Cove Chocolate - Lemon Lavender 39% Milk Chocolate (bar) - July 5, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Cove Chocolate
Lemon Lavender 39% Milk Chocolate (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 2.2 oz. (75 g.) (per label) in total bar
Calories: 352 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $8.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: All About The Chocolate, Carmel-By-The-Sea, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate, Fruit and Flowers Theme Week.

Today's Lemon Lavender 39% Milk Chocolate (bar) was created by Matilyn Thompson, founder of Cove Chocolate (Monterey, CA).*  

I normally prefer dark chocolate. But, the balanced, natural lemon citrus and lavender floral flavor inclusions and aromas in this thick, creamy and sweet milk chocolate bar swept us off our feet--as did a California coast day trip that led to finding this relatively new chocolate.

A friend and I found Cove Chocolate bars in a shop (called "All About The Chocolate") in downtown Carmel-by-the-Sea last month (June)--after a walk at Point Lobos, a nearby California State Park with trails that take you by wind-swept cypress trees and clumps of wildflowers, and offer views of turquoise waters and ocean coves at the bases of rugged cliffs.

Ingredients: "Cane sugar, cacao beans, whole milk, cocoa butter, non-fat milk, soy lecithin, vanilla beans, natural lemon oil, organic lavender."

Allergen-related information: "Contains soy, milk; traces of nuts possible"

*Thompson transitioned to being a home-based chocolate producer (Certified Cottage Food Operation in Monterey County) in part due to changes during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.

We're grateful her decision led to this lovely lemon lavender flavored bar that evoked memories of iced lavender infused lemonade or lemon lavender ice cream. This fruit and floral flavor duo is great for summer, or any time of year.

Antidote - Strawberry + Hibiscus Milk Chocolate 56% (bar) - July 4, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Antidote Chocolate
"Magician" Strawberry + Hibiscus Milk Chocolate 56% cacao (bar)
Good +
Weight: 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 400 calories (per label) in 1 bar
Cost: $6.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate, Fruit and Flowers Theme Week. Happy 4th of July to all who celebrate. 

On the menu this Independence Day: potato salad and fruit salad (watermelon, strawberries, banana and blueberries), plus this red, white and blue packaged, fruit and floral Antidote milk chocolate bar.

Today's "Magician" Strawberry + Hibiscus Milk Chocolate 56% Cacao (bar) was from Ms. Red Thalhammer--self-described "Austrian chocolate dreamer," and chief maker--at Antidote Chocolate (Brooklyn, NY).

The back of this bar was a festive field of red bits. and had an aroma with strawberry, tart red, floral fruit and dried red plum notes.

This dark milk chocolate had a creamy melt and texture; and the tiny pieces of freeze-dried strawberry added some soft crunch.

The dark milk chocolate had smooth dark chocolate flavor, with a faint, occasional and balanced (by the milk) earth note.

Ingredients: Cacao beans (56% cacao Arriba Nacional), cacao butter, milk powder, whole cane sugar, strawberries, red hibiscus, sunflower lecithin.

Allergen-related information: "Made in a facility that handles soy and nuts."

Chocolita - Blueberry Bliss Raw Dark Chocolate 56% Cacao (bar) - July 3, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Chocolita 
Blueberry Bliss Raw Dark Chocolate 56% Cacao (bar)

Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.25 oz. (35 g.) in total bar
Calories: 230 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $4.59 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate, Fruits and Flowers Theme Week. We're gearing up for 4th of July weekend celebration in California. And this week I'll be featuring chocolates with red, white and/or blue items (like blueberries) as well.

Today's Blueberry Bliss Dark Chocolate 56% Cacao (bar) was from Chocolita (Sedona, AZ).

The aroma of this chocolate had mild dark chocolate, light fruit (dark berry), faint green and botanical notes. The texture was smooth and the chocolate was uniform and satisfying.

The word that kept coming up for me for this bar was "balanced." All the (organic) inclusions (blueberry powder, lucuma, hops, passion flower, vanilla) were fully incorporated were tasted and felt nicely balanced. 

