Marana Craft Chocolate - Passion Fruit and Coconut Chocotejas - Nov. 9, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Marana Craft Chocolate
Chocotejas - Passion Fruit and Coconut Chocolate 
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: .99 oz. (28 g.) / 17.82 oz. (504 g.) in total box of 18 pieces
Calories: 130 calories in 1 piece
Cost: $52.00 for 1 box of 18 pieces
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

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

Today's Passion Fruit and Coconut Chocolate was part of an 18-piece chocolate confection box from Marana Craft Chocolate (Lima, Peru).

Aroma notes for today's traditional Peruvian-style chocolate confection (chocotejas) included: subtle chocolate (rich, dark chocolate with very faint earth and fig); bright, aromatic tropical fruit (passion fruit); and faint, authentic coconut.

This small bar sized confection was covered with a smooth, dark chocolate shell and the generous center  full of authentic coconut shreds and fruit (passion fruit caramel) offered flavor and chewy texture from start to finish.

Flavor notes were amplified versions of the aroma notes and included rich, bold 70% dark chocolate (that seemed more like 75-80% cacao); bright, tart-sweet, fresh passion fruit (infused into a light milk caramel) and authentic coconut--the subtlest of the three flavors in this chocolate.

I also "heard"* a festive Latin American street music ensemble while I was enjoying this chocolate. (A few celebratory brass instruments, a woman dancing in a bright passion fruit colored dress, percussion (dark chocolate) and a flute/wind or light stringed instrument (coconut palms perhaps)).

I loved the range of layered, authentic flavors in this chocolate.

Ingredients: Passion fruit milk caramel [milk caramel (whole milk, sugar, agar, disodium phosphate, sodium bicarbonate), passion fruit pulp (passion fruit, ascorbic acid - E300)], 70% dark chocolate (cacao mass, sugar and cocoa butter) and coconut.

Allergen-related information: Contains: milk, coconut.

*Sometimes one of our senses will activate another sense in our body. For most people this may be due to activated memories--that include a certain combination of sight, smell and/or touch. In more vivid examples a person might experience something called synesthesia.

A person with synesthesia (an estimated 1% of the population) experiences one sense with, or through, another sense. They may see certain images when they see certain sounds. They may hear music and see shapes or colors. Not surprisingly, there are artists who perceive senses together like this, and this extra ability might even be an asset. 

About 10% of small batch, single origin craft chocolates I eat are "transporting" in some way for me. They conjure up combined sense memories: the feeling of being in a specific type of forest or jungle or climate); the smell and taste of fresh cacao fruit pulp or other fruit or plant; images (the sights of trees, fruits, people, wildlife) and sounds (usually stillness and or wildlife in a forest); and rarely (like today) music and movement/dancing. Combined sensations sometimes feel implied or imagined. 

I might have a mild case of chocolate synesthesia. Or some less processed chocolates may just have magical transporting properties. Maybe after a few thousand more chocolates I'll find out.

Lovo - CoconutMilk Chocolate (bar) - Nov. 8, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

LOVO
CoconutMilk Chocolate (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.41 oz. (40 g.) / 2.82 oz. (80 g.) in total bar
Calories: 180 calories in 1 serving (9 pieces) of bar
Cost: $5.79 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

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

Today's LOVO CoconutMilk Chocolate (bar) was made in Switzerland and manufactured for Radically Good Food Co. (Toronto, ON, Canada). 

Aroma notes included: chocolate (flavorful milk* chocolate, warm rich cocoa), coconut milk and very faint sweet green and faint sweet dried palm fruit (dates).*

The texture was creamy, then velvety, with a light, almost airy, mouthfeel.

Flavor notes included the aroma notes above but with more rich chocolate and coconut milk.

I liked the well balanced and complementary flavors, but this chocolate was a bit too sweet for me. (Sugar was the number one ingredient.)

Ingredients: Sugar, cocoa mass*, cocoa butter*, organic coconut milk powder (organic coconut milk, maltodextrin), organic coconut flakes. (* Rainforest Alliance Certified)

Allergen-related information: "Contains: Coconut. Produced on equipment that also processes products containing milk, almonds, hazelnuts and peanuts."

*This plant-based and coconut milk-based chocolate did not contain milk or dates.

