Marou - So Co La Den 100% Single Origin Vietnam Dark Chocolate (bar) - Oct. 12, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Marou Faiseurs de Chocolat
100% Single Origin (Vietnam) Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 1.05 oz. (30 g.) / 2.1 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 170 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.50 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

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

Today's 100% Single Origin Dark Chocolate (bar) was from Marou Chocolate (Marou Faiseurs de Chocolat), based in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam.

It's worth noting up front, this ultra-dark single origin bar was crafted using one single ingredient (cocoa nibs).

Aroma notes included: subtle cocoa, dark chocolate, and very faint botanical (barely detectable floral (orchid); very faint, diffuse fruit; nut)

Flavor notes included: dark, unsweetened chocolate; subtle, unfolding fruit (pomegranate, tangerine, green fig) and fruit (pomegranate-date) molasses; and very faint nut (Brazil). 

When I take a bite of a 100% cacao bar, I brace myself for the probable disconnect between the friendly cocoa aroma--that my brain associates with something sweet--and the bitterness that may follow. There wasn't that kind of jolt this time. 

Yes, this chocolate was bitter (unsweetened), but not too bitter (or sour). It had some natural sweetness to it; and the feel of a high-quality, well-managed chocolate. This was a pleasant dragon, with gently complex cacao flavors.

Ingredients: Cocoa nibs

Allergen-related information: "Manufactured in a facility that also processes: Coconut"

SOMA Chocolate maker - Tien Giang, Vietnam dark chocolate 70% (bar) - Oct. 11, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

SOMA chocolatemaker 
Tien Giang, Vietnam dark chocolate 70% (bar)
Good +++
Weight: 1.15 oz. (32.5 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 190 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Vietnam Theme Week--a week with some excellent single origin bars made from cacao grown in southern Vietnam.

Today's Tien Giang*, Vietnam dark chocolate 70% (bar) was from SOMA chocolatemaker (Toronto, ON, Canada). The cacao beans used for this bar came from Marou Faisseurs de Chocolat in Vietnam.**

Aroma notes for this deliciously dark bar included: rich, deep dark chocolate; faint, earthy molasses and botanicals (maple, warm spices).

The texture was smooth and uniform.

Flavor notes included: rich dark chocolate with bold cocoa shimmering with subtle dark complexity (faint, balanced earth; faint, fleeting dark, sweet berries; and faint molasses and warm spice). 

Bold and dark, yet also subtle and complex. These adjectives rarely converge in one chocolate. And oh what a beautiful, well orchestrated, convergence it was. The cacao was excellent, and so was the implementation.

This three-ingredient bar embraced the best traits cacao has to offer (across different varieties). The deep almost earthy boldness of a Forastero variety, the flavor and tart-sweet fruit of a Trinitario variety, and the beautiful complexity of a heritage/heirloom (South American) cacao (Criollo, Chuao and perhaps Nacional). 

Even the choice of organic cane sugar seemed just right. The cacao was already, inherently deep and dark. I'm always curious about what darker versions of bars would have tasted like. Not here. Going with a higher cacao percentage in this case--where flavors "darken" with proportionately less sugar--made less sense. And the sugar helped showcase the bright-dark-sweet dark berry/dark cherry fruit flavor notes.

Maker's tasting notes: "cinnamon, wild ginger, cherry jam, Brazil nut."

Ingredients: Cacao Nibs, Organic Cane Sugar, Cocoa Butter

Allergen-related information: "May contain trace amounts of peanuts, tree nuts, soy and dairy.

*Tien Giang is one of several cacao-growing provinces in southern Vietnam. The southern part of the country is warmer, and well-suited for cacao trees. Some of the best cacao grows in areas that are close to the coast and the Mekong River delta.

** Marou was founded by Vincent Mourou and Samuel Maruta in Vietnam over a dozen years ago. It's not an exaggeration to say that the Marou team was largely responsible for the Chocolate and Vietnam Theme Weeks on Chocolate Banquet for the past several years. Marou works directly with farmers in at least five provinces in southern Vietnam and makes bean-to-bar chocolates in Vietnam.

The company also has enabled other high-end chocolate makers around the globe to obtain fine Vietnamese cacao for their own single origin Vietnam chocolate offerings--such as today's SOMA chocolatemaker's Tien Giang bar.

Stone Grindz - Ba Ria, Vietnam 70% Cacao (bar) - Oct. 10, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Stone Grindz Chocolate
Ba Ria, Vietnam (The Origin Project) 70% Cacao (bar)
Good +++
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar
Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Stone Grindz, online order

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

Today's Ba Ria*, Vietnam (The Origin Project) 70% Cacao (bar) was from Stone Grindz Chocolate (Scottsdale, AZ).

Aroma notes for this bar included: dark chocolate (attractive cocoa with very faint, fleeting and well-balanced fermentation notes; chocolate ganache/frosting).

Both the overall texture and melt were smooth and creamy. 

