Dandelion - 100% Camino Verde Ecuador bar - July 7, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Dandelion Chocolate
100% Camino Verde Ecuador bar
Good - Good +
Weight: .66 oz. (18.66 g.) / 2 oz. (56 g.) in total bar
Calories: 99 calories (estimate) in 1/3 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Dandelion Chocolate, San Francisco, CA

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

A true, one hundred percent cacao bar represent chocolate at its essence. Just cocoa solids and cocoa fat (butter). There is no sugar, or other "fillers" to hide behind.

And, whereas the first bite of a regular, 70% cacao bar may yield a slight warm, lilting rush of flavors and sweetness, the first bite of some 100% bars can be more like jumping into a cold pool. A bit shocking at first, but also a bit thrilling and refreshing.

Today I had a great opportunity to try two very dark bars side by side that were both made with cacao from Camino Verde, Ecuador: a 100% bar and an 85% bar (featured yesterday). Both were from Dandelion Chocolate (San Francisco, CA). Side by side tastings are a great way to learn about chocolate, and to find out what you like best.

Today's 100% Camino Verde Ecuador bar had a sweet, loamy earth aroma. It broke with a hard snap. The first bite yielded a bitterness that quickly settled down and evened out to a uniform bitter earthy flavor with a very faint hint of tobacco or smoke. (It was relatively low in acid or "fruit" notes, that often seem to be enhanced by sugar.)

Both yesterday's 85% Camino Verde Ecuador bar (2014 Harvest, Batch #1) and today's 100% Camino Verde Ecuador bar (2014 Harvest, Batch #1) were fairly smooth and even in taste and texture and had a slight bitterness to them. It was interesting to note that the 100% bar (with no sugar) seemed to smell sweeter than the 85% bar (I didn't expect that), even though the 100% bar had a more bitter flavor (I did expect that).

Dandelion Chocolate produces a line of attractively wrapped, single origin, bean-to-bar chocolate bars. They've built relationships with cacao farmers in countries that have included Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, Belize, Papua New Guinea, Liberia and Madagascar. As with other chocolate-makers, they are also constantly evaluating beans from different sources, to help ensure quality over time (harvests and batches do vary), and to investigate new sources. (E.g., they recently made an exploratory trip to Cuba.)

Dandelion - 85% Camino Verde, Ecuador - July 6, 2015

Chocolate(s) of the Day:

Dandelion Chocolate

85% Camino Verde, Ecuador bar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: .66 oz. (18.6 g.) / 2 oz. (56 g.) in total bar
Calories: 99 calories (estimate) in 1/3 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Dandelion Chocolate, San Francisco, CA

Today's Camino Verde, Ecuador, bar from Dandelion Chocolate (San Francisco, CA) had a faint cocoa and honey aroma, and had a slightly bitter (but nicely balanced) coffee flavor note. This 85% bar -- made with cacao from Camino Verde, Ecuador -- was refreshingly un-sweet.

Camino Verde Crunch (bark style)
Good ++
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) in 1 piece
Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1 oz. (28.3 g.) piece
Cost: $3.00 per oz. (sold by weight)
Purchased from: Dandelion Chocolate, San Francisco, CA

The second chocolate item was also from Dandelion Chocolate, and made with cacao from Camino Verde, Ecuador. The Camino Verde Crunch was broken into pieces, bark style, and sold by weight (by the ounce) in a small brown paper bag. A toffee brittle center, and a generous sprinkle of cacao nibs, gave this chocolate its crunch.

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate and Ecuador Theme Week.

SOMA Chocolatemaker - Ecuador truffle - July 5, 2015

Chocolate of the Day:

SOMA Chocolatemaker
Ecuador truffle
Good - Good +
Weight: .8 oz. (22.64 g.) (estimate) in 2 truffles
Calories: 120 calories (estimate) in 2 truffles
Cost: $ N/A - part of a large box of chocolate truffles
Purchased from: SOMA Chocolatemaker, Toronto, Canada

Today was Day #1 of Chocolate and Ecuador Theme Week.

SOMA Chocolatemaker (Toronto, Canada) offers a variety of high-quality, flavored truffles (Douglas Fir, Magnolia Peach, Jasmine, and others).

The team at SOMA also produces a series of single origin truffles, including today's Ecuador square(s) -- made with "chocolate from the farm of Camino Verde," in Balao (a region with a long cacao-growing history), in Guayas province, in southern Ecuador.

Tasting notes for this truffle were: "baked brownies, toast and honey." This description sounded good to me. The two pieces that I ate this evening were full of creamy flavor, and did have almost a honey-like sweetness.

An added plus -- SOMA also makes their chocolates without extra preservatives or additives that might mask flavor notes specific to a given region in Ecuador.

Ecuador - Cacao Update - 2015

Ecuador - A Strong Cacao Supplier in South America

Ecuador has a long history of growing cacao, stretching back for thousands of years, and this equatorial country is one of the top 10 cocoa producing countries in the world, usually coming in at number 7 or 8 on this list. (The top five countries are Ivory Coast, Ghana, Indonesia, Nigeria and Cameroon.)

According to a Gain (USDA) report in February 2015, "Ecuador's cocoa bean production is estimated to reach 255,000 metric tons (MT) in calendar year 2015 (up over six percent over 2014)..." Whereas competition for agricultural land in other South American counties (e.g. Peru) has caused estimates in neighboring countries to drop. Ecuador has been doing well when it comes to cacao.

Most of the cacao from the African countries mentioned above is going to large chocolate makers. However, cacao from Ecuador is being used by large companies as well as a dozens of small and medium sized artisan chocolate makers. Ecuador is known for its Arriba Nacional cacao beans, considered to be "fine flavor" cacao, with fruity and floral aromas.