Simply - Coconut Almond Chocolate Date Bar - Nov. 7, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Simply Gum, Inc.
Coconut Almond Chocolate Date Bar
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 220 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $3.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

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

Today's Coconut Almond Chocolate Date Bar was distributed by Simply Gum, Inc. (Brooklyn, NY).

Made with a relatively short list of ingredients

Subtle aroma notes for this bar with a pleasant, substantial chewy texture included: chocolate, coconut, and dried fruit (date).

Flavor notes included: light chocolate (thin surrounding layer); and at the core of this bar: coconut, mild nut (almond) and sweet date. There was a very faint coconut cookie/macaroon quality--made better by the addition of almonds and chocolate--and (an imagined) vanilla flavor.

Another plus: it wasn't overly sweet (thank you).

Ingredients: Organic Deglet Noor Dates, Organic Dessicated Coconut, Roasted Almonds, Organic Dark Chocolate (Organic Chocolate Liquor, Organic Coconut Sugar, Organic Cacao Butter), Sea Salt

Allergen-related information: "Contains Coconut. Made in a facility that also processes wheat, peanut, almond, cashew, and pecan. May contain pits and/or fragments of shells."

Bulletproof - Double Chocolate Collagen Bar - Nov. 6, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Bulletproof
"Double Chocolate" Chocolate Dipped Collagen Bar
Good ++
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) / 14.82 oz. (420 g.) in box of 12 bars
Calories: 150 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $9.99 (estimate) for 1 box of 12 bars
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

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

Today's "Double Chocolate" chocolate dipped collagen (bar) that contained MCT (coconut) oil was from Bulletproof 360, Inc. (Seattle, WA).

This "keto friendly" bar contained 7 grams of protein and only 1 gram of sugar. 

Aroma notes included: chocolate (sweet cocoa, with a faint trace of green/botanical (vanilla, oxalic acid, sweet green nut)).

A creamy chocolate-y outer layer surrounded a denser, chewy-almost crunchy core filling.

Flavor notes included chocolate...double chocolate, as there was chocolate-y flavor in both layers. This bar did contain coconut oil as part of an MCT blend; but there was no real detectable coconut flavor from this highly refined coconut oil. The cashew butter (#1 ingredient) added extra protein and a very mild, naturally sweet nut flavor.

This bar was not too sweet (thank you!). The stevia sweetener used didn't have an artificial taste and supplied just the right amount of sweetness to this bar. 

Ingredients: Cashew butter, chocolate coating (unsweetened chocolate, inulin, erythritol, cocoa butter, vanilla extract, stevia leaf extract), inulin, hydrolyzed collagen, MCT oil powder (caprylic and capric acid triglycerides from highly refined coconut oil, tapioca dextrin), cocoa processed with alkali. Less than 2% of: safflower or sunflower oil, sunflower lecithin, sea salt, organic stevia leaf extract, natural flavors, vanilla extract.  

Allergen-related information: "Contains: Cashews, milk."

Stone Grindz Chocolate - Crystallized Ginger Coconut Milk Chocolate 55% Cacao (bar) - Nov. 5, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Stone Grindz Chocolate
Crystallized Ginger Coconut Milk Chocolate 55% Cacao (bar)

Good + - Good ++

Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar
Calories: 127 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 (+ shipping) for 1 bar 

Purchased from: Stone Grindz, online order

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

Today's Crystallized Ginger Coconut Milk Chocolate 55% Cacao (bar) was made from bean to bar by Stone Grindz Chocolate (Scottsdale, AZ). Chocolate makers Kasey McCaslin and Steven Shipler craft small batch single origin chocolate bars, and several chocolates with flavor inclusions.

The award-winning coconut milk-based chocolate was made using cacao beans grown in Peru.

Aroma notes for this 55% cacao exotic chocolate included: relatively faint but rich, smooth chocolate; ginger; tart green-lemon herb; and very faint coconut milk and vanilla.

The base chocolate had a creamy, almost silky melt and texture. And a generous array of chewy candied ginger pieces added texture as well as flavor.

Flavor notes included: smooth chocolate, sweet spikes of candied ginger, lemongrass (oil) and a barely detectable dash of sea salt. There was a lot going on with this bar, but the flavors were balanced. 

