roasted barley malt. It has low bitterness and astringency, but full-bodied chocolatiness."

Ingredients: Roasted cacao nibs, raw cane sugar, cocoa butter.

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

Cacao Sampaka - Copan Honduras 70% Chocolate Dark (bar) - May 28, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Cacao Sampaka
Copan Honduras 70% Chocolate Dark (bar)
Good ++   

Weight: 1.05 oz. (30 g.) / 2.64 oz. (75 g.) in total bar
Calories: 170 calories in 1/3 bar
Cost: $13.99 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Caputo's, online order

Bienvenidos (welcome) to Day #7 of Chocolate and Central America Theme Week.

Today's Copan Honduras 70% Chocolate Negro (Dark) (bar) from Cacao Sampaka (Barcelona, Spain) was made in Spain and imported by Forever Cheese LLC (New York, NY).

Aroma notes included: dark chocolate with diffuse fruit (fresh cherries, very faint cherry brandy, dark sugar (brown sugar) and faint vanilla.

Texture: well-tempered, smooth texture and melt.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate with natural sweetness/brightness, balanced bitterness, diffuse faint fruit (cherry, sweet orange) and very faint (barely detectable) sweet tobacco and whiskey cocktail.

I enjoyed this relatively hearty, well-balanced chocolate and its authentic and subtly complex fruit notes.

Ingredients: "Honduras Cacao Nibs, Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Emulsifier (Soy Lecithin), Cocoa: 70% minimum."

Allergen-related information: "May Contain Traces of: Nuts (Almond, Hazelnut, Pistachio, Macadamia Nut, Pecan Nut), Peanuts, Lactose, Milk and Sesame."

Pinwheel Craft Chocolate - 70% Dark Mexican Hot Chocolate (bar) - Mar. 9, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Pinwheel Craft Chocolate
70% Dark Mexican Hot Chocolate (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++ 
Weight: 2.1 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 326 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Pinwheel Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate and Mexico Theme Week.

Today's 70% Dark Mexican Hot Chocolate (bar) was made by Pinwheel Craft Chocolate (Eagle Mountain, UT), using beans sourced from Comalcalco, Tabasco, Mexico.

Aroma and notes for this bar included: bright, clean subtle but rich dark chocolate; cinnamon spice cookie/crispy toffee (with a touch of butter and salt); faint ginger and vanilla; and a bit of spicy cayenne pepper heat. 

Texture: smooth and creamy with small pieces of crunchy, crispy cinnamon-spice buttery toffee.

I appreciated that everything in this bar seemed thoughtfully arranged, relatively subtle, balanced and expertly-executed; and that this chocolate was yet another/different take on Mexican hot chocolate (cinnamon, vanilla and pepper(s) with chocolate). 

Two different kinds of cinnamon (Saigon, Ceylon) and two different peppers (ancho and cayenne) helped broaden the spice flavor profile--all without dominating the single estate (in Tabasco) cacao-based chocolate too much. 

The cacao used in all three of the Pinwheel bars this past week was very special, and difficult to describe. It had the subtlety of a Criollo cacao, and unique, clean/pure notes. 

Maker's tasting notes: "We crafted this delicious bar to capture all the cozy richness of a favorite beverage, Mexican Hot Chocolate..."

Ingredients: Spiced Chocolate (Cacao beans, cane sugar*, cocoa butter*, Saigon cinnamon, Ceylon cinnamon, ancho chili, ginger, cayenne pepper) Toffee (cane sugar*, Kerry Gold grass-fed butter, Mexican vanilla extract, baking soda, salt (* = organic ingredients)

Allergen-related information: (While not listed on label, the following was printed on other bars from this maker from the same order: "Made on shared equipment that processes nuts and dairy") 

Pinwheel Craft Chocolate - 65% Dark Milk, Tabasco, Mexico (bar) - Mar. 7, 2025

Chocolate of the Day

Pinwheel Craft Chocolate
65% Dark Milk, Tabasco, Mexico (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.1 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 165 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Pinwheel Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and Mexico Theme Week.

Today's 65% Dark Milk chocolate with cacao beans from (Comalcalco) Tabasco, Mexico (Batch #23038) bar was made by Pinwheel Craft Chocolate (Eagle Mountain, UT).

Aroma and flavor notes for this single estate bar included: smooth dark milk chocolate, caramel flan, sweet nut (walnut); and hard to pin down, diffuse forest/tannin; juicy fruit and warm spice. (There was also a faint, fresh and clean mineral taste that I liked.)

Texture: creamy, almost silky melt and mouthfeel.

