Dick Taylor Craft Chocolate - Jamaica Bachelor's Hall Limited Release 75% (bar) - Feb. 26, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Dick Taylor Craft Chocolate

Jamaica Bachelor's Hall Limited Release 75% (bar)

Good ++ - Good +++

Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.4 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar

Calories: 240 calories in 3/4 bar

Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from:  Dick Taylor, online order

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate and Jamaica Theme Week.

Today's Jamaica Bachelor's Hall Limited Release 75% (bar) was handcrafted by the makers at Dick Taylor Craft Chocolate in Eureka, California. The cacao used to make this bar was grown on an estate (farm) in eastern Jamaica.

This attractively-packaged, Limited Release (Batch No. 70072) dark chocolate bar started with a dark, complex aroma with balanced earthy and dark chocolate notes. After the inner, sealed packaging had been open for a minute, the earthiness receded and concentrated fruit (dried apricot, prune) and very faint spice notes came to the fore. A minute later, traces of green appeared. 

And after tasting the bar, and going back to just smelling the chocolate to revisit the lovely bouquet of aroma notes, a faint, freshly baked rye bread note appeared and disappeared. I gave this bar an A for Aroma.* 

The flavor in this well-executed,** two ingredient bar was more uniform than the aroma, with deep, dark and very satisfying with a slow, creamy melt. Think very high-end, ultra dark brownies with a small side of fresh, cold cream or whole milk. (There was no milk or dairy in this bar.) This deep chocolate flavor lingered into the finish.

The maker's tasting notes read as follows: "apricot, graham cracker, dates"

Ingredients: Cacao, organic cane sugar

*Smell is an essential part of taste; but we perceive the differences and/or separation between these two senses. In some chocolates, the aroma and flavor notes are almost one and the same. And in other cases, the aroma is different from what we can taste. These variations can be understood via many long and technical explanations; but sometimes it's best to just sit back and take the time to notice and enjoy the overall sensory experience and how it unfolds-- especially if you're on a voyage with a great chocolate maker at the helm. Today was one of those days.

**I use the words attractively packaged, well executed, and two-ingredient bar in almost every review I've written about Dick Taylor Craft Chocolate bars. Here are a few more words: Adam Dick and Dustin Taylor have been very consistently producing well crafted, very high-quality chocolate for years now, and we are very grateful.

Soklet - Hibiscus and Pumpkin Seeds 70% (bar) - Feb. 25, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Soklet

Hibiscus and Pumpkin Seeds 70% (bar)

Good + - Good ++

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

Calories: 254 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar + shipping

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate and EFGHI Theme Week, where chocolate items with flavor inclusions beginning with the letters E, F, G, H and/or I have been featured. Today's chocolate is infused with floral flavor.

Todays Soklet Hibiscus* and Pumpkin Seeds 70% (bar) was made from tree-to-bar in India, and was manufactured by Regal Foods and Beverages (Pollachi, Tamil Nadu, India). The cacao used to make this chocolate was grown in the foothills of the Anamalais (also known as the Elephant mountains) in southern India.

The sweet, complex aroma of this bar included green, spice (saffron), and light floral notes. The chocolate had well-balanced, tangy fruit (sweet, ripe pink grapefruit) and hibiscus acidity (both are rich in Vitamin C). A sprinkle of whole, lightly roasted, pumpkin seeds on one side of the bar added a little crunchiness. The smooth 70% cacao chocolate base had true chocolate flavor, and very faint malt/oxidized cereal notes in the finish.

Next week, we'll be virtually visiting the Caribbean. Chocolate and Jamaica Theme Week will feature chocolates made from cacao grown in Jamaica. Hope you'll join Chocolate Banquet on this free, virtual tasting tour. 

Ingredients: Cacao beans, cane sugar, cacao butter, dried hibiscus flowers, roasted pumpkin seeds, spices.

* The Hibiscus is a beautiful showy flower that can be found not only in China, Japan and the Pacific Islands (including Hawaii), but in many other semi-tropical countries/islands as well. The flowers are quite flavorful and rich in Vitamin C, and are often brewed to make a vivid, magenta colored beverage (served cold, as an agua"fresca"). The dried flowers are often called "flor de Jamaica" in Mexico (and in markets in the Americas). These flowers infused in hot water make a great, tangy, brightly fuschia-colored herbal tea; and hibiscus adds vibrant, rosy color to any herbal tea blends.

