Endangered Species - Smooth 72% Dark Chocolate (bar) - Sept. 9, 2023

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Endangered Species
Smooth 72% Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 255 calories in 1/2 bar (170 in 1/3 bar)
Cost: N/A - gift from family (Thank you Megan!) 
Purchased from: N/A - received as a gift from family

Welcome to Day #8 of Dark Chocolate Theme Week--a week that ends with primarily U.S. made chocolates and transitions into the first day of a Chocolate and Scandinavia Theme Week. 

(Note: See the next post for a write-up on today's second chocolate, an assortment of Summerbird Chokolade Amber Chocolates from Denmark.)

Today's "Smooth" 72% Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Endangered Species Chocolate, LLC (Indianapolis, IN). 

The company has been supporting wildlife preservation work for many years. And 10% of annual net profits are donated to organizations supporting habitats for wildlife. Each Endangered Species flavor/bar includes information on an endangered species, e.g. today's wrapper included information on the plight of the chimpanzee.

Aroma notes for this dark chocolate included: smooth, sweet, roasted dark chocolate and light, warm spice (vanilla).

This well-tempered dark chocolate broke with a snap in a cool room and the texture was smooth, thick and relatively creamy.

Flavor notes included: smooth, bold, dense dark (Forastero-like cacao variety*) roasted cacao (bold drinking chocolate with faint, warm vanilla); well managed, slight bitterness; and very faint green herb (oxalis).

Maker's description: "Dark, silky and deliciously bold, this chocolate is packed full of pure cocoa flavor, free of all artificial sweeteners or additives..."

Ingredients: "Bittersweet Chocolate (Chocolate Liquor, Cane Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin, Vanilla)."

Allergen-related information: "Contains Soy. Produced on Equipment That Also Processes Products Containing Milk, Peanuts and Tree Nuts."

*Forastero is the most common variety of cacao grown worldwide, and this type is associated with relatively bold, robust flavor that can be moderately bitter, acidic, deep and "dense" in flavor, depending on where its grown and how it is processed. 

Becca's Petites - Chocolat Noir Bouchees (Snack Mix) - Sept. 8, 2023

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Becca's Petites
Chocolate Noir Bouchees (Snack Mix)
Good ++
Weight: 3.5 oz. (99 g.) in total package
Calories: 460 calories in 1 package
Cost: $7.75 USD for 1 package 
Purchased from: Napa Farms Market, SFO Airport, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #7 of Dark Chocolate Theme Week. 

Today's Becca's Petites "Chocolate Noir Bouchees" Snack Mix was manufactured by Gourmecca Kitchen LLC (Marin, CA). 

Note: This is the second of two dark chocolate items featured today. (See previous post for information on Equal Exchange's Organic 92% Cacao Total Eclipse Transcendently dark bar.)

The crunchy texture of these (gluten free, dairy free and vegan) small, granola-like, snack pieces--or bouchees ("mouthfuls")--was interspersed with upticks in creamy dark chocolate and slightly softer, rich nut bits.

This rich, almost crispy-crunchy mix had authentic, chocolate and very light coconut and nut flavors. It was satisfying, and slightly addictive--while only mildly triggering the "more-ish" sugar/salt snack threshold. (It was sweetened with coconut and apple juice; and very lightly seasoned with sea salt.)

Ingredients: Almonds, walnuts, dark chocolate (cane sugar, cacao beans*, cocoa butter*, sunflower lecithin, vanilla), almond butter, coconut chips, apple puree, apple juice concentrate, coconut nectar, cinnamon, pure vanilla extract, sea salt. ("No GMOs.") (* Fair Trade)

"Allergen Warning: Almond, Walnut, Coconut. Made in a facility that handles milk chocolate."

