Two very different styles of passionfruit white chocolate, both excellent.
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From @castronovochocolate - this passion fruit white chocolate bar has bright, tangy flavor tempered by the richness of milk powder, with an ultra smooth texture. Perfect if you like acidity + creaminess.
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From @rhymeandreasonchocolate - this layered bar combines a dairy-free passion fruit white chocolate with a dark chocolate (Ecuador) layer. Perfect if you like a more intense tangy punch (or if you avoid dairy) and like the complexity of the flavor combination.
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These bars are totally different and both fantastic in their own style. Highly recommended!
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#whitechocolate #passionfruit #ecuador #beantobar #singleoriginchocolate
Vanuatu 🇻🇺 Malekula 78% from @dicktaylorchocolate (limited release)
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Flavor: intense with lots of richness and complex bitterness. Macadamia nut, heavy cream, citrus rind, freshly cut grass, black olive, and brownie edge, as well as a faint earthy smokiness that I occasionally notice in South Pacific region cacao. As it melts fully, a pleasant acidity appears. Wonderful texture - fudgy, dense, and perfectly smooth.
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Highly recommended. This is particularly interesting bar from a harder to find original, and Dick Taylor does amazing things with every cacao they touch - I’m always super excited to try their limited release bars featuring new origins. The flavor is intense - I’d be curious to try it at 68-70% and see what that opens up on the flavor profile. As of today, this is still available on their website.
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#chocolate #beantobar #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #artisanchocolate #smallbatchchocolate #singleoriginchocolate #darkchocolate #chocolatebars #chocolatetasting #chocolatetastingnotes #cacao #fineflavorcacao #chocolatereviews
June Microbatch from @dicktaylorchocolate - Chocolate Coated Espresso Beans
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Without a doubt the best chocolate-covered espresso beans I’ve ever tried. Incredibly fruity, thanks to the 65% Tanzania chocolate and the medium roast espresso beans from @ladroroasting - the relatively light roast retained so much lively acidity, and it works beautifully with the chocolate. Great texture all around - fresh, crunchy beans and smooth chocolate with a light dusting of cocoa powder. Highly recommended!
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#chocolate #espresso #espressobeans #tanzania #craftchocolate
Mexico Chiapas Finca Frida 70% with Chiltepin and whiskey salt from @tucsonchocolatefactory
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In the chocolate itself, there are nutty and toasted marshmallow notes - it is mellow with very little bitterness or astringency. It is nicely balanced with the inclusions - a perfect light dusting of chiltepin (a type of small chili pepper) and whiskey salt. I’m not sure I taste the whiskey, but the little bursts of salt are great. Excellent texture and beautiful temper. And gorgeous color! Note how light it is: my guess is that these are criollo beans, which are lighter in color due to their lower content of phenolic compounds, including the anthocyanins that give other beans their purple color. These beans are also lower in other phenolic content that protect the plant against herbivory with bitter flavors.
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This was a fantastic bar! Inclusions aren’t always well done, but they absolutely nailed the balance of sweet, salty, and a little spicy. A wholly enjoyable bar. I look forward to trying more from Tuscon Chocolate Factory, including their beautiful truffles.
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Purchased at the Tuscon Farmers Market.
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#chocolate #beantobar #bean2bar #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #artisanchocolate #smallbatchchocolate #singleoriginchocolate #darkchocolate #chocolat #cioccolato #chocolatebars #chocolatetasting #chocolatetastingnotes #cacao #fineflavorcacao #chocolatereviews #mexico #chiltepín
Alto Beni Bolivia 73% from Sirene
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I usually really like Bolivian beans but this one is just OK. Too much earthiness - these taste a little over-fermented and there is a little too much bitterness in the flavor profile - the flavor notes describe fudge, dried fruit, honey, and coffee, which I’d say is accurate, but it’s off balance. Sirene does some very nice bars, but this one is not one of my favorites.
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#chocolate #beantobar #bean2bar #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #artisanchocolate #smallbatchchocolate #singleoriginchocolate #singleorigin
Alphonso Mango White Chocolate from @mirzamchocolate
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This visually-striking white chocolate combines cocoa butter, sugar, and milk powder with organic Indian Alphonso mango powder for a bright, creamy bar.
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Flavor: Lots of high-quality milk powder makes this bar creamy, rich, and dairy-forward. The mango flavor is present but not super strong. The texture is excellent- super smooth with a fudgy melt. Personally, I loved the really milky flavor; another taster would have preferred more mango powder. Either way, so beautiful and really well made. Highly recommended, especially if you love creamy white chocolate!
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#chocolate #beantobar #bean2bar #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #artisanchocolate #smallbatchchocolate #whitechocolate #mango
Date-sweetened Belize Maya Mountain 68% from Moiré
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Aroma: rich and inviting, with notes of cocoa powder, minerals, fudge, and earth
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Flavor: doesn’t match the wonderful aroma. Slightly grainy, chalky texture and an odd melt from the date sugar. Also an odd cloying sweetness. Some mineral and cereal notes - like graham crackers or whole grain breakfast cereal, plus dark fruit/dried cherry notes.