I loved the luxurious texture, the thoughtful short list of ingredients, and the well-crafted, subtle and complex flavors. The subtle sophistication will appeal to both milk and dark chocolate lovers.

Maker's tasting notes: "...dulce de Leche, custard, toasted walnuts"

Ingredients: Cacao beans, cane sugar*, cocoa butter*, whole milk* (* = organic ingredients)

Allergen-related information: Made on shared equipment that processes nuts and dairy

Auro Chocolate - Luna Single Variety 50% Chocolate (bar) - Sept. 26, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Auro Chocolate
Luna Single Variety 50% Chocolate (bar)
Good +++
Weight: 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 330 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $8.55 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order 

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and The Philippines Theme Week.

Today's Luna Single Variety 50% chocolate (bar) was produced by Auro Chocolate* (Calamba City, Laguna, Philiippines).

Aroma and flavor notes included: dark milk chocolate, sweet, delicate floral-botanical; diffuse fruit (berry, faint date, and very faint pomegranate molasses; sweet, mild tangerine, grenache grape); and very faint fleeting vegetable (potato chip).

This 50% milk chocolate was very pleasing. The texture was uniform and smooth and became creamier upon melting. The flavors were very pleasant and with a lot of gentle complexity. The choice of a partially processed/unrefined (muscovado) cane sugar contributed additional flavor depth (faint molasses).

Ingredients: Cacao mass, organic muscovado sugar, full cream milk powder, cacao butter, skim milk powder

Allergen-related information: Contains milk. This product is manufactured in a facility that processes other products which may contain soy, tree nuts and peanuts. Halal.

*dba Filipinas Oro de Cacao, Inc. (Cuidad De Calamba, Barangay Punta, Calamba City, Laguna, Philippines

A. Morin - Perou 63% Absolut - Limited Edition (bar) - Dec. 6, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

A. Morin 
Perou Absolut 63% Edition Limitee (tablette)
Peru Absolute 63% Limited Edition (bar)
Good +++
Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 3.52 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 140.75 calories in 1/4 bar
Cost: $12.50 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Peru Theme Week.

Today's Perou Absolut 63% Limited Edition (bar) was from SAS Chocolaterie A. Morin (Donzere, France). 

All three ingredients--cocoa beans, cocoa butter and sugar--used to make this truly single origin dark chocolate were all from Peru. 

Rich and pleasingly complex aroma notes for this dark chocolate included: dried fruits (date, plum, fig, dried peach, and barely detectable dried pineapple with some almost invisible (perhaps imaginary) rum), warm spice cake, faint sweet green, very faint molasses, and very faint, warm, woody earth (peat).

The relatively thick bar had a smooth, relatively buttery melt and a very fine granularity consistent with some stoneground chocolates (or shorter conche times that help preserve flavors). These two absolutely complementary textures were skillfully melded together, to arrive at what felt like the best of both worlds.*

The taste was very consistent with the aroma described above, with more dark chocolate (flavorful dark ganache) notes intermingled with the deep, dark but smooth, dried fruit and molasses spice cake holiday party murmuring softly in the background.

This well-executed, all-Peru chocolate offered rich, sweet flavor depth and complexity. And the choice to go sweeter (63% vs. 70%) worked well in this case. The sugar seemed to brighten up/highlight all the best naturally occurring notes in the cacao beans and added cocoa butter--rather than overpowering them.

Ingredients: Peru cocoa beans, Peru cane sugar, Peru cocoa butter.

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

*Longer grinding and conching times can reduce cocoa solid particle size and fully integrate solids and cocoa fat (butter) together, resulting in a creamy/creamier texture. But, taken too far, longer processing times can result in the loss of more volatile flavor elements that would be desirable to preserve. There is both art and science that goes into this step, and arguably every step, involved in chocolate making.

 

Kaitxo - Txoko Madagascar Valle del Sambirano 67% (bar) - Sept. 15, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Kaitxo
Txoko - Madagascar Sambirano Valley 67% (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: 1.2 oz. (35 g.) / 2.4 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 190 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $8.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order 

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

Today's Txoko Madagascar Valle del Sambirano 67% dark chocolate (bar) was produced by Kaitxo (Balmaseda, Spain), a specialty coffee and chocolate maker.

Aroma notes for this bean-to-bar Madagascar chocolate included: dark chocolate (dark chocolate mousse); soft sweet green; very faint marshmallow; subtle caramel; barely detectable fruit (faint, diffuse banana/plantain with mild red berry jelly); almost floral; and very faint, sweetly aromatic tobacco.

