Somerville Chocolate - Hawaii 70% Cacao from Papaikou, HI (bar) - Nov. 27, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Somerville Chocolate
Hawaii 70% Cacao from Papaikou, Hawaii (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 2.5 oz. (70.75 g.) in total bar
Calories: 378 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Missing information

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

Today's Hawaii 70% Cacao from Papaikou, Hawaii (bar) was hand-crafted from bean to bar by Eric Parkes at Somerville Chocolate (Somerville, MA). The company is co-located with a brewery and wraps their bars using papers printed with attractive images of antique maps.

The aroma for this bar had a shape-shifting quality to it. First, I experienced a bold dark chocolate with a roasted (very faint charcoal smoke) note. However, two minutes later, the aroma grew much milder, taking on a green (green forest, green nut) scent with a very faint waxy nut note. A magic trick of sorts.

The flavor of this bar was quite sweet (high-end, dark chocolate frosting). It's likely there were bright fruity notes from the cacao that amped up the cane sugar sweetness; but it was hard to tell. (Think of bright sunshine blasting you on a black sand beach on the Big Island* of Hawaii. Beautiful. But, sometimes too much of a good thing.) 

Some cacao has a naturally bright sweet flavor, and making a 70% cacao version (with 70% cacao and 30% cane sugar), which is generally considered an "optimal" percentage in chocolate-making circles, much sweeter than another 70% bar. Today's bar may be a good example of just that.

I'd be curious to taste a 73% or even 75% version of this bar (i.e. one with less sugar) to see if I could taste more of the chocolate's nuances/fruitiness. However, those with a sweet tooth should be quite happy with this well-made bar.

The finish had a very faint, balanced astringency, and it shifted from a lingering sweet, fruit acidity to something a bit of mellow, green nut flavor at the very end.

Ingredients: Cacao, cane sugar

*The cacao used to make this dark bar was from Papaikou, which is located on the east shore of the Big Island of Hawaii (south of the Tropical Botanical Garden and bioreserve) and about 5 miles (8 km) from Hilo. The area is described as a "tropical paradise on the Hamakua coast." And, happily for us, at a few hundred feet above sea level and at approx. 19 + degrees N. Latitude, it's also well-suited for growing cacao.

Christopher Elbow Chocolates - Macadamia Hawaiian Sea Salt Dark bar - Nov. 26, 2020

Chocolate of the Day 

Christopher Elbow Chocolates
Macadamia Hawaiian Sea Salt Dark Chocolate bar
Good +
Weight: 2.65 oz. (75 g.) in total bar
Calories: 410 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $7.95 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Christopher Elbow Chocolates, online order

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

Today's Macadamia Hawaiian Sea Salt Dark 63% Dark chocolate bar was from Christopher Elbow Chocolates (Kansas City, MO).

This gluten free and vegan chocolate bar was speckled with toasted macadamia nut bits and infused with Hawaiian red/pink sea salt. 

The aroma reminded me of butter cookies with cashew nuts from childhood.

The flavors were a melding of smooth, sweet, rich dark chocolate, salty sparkles from the sea salt crystals and tiny, soft nutty bits. (There was also a fleeting, very faint mineral and even fainter menthol notes.*)

Ingredients: Dark chocolate (cacao mass, cocoa butter, sugar, soy lecithin, vanilla), macadamia nuts, Hawaiian Red sea salt 

*I wondered whether the fleeting mineral note might have been from the Hawaiian Red sea salt. The red color in this salt is due to red colored clay, earth. Some think this salt has a faint nutty flavor. Impurities, including small quantities of minerals can impart color and taste in sea salt. And the larger the salt grains or crystals, the more detectable flavor it might have.

The menthol note could have been from an accidental flavor inclusion or might even date back to post-harvest cacao fermentation. 

Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate - Wailua Single Estate 70% Dark Palm Blossom Honey (bar) - Nov. 25, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate
Wailua Single Estate 70% Dark Palm Blossom Honey (bar)
Good ++ - +++
Weight: 2.2 oz. (62 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 330 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $15.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Chocolate and Hawaii Theme Week.

Today's Wailua Single Estate 70% Dark with Palm Blossom Honey (bar) was from Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate (Kapa'a, HI), an 8-acre cacao farm (that also produces vanilla, palm blossom honey and fruits).

The geographic coordinates of this farm in Kauai are: 22.0792 degrees North (Latitude) by 159.3595 degrees West (Longitude). Above 22 degrees Latitude is a bit outside of cacao's normal growing range. (Cacao grows up to 20 degrees above or below the Equator.) But the mild, tropical climate of this lush, green northern Hawaiian island works. 