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I can’t recommend this one. I think they did it as well as it could be done, but there’s just no need to sweeten chocolate with anything other than pure cane or beet sugar, which add sweetness without any off flavors and lend themselves to a beautifully smooth texture and melt. Actually, I’ve had one or two bars that managed to integrate maple sugar well, but other than that, alternative sugars tend to add grassy, mineral, or earthy flavors that compete with rather than enhance the cacao, and do weird things to the texture. And no, there’s really not any meaningful nutritional difference between white sugar and less refined or unrefined sugars. Maya Mountain is my all-time favorite origin and the date sugar doesn’t do it justice. Interesting concept, carefully executed, doesn’t quite work.
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#chocolate #beantobar #bean2bar #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #artisanchocolate #smallbatchchocolate #singleoriginchocolate #singleorigin #originchocolate #darkchocolate #chocolat #cioccolato #chocolatebars #chocolatetasting #chocolatetastingnotes #cacao #fineflavorcacao
Grenada L’Esterre Estate 70%, 2021 harvest from @orfeve_chocolat
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This was past the best before date (June 2024) when I tried it, which usually means I wouldn’t post a review - many bars start to get a little stale eventually and it’s not fair to judge them at that point. But this one was still quite flavorful and interesting!
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Flavors: Dried figs, fig cookies, sugar cookie dough, hazelnuts with the skin on. Faint licorice-type note. The raw cane sugar comes through a bit as well with a slightly molasses/grassy flavor. Slight fine graininess in the texture but a pleasant mouthfeel and smooth melt.
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I’m really impressed with how the flavor held up over time in this bar! I would definitely recommend this bar and this maker, Switzerland-based Orfève.
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#chocolate #beantobar #bean2bar #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #artisanchocolate #smallbatchchocolate #singleoriginchocolate #singleorigin #originchocolate #darkchocolate #chocolat #cioccolato #chocolatebars #chocolatetasting #chocolatetastingnotes #cacao #fineflavorcacao #chocolatereviews
Nicaragua Indio Rojo 70% from Danish maker Friis Holm
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Not bad, but not my favorite from Friis Holm. He consistently excels at texture - lots of cocoa butter and very small particle size makes for a rich, smooth mouthfeel.
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Certain flavor notes are similar to what I’ve noticed in other Nicaragua beans - black olive and rubber - but while in the Double- and Triple-Turned bars they are fainter background notes, they are more prominent in this bar. There are also notes of dried wood, dried cherry, cocoa powder and heavy cream, making this an unusual, but well made and interesting bar. Recommended with reservations; it probably won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but serious tasters will likely enjoy the unique profile.
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#chocolate #beantobar #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #singleoriginchocolate #singleorigin #originchocolate #darkchocolate #chocolat #cioccolato #chocolatebars #chocolatetasting #chocolatetastingnotes #cacao #chocolatereviews #nicaragua
Mexico Pichucalco, Chiapas 76% dark from Mexico City-based Kakoa, tasted alongside Fuding White Peony (Spring 2019) from @teacurious
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Chocolate: ok - grainy texture and uneven melt. Flavors include lime zest and graham cracker, but not a lot of complexity overall. Very little bitterness; slightly astringency and mild acidity. I feel like it would have benefitted from a slightly longer fermentation and a longer conch time. Note the relatively light color, which is common in criollo beans from this region.
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Tea: delightful! A smooth and rounded flavor; the aging is evident in the light hay flavors; it is distinct from a fresher white tea but very pleasant. No bitterness or astringency whatsoever. Smooth mouthfeel.
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#tea #chocolate #darkchocolate #singleorigin #mexico #fuding #whitepeony #beantobar
Creo’s new shop on NW 23rd in Portland - full range of bars, truffles, and other confections in a beautiful space.
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#chocolate #portland #pdx #portlandoregon #beantobar
Philippines Rehoboth Estate Ginseng & Chrysanthemum Milk Chocolate 53% from @fossachocolate (Singapore)
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Flavor: Unusual - a distinct but not excessively strong dried herbal/floral taste, slightly earthy in a pleasant way, like a root cellar. I’m not particularly familiar with ginseng or chrysanthemum so it’s hard for me to judge the nature of those flavors in this bar. There is a warming sensation in the back of the throat, and a smooth melt. Sweet, but not excessively so.
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The chocolate itself is pleasant and mellow - I’ve heard that Filippino cacao tends to be mild due to the genetics, and this seems to be no exception. The flavors are melded nicely into the chocolate, with good balance and matching. I had a bar recently where there was no integration - chocolate and inclusion flavors awkardly thrown together - and it makes one realize how important that is!
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Recommended if you like these types of herbal and floral flavors - nicely balanced and well-integrated. A well-done infusion bar. As a side note, I love the subtle details in the mold pattern.
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#chocolate #beantobar #bean2bar #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #artisanchocolate #smallbatchchocolate #singleoriginchocolate #milkchocolate #chocolat #cioccolato #chocolatebars #chocolatetasting #chocolatetastingnotes #cacao #fineflavorcacao #chocolatereviews #philippines #gingseng #chrysanthemum #singapore
