Sahale Snacks - Cherry Cocoa Almond Coconut Snack Mix - Jan. 30, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Sahale Snacks 

Cherry Cocoa Almond Coconut Snack Mix

Good

Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 10.5 oz. (297 g.) in total box of 7 bags

Calories: 240 calories in 1 bag of snack mix

Cost: $3.99 for 1 box of 7 bags

Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate and ABCD Theme Week, where I've been featuring chocolate items with flavor inclusions starting with the letters A, B, C and/or D.

Today's Cherry Cocoa Almond Coconut snack item from Sahale Snacks, Inc.* (Seattle, WA) served as an alphabetic trifecta, and provided a lead-in to Day #1 of Chocolate and Coconut Week.

In recent years, chocolate and coconut snack items have multiplied and are easy to find in California. Many of these offerings reflect current food trends (organic, less refined sugar, keto, paleo, grain free, "healthier" snacks with simplified ingredients lists, fewer/no artificial ingredients, etc.). 

Sahale Snacks is known for trail mixes with "nuts, fruits and spices." Many of these, like today's mix, are glazed with a light layer of extra sweetness and flavor (e.g. cashews with a pomegranate coating, or a nut mix with a maple glaze).

Today's glossy snack clusters had a coconut candy aroma and a texture with uniform, optimal crunchiness--from the larger toasted coconut and almond pieces. 

Tiny cacao nibs provided a soft chewy crunch and faint rich flavor accent (although their cocoa flavor was all but eclipsed by other elements). And dried cherry bits added tart sweet fruit sweetness with a softer chew.

 

The flavors were fresh-tasting, sugar-sparkled, and naturally brightened further by a faint hint of citrus and vanilla. The ingredients were relatively high-end and thoughtful. (There were no artificial ingredients and preservatives.) 

However, the glaze that welded small bite-sized confection clusters together contained at least three sweeteners (cane sugar, organic invert sugar and tapioca syrup). The end result was too sweet for me, but this snack mix may appeal to those with a sweet tooth.

Ingredients: Toasted coconut, almonds, organic cane sugar, organic invert sugar, dried cherries (cherries, sugar, sunflower oil), organic tapioca syrup, cacao nibs, sea salt, cocoa, organic extra virgin coconut oil, dried orange peel, natural vanilla extract, pure ground vanilla beans.

*J.M. Smucker Company, a large food company, agreed to purchase Sahale Snacks, Inc. in 2014. The two men who founded Sahale were/(are) outdoor enthusiasts and mountain hikers/climbers who worked at NBC--and who, after an outing on Mount Rainier (a large mountain in Washington State), felt inspired to create a better trail mix.

Thrive Tribe - Cacao Nib Paleo Bites (with nuts + seeds) - Jan. 29, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Thrive Tribe (1908 Brands)
Cacao Nib Paleo Bites  

Good

Weight: 1.5 oz. (43 g.) / 6 oz. (170 g.) in total container

Calories: 220 calories in 1 serving

Cost: $2.99 for 1 container

Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

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

Today's container of Cacao Nib Paleo Bites with nuts + seeds was from 1908 Brands (Boulder, CO).

These tasty, ebony-colored, cork-shaped bites had an aroma with coconut, dark chocolate (cacao nibs and cocoa powder), nut and seed notes--and a hard, but satisfying chew. 

Each piece was condensed chewy coconut, crunchy nut (almond) and seed (pumpkin and flax) flavor, texture and goodness. They would be great trail snacks, or snacks on the go. (Less likely to melt than a chocolate bar.)

The Paleo Bites were sweetened with a judicious amount of honey, date paste and vanilla powder. The cacao nibs and other ingredients helped to balance the sweetness, so they weren't cloyingly (overly) sweet. (Thank you!) 

Ingredients: coconut chips, honey, pumpkin seeds, almonds, ground flax, date paste, coconut oil, cacao nibs, cocoa (processed with alkali), water, vanilla powder (sugar, maltodextrin, natural flavor), salt.

Cacaoteca - Dark Chocolate 84% El Arca Dominican Republic (bar) - Jan. 28, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Cacaoteca SRL

Dark Chocolate 84% Al Arca Dominican Republic (bar)

Good + - Good ++

Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 1.75 oz. (50 g.) in total bar

Calories: 112.5 calories in 1/2 of bar

Cost: $7.50 (+ shipping) for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cacao, online order

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and ABCD Theme Week, an alphabetic showcase of chocolate terms that begin with the letters A, B, C and D, including cacao destinations and origins.

Today's Chocolate Negro (Dark Chocolate) 84% cacao en apoyo a la comunidad (in support of the community of) El Arca* de la Republica Dominica (El Arca, Dominican Republic) was from Cacaoteca SRL, a tree-to-bar chocolate maker from Miches (a northeast coastal town), with a presence in Gascue DN (Santa Domingo), in the Dominican Republic.

