dark chocolate – Page 10 – Eating the Chocolate Alphabet

S is for Sirene Artisan Chocolate Makers

In the words of Taylor Kennedy, owner of Sirene Artisan Chocolate Makers in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, “Without a direct comparison, it is hard to understand that there is something different about chocolate.” To aid in the appreciation of the nuances between countries of origin, this particular box contains two different mini chocolate bars so that you can easily compare and contrast with minimal effort. Not only are both bars the same percentage (73%), but also they each only contain two ingredients (cacao beans & organic cane sugar) that way the natural flavors/characteristics of those beans can truly be showcased.

This morning on Instagram, The Chocolate Website recounted her dilemma of trying to identify 6 different chocolate bars once they were removed from their packaging. With this in mind, I really appreciated that each of the Sirene bars was wrapped in a different colored metallic foil (silver color for Ecuador and gold color for Madagascar)!

Choices, choices…which one to try first? After reading the tasting notes on the inside of the box flaps, I decided to try Ecuador first and then Madagascar…I think I made the right decision!

The Ecuadorian beans come from Camino Verde, a plantation in the town of Balao with trees that are close to 100 years old. According to the packaging, trees of this age yield beans with 10% less cocoa butter, which in turn produces a more intense cocoa flavor. True to that description, I could immediately see the deep, dark brown color and smell the earthy and roasted aroma upon unwrapping the chocolate.

Even though the bar is a little thick, there was a nice sharp snap when being segmented. Each of the 5 rectangles reminded me of a flag with alternating vertical and horizontal lines on each quadrant…it was fun to run my tongue along those ridges while I was melting each bite. There was a slow, even melt and the flavor was reminiscent of a not-too-sweet, nutty brownie with a long, satisfying finish.

Upon unwrapping the Madagascar bar, I noticed more chocolate “dust” clinging to the outside, possibly since one of the rectangles had been broken in transit.

The snap of that particular rectangle felt a little dry/crumbly and there was only a mild aroma; however the taste was an explosion of bright fruits. Since I didn’t want to rely just on that first broken piece, I segmented another portion for comparison purposes. At the breaking point, there was a fresher roasted aroma and the flavor reminded me of a just squeezed lemon. This piece also had a more velvety smooth mouthfeel with an even melt and a long lasting tart aftertaste.

The Madagascar beans from the Akesson family’s Somia planation are lighter brown in color (perhaps because of being enriched with volcanic minerals), so there was no surprise that this bar looked more like milk chocolate compared to the Ecuador bar.

As a side note…maybe it’s just me, but I’m as fascinated with the undersides of bars as I am with the mold-imprinted side. Both bars seemed to have concentric “ripples” as if a pebble had been dropped at the edge of a lake…more than likely a final drip of liquid chocolate hit the mold & had not been vibrated to a completely smooth finish.

If “tasting pair boxes” aren’t your thing, don’t worry…other packages feature just the one origin or flavor. To find out more about Sirene and Taylor Kennedy’s background as a former world traveling photographer and writer for The National Geographic magazine, check out: http://sirenechocolate.com/

R is for Rózsavölgyi Csokoládé

Like some famous personalities that need only go by their first name (think of Prince, Cher or Madonna), Rózsavölgyi Csokoládé requires no introduction to aficionados of fine chocolate since their molds are visually so distinctive and unique!

The husband and wife team of Zsolt and Katalin started making chocolate confections in Budapest, Hungary in 2004 and they chose the name “Rózsavölgyi” (meaning “from the valley of the roses”) to pay tribute to the neighborhood that they lived in. Soon after Katalin honed her skills learning from various chocolate makers around the world, they knew that switching to bean-to-bar (instead of using other people’s couverture chocolate) would provide them more control over the natural chocolate flavors of their creations. This particular 71% dark chocolate bar is made from Porcelana Criollo beans grown by the Franceschi family in Venezuela.

There is so much to look at and notice on the outer packaging; from every inch of the sturdy cream colored paper decorated with gold foil birds, insects and flowers to the anthropomorphized logo of a single-eyed heart with outstretched arms, wearing a bowler hat.

That endearing logo was intriguing to me, so it was disappointing to read that Katalin (a former graphic designer) had simply drawn this, but no significance was attributed to the image’s various elements.

Removing the informational band from the outer wrapper allows the graphics to be better seen/appreciated.

Another eye-catching item on the packaging is a sticker celebrating their 2015 Bronze Award from the Academy of Chocolate for the best dark chocolate bean-to-bar under 80%.

