My hiatus from blog posts has been lengthier than I’ve wished or expected. However, when I woke up this morning (March 5th) & discovered that it was National Absinthe Day, I was inspired to launch my new Alphabet project even though I’m not fully prepared to do so…I just couldn’t let the perfect opportunity pass me by. In this round of Eating the Chocolate Alphabet, I plan on featuring chocolates that include or are inspired by different alcohols. So, if you have any recommendations for future letters, please leave me a comment or send an email!
You might have heard that for nearly 100 years it was illegal to import, manufacture or sell “real” absinthe in the United States. But do you know why? Well, many believe that wormwood (the bitter component to absinthe, as well as the herb responsible for its characteristic hue) contains a toxic chemical called thujone, and this was believed to be the cause of all sorts of bad things: drunkenness, hallucinations, rage, violence and even death.
With a back story like that, finding and tasting a chocolate called Absinthe intrigued me! To be clear, the following chocolate bar does NOT contain any alcohol, only botanicals which impart a licorice flavor that is similar to the beverage that inspired it!
Introducing, Endorfin Foods’ ABSINTHE 70% dark chocolate with anise & wildcrafted mugwort:
Endorfin leaves the cacao beans unroasted and uses caramelized coconut + coconut blossom sugar to sweeten their chocolate bars more naturally. Essential oils of mugwort, anise, sweet fennel and lemon balm provide the absinthe-like flavor profile without any of the bitterness.
Love the vintage font and corner illustrations on the 100% compostable packaging that makes me think of the Arts and Crafts movement / Craftsman style which is so prevalent in my hometown of Pasadena, California. If you look closely, the company logo sports a series of cacao pod cross sections, which at a glance could be mistaken for flowers.
Removing the relatively plain, conjoined 8-rectangle bar from the packaging, you immediately see a mostly pristine/glossy dark brown surface as well as smell a vibrant anise/licorice aroma.
Sharp snap, revealing a few tiny air bubbles at the break point.
Slightly crumbly when chewed and not completely smooth on the tongue, I attribute these to the coconut sugar. Creamy mouthfeel during the slow/even melt; the herbal flavors mingle harmoniously with the base chocolate making for a pleasurable experience, sans hallucinations!
Since I happened to have a few bottles of absinthe at home, I decided to conduct an impromptu tasting:
If I’m being completely honest, I MUCH prefer the aroma and flavor of Endorfin’s rendition of absinthe!
For more information on Northern California-based Endorfin Foods, please visit their website: https://endorfinfoods.com/
I missed this entry for your alcohol-related chocolates, (probably because it was right before our move to California). I just read it, and it’s great! I can just smell the wonderful anise/licorice aromas from your descriptions. Along with the dark chocolate flavor, this bar sounds like it has a lot of complexity and “grown-up” flavors (I like to describe that as it having a great “character”, likening it to the seriousness of a full bodied cabernet sauvignon). Thank you, I really enjoyed reading your post!
Thanks for your kind words 🙂 I’m glad you enjoyed reading the post. Really it was my fault that you missed the first post :'( The blog platform had been updated & I forgot to adjust a setting on the email distribution list (doh!) Cheers & stay tuned for future posts! Know anyone in Chicagoland that can get me a Malort chocolate?!