The chocolate had even melt and texture with a very slight astringency/graininess--that seemed to disappear after several bites.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (dark chocolate mousse, ganache); slightly muted bright red fruit (red currant, cherry); pleasant, very faint earth; and very light tobacco. 

Cacao varieties used to make this chocolate included: Trinitario, Forastero and Criollo. While there are plenty of hybrids of these available, including all three in one chocolate is not necessarily the norm. The resulting chocolate flavors were well balanced and blended and offered an agreeable, complex range of bold and subtle notes.

Chocolates with less than 70% cacao content can taste too sweet. (Too much sugar can mask flavors.) Happily, this was not the case with this bar. There were enough flavors from the above mentioned cacao varieties to shine through.

I admired the well-executed complexity and subtle layers of (aroma and) flavor. And I enjoyed the sweet red fruit and other notes that unfurled in subtle, almost three-dimensional ways in this 67% cacao chocolate. Very enjoyable bar.

Ingredients: Cocoa beans, sugar, cacao butter

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

 

Duffy's - Honduras Mayan Red Milk Chocolate 61% (bar) - June 20, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Duffy's Fine Chocolate
Honduras Mayan Red Milk Chocolate 61% (bar)
(Red Star Chocolate Ltd)
Good +
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.11 oz. (60 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 175.8 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.50 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

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

Today's Honduras Mayan Red Milk Chocolate 61% (bar) was from Duffy's Fine Chocolate (Lincolnshire, UK). 

The company specializes in single origin, artisan chocolate bars; and the cacao used to craft this bar was purchased directly from Xoco (Honduras) that offers fine flavored, single varietal cacaos from Central America.

The aroma of today's dark milk bar had diffuse, sweet fruit (currants, red berries), faint tart green herb (lemon verbena, wood sorrels, oxalis), and sweet (caramel) dark milk chocolate notes.

This chocolate had a smooth melt and texture with a subtle astringency.

Flavor notes included: subtle true chocolate (very low in bitterness), fruit (red berries and currants in cream) and light, almost green and earthy, caramel notes.

Duffy's (maker's) tasting notes: "A smoothly balanced strong milk chocolate with hints of sweet currants and blueberries and a dark treacle aftertaste."

Bar and Cocoa notes: "Fine and rare Directly Traded cocoa beans from a single source in Honduras are carefully roasted then stone-ground for three days to develop and mature all the fine flavors that are in the beans..."

Ingredients: "Criollo cocoa beans, organic sugar, cocoa butter, milk powder."

Allergen-related information: Contains dairy (milk powder). Peanut free, soy(a) free, tree nut free, gluten-free.

 

Fruition Chocolate - Wild Bolivia 74% Dark (bar) - Aug. 31, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Fruition Chocolate
Wild Bolivia 74% Dark (bar)
Good +++ - Very Good
Weight: 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 320 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

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

Today's Wild Bolivia 74% Dark (bar), handmade by Fruition Chocolate (Shokan, NY), had a smooth, creamy melt and texture and offered a dreamy, uniform "Best of Bolivia" tasting experience, best savored slowly.

The bar had true chocolate, light fermented flavor with medium (sweet red fruit, rich red dried cherry and light tangerine) acidity. One bite did have a very faint, fleeting earth note. But, otherwise, the tasting experience was sophisticated, integrated and consistent...from aroma to finish. 

Normally I might prefer a more complex "flavor ride," but this Good Food Awards winner (2016) showed how impressive an excellent implementation can be. And all that with just two ingredients: cacao beans and cane sugar. Deceptively simple. Lovely and elegant.

I was so glad the maker went with a 74% cacao version of this Bolivian wild cacao bar (instead of the usual 70% cacao versions out there). I was wondering how a slightly darker version of this bright bar might taste; and it was great.

Nuance Chocolate - Bolivia Alto Beni 2015 70% (bar) - Aug. 27, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Nuance Chocolate
Bolivia Alto Beni 2015 (harvest) 70% cacao (bar)
Good +
Weight: .97 oz. (27.5 g.) / 1.94 oz. (55 g.) in total bar
Calories: 146 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $8.50 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Nuance Chocolate, online order 

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

Today's Single Origin Bolivia Alto Beni 2015 (harvest) 70% (bar) was from Nuance Chocolate (Fort Collins, CO).

Maker's notes read as follows: "A rare criollo/trinitario cacao from the Plurinational State of Bolivia. An extremely creamy mouthfeel, with a complex, but subtle profile. Initial savory layers quickly evolve into fruitier notes, before finishing with hints of dry oak."