Equal Exchange - Organic Dark Chocolate 92% Cacao Total Eclipse (bar) - Sept. 8, 2023

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Equal Exchange
Organic Dark Chocolate 92% Cacao Total Eclipse (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.4 oz. (40 g.) / 2.8 oz. (80 g.) in total bar
Calories: 253.3 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $4.79 for 1 bar
Purchased from: New Leaf Community Markets, Half Moon Bay, CA 

Welcome to Day #7 of Dark Chocolate Theme Week. 

Note: The second of two dark chocolate items (Becca's Petites Chocolat Noir Bouchees) featured today can be found in a separate/next entry.

Today's Organic Dark Chocolate 92% Cacao Total Eclipse (bar) was produced in Switzerland for Equal Exchange Co-op (W. Bridgewater, MA).

This bar was described as "Transcendently dark." Chocolates with greater than 90% cacao tend to go beyond the limits of what most people have experienced. Some will enjoy the journey, and others may miss the sugar. But, there's more to the story...and it extends to how the cacao was transported from distant lands covered with temperate rainforests into a high-percentage dark chocolate, and how it reached us at all.

The organic cacao(s) used to make this ultra-dark chocolate were "grown by small farmer co-ops" in Togo*, Dominican Republic and Peru.

Aroma notes for this dark chocolate included: rich cocoa (drinking chocolate) and subtle vanilla bean.

The texture was smooth, thick and buttery (cocoa buttery).

Flavor notes included: bold, barely sweetened, smooth, ultra-dark chocolate with a balanced bitterness; subtle vanilla bean; and very faint, fleeting sweet red berry (raspberry jam). 

For those wanting less sugar and more unsweetened cacao flavor(s), this 92% dark chocolate blend is worth trying. You're also supporting many small cacao, sugar and vanilla farmer co-ops around the globe. (The organic cane sugar is from Paraguay, and the organic vanilla was from Madagascar.)

Ingredients: *Organic Chocolate Liquor, *Organic Cocoa Butter, *Organic Raw Cane Sugar, "Organic Ground Vanilla Beans." ("* Fairly Traded Ingredient By Weight 100% From Fair Trade Co-operatives.")

Allergen-related information: "May Contain Milk, Peanuts, Hazelnuts, Almonds & Coconut."

*Equal Exchange has been serving as an "alternative trader" and supporting small farmer agricultural co-ops (coffee, cacao, other) for decades. 

SCOOPS PROCAB (Kpalime, Togo) was founded in 2013, and has been an Equal Exchange partner since 2018. Along with help from Gebana Togo, SCOOPS PROCAB were the "first producers in Togo to grow and export organic cacao;" and through this process the small farmer co-op members have gained access to more markets and greater economic resources.

Scharffen Berger - 82% Cacao Extra Dark Chocolate (bar) - Sept. 7, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Scharffen Berger 
82% Cacao Extra Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 150 calories in 1/3 bar
Cost: $5.19 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Market at Edgewood, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #6 of Dark Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's 82% Cacao Extra Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker (Ashland, OR). 

Aroma notes included: relatively sweet dark chocolate (cocoa/drinking chocolate with very faint vanilla), and very faint green botanical and fruit.

The texture was smooth but with an astringency (graininess/dryness) toward (and extending well) into the finish.

Flavor notes included: relatively bold dark chocolate (in keeping with an 82% cacao dark chocolate), very faint, diffuse fruit (red berry and citrus syrup/drink), and faint bitter earth. A very subtle amount of vanilla added a sense of sweet cocoa warmth.

Ingredients: "Cacao Beans, Sugar, Vanilla Bean."

Allergen-related information: "Produced in a facility that processes tree nuts and dairy."