Flavor notes included: chocolate-y--in the best way possible: smooth, creamy, flavorful with gentle complexity. Very light and smooth bittersweet quality; like excellent drinking chocolate with a long, satisfying creamy finish.

This 70% dark chocolate had a fairly high degree of natural sweetness. The well-executed, authentic and rich flavor(s) balanced the sweetness. Mildly addictive and/or more-ish**. 

I also would have loved to have tried a slightly darker (73%-75%) version of this 70% bar. (One can fantasize; but makers have to make tough choices when they're working with a limited batch of cacao beans.

Ingredients: Organic cacao beans, organic cocoa butter, organic cane sugar

Allergen-related information included: (None listed on packaging.)

*Ba Ria is one of several cacao-growing provinces in southern Vietnam. Cacao likely first arrived and was cultivated in Vietnam in the 1800s. High-quality, fine cacao from these provinces in recent decades (and the hard work of dedicated people) has enabled a growing number of excellent, small-batch, craft chocolates. (Sadly, I think this Ba Ria bar (and its Dak Lak Vietnam 79% sibling) are already gone/sold out.)

**More-ish is a slang reference to certain sweets, snacks and other foods that tempt a person to over-consume. After one bite/serving, one still feels compelled to eat more...and more. 

I've never experienced this compulsion after eating a big salad--or other higher fiber/protein foods. I'm also fully satisfied after just a few bites of eating darker (80%+ cacao) chocolates. 

But occasionally I find chocolate flavors so divine that I just want to savor and appreciate them just a little longer. Today's chocolate fell more into that category.

Stone Grindz - Dak Lak, (Origin Project) Vietnam 70% Cacao (bar) - Oct. 9, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Stone Grindz Chocolate
Dak Lak, Vietnam (The Origin Project) 70% Cacao (bar)
Good +++
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2. oz. (57 g.) (estim.) in total bar
Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Stone Grindz Chocolate, online order

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

Today's Dak Lak*, Vietnam (The Origin Project) 70% Cacao (bar) was from Stone Grindz Chocolate (Tucson, AZ). 

Aroma notes for this subtle yet flavorful dark chocolate included: chocolate (very attractive cocoa; very faint and balanced cacao fermentation; "barely there" sour milk/yogurt; and very gentle bitterness).

The texture and melt were creamy and almost silky smooth.

Flavor notes in this well-executed Vietnam chocolate included: very pleasing rich cocoa, and very faint diffuse fruit, spice and botanical that all unfolded beautifully as the chocolate melted in my mouth. 

Loved the subtle complexity and balance; and it wasn't too sweet.

Ingredients: Organic cacao beans, organic cacao butter, organic cane sugar

Allergen-related information included: (No information listed.)

 

Monsoon Chocolate - Ben Tre Vietnam 70% Dark Chocolate - Oct. 8, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Monsoon Chocolate
Ben Tre Vietnam 70% Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good ++
Weight: .88 oz. (25 g.) / 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 136 (estim.) calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $12.00 + shipping for 1 bar
Purchased from: Monsoon Chocolate, online order 

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

Today's Ben Tre Vietnam 70% Dark Chocolate (Batch #1) was from Monsoon Chocolate (Tucson, AZ).

This chocolate, hand-crafted in the Sonoran desert in the U.S. Southwest, was part of Monsoon's "Origin Series" and was a "...collaboration with the farm workers who grow the (cacao) harvest" in Vietnam. 

The cacao source: Ben Tre Province, in the Mekong River delta--roughly 10.11 degrees Latitude (North of the Equator)--within the geographic Goldilocks zone for cacao trees.*

Aroma notes included: Dark chocolate, light brown/maple sugar, and light, faint sweet green floral.

Texture: Smooth with a very light and balanced, tart-sweet fruit astringency toward the finish.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate, very light brown sugar, and a tart-sweet, diffuse blend of ripe fruits (orange, plum, nectarine, pineapple).

The flavors were balanced, and the sweetness had a natural, fruity quality.

Ingredients: Cocoa Beans, Unrefined Cane Sugar*, Cocoa Butter* (*Certified Organic)

Allergen-related information: "Made in a facility that handles tree nuts, wheat, milk, eggs and peanuts. May not be suitable for people with allergies to these foods."

*Goldilocks zone refers to an area that is "just right" for certain things to occur. Many factors influence where plants grow (e.g. temperature, weather, soils, altitude, etc.). Cacao trees thrive in temperate rain forests (twenty degrees (latitude) above and twenty degrees below the Equator) around the globe. 

In the U.S., you'll find cacao trees in Hawaii (at the very northern edge of this zone); but, overwhelmingly the bulk of the world's cacao is grown in countries closer to the Equator (e.g. West Africa, Indonesia/SE Asia, and in South and Central America--where cacao trees evolved around 10 million years ago).