My tasting notes: This bar had a bold, complex and shifting, aroma and flavor profile, including bitter and sweet, fermented fruit, cream, faint spice/molasses and fleeting loamy earth and mineral highlights. For those who enjoy an interesting flavor profile, you might appreciate this one.

Working for these Bolivia Alto Beni cacao beans may have required extra skill. Roasting profiles and conching times and overall balance would have been key, especially with this cacao, to maintain the complexity and balance. This was not a flat, dense dark Forastero (cacao variety) boldness where one roast profile might do, but rather a shifting blend of subtle Criollo and Trinitario, that yielded a wide flavor range. And the wider the range, the more interesting opportunities (and decisions) one may have as a chocolate maker. And the more exacting one must be when making the chocolate.

Too much roasting and/or conching and subtle fruit and cream (or any more delicate green or floral notes that would have been present) would be lost. Not enough and a loamy earth and/or latex/rubber note might not be brought into mellowed balance.

The texture and finish were smooth with a mild astringency.

Ingredients:  Cacao, cane sugar, cocoa butter. 

SOMA Chocolatemaker - Fazenda Boa Vista Milk Chocolate bar - Sept. 2, 2018

Chocolate of the Day:

SOMA Chocolatemaker

Fazenda Boa Vista Milk Chocolate (bar)

Good +++ - Very Good

Weight: 1.145 oz. (32.5 g.) / 2.29 oz. (65 g.) in total bar

Calories: 172 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar

Cost: $16.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA 

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

Today's Fazenda Boa Vista Milk Chocolate bar was from SOMA Chocolatemaker (Toronto, ON, Canada).

This Academy of Chocolate Silver Winner 2017, 55% milk chocolate bar was made from Brazilian cacao.* It had an aroma with balanced notes of dried fruit, fresh cream, light nut, and very faint mint/herb.

The chocolate had a very pleasing dark milk chocolate flavor. (SOMA tasting notes printed on the package read: "Malt, cashews, fresh cream.") And a very, very faint, fleeting, slightly herby aftertaste.

*Fazenda Boa Vista (cocoa farm) is located "on the top of the mountains of Cafundos, a...sanctuary for ancient (120-year old) Amelonado type cacao known as Parazinho."

Sibu Chocolate - Costa Rica 82% Cacao Extra Dark bar - Aug. 2, 2018

Chocolate of the Day:

Sibu Chocolate

Costa Rica 82% Cacao Extra Dark (ORO) Chocolate bar

Good + - Good ++

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

Calories: 70 calories (per label) 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 Costa Rica Theme Week.

True, the largest exports from Costa Rica are bananas, pineapple and coffee, but Costa Rica also has all the right conditions for growing cacao, including temperate rainforests and proximity to the Equator (9-10 degrees North).*

Today's Costa Rica 82% Cacao Extra Dark Chocolate (ORO) bar was from Sibu Chocolate (San Isidro, Heredia,  Costa Rica).  This was the first of four Sibu bars to be sampled this week.

This three-ingredient** bar had a pleasing dark chocolate aroma with quiet, but lush, green notes. The flavor was very smooth and slightly sweet for an extra dark bar, with a very slight fermented milk note and a hint of balanced coffee in the aftertaste. Great flavor for little sugar.

The cacao used to make this bar was sourced from a Rainforest Alliance Certified Cacao farm and single estate in Guacimo, Limon (located on the Atlantic/East coast side of) Costa Rica.

*Cacao grows in a band 20 degrees north and south of the Equator. In the U.S., Hawaii, is sometimes referred to as the north pole of cacao growth—located between 20-22 degrees north of the Equator. It is the only U.S. state where you're likely to see cacao grown commercially.

**Ingredients: organic cocoa mass, organic cocoa butter, organic sugar

Akesson's - Madagascar Bejofo Estate 100% Criollo bar - May 8, 2018

Chocolate of the Day:

Akesson's Organic, Ltd.
Madagascar Bejofo Estate 100% Criollo Cocoa bar
Good +++
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 182.7 (per label) calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #7 of 100% Cacao Theme Week.

This bar had a rather heavenly aroma for an ultra-dark bar, with sweet cream, ripe mild fruit and caramel notes. It also had an ultra-creamy texture and melt.

This chocolate had pleasing complex Criollo cacao flavor infused with a slightly bitter edge and a mild creamy aftertaste—that faded quickly and politely for a 100 percent bar.

If you want to sample a rare 100% cacao bar that is more light and fragrant flower than sledgehammer, try this one.