 

Hu Products - Simple Dark Chocolate Organic 70% Cacao (bar) + Peter Beier dark confections - Sept. 6, 2023

Chocolate(s) of the Day

Hu Products LLC

Simple Dark Organic 70% Cacao (bar)

Good + - Good ++

Weight: 1.05 oz. (30 g.) / 2.1 oz. (60 g.) in total bar

Calories: 190 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $2.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Peter Beier
Dark Chocolate Caramel, Ginger and Egg Spice
Good ++
Weight: 1.2 oz. (34 g.) in 3 different, filled chocolates
Calories: 186 calories (estimate) in 3 chocolates
Cost: 33,66 Danish Krone ($4.84 USD) for 3 pieces
Purchased from: Peter Beier (shop), Copenhagen, Denmark

Welcome to Day #5 of Dark Chocolate Theme Week.

Hu Simple Dark Chocolate

Today's Simple Dark Chocolate Organic 70% Cacao (bar) was made in Italy and distributed by Hu Products LLC (Austin, TX). Hu company founders have sought to "unite Ultrasimple (tm) ingredients with unbeatable taste."

Simple and high-quality is how I like my dark chocolate. My favorite bars have only two, maybe three, ingredients: cocoa bean solids and cocoa butter, and a sweetener. 

Additional ingredients can muddle flavors or can contain too much of something that you don't really want or need. (Too much sugar or vanilla can drown out subtle cacao flavors, and added "natural flavors" don't usually improve a chocolate's taste.) So, hats off to Hu and other companies who have taken this back-to-the-basics path.

Aroma notes for this dark chocolate included: dark chocolate, faint brown/coconut sugar, and very faint fruit (red berry jelly) and nut (almond).

This relatively thick bar had a relatively hearty texture with smooth consistency and a barely there stone-ground like granularity and flavor. (Stone ground and/or less ground/processed cacao can have more intact flavors.)

Flavor notes included: rich smooth cocoa/sweet drinking chocolate with relatively low bitterness and acidity; very faint nut (almond, cashew) and fruit (diffuse, sweet red fruit).

This 70% dark chocolate was uniform and well-balanced and made with a simple list of Organic and Fairtrade ingredients. The company used no lecithin emulsifiers (thank you), no processed cane sugar (or artificial sweeteners -- thank you), and no dairy or soy. Simple pleasures.

Peter Beier (Denmark)

Note: I also enjoyed three dark chocolate confections (filled chocolates: caramel, ginger and egg spice) from a Peter Beier shop (in Copenhagen, Denmark) later this evening.

Ingredients: Organic cacao*, organic unrefined coconut sugar, organic cocoa butter* (*Certified Fairtrade ingredients)

Allergen-related information: "Contains coconut. May contain almond, cashew, hazelnut, pistachio, & dairy. Allergen cleans made prior to production, but beware that product is produced using equipment that also processes tree nuts, soy, dairy, & wheat."

Alter Eco - Truffle Thins - Classic Dark Chocolate Organics (bar) - Sept. 5, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Alter Eco
Truffle Thins Classic Organic Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.48 oz. (42 g.) / 2.96 oz. (84 g.) in total bar
Calories: 255 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $4.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: New Leaf Community Markets, Half Moon Bay, CA 

Welcome to Day #4 of Dark Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's Organic Alter Eco Truffle Thins - Classic Dark Chocolate Organics (bar) was made in Switzerland and distributed by Alter Eco Foods (San Francisco, CA). 

The company describes themselves having some of the cleanest, greenest (certified Organic) chocolate bars and confections available. E.g., they actively support regenerative agricultural methods** where cacao is grown. 

Aroma notes included: smooth dark chocolate (chocolate ganache, mousse) with faint citrus (lemon) + green herb (oxalis); faint brown sugar; vanilla; and barely detectable botanical (very light, woody-nutty plant stalk/husk).

There are dark chocolate bars and dark chocolate filled confections. Today's 60% filled chocolate bar was both...organic dark chocolate filled with ganache..."part truffle, part chocolate bar."

The dual construction of this bar--dark chocolate bar filled with a softer, creamy chocolate ganache inside--resulted in a smooth, almost buttery melt and mouthfeel, with subtle textural depth.

Flavor notes included: smooth, creamy and sweet dark chocolate (dark chocolate mousse, ganache, torte) with fleeting fruit (berry jam) and lemon herb (oxalis), and faint vanilla.