This chocolate was relatively relaxing, with less of a sugar buzz or cocoa lift than many other chocolates have. And even at only 56% cocoa, it was not too sweet. (Thank you!) This might be a good choice for a late afternoon, or early evening treat, if you're worried about chocolate keeping you up at night.*

Ingredients: Organic cacao paste, organic cacao butter, organic coconut sugar, organic lucuma powder, organic blueberry powder, organic hops, organic passion flower, organic vanilla.

Allergen-related information: "Contains coconut. Made in a facility that processes tree nuts." 

*I eat my daily chocolate in the morning, and generally refrain from eating chocolate after 3 or 4 p.m. in the afternoon. After almost 15 years of eating chocolate every day, my body is accustomed to cacao. However, stimulants like theobromine and caffeine (both found in chocolate), can affect us for several hours.

Endorfin Foods - Ultra Dark Chocolate Caramelized Coconut Mylk (bar) - July 2, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Endorfin Foods
Ultra Dark Chocolate Caramelized Coconut Mylk (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.4 oz. (40 g.) in total bar
Calories: 200 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and Ecuador Theme Week.

Today's Ultra Dark Chocolate Caramelized Coconut Mylk (bar) was distributed by Endorfin Foods (San Francisco, CA). 

The Bay Area-based company offers a line of attractively packaged chocolates, including (non-dairy) coconut mylk bars, along with a bit of what they refer to as "plant-based chocolate alchemy."*

The aroma of this bar included dark roast cacao beans melded with aromatic green (clean green tea, faint green floral), caramel and coconut, as well as a faint nutty note (faint sweet peanut butter + light roasted coconut). Note: there were no peanut ingredients in this bar.

The chocolate had a thick, rich, creamy melt--a melt that picked up speed once in the mouth--and a very light granular mouthfeel at the end.

This 90% cacao bar was not sweet (Thank you!...It might even make a good vegan baking chocolate.) It had a smooth, ultra-dark, roasted chocolate flavor with a very balanced, light bitterness that harmonized well with the 10% naturally sweet, warm aromatic flavor from the caramelized coconut and coconut sugar.

The organic and fair trade cacao used to make this bar was from Ecuador.

Ingredients: Organic Cacao, Organic coconut sugar, Organic caramelized coconut, Organic cacao butter. (All ingredients were also marked Fair Trade Certified; "99% Fair Trade Ingredients.")

Allergen-related information: "No dairy, no soy, no refined sugar, no gluten, no GMO, no sugar alcohols."

*For those fond of botanical flavor inclusions in chocolate, Endorfin offered one of the first absinthe bars (with anise, fennel and mugwort). They offer bars infused with spices and flowers (turmeric, cardamon, rose). And, they also offered (on their website) a line of single origin, unsweetened "ceremonial quality" drinking chocolates (including one from Cayapas River, Ecuador).

Ritual Chocolate - Ecuador Camino Verde 85% Cacao (bar) - July 1, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Ritual Chocolate
Ecuador Camino Verde 85% Cacao (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 160 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $8.95 for 1 bar (+ shipping)
Purchased from: Chocosphere.com, online order

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

Today's Ecuador Camino Verde 85% Cacao (bar) was from Ritual Chocolate (Park City, UT).

Aroma notes that unfolded sequentially included: bread, light warm spice (cinnamon), fruit (light raisin, peach), dark chocolate (fudge brownie).

Like many ultra-dark bars, be ready to brace yourself before tasting. The flavor was different (darker) than the aroma.

This 85% bar had deep, almost unsweetened, dark chocolate flavor with hints of moldy bread/cheese, dark chocolate (unsweetened brownie), faint herb (licorice), a fleeting sour milk and fruit note (unsweetened tart cherry and orange peel in plain yogurt) and a faint charcoal roasted note.

These slightly funky bean flavors were more common in craft chocolate bars years ago. Now it's more unusual to taste them. But, as with all chocolates (and some red wines) leave them open for awhile and re-taste, and some of these flavors settle down a little.