However, an increasing percentage of cacao (up to half, by some estimates) is coming from a new, productive disease-resistant strain of cacao called CCN-51.

Disease-Resistance and CCN-51 in Ecuador

Like many other types of farmers, cacao growers face many challenges in raising cacao, including diseases that may affect their crops. For example, a disease called "Witches Broom" turns plump, healthy, mini football-shaped, cacao fruits into shriveled dark pods. Another disease, "Mal de Machete," creates a wilted harvest.

In larger plantations where large numbers of trees are planted more closely together, they may also be more vulnerable to disease. A discouraging possibility if you're a farmer making your livelihood from cacao, or a consumer/chocolatier that's affected by scarcity or higher prices down the line.

In the 1900s, a new strain of cacao tree called Coleccion Castro Naranjal (CCN)-51 was developed by a man named Homero Castro, in Ecuador.  It was so named because it supposedly took 51 attempts to cross-breed and create this new strain of more disease-resistant tree.

Cacao from the original CCN-51 thrived, but didn't taste great. However, improvements were made in fermentation and other techniques, and objectionable flavor notes were coaxed out. CCN-51 is now used in blends with other cacao (in Ecuador and other countries), especially by larger companies that are seeking to provide a smooth, consistent flavor across a high-volume production run.

Many artisan makers have stuck with the more "fragile" heritage strains of cacao that provide superior flavor. One can hope that the more delicate Criollo and other strains will always be there. But, this would not be the first time that a sturdier hybrids triumphed over a more fragile, flavorful or aromatic variety when it came to plant breeding. Similar stories have developed around grapes, roses and other crops.

Now, on to Chocolate and Ecuador Theme Week, and single origin chocolates and bars from Ecuador...

Moonstruck - Raspberries and Fennel Sugar - July 4, 2015

Chocolate of the Day:

Moonstruck Chocolate Co.
Raspberries and Fennel Sugar bar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 3.17 oz. (90 g.) in total bar
Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1 oz. (28.3 g.) serving
Cost: $9.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #11 of Chocolate and Botanicals Theme Week; and Happy 4th of July to all out there celebrating the Independence Day holiday.

This dark chocolate Raspberry and Fennel Sugar bark bar from Moonstruck Chocolate Co. (Portland, OR) was adorned with a rosy red riot of freeze-dried raspberry bits, and a sprinkling of pale green fennel sugar pieces (that incorporated "edible fennel flowers").

The raspberry flavor was so concentrated and berry sweet that it almost overshadowed the fennel and chocolate, but the flavors made for a great, visually striking and sweet botanical trio -- one that I hadn't tried before. I like forward to trying a berry + herb topping at home atop a chocolate panna cotta or chocolate mousse.

Moonstruck - Strawberries and Basil Sugar bar - July 3, 2015

Chocolate of the Day:

Moonstruck Chocolate Co.
Strawberries and Basil Sugar bark bar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 3.10 oz. (88 g.) in total bar
Calories: 150 calories (estimate) in 1 oz. (28.3 g.) piece of bar
Cost: $9.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #10 of Chocolate and Botanicals Theme Week. I can't seem to get enough of this theme week that's been filled with examples of fruit, flowers and herb combinations with chocolate.

When I saw today's, visually stunning Strawberries and Basil Sugar bark bar from Moonstruck Chocolate Co. (Portland, OR) at a local supermarket, I knew I'd be hanging out in botanical land for a few days longer.

The carefully arranged topping of rose-colored, freeze-dried strawberry slices and green basil-infused sugar crystals looked, at first glance, like dried peas and carrots, but not so! This unique and flavorful fruit and herb combination atop a base of dark chocolate was great for savoring and enjoying after dinner this evening.

Sirene Chocolate - Lachua, Guatemala duo - Maple Sugar - July 2, 2015

Chocolate of the Day:

Sirene Chocolate
Lachua, Guatemala 73% cacao bar duo pack
1.) Lachua with cane sugar
2.) Lachua with maple sugar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total package of 2 bars
Calories: 159 calories (estimate) in 1/2 of each of the two bars
Cost: $12.00 for 1 package of two bars
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Today was bonus Day #9 for Chocolate and Botanicals Theme Week.

Most bars and chocolates I write about on this site contain botanicals of some sort. And you could argue that cacao/cocoa is a plant-based flavoring agent all by itself.

Artisan bean-to-bar chocolate bars (like today's bars) are often crafted with just two ingredients: cacao beans and sugar.

Such was the case with today's pair of bars in one package, from Sirene Artisan Chocolate Makers (Victoria, British Columbia, Canada). The sugars used in chocolate (from plants, canes, trees) can also impart botanical flavor.

This package of single origin Lachua, Guatemala dark chocolate contained two slightly different bars that could be sampled and compared. This side-by-side tasting approach is very helpful when trying to figure out what you may like best (or least). The only difference between the two was that the first bar (wrapped in silver foil) was sweetened with cane sugar; and the second bar (wrapped in gold foil) was sweetened with maple sugar.

There was a fairly bold, but balanced fruit acidity to both bars. The maple sugar, from maple trees in the Quebec Appalachian mountains in Canada, added another, very pleasant, but subtle flavor dimension, without shifting or masking the underlying cacao flavor profile.

This 2-bar offering was created for The Chocolate Garage (Palo Alto, CA). Owner, Sunita de Tourreil, grew up outside of Montreal, and the result of her collaboration with Sirene is a natural and delicious pairing.

A Bit of History
For an interesting look at the history of maple sugar in the U.S., see this article "Thomas Jefferson and the Maple Sugar Scheme" on history.org.