This certified organic and gluten free, rich filled chocolate tasted like sweet, creamy cool chocolate ice cream or warm, thick, drinking chocolate. Yes, it was sweet (which I sometimes don't care for); but it was also quite tasty and a little addictive.

Ingredients: Organic dark chocolate (*organic cacao beans, *organic raw cane sugar, *organic cocoa butter, *organic vanilla beans), chocolate creme filling (organic coconut oil, *organic raw cane sugar, *organic cacao beans, *organic cocoa butter, organic whole milk, natural flavor, *organic vanilla beans).

Allergen-related information: "Contains milk and coconut. May contain hazelnuts, almonds, and soy. Individuals who are allergic to these should not consume this product."

*Fair for Life Fair Trade certified. Contains 86% Fair Trade ingredients. (Cacao: 60% minimum.)

**Regenerative farming for cacao involves planting a diverse mix of trees around the (often smaller) cacao trees to "mimic an abundant forest ecosystem." These methods can allow the planting of more trees per acre, increase carbon absorption and biodiversity (habitat), soil fertility, drought resistance and can provide shade for the cacao trees and the farmers.

Taza Chocolate - 70% Dark Chocolate "Deliciously Dark" (bar) - Sept. 4, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Taza Chocolate 
70% Dark Chocolate "Deliciously Dark" (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.25 oz. (35 g.) / 2.5 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 190 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $1.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Dark Chocolate Week.

Today's 70% Dark Chocolate "Deliciously Dark" (bar) was made from bean-to-bar by Taza Chocolate (Somerville, MA). 

The company offers a variety of bars, drinking chocolates and confections. Several years ago, I sampled another "plain" 70% dark chocolate. However, this had a slightly different title, and likely was made with a different cacao blend (different cacao growing regions, farms) and different harvest years.

Aroma notes for this vegan and dairy-free bar included: dark chocolate (deep, rich chocolate cookie/warm drinking chocolate); sweet green floral/botanical; subtle, balanced earth; and dried fruit (plum, banana).

Taza Chocolate is known for its slightly rougher texture. Their description notes that this chocolate "isn't silky smooth--on purpose." This 70% dark bar had a stone-ground, slightly granular texture--that wasn't objectionable to me because the company delivered (once again) on their promise of chocolate with texture and "bright, bold flavor that is...unique...never boring and always satisfying." 

Shorter cacao bean grind/processing times can mean a rougher texture; but you also get a more flavorful chocolate. And if makers purchase/start with high-quality cacao, why wouldn't they want to preserve great flavors--not to mention more of the nutrients, like polyphenol/flavonols and trace B and C vitamins?

If you prefer silky, buttery texture over flavor, there are plenty of good options out there. But, either way, if you're a dark chocolate fan, I recommend giving Taza Chocolate dark chocolate a try. (The company has also focused on cacao sourcing practices and partnering with farmers in cacao growing countries since their inception.)

Flavor notes for this 70% "Deliciously Dark" bar included: hearty, authentic cacao flavor with deep, dark chocolate and mild, well-balanced earth notes and very subtle green floral and fruit notes similar to the aroma notes (listed above). It also was relatively sweet for a 70% dark chocolate -- perhaps due to some of these naturally sweet-tasting flavor notes and being able to "taste" the rougher grains of sugar more. I'm not sure.

I enjoy well-executed, complex dark chocolates, where you can taste the variety(ies) of cacao that were used. Today's chocolate had cacao flavor notes I associated with bold Forastero (deep, dark cocoa)--with a little Trinitario (fruit) and possibly Arriba or Nacional (green, floral) cacao varieties blended in for good measure.)

Ingredients: Organic Cacao Beans, Organic Cane Sugar, Organic Cocoa Butter. 

Allergen-related information: "May Contain Traces of Tree Nuts and Sesame Seeds."