Dick Taylor - Single Origin Chocolate Rabbit 72% Belize - April 1, 2018

Chocolate of the Day:

Dick Taylor 

Chocolate Rabbit Single Origin 72% Belize Dark Chocolate

Very Good

Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total rabbit

Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1/2 rabbit

Cost: $15.00 for 1 rabbit

Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Bonus Feature!

This year April Fool's Day and Easter fell on the same Sunday (which also overlapped with Passover). Regardless of where and how you celebrate the return of Spring, today's bonus item would have delighted dark chocolate lovers.

Today's Single Origin 72% Dark Chocolate Chocolate Rabbit was lovely, complex, and made with Belize-grown cacao. This rabbit was not too sweet, and full of exquisitely-crafted and well-balanced flavor depth, including bold fruit, light spice and bittersweet notes.

It was the perfect finish to a great Spring celebration meal, and it was followed by a hike up in the green hills.  

Alter Eco 85% Dark Blackout, SOMA Black Science Camino Verde bars - Nov. 11, 2017

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Alter Eco
Dark Blackout 85% Cocoa bar
Good +++
Weight: .94 oz. (26.6 g.) / 2.82 oz. (80 g.) in total bar
Calories: 160 calories in 1/3 bar
Cost: $N/A - gift (Thank you Bill)
Purchased from: N/A - gift

SOMA Chocolatemaker
Black Science Camino Verde (Ecuador) 70% Cacao bar
Good +++
Weight: 1.15 oz. (32.5 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 175 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.00 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #21 of South American Chocolate Theme Weeks. This month we've been taking an edible tour of this great continent, filled with cacao-growing regions that date back to the origin of cacao.

Before moving on from Ecuador to Peru, we'll taste two more bars made from Ecuadorean cacao. Drawing this pair of black aces from the depths of the Chocolate Banquet vault would be considered lucky by anyone with a superstitious chocolate bone in their body. And if it isn't considered so, it should be.

Alter Eco - 85% Cocoa Dark Blackout bar
The 85% Cocoa Dark Blackout bar from Alter Eco (San Francisco, CA) was made from organic, fair trade cocoa grown on the coast of Ecuador. The resulting (gluten-free) ultra-dark bar had complex aroma with notes that included: true dark chocolate (fudge brownie), chocolate covered dried fruits, and a trace of smoked salt.

The chocolate had a creamy, cocoa buttery melt, and a uniform, satisfying deep chocolate flavor with occasional light berry jam notes. Last, but not least, it was devilishly light on sugar.

SOMA Chocolatemaker - Black Science Camino Verde bar
The 70% Black Science Camino Verde (Ecuador) bar had an aroma with lush green forest and bittersweet chocolate notes.

Tasting notes read: "roasted cashews (and) baked bread." The latter did show up a bit in the tasting arc, perhaps aided by a higher sugar percentage content (70%) vs. the ebony-colored 80%+ bars we've been tasting this week.

The cashew was a more subtle, a difficult note to catch. If this bar did have a light sweet nutty note, cashews would be the right nut to describe that.

The "Black Science" term should be a tribute to the the farm, the fermentation expert (Vicente Norero), and the makers at SOMA Chocolatemaker (Toronto, ON, Canada).  Chocolate-making is both artful skill and science. Successful chocolate demands both.

Arete - Ecuador Costa Esmeraldas 100% Dark bar - Nov. 7, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Arete Fine Chocolate
Ecuador Costa Esmeraldas 100% Cacao Dark Chocolate bar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1.15 oz. (32.5 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 172 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: missing information

Welcome to Day #17 of South American Chocolate Weeks.

We're winding up a virtual tour of Ecuador with another ebony-colored bar from Costa Esmeraldas. (Yesterday's bar was made with cacao from the same area.) Today's chocolate is a 100% Ecuador Dark Chocolate bar from Arete Fine Chocolate (Milpitas, CA).

This bar had a bittersweet aroma, with hints of dried fruit (goji berries), light molasses spice, and had a balanced, bitter dark chocolate flavor throughout the tasting experience. The texture was uniformly creamy and pleasing.

This was a one-ingredient bar: just cocoa beans from Costa Esmeraldas, Ecuador, and nothing else.

Chocolate makers and Arete company founders, David and Leslie Senk, often press their own single origin cocoa butter (for extra smoothness). However, adding cocoa butter from the same bean origin as the cocoa solids is not typical. Even though cocoa beans can contain half fat; the percentages will vary according to origin and climate. Extra fat may be needed for leaner beans that typically grow closer to the Equator.

Some makers will add cocoa butter obtained from another region, even though cocoa fat can add some flavor characteristics. Using beans from the same farm or region for both cocoa solids and fat gives the taster a more pure or concentrated single origin experience.