Perfect Bar - Mocha Chip bar - May 16, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Perfect Bar, LLC

Mocha Chip bar

Good+ - Good ++

Weight: 2.2 oz. (62 g.) in total bar

Calories: 330 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $2.99 in 1 bar

Purchased from: The Market, Palo Alto, CA

Time to wake up. It's Day #1 of Chocolate and Coffee Theme Week.

Today's caffeinated Mocha Chip bar from Perfect Bar, LLC (San Diego, CA) was chock full of organic ingredients, including dark chocolate and coffee.

The line of (refrigerated) bars from this family-inspired company sampled so far have been quite good. Very satisfying.

Normally, a long list of ingredients in a bar is not encouraging. However, the list for this protein bar was all good, and helped explain why this bar was such a satisfying mini-meal. Nut butters and high-nutrient plant-based organic powders helped. Coffee and dark chocolate added rich flavor/depth. Natural-tasting, and not too sweet (thank you!).

Ingredients: 
Organic peanut butter, organic almond butter, organic honey, organic nonfat dry milk, organic, Fair Trade Certified dark chocolate (organic chocolate, organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter, organic sunflower lecithin), organic cocoa, organic ground coffee, organic dried whole egg powder, organic rice protein, organic vanilla extract, organic flax seed oil, organic sunflower oil, organic sesame seed oil, organic olive oil, organic pumpkin seed oil, dried whole food powders (organic kale, organic flax seed, organic rose hip, organic orange, organic lemon, organic papaya, organic tomato, organic apple, organic alfalfa, organic celery, organic kelp, organic dulse, organic carrot, organic spinach)

Sprouts - Organic Cacao Nibs - May 15, 2018

Chocolate of the Day:

Sprouts Farmers Market

Organic Cacao Nibs 

Good +

Weight: 1 TB (14 g.) / 8 oz. (226 g.) in total bar

Calories: 90 calories in 1 Tablespoon

Cost: $ missing information

Purchased from: Sprouts Farmers Market, Mountain View, CA

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

These Organic Cacao Nibs were manufactured exclusively for Sprouts Farmers Market (Phoenix, AZ). If you really like chocolate, but aren't wild about sugar, give cacao (or cocoa) nibs a try.

Nibs are the essence of (and the raw material for) chocolate—before cacao beans are ground to a paste and before sugar or other ingredients are added. Their exact flavor depends on their origin, harvest year and fermentation process they went through in their country of origin.

Today's crunchy cacao bean bits came from a blend of countries, including Peru (Peru, Guatemala, Dominican Republic and Ecuador). They had rich, uniform, true chocolate flavor (think brownies).

And speaking of brownies, nibs like this would super-charge a batch of your favorite brownies or other chocolate baked goods. They would help balance the sugar level a bit in chocolate, chocolate chip cookies. And they would be great over vanilla ice cream, or just about anything else.

Skout Backcountry LLC - Peruvian Chocolate Organic Energy Bar - May 14, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Skout Backcountry LLC

Peruvian Chocolate Organic Energy Bar

Good

Weight: 1.3 oz. (27 g.) in total bar

Calories: 150 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $2.50 (sale) for 1 bar

Purchased from: REI, Mountain View, CA

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

Today's Peruvian Chocolate Organic Energy bar was from Skout Backcountry LLC (Portland, OR). 

It's not often you see energy bars with single origin chocolate. But today's bar boldly announced its Peruvian roots. This Energy Bar contained only five ingredients* and the chocolate came from "ethically sourced, premium organic Peruvian cocoa."

Pressed dates in this energy bar provided chewiness, moistness and ample sweetness (a little date sweetness goes a long way). Cocoa helped make the flavor richer and more full-bodied.

Craft chocolate, and energy bars like this, have helped power local hikes in the East Bay Regional Parks this past month. Wonderful to enjoy green hills this late in spring this past weekend.