Hemp Yeah! - Dark Chocolate, Almond, Sea Salt Protein Bar - Feb. 24, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Hemp Yeah!
Dark Chocolate, Almond, Sea Salt Protein Bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.59 oz. (45 g.) / 19.08 oz. (540 g.) in total box of 12 bars
Calories: 230 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $ missing information/receipt 
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate and EFGHI Theme Week, featuring chocolate items with flavor inclusions that begin with the letters E, F, G, H and/or I, for example, hemp seeds.

Today's Hemp Yeah! Dark Chocolate, Almond and Sea Salt Protein Bars with hemp seeds were manufactured for Fresh Hemp Foods Ltd. (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada).*

The aroma of this protein bar was bright, green, sweet, seedy and chocolatey. It had a soft chew, and hemp seed, pea protein, coconut, nut, and mellow dark chocolate flavor notes. (And the hemp seeds did not contain psycho-active ingredients if some of you were wondering.)*

I enjoyed that fact that I was eating a grain-free, gluten-free, soy-free, vegan protein bar with 10 grams of plant protein. (Hemp seeds are quite high in protein, and "pea protein crisps," almonds and pumpkin seeds boosted the protein content even higher.) Protein bars with a smidge of balanced fat (Omega-3 and Omega-6) seem to forestall cravings later in the day if I'm exercising. (Today was a hike day for me.)

Also the flavor of the hemp seeds was nicely off-set with chocolate, nut, seed, coconut and other flavors. (Even hulled hemp seeds can take some getting used to, but their flavor was not at all objectionable in this bar.)

While not gooey sweet, this bar was a little sweet for me. (It contained three different sweeteners.) But, the sweetness level will probably be perfectly fine for most people trying this protein/snack bar.

Ingredients: Shelled hemp seeds, fair trade dark chocolate (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, sunflower lecithin, vanilla extract), PEA protein crisps (pea protein, tapioca starch, tapioca syrup, agave syrup, toasted coconut, almonds, pumpkin seeds, sea salt, coconut oil, cocoa powder, almond extract, natural flavor. 

*Note: Hemp plants used to be grown in the U.S. for fiber and seeds before hemp production became illegal in the 1900s. 

Federal laws were targeting the use and sale of marijuana. However, industrial hemp products that did not contain psycho-active ingredients (THC), such as hemp seeds, hemp rope, hemp paper, plastic and cloth, and other products made from hemp plants, also were effectively banned by these anti-drug laws. 

Hemp seeds, such as those contained in today's protein bar, have come primarily from Canada, because it has not been possible to grow hemp plants in the U.S. (It became legal to cultivate industrial hemp in Canada more than 20 years ago.) 

However, the laws concerning hemp seeds and industrial hemp production in the U.S. are starting to change, which may help bring down hemp seed prices, and expand the use of these seeds in future protein powder/flour, snack, cereal, animal feed, chocolate and other offerings.

Raaka Chocolate - Green Tea Crunch Unroasted Dark Chocolate 66% (bar) - Feb. 23, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Raaka Chocolate
Green Tea Crunch Unroasted Dark Chocolate 66% (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.8 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 238 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $6.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Raaka Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and EFGHI Theme Week, where I am featuring chocolate items with flavor inclusions that begin with the letters E, F, G, H and/or I.

Today's Green Tea Crunch Unroasted Dark Chocolate 66% (bar) was made by Raaka Chocolate (Brooklyn, NY).

Tea and chocolate blends can be wonderful. Today's vegan and gluten-free bar incorporated genmaicha* green tea. 

This well-tempered and skillfully-executed chocolate had a dark, faintly green, aroma. 

The base dark chocolate was smooth with tiny crunchy bits from puffed quinoa. Adding a grain of any type (rice, oats, quinoa, etc.) tends to mellow/complement sharp, bitter or earthy notes sometimes found in ultra-dark or bolder chocolates. This bar contained both brown rice* and quinoa.