Stone Grindz Makers' Tasting Notes: "Notes of candied ginger, coconut cream, lemongrass"

Ingredients: "Cacao*, Cacao Butter*, Cane Sugar*, Coconut*, Ginger*, Vanilla Bean, Ginger Oil, Lemongrass Oil, Sea Salt (* = Organically Farmed)

Allergen-related information: "Soy Free, Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegan"

 

Mutari Chocolate - Tranquilidad, Heirloom, Wild Bolivia 72% (bar) - Nov. 4, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Mutari Craft Chocolate
(White Label/Single Origin Chocolate)
Tranquilidad, Heirloom, Wild Bolivia 72% (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.15 oz. (32.5 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 178 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $ Missing information
Purchased from: Mutari Chocolate, Santa Cruz, CA

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate and Bolivia Theme Week.

Today's White Label Tranquilidad, Heirloom, Wild Bolivia 72% (bar) was from Mutari Craft Chocolate (Santa Cruz, CA). 

The Beniano cacao used to make this bar was from the Tranquilidad Forest Estate, managed by Volker Lehmann, in the Beni Department of northern Bolivia.*

Aroma notes for this chocolate included: naturally sweet, pleasing cocoa, very faint molasses, very faint dried fruit (raisin, peach), and ultra faint graham cracker.

This well-tempered bar had a smooth texture and a creamy melt and mouthfeel.

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (smooth, rich chocolatey, (warm cocoa, brownie)) with naturally sweet notes (very faint honey, sweet molasses, very faint sweet nut); and very faint dried, iron-rich fruit (raisin, dried plum). 

This chocolate had a very pleasing, nuanced, chocolate-y flavor. It possessed a rich aroma and flavor complexity, while also being relatively low in bitterness. The choice of 72% cacao seemed just right.

Today's Tranquilidad Heirloom Wild Bolivia chocolate (made with rare Beniano beans**) reminded me of other Criollo/heritage cacao-based chocolate bars: subtle, rich, layered flavors that were gentle, but transporting. 

Chocolates made with heirloom and heritage cacao beans make up a small fraction of the world's bars. Many thanks to all those who were part of growing the cacao, bringing the cacao to market, and making and distributing this special, small batch, bean-to-bar chocolate.

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Raisin, Tabacco, Nutty, Chocolate Base"

Ingredients: Cacao Beans, Organic Sugar, Organic Cocoa Butter

Allergen-related information: 

*Bolivia is about the size of Texas and California combined, and cacao growing regions are often in very remote areas. The Beni Department alone (in northern Bolivia) is close to the size of the Western U.S. State of Idaho.

** Beniano cacao is grown in the Beni Department of northern Bolivia, adjacent to wild forests of cacao that date back thousands of years. Evidence to date (2015 study) has suggested that wild cacao trees first evolved in present day South America approximately 10 million years ago--long before the first humans arrived. 

Solstice Chocolate - 70% Tranquilidad Dark Chocolate (bar) - Nov. 3, 2023

Chocolate of the Day

Solstice Chocolate
70% Tranquilidad Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.15 oz. (32.5 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 160 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Solstice Chocolate, online order

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

Today's 70% Tranquilidad Dark Chocolate (bar) was made by Solstice Chocolate, Inc. (Salt Lake City, UT). 

The cacao used to make this bar was grown in northern Bolivia, and likely from Hacienda Tranquilidad. Some very wonderful wild heirloom and/or single estate cacaos grow in this area.

Aroma and notes included: smooth dark chocolate; diffuse fruits (very faint honeyed mango, raisin); and faint brown sugar/molasses.

The texture was smooth with a creamy melt and mouthfeel.

Flavor notes for this naturally sweet 70% dark chocolate included: smooth dark chocolate, faint cream and very faint brown sugar/molasses. There was a small uptick in bright, diffuse fruitiness (subtle fruit acidity) in the middle, followed by a creamy, chocolate-y finish.

Maker's Tasting Notes: "Honey, Cream, Molasses"

Ingredients: Cacao Beans, Organic Cane Sugar, Cocoa Butter

Allergen-related information: "Processed in a tree nut, gluten, dairy and soybean free facility."