The Big Island of Hawaii further south is at 19 to 20 degrees North. The benefit: cacao growing this far north typically contains 10-15 percent more cocoa butter (fat). (Think polar bears with nice thick coats to keep them warm.)

Today's 70% Wailua dark chocolate with palm blossom honey had a complex, pleasing parfait of flavors. It started with the aroma: dark, rich chocolate with notes of ripe date and fig cookie/bar. Each bite yielded a creamy smooth melt and mouthfeel. 

The unique and well-executed bar had a dark chocolate taste with a rich, layered sweetness (sugar and honey with depth), a round, faint green (fruit tree) note, and almost buttery rich honey flavors in the middle and finish. At the end of the finish there was a faint roasted nuts note (almond, walnut, peanut). This latter nutty note lingered long enough to evoke childhood memories of peanut butter, butter and honey on toast. 

Lydgate Farms tasting notes for this bar read as follows: "The additional honey added to this bar creates a paradox: while the honey makes the chocolate taste sweeter overall, it brings out deeper tones in the dark chocolate making it feel heavier. There are darker dried fruit tones than its plain dark chocolate counterpart from the same vintage. Hints of fig, raisins and spices show in the middle, while the sweet underbelly of the honey-tones present candied walnuts on the finish. Think baklava."

Lydgate Farms suggested beverage pairing notes were thus: "Pair With: Pedro Ximénez. Why? -- This would be a "like" pairing. The honey tones of the wine would match the honey tones in the chocolate. Both the chocolate and this Spanish dessert grape have heavy mouthfeels that can stand and sing together without overpowering one over the other."

Ingredients: Lydgate Farms cacao beans, organic sugar, organic cocoa butter. Lydgate Farms palm blossom honey

Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate - Wailua Single Estate 70% Dark (bar) - Nov. 24, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate
Wailua Single Estate 70% Dark (bar)
Good ++ 
Weight: 2.2 oz. (62 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 330 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $15.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Chocolate and Hawaii Theme Week.

Cacao farms have become more common in recent decades in Hawaii. Today's Wailua Single Estate 70% (bar) was from Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate (Kapa'a, HI), and 8-acre cacao farm (that also produces vanilla, palm blossom honey and fruits).

This farm produces single origin chocolate bars made using cacao grown, harvested, fermented, dried and made into chocolate on the island of Kauai, in Hawaii. (This is rare. Virtually all cacao used to make chocolate in the U.S. is grown outside the U.S.)

Today's 70% Wailua dark chocolate had a complex tasting arc--not unlike tasting a fine wine. It had an identifiable beginning, middle and finish. 

The bar had an appealing dark chocolate aroma and flavor. It had a bright fruity start, with balanced citrus (sweet, pink grapefruit), true chocolate, berry and stone fruit (tart-sweet red berry (wild strawberry) and dried mango and plum)--and fainter green banana and almond butter--notes. 

The melt and texture was relatively smooth with a faint hint of mild, balanced berry astringency/dryness and rounded wood (oak?) toward the finish. 

Lydgate Farms tasting notes for this bar read as follows: "Fleeting, light, bright fruity tones with a tinge of apricot on the start. The middle expands to a fuller, buttery orange cream, and moves to an off-dry nut butter on the finish. Taste young to enjoy the fruit tones. Aging more than 3 months will cause the chocolate to become nuttier as it off-gases acidity."

Lydgate Farms suggested beverage pairing notes: "Pair With: Buttery Chardonnay, California...Why? -- This would be a "like" pairing. The light, floral fruity tones of the chocolate would be overpowered by a red. The buttery mouthfeel of a Chardonnay would match the creamy mouthful of the smooth, mild, dark chocolate and highlight the fruit in the chocolate, which is what makes this bar unique." 

Ingredients: Lydgate Farms cacao beans, organic sugar, organic cocoa butter.

Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate - Wailua Single Estate 70% Dark Sea Salt (bar) - Nov. 23, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate
Wailua Single Estate 70% Dark Sea Salt (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 2.2 oz. (62 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 330 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $15.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Chocolate and Hawaii Theme Week.

Today's Wailua Single Estate 70% Dark Sea Salt (bar) was from Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate (Kapa'a, HI). The farm belongs to a family with a history in Hawaii that stretches back five generations.

Small-batch, artisan chocolate is made from the cacao grown on this sustainable farm off Olohena Rd., in Kapa'a, Kaui, Hawaii. (And, at least pre-Covid, the Farm also offered tours.)

This bar had an appealing dark chocolate aroma and flavor and a bright fruity start, with balanced citrus (sweet lemon peel), true chocolate, salt, berry and stone fruit (tart-sweet red berry and dried mango and plum)--and fainter green banana and almond butter--notes. 

The melt and texture was relatively smooth with a faint hint of mild, balanced berry astringency/dryness and rounded wood (oak?) toward the finish. 