This ultra-dark bar had an aroma of dark chocolate with light incense floral, and very faint green spice (saffron) notes. The flavor was beautifully and deliciously approachable for an 80+% cacao chocolate. The dark chocolate flavor arc also included very light, pleasant loamy and subtle umami/savory notes. I adore skillfully preserved floral and umami flavors, and well-balanced bitterness and acidity, so I was happy.

Ingredients: grue de cacao (roasted and ground cacao nibs/cacao mass), azucar de cana (cane sugar)

* El Arca in English translates to "the rainbow." This Santa Domingo "community of peace and hope" that "embraces individuals with mental incapacities." This bar was a collaboration between this community and Cacaoteca.

Al Nassma - Camel Milk Chocolate 70% with Almonds (bar) - Jan. 27, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Al Nassma Chocolate
Camel Milk Chocolate 70% Cocoa with Almonds (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 2.46 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 212.45 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

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

Today's Camel's Dark Milk 70% Cocoa with Almonds bar was produced by Al Nassma Chocolate (Dubai, United Arab Emirates). The company was, as far as I know, the first to offer fine Arabian (Dromedary)* camel milk chocolate.

The theme this week is: chocolates with flavor inclusions that begin with the letters A, B, C and D. While there are dozens of flavor inclusions that start with "c" (cardamom, cherry, cinnamon and curry spices, to name a few), camel's milk offered the chance for a little virtual culinary travel. Blend this drome-dairy milk with dark chocolate and almonds?  All the better.

This bar had an aroma with sweet chocolate (dark chocolate cake/frosting, fresh baked cookie) notes; and after taking a bite, the chocolate aroma was joined by faint coconut, almond and brown sugar flavor notes. A hint of floral vanilla flavor--and a very faint malt/oxidized note possibly from the almonds--also helped explain the association with baked goods in the aroma. 

The whole almonds embedded in the dark milk chocolate provided crunchy texture, and the bar's finish had balanced, smooth dark chocolate flavor with a faint whisper of earthy/smokey vanilla. 

What about the camel's milk? Since I have never tasted camel's milk (by itself) it was difficult to detect any unique, or dairy-like, flavor in the small amount that was present (2%) in this chocolate. 

Too much milk and sugar can obscure the underlying cacao flavors in milk chocolate bars (particularly mass produced/large batch offerings). However, the cacao** flavor nuances were able to shine through with this 70% dark milk bar, in large part because there was not too much milk or sugar (and honey); and the makers chose to go with a relatively high percent of cacao (for a milk chocolate bar). Thank you!

It's unusual to find dark milk bars above 68% cacao. There are a few 70%-ers produced by European and U.S. makers. However, generally speaking, milk chocolate bars--even dark milk ones--cater to those with more of a sweet tooth. The best makers learn to harness the alchemy involved with different cacao varieties and milks and sweeteners of different sorts.

Ingredients: cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, almonds (15%), camel milk powder (2%), honey, bourbon vanilla

* Of the species of camels alive today, Dromedary camels (Camelus Dromedarius), generally found in the drier areas (deserts) of Saudia Arabian peninsula and Africa, are the most numerous. They have a single hump vs. the Asian Bactrian camels that have two humps. As with cattle, cow camels give milk, bull camels do not. 

Camel milk is an important staple in certain countries, and approximately 3 million tons of camel milk is produced for consumption each year worldwide. (Approximately 600 million metric tons of cattle/cow's milk is produced worldwide.)

**I'm guessing the cacao variety used to make this chocolate bar might have been Forastero or a Trinitario-Forastero blend from Africa.

Chamisa Chocolate - Cardamom Coffee bar - Jan. 26, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Chamisa Chocolate
Cardamom Coffee bar
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1 oz. (30 g.) / 2 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chamisa Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and ABCD Theme Week. If you're just tuning in, you may be wondering, what does this alphabetic nonsense all about? This week, I'm featuring chocolates with flavor inclusions that start with the letters A, B, C and/or D.

Today's Cardamom Coffee 65% dark chocolate bar was from organic, micro-batch chocolate maker Amanda Hatherly at Chamisa Chocolate (Santa Fe, NM).  

The cardamom* used to infuse this chocolate was allowed to be the star flavor, with coffee and dark chocolate playing important supporting roles. Great choice. 

Who ever said "three's a crowd," never experienced these three flavors making magic together. Each of these bold flavors can hold their own and are amiable companions. Anything but boring, and deeply satisfying.