This chocolate mellowed a bit. A long finish yielded a very faint nutty, buttery aged cheese (fontina, gouda) note--a few minutes after the first bites. 

And re-tasting this bar a few minutes later, was more pleasing (or less surprising perhaps). In fact, I plan to pair this chocolate with cheese or perhaps stir in an ounce (28 g.) or so into a cheese fondue. (If you can't "fix" it, feature it.)

Some of these flavor notes mentioned above can be traced back to fermentation of cacao that happened in Ecuador. These notes will be interesting and educational for cacao addicts and culinary adventurers, but may not be the preferred choice for those who enjoy light, uniform, sweet chocolates.

These interesting flavor notes were more exposed with lower sugar levels, which is to say that added sugar can dull/neutralize stronger flavors. With two-ingredient chocolates, like today's bar, chocolate makers make daring leaps; there is nothing to hide behind. And I am grateful to all craft makers who share the results with us.

The cacao (2019 harvest) used to make this bar (Batch 03) came from Camino Verde, Ecuador, not far from the city of Guayaquil on the Pacific coast. "Made with cacao that is carefully fermented and dried by Vicente Norero of Camino Verde in Ecuador. Vicente's unique fermentation techniques, along with Nacional cacao from a multitude of growers, give this chocolate its distinguishable, rich, chocolatey flavor."

The maker's tasting notes read: "Honey and fudge" 

Ingredients: Cacao, Organic cane sugar

Allergen-related information: May contain traces of peanuts, tree nuts, and wheat.

Puchero - 55% Ecuador Finca Garyth (bar) - June 30, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Puchero 
55% Ecuador Finca Garyth (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 2.47 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 190 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 Ecuador Theme Week.

Today's Puchero* 55% Ecuador Finca Garyth (bar) was made from bean-to-bar in Valladolid, Spain. 

This relatively sweet (55%), dark chocolate had a subtle, yet complex, shifting aroma notes that included: balanced faint, fleeting green (ranging from sour grass/oxalis/sorrel to a very brief green latex), dark chocolate (light fudge brownie, cake), faint fleeting light leather and licorice, and caramel cashew cookie notes.

The bar had a smooth melt and texture with a very faint green fruit stringency toward the end.

The chocolate had a relatively mild taste, but with a fair amount of enjoyable complexity. Flavor notes included: chocolate (cake, fudge brownie), sweet, slightly tart fruit (golden raisin, green plum, light kumquat), very faint spice (licorice), chocolate malt, and nut (cashew, jaguar cacao seed) and faint green (sour grass/oxalis/sorrel).

The maker's tasting notes read: "This mild chocolate with nutty notes is made with (100% Arriba Nacional) cacao grown by the Cedeno Aguilar family in northwest Ecuador."

Ingredients: "Cacao (55% minimum), sugar, cocoa butter."

Allergen-related information: "May contain traces of nuts, milk and gluten."

*Puchero focuses on roasting and making high-quality, specialty coffees and chocolates from select origins, in Valladolid, a city in the autonomous community of Castile-Leon, in northwest Spain. (The Puchero brand is part of/produced by Tostarix, S.L.)

D. Barbero - Dark Milk (Ecuador cacao) 45% bar - June 29, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

D. Barbero 
Dark Milk (Ecuador cacao) 45% bar
Good +
Weight: 1.41 oz. (40 g.) / 2.82 oz. (80 g.) in total bar
Calories: 227.2 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $3.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Mollie Stone's Markets, Sausalito, CA

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

Today's Dark Milk chocolate with Ecuador cacao 45% bar was from D. Barbero / Barbero Davide S.r.l. (Asti, Italy).

This smooth, sweet milk chocolate bar had notes of caramel, toffee, chocolate cake, cookie, and cinnamon sugar sprinkled buttered toast with hot cocoa with vanilla.

Ingredients: "Sugar, cocoa butter, Ecuador cocoa poste 20%, whole dried milk, cocoa paste, emulsifier: soya lecithin, natural vanilla flavour. Minimum cocoa 45%."

Allergen-related information: "Gluten free" and contained milk and soy (soy lecithin).