 

Little Green Cyclo - Specialty Vietnamese Coffee Plant-Based Mocha beverage - Oct. 7, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Little Green Cyclo
Specialty Premium Vietnamese Coffee - Plant-based Mocha (beverage)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 3.75 fl. oz. (111 mL) / 7.5 fl. oz. (222 mL) in total container/can
Calories: 45 calories in 1/2 can
Cost: $3.99 for 1 can
Purchased from: The Market at Edgewood, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Coffee Theme Week, and Day #1 of Chocolate and Vietnam Theme Week. 

Today's Mocha plant-based beverage was from Little Green Cyclo (Brisbane, CA). The company, founded in 2010, has built a following around their Vietnamese food in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In 2019, the company started gearing up to add new coffee flavors. Happily for us, they weathered the economic changes the Covid-19 pandemic presented and now offer delicious Vietnamese (plant-based) coffees to enjoy.  

Speaking of weather, today was another in a series of 90+ degrees F. (32.2+ C.) days. So this refrigerated coffee/mocha was extra refreshing.

This Mocha coffee beverage was designed to "serve chilled or over ice." Being colder, the aroma notes were a bit more subtle, but still conveyed an attractive rich coffee, cream, and very faint coconut mocha cream scent.

Flavor notes for this mocha beverage included: Rich aromatic coffee (made with robusta and arabica coffee grown in Vietnam), and mocha-light coconut cream.

One can contained a hefty 200 mg of caffeine. Being sensitive to caffeine, I enjoyed a (smaller) 1/2 can portion, even though I would've been delighted to have more.*

Texture: light and creamy (almost fluffy)**. The coconut milk seemed lighter than dairy cream/condensed milk one might usually find. Vegetable gums also contributed to the texture. Shaking the can before opening is recommended. ("Refrigerate after opening. Some coconut milk separation is natural."). I didn't find this to be an issue.

Flavor notes included: rich and satisfying iced coffee + coconut (milk + cream) + chocolate powder (Guittard) with a smidge of vanilla. This drink was made with high-quality ingredients. I enjoyed the highly complementary and subtly complex flavors--and the fact that this mocha wasn't too sweet. 

Ingredients: Filtered Water, Coconut Milk (Coconut Cream, Water), Coffee (Filtered Water, Robusta & Arabica Coffee), Coconut Condensed Milk (Coconut Cream, Filtered Water, Cane Sugar, Guar Gum, Sea Salt), Guittard Chocolate Powder (Cane Sugar, Cocoa, Unsweetened Chocolate, Vanilla), Gum Acacia, Gellan Gum, Himalyan Pink Salt, Nitrogen

Allergen-related information: Contains Coconut. Manufactured in a facility that uses dairy and tree nuts. Vegan, Gluten Free

*Vietnamese coffee is typically made with robusta (or mostly with robusta) coffee, which has more caffeine than arabica coffee. As the name suggests, robusta coffee beans also provide robust and intense flavor. I liked the choice to include a blend of robust and aromatic (arabica) coffee beans from Vietnam.

** This can of coffee contained a small amount of Nitrogen (released with a tiny whisp of aerosol when the can was opened) that can create a smoother (textural) tasting experience. Nitrogen can also help preserve flavors (slow down/prevent oxidation process).

Good King - Arise Mocha Crunch Snacking Cacao - Oct. 6, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Good King
Arise Mocha Crunch Snacking Cacao
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total package
Calories: 130 calories in 1 serving (1/2 package)
Cost: $6.00 (sale) for 1 package
Purchased from: Zak's Chocolate (Scottsdale, AZ), online order

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

Today's Good King "Arise" Mocha Crunch Snacking Cacao was manufactured by Cocoa Future, SPC (Seattle, WA). 

Aroma notes included: fruit, chocolate (cocoa), coffee, caramelized date/coconut sugar, and very faint, fleeting (almost there) whisp of sweet mushrooms sauteed in coconut milk and butter. 

Texture: There was a lot of fiber with each gently crunchy cacao bean and coffee based morsel. Happily, while while the cacao beans are fairly intact (in the original cacao bean form), these flavorful snack pieces weren't too dry or fibrous. 

Flavor notes for this 65% snacking cacao included: authentic, flavorful and well-balanced cacao (bean), with tasty coffee, caramel (and/or caramelized ingredients), coconut milk, cocoa butter and a tiny bit of salt. One of the best "coatings" for cacao beans I've tasted.

This was a perfect snack (and possibly breakfast); and I'd happily eat this again. Unfortunately, Good King offerings may be unavailable at the moment. I hope they return soon.

The ingredients used were thoughtfully sourced. The single origin, USDA Organic, Fair Trade  International (direct trade) cacao beans were from Coagricsal Co-op, Honduras. And the single origin, USDA Organic and Fair Trade for Life coffee was from Cafe Feminino, Peru.

Ingredients: Cacao Beans*, Cane Sugar*, Coconut Milk Powder*, Cacao Butter*, Coffee Beans*, Salt (* = Organic).

Allergen-related information: "Contains: Coconut" ("Vegan, Non-GMO, Dairy Free, Gluten Free")