The skillful flavor blend in this well-tempered, organic and vegan bar allowed me to fully appreciate and savor cardamom's deep complexity. The aroma and flavor had subtle herby, minty, caraway, anise, bubble gum, fragrant black pepper, very light sweet, smoked mustard, and other notes) during the tasting experience. And the blend of cardamom and the coffee helped to create a long, pleasing, flavorful finish.

We can thank culinary pioneers and spice traders in Arab countries, centuries ago, for being the first to blend coffee with cardamom. This flavor duo was adopted by neighboring countries; and, more recently, it can be found in chocolate bars and confections/desserts in the U.S. 

Ingredients: Organic cacao beans, organic sugar, organic cacao butter, organic coffee, organic cardamom.

*Cardamom has it's origins in Asia. Black (also known as brown) cardamom is from Bhutan, Nepal, and India. Green cardamom has its origins further south, in the lush forests of India and across parts of Malaysia.

While not specified in the ingredients list, I'm assuming the cardamom in this bar was predominantly black/brown cardamom (vs. green cardamom); but it could have been a mix of both. 

I have seen people using black cardamom and green cardamom with their coffee (and chocolate). And some people do use a mix of both types. Green cardamom has more upbeat notes: bubble gum/tropical spice and green vanilla/nutmeg; whereas black cardamom is a bit less zingy, but subtley complex, and sometimes almost smoky.

Chamisa Chocolate - Strawberry Basil bar - Jan. 25, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Chamisa Chocolate
Strawberry Basil bar
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1 oz. (30 g.) / 2 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $10.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chamisa Chocolate, online order

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

Today's Strawberry Basil bar was created by Amanda Hatherly at Chamisa Chocolate (Santa Fe, NM).

Amanda's organic, rich, dark sweet chocolate (65% cacao) bar sparkled with bright, fresh summer flavors: tart-sweet strawberry and authentic fresh basil. (I also caught a barely detectable whiff of very faint roasted coffee in the initial aroma.) The finish was light and lingering with sweet chocolate, red berry and subtle herbal (basil) notes.

This chocolate was the perfect antidote for a blustery, cold day in January.

The scent of basil did create a bit of a brain surprise when I took the first bite of chocolate. My palette/brain was anticipating a savory Mediterranean dish with tomato sauce and cheese, or a savory basil fruit salad...since this herb is rarely used in sweet dishes. A pity really. 

Basil is a member of the mint family. And while it's possible to use sweet* basil to make basil chocolate chip ice cream, lemon and basil sorbet, or sweet basil tea--most of us are so used to peppermint (and more occasionally spearmint) being wedded to sweet items that basil blended with sugar and chocolate may take some getting used to. (Peppermint also has a stronger mint (menthol) punch per bunch, making it a potentially less expensive flavoring in large scale production.)

Ingredients: Organic cacao beans, organic sugar, organic cacao butter, organic strawberries, organic basil.

*There are many types of basil, including Thai, Lemon, Greek and Cinnamon--each with their own flavor nuances--but the most common variety found in U.S. grocery stores is "sweet" basil (Ocimum basilicum) or cultivars of this common basil, such as Genovese basil (Ocimum basilicum 'Genovese'). 

Chamisa Chocolate - Oat Milk Maca Breakfast Bar - Jan. 24, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Chamisa Chocolate
Oat Milk and Maca Breakfast Bar
Good ++
Weight: 2 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 310 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $N/A for 1 bar
Purchased from: N/A - sample from Chamisa Chocolate - thank you

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

Today's Oat Milk and Maca Breakfast Bar was crafted by Amanda Hatherly at Chamisa Chocolate (Santa Fe, NM), a micro-batch chocolate maker.

I sometimes eat oatmeal for breakfast; but, today's Chamisa prototype Breakfast Bar was a delicious, elevated chocolate + oat a.m. entree. (For the broad-minded, this bar would also be perfectly enjoyable as a lunch/picnic/hike or dinner dessert.)

This Breakfast Bar had a rich, oaty aroma, from oat milk and a sprinkling (and incorporation) of whole oat pieces, and layers of flavor from whole raisins, pumpkin seeds and pieces of almond. It was sweet without being overly so (thank you!). 

Maca* root (powder) provided light sweetness, along with faint earthy and nutty notes.

Ingredients: cocoa beans, cocoa butter, oat milk, organic sugar, raisins, maca, pumpkin seeds, almonds. (Guess: Maybe a tiny dash of cinnamon?)

*Maca (Lepidium meyenii) root resembles a large, tuberous radish; and it has become a popular health food and flavor inclusion in recent years. Usually found in powdered form, this edible plant's origins are in the highlands of Peru/South America. It has been harvested there by native Peruvians for millennia, and used as a medicinal plant. (Maca has also been called "Peruvian ginseng.") 

Maca aroma and flavor observations range from butterscotch, caramel and malt to earthy and nutty.