Gently removing the clear & black logo sticker keeping the paper closed and carefully undoing the precise origami-like folds, another cheerful heart-logo sticker greets you from the inside, keeping the parchment paper inner wrapper closed.

Now for the moment of truth…would the gorgeous mold that reminds me of Batchelder fireplace tiles from the American Arts and Crafts movement era be intact or would the square bar be split into multiple pieces?!

Ta da…the glossy, symmetrically decorated reddish-brown bar was pristine, aside from some minor scuff marks and evidence of air bubbles.

My initial impressions of the aroma ranged from floral, fruity, reminiscent of raisins to lightly baked rye bread. It seemed like such a shame to break into such a beautiful mold…but it had to be done! The chocolate itself seemed to flex under the pressure of the knife instead of breaking sharply; I attribute that to the current heat wave, though I’ve seen other Rózsavölgyi Csokoládé bars also described as “bendy.”

Time and temperature certainly make a difference. This morning, after taking several photos of the bar, the snap was dull/soft…however, revisiting the bar just now, after keeping the chocolate in a wine fridge at 65 degrees for several hours, the snap is sharp and well-defined.

The mouthfeel is smooth and the segments melt evenly in the mouth. Porcelana is known to be mild and subtle, but to me the initial taste was tangy and mildly acidic/tart. My second taste was more earthy and dry. Both tastes had a long, almost woody aftertaste/finish.

Now I’m on a mission to find more of their offerings, especially their hot Hungarian paprika inclusion bar, which Matt Caputo from A Priori (a specialty food importer & distributor) said reminded him of “goulash-meets-chocolate” around 2:23 of this YouTube video!

To read more about this award winning Hungarian success story, check out this link. Another informative article from 2013 can be found here.

In addition to single-origin tablets and flavored bars, Rózsavölgyi Csokoládé also sells hot chocolate mixes, bonbons, truffles, dragees and more. Hopefully a location near you carries their products, so check out: http://www.rozsavolgyi.com/en/index.php

Chocolate Q or Q Chocolate…does translation matter?

Sometimes it takes a village! The quest to locate a chocolate bar from a company that starts with the letter “Q” for the Eating the Chocolate Alphabet project has been daunting. For a while, I thought that it was an impossible mission. Over the last nine months, I’ve been very fortunate to find kindred spirits and genuinely supportive camaraderie within the chocolate community! Just last week, Sophia from Projet Chocolat generously overnighted me a bar from her stash in the nick of time to ensure that this letter of the alphabet would be covered!

So, a few days ago, at the beginning of “Q” week, I excitedly pulled the bar from my wine fridge storage & started my Monday morning routine. The filtered light was perfect for taking pictures of the packaging. There I was happily taking photos, getting on the internet to locate the company’s website + other articles that I could use to further research their backstory and then…WAIT a minute…am I seeing things correctly? Both the company URL and their Instagram account referred to the company name as “Chocolate Q” instead of “Q Chocolate.” I immediate sent my boyfriend a couple of panicked text messages. He tried to assure me that it’s just the translation from Portuguese to English…I wasn’t convinced. Maybe I’m the only one that’s really concerned (“obsessed” might be the better word) with strict adherence to the alphabet. In my mind, this was “Naive Chocolate” vs. “Chocolate Naive” all over again…so it was with a heavy heart that I had to return this bar to wine fridge storage until today.

Just looking at the copper stamped logo and the Claudio Novaes artwork that graces the outside of the packaging, you can almost feel the shimmering heat and hear the sounds from the fauna that dwell at the Fazenda Leolinda in the Amazonian rainforest in Brazil where the Trinitario and Forasteiro cacao beans are grown. The Aquim family is passionate about chocolate and has a very hands-on approach to all aspects of “the Q process.”

Despite Brazil being one of the top growers of cacao, there was a time when Brazilian chocolates were not note-worthy, since local tastes tended toward mass-produced chocolates. Since 2011, the Aquims’ goal has been to preserve the true taste of cacao (their tagline translates to “chocolate in its essence”), so their bars are made with just 3 ingredients: cocoa liquor, cocoa butter and a pinch of sugar. The Q Collection includes 6 dark chocolate bars of successively intense cacao content, starting with 55% and increasing by increments of 5% to 85% (interestingly, 70% is not one of the percentages offered).

In addition to the chocolate itself, I received a bar-sized piece of wood imprinted with the phrase that translates roughly to “sublime and revealing experience.” I’m not quite sure of the board’s true purpose, since I certainly wouldn’t want to get it dirty with chocolate stains! Nevertheless, I’m sure that