The bar had a faint pleasant almost floral, grassy, green tea flavor with medium fruit (mild, citrus/tangerine with honey) acidity. The finish had a light, lingering malt/grain flavor, and a relatively long tail with a fleeting, faint uptick of green tea.

The deep, dark, unroasted cacao used to make this bar was from Reserva Zorzal, a cacao-producing private reserve, located in the mountains of Duarte Province in northeastern Dominican Republic.

Ingredients: Organic cacao beans, organic cane sugar, organic cacao butter, organic puffed quinoa, organic genmaicha* green tea.

*This bar was made with genmaicha green tea. Genmaicha ("brown rice tea", also known as roasted rice tea or popcorn tea) is popular in Japan, and is made with green tea and roasted, popped brown rice.

Bear Naked - Cacao and Cashew Granola - Feb. 22, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Bear Naked Granola, Inc.
Cacao and Cashew Butter Granola with fair trade chocolate
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.9 oz. (54 g.) / 11 oz. (311 g.) in total package
Calories: 250 calories in 1/2 cup serving
Cost: $3.78 for 1 package
Purchased from: Walmart, Mountain View, CA (see receipt for price)

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and EFGHI Theme Week, where I'm featuring chocolates that include flavors, or foods that contain chocolate, that begin with the letters E, F, G, H and/or I. 

Today's Cacao and Cashew Butter Granola with pepitas, sea salt and fair trade chocolate was "distributed for" Bear Naked Granola, Inc. (Solana Beach, CA).

There are now many packaged granola cereals that contain bits of chocolate or cocoa. Some of these are so sweet, they taste like broken oat chocolate chip cookie pieces. Others hew closer to the 1960s take on European oat cereals (muesli + brown sugar, etc. with chocolate chunks).  And a delightful few, like today's granola, add a few new elements to arrive at something new and improved.

Today's Cocoa and Cashew granola had a traditional pleasing oat-y aroma and flavor. It also had just the right amount of crunchiness, enhanced by rice crisps. Pepitas (pumpkin seed kernels) added nutritional content (protein, vitamins and minerals), natural color and a soft crunchy chew. The cashew butter and cashew bits added a satisfying, light nutty flavor. And a faint hint of ginger added some warm spice.

And last, but not least, fair trade and semi-sweet chocolate pieces provided rich hints of dark chocolate flavor.

The added sugars were balanced by almost all the other ingredients, oats, rice, semi-sweet "dark" chocolate pieces, nuts, seeds and a touch of sea salt. The resulting sweetness level seemed just right.

I enjoyed this granola three different ways: by itself, with just a little water, and with a little  Genius Mocha Coconut beverage (instead of milk). 

Ingredients: Whole grain oats, semi-sweet chocolate (cane sugar, chocolate, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, vanilla extract), invert cane syrup, rice crisps (rice flour, cane sugar, salt), cashew butter, expeller pressed sunflower oil, cashews, pepitas, whole oat flour, brown rice syrup, cane sugar, sea salt, ginger, rosemary extract for freshness.

Domori - Dark Chocolate Ginger (bar) - Feb. 21, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Domori

Dark Chocolate Ginger (bar)

Good - Good +

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

Calories: 137.8 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $4.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and EFGHI Theme Week, where flavor inclusions and cacao origins that start with the letters E, F, G, H and/or I are being featured.

Today's Dark Chocolate Ginger (bar) was from Domori (None, Italy).* 

This vegan and gluten-free bar had a smooth dark chocolate aroma, and a dark, deep chocolate flavor with slight bitter and earthy notes. It tasted slightly darker and more bitter (less sweet) than many other 70% craft dark chocolate bars, in part because the underlying cacao seemed to be more robust (Forastero variety cacao blend perhaps?) and low in bright fruit notes. 

The ginger (powder) was uniformly infused into the 70% dark chocolate, and added an authentic (unsweetened), ginger warmth and spiciness. For those used to candied ginger confections, this bar will taste less sparkly and slightly more bright-bitter (imagine ginger in savory dishes) and intense, especially in combination with the very robust and earthy dark chocolate.**

Please do savor this smaller, snack-size dark bar slowly. "Snacks to go" are often full of sugar and salt. Thankfully, this chocolate is not. Take one bite and set the bar down for a moment. And repeat this process as you go. This is important for slow bloomers and delightfully layered, complex bars. You'll miss half the fun if you eat these chocolates too quickly.