*Ingredients: Organic Dates, Organic Almonds, Organic Peruvian Chocolate, Organic Pumpkin Seeds, Himalayan Sea Salt 

Vanini - Dark Chocolate 62% Pear and Cinnamon bar - May 13, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Vanini

Dark Chocolate 62% Pear and Cinnamon bar

Good

Weight: 1.41 oz. (40 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar

Calories: 242 calories in 2/5 bar

Cost: $3.79 for 1 bar

Purchased from: The Market, Palo Alto, CA 

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

Dark Chocolate 62% Pear and Cinnamon bar from Vanini *(Orsenigo (CO), Italy).

This bar had smooth dark flavor suffused with a natural hint of pear steeped in a touch of cinnamon.

The cacao used to make Vanini bars was sourced from "carefully selected plantations in the Bagua District of Amazonas, a region in Peru known for its ancient cacao."

*The Vanini brand is part of ICAM SpA

White Label Chocolate - Peru Ucayali 80% bar - May 12, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

White Label Chocolate

Peru Ucayali 80% bar

Good +

Weight: 1.148 oz. (32.5 g.) / 2.29 oz. (65 g.) in total bar

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

Cost: $10.00 (estimate) for 1 bar

Purchased from: Mutari Chocolate, Santa Cruz, CA

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

This Peru Ucayali 80% bar was from White Label Chocolate (Santa Cruz, CA)

This ultra dark bar had a balanced, complex and interesting tasting art. The chocolate had a slight green aroma, dark chocolate fudge-y and earth notes, with hints of dried fruit.

There was a very slight graininess in the tail end, but the texture was smooth otherwise.

The cacao used to make this bar was grown in Peru from a 2016 Harvest. The Ucayali region is in the Amazon rainforest area of inland Peru.

Map Chocolate Co. - Mystic Eye Finca Estela 45% dark milk Champurrado style (bar) - May 11, 2018

Chocolate of the Day:

Map Chocolate Co.

Mystic Eye - Finca Estela Peru 45% dark milk Champurrado style with blue corn (bar)

Good - Good+

Weight: 1.25 oz. (35 g.) / 2.5 oz. (70 g.) in total bar

Calories: 188 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

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

Today's Mystic Eye - Finca Estela Peru 45% dark milk Champurrado* style (bar) from Map Chocolate Co. (Eugene, OR).

Finca (Santa) Estela—the farm/estate where the cacao (likely Criollo/Trinitario) used to make this bar was grown—is located in the Villa Rica district in Central Peru.

Below are notes and observations about this bar:

• Appearance: Light in color
• Aroma: light spice and toasted cake notes
• Flavor: milk chocolate with a spicy (chili) kick
• Texture: somewhat grainy, due to ground, organic blue corn bits
• Finish: sweet milk chocolate with faint fruity cacao note emerging through the burn; with delayed authentic blue corn flavor (after chili subsided) and chewy corn bits

For more on the story behind the name "Mystic Eye," make sure to read the insert by MAP founder, chocolate maker and storyteller, Mackenzie Rivers. Spoiler: it involves a grueling hike in the Grand Canyon.

*Champurrado style hot chocolate in Mexico is made with cacao and atole/corn, with spices and chile.

Elements Truffles - Sea Salt Turmeric 70% Cacao - May 10, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Elements Truffles

Sea Salt infused with Turmeric 70% Cacao

Good - Good +

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

Calories: 130 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar

Cost: $6.59 for 1 bar

Purchased from: The Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Peru Theme Week. 

Today's Ayurveda inspired* cacao offering was a Sea Salt infused with Turmeric 70% Cacao (bar) from Elements Truffles (Kearny, NJ).  

This bar (and all Elements Truffles dark bars sampled to date) have a soft texture/bite and are gently sweetened not with sugar, but local honey. And each one has been infused with different flavor elements in a base of smooth flavored cacao (and with Peruvian Criollo cocoa butter).

Today's bar was lightly salted and seasoned with sea salt and turmeric.

Ingredients: Organic Raw Cacao Butter (Peruvian Criollo); Raw Honey; Organic Raw Cacao Powder; Organic Turmeric Root Powder (from India); Sea Salt (from a family farm in Greece).

*Statements on the bar's packaging read: "Turmeric helps balance - Vata, Pitta and Kapha—all three doshas." And, "Curcumin in turmeric stimulates the body's own antioxidant mechanism and also helps delay aging."