This well-executed bar had complexity and the right balance of everything to make it shine--including salt and sugar (not too much, not too little).

Lydgate Farms tasting notes for this bar read as follows: "This refreshing bar hits you with salt on the tip of the tongue. The salt accentuates the fruity tones of the dark chocolate making it seem more sharp. The result is a bright burst of flavor in the beginning with a pleasant, dry, staccato finish."

Lydgate suggested beverage pairings: "Sparkling's; sweet or dry. Ciders, Saisons, Sours, and Farmhouse Ales."

Ingredients: Lydgate Farms cacao beans, organic sugar, organic cocoa butter, Hawaiian sea salt.

Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate - Wailua Single Estate 50% Milk (bar) - Nov. 22, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate
Wailua Single Estate 50% Milk (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 2.2 oz. (62 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 330 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $15.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Aloha and Welcome to Chocolate and Hawaii Theme Week.

Today's Wailua Single Estate 50% Milk (bar) was from Lydgate Farms Kauai Chocolate (Kapa'a, HI). The company, founded by members of a family, the fifth generation to live in Hawaii.

The company emphasizes stewardship of land and local culture, via small-scale sustainable farming and educational farm tours. (A card insert in the package illustrated the story of their farm using Kapa, a traditional Hawaiian art form with symbols on bark cloth.)

This bar had an earthy, dark chocolate aroma with a faint hint of green (Genmai-cha tea with roasted rice or barley), tempered by milk and sugar. The melt and texture were smooth and substantial; and the flavor was one of rich, dark milk chocolate. There was a faint fresh green, sweet note that lingered lightly in the finish.

Lydgate Tasting Notes: "This heavy dark milk chocolate is reminiscent of sweetened condensed milk and browned butter meets toasted cashew nuts. It has a savory, cheesy character with a velvety, intense, mouthfeel that is richer than your typical flat, sweet milk chocolate."

Lydgate's suggested beverage pairing: "Pair With: Cava Brut and other dry Sparkling's like Prosecco and Champagne...Why? -- This would be an "opposite" pairing. The heavy mouthfeel of the rich dark milk chocolate is balanced by effervescent dry bubbles, lightening the load off the tip of the tongue."

Ingredients: Lydgate cacao beans, organic whole milk powder, organic sugar, organic cocoa butter.

*Wailua is a Hawaiian word that means "two waters" or two bodies of water. It's located on the east side of Kauai. And Kapa'a (aka Kapaa) means "solid" in Hawaiian. The word "chocolate" (cacao made "solid") can be traced back to the Aztec/Nahuatl word "xocolatl" meaning bitter water--from the cacao beverage that dates back thousands of years in Central and South America. The Spaniards brought cacao to Europe and the name for the solid bars and confections they developed evolved into the word "chocolate." 

And this name eventually made its way back to the us via ships bound for America. Yes, this is a long story to link a few terms like water and chocolate, but I'm willing to go the extra nautical mile to link coastal communities and cacao.

Chatfield's - Organic Bittersweet Chocolate 70% Cacao - Premium Baking Bar - Nov. 21, 2020

Chocolate of the Day

Chatfield's 
Organic Bittersweet Chocolate 70% Cacao - Premium Baking Bar
Good +
Weight: 1.17 oz. (33.3 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 200 calories in 1/3 bar
Cost: $0.99 (sale) for 1 bar 
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA 

Welcome to Day #14 of Chocolate and Peru Theme Week. 

Today's Chatfield's Organic Bittersweet Chocolate 70% Cacao bar was manufactured for Panos Brands (Rochelle Park, NJ)), in Peru.

The chocolate, designed for baking or eating, satisfied a number of dietary and consumer concerns/preferences. This vegan, fair trade certified chocolate was organic, and certified free of common allergens: "wheat, dairy, peanut, tree nut, egg, soy, fish, shellfish."

The aroma had true chocolate (fudge brownie) notes with hints of earth, green and faint smoke/umami. The melt and texture were smooth, lighter (almost fluffier) in texture than many hand-crafted dark chocolate bars. The finish was fairly balanced, chocolate brownie, without being overly sweet.

Looking at the ingredients list, the bar did have some cocoa powder added. (Sometimes added cocoa powder simply enhances "true" chocolate flavor, or it can be dutched/alkalized to create a milder, smoother chocolate flavor. It was not clear if the cocoa powder in this case was dutched or not.)

This 70% bar seemed like a reasonably priced choice for baking--that could also be eaten, or cut into pieces and enjoyed as an addition to oatmeal or trail mix.

Ingredients: Organic bittersweet chocolate (organic unsweetened chocolate, organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter, organic cocoa powder).