With today's bar I experienced (and enjoyed) a growing, natural sweetness and mellowing of the flavors, as the cocoa butter coated my tongue and the bitter earthy notes diminished and a faint nuttiness crept in. This bar may grow on you more than you might think.

Ingredients: Cocoa mass, cane sugar, ginger powder (1%).

*Since 2006, Domori has been part of Gruppo Illy, a company known for their coffee--and, it seems from tasting the results, a business with an understanding of what it takes to grow, ferment, roast and transform a seed/bean into a final high-quality product.

**Full disclosure: I like dark chocolates that are less sweet, and bold, deep, dark flavors as long as they are balanced. I appreciate interesting, complex flavor rides. For those who have a sweet tooth and prefer milk chocolates, you may prefer a tamer chocolate with more sugar.

Essential Living Foods - Organic Mediterranean Mix - Dark Chocolate, Figs, Almonds - Feb. 20, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Essential Living Foods
Organic Mediterranean Mix - Dark Chocolate + Figs + Almonds
Good +
Weight: 2 oz. (56.6 g.) / 14 oz. (396 g.) in total package
Calories: 280 calories in 2 servings
Cost: $9.99 for 1 large package
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and EFGHI, an alphabetic theme week featuring chocolates with flavor inclusions that start with the letters E, F, G, H and I.

Today's chocolate was a mix of elements. Essential Living Foods* Mediterranean Mix was a blend of Dark Chocolate + Figs + Almonds. 

Figs were one of the first fruits cultivated by humans. The figs we eat now are often descendants of trees with Mediterranean and Asian origins--seemingly a world away from cacao tree roots in South America and Central America.** 

However, native fig trees in the Americas do exist, in a range that overlaps cacao origins, and as far north as Florida and as far south as Paraguay. 

Regardless, fig fruit(s) and chocolate seem to have been made for each other. (It's similar to the natural affinity between dark chocolate and ginger, chocolate and raspberry, and chocolate and certain spirits.) 

It was exciting to find and enjoy an authentic-tasting, "gourmet trail mix" with dark chocolate, figs and almonds...that wasn't too sweet or salty. I was even happier to find pumpkin seeds, white mulberries (a fig relative), hazelnuts and Brazil nuts were included in this crunchy, chewy mix. 

Yes, I heartily agree with the marketing tagline. This was truly a deluxe, haut trail mix. Only a sprinkle of gold dust and/or golden berries*** would have made it more high-end.

This trail mix would be good eaten a la carte on a hike; intermingled with oatmeal or granola-type cereals; baked into muffins or baked apples; or sprinkled on vanilla ice cream.

Ingredients: Organic dark chocolate chips (chocolate liquor, cane sugar, cocoa butter, vanilla extract), diced figs, roasted pumpkin kernels (pumpkin kernels, salt), white mulberries, Brazil nut pieces, almonds, hazelnuts (Note: Except for salt, all ingredients above were listed as Organic.)

*Essential Living Foods trail mix blends are distributed by Terrafertil US, LLC (Torrance, CA), a producer of natural, organic and plant-based foods. (Terrafertil was founded in Ecuador in 2005.) In 2018, Nestle (Vevey, Switzerland) bought a majority stake in Terrafertil.

**Ficus is the Latin name for fig. European (Spanish "Black Mission") figs (Ficus carica) arrived in the Americas centuries ago (likely in the 1500s). Franciscan missionaries later cultivated them in Mexico and Southern California (in the San Diego area) in the early 1700s. 

However, banyan-related fig trees (Ficus citrifolia) are native in the Americas (Southern Florida, Mexico, Caribbean islands, Central America and northern South America); and they bear sweet, edible fruits as well. (The red mulberry tree, a fig relative, is also native to the Americas.)

***Golden berries (Physalis peruviana), are bright yellow, cherry tomato (or tomatillo) sized fruits from South America (Peru, Colombia), in the nightshade family. They are also grown in Ecuador and Chile.

Terrafertil (Ecuador) is one of the largest suppliers of Golden Berries, also known as Inca(n) berries and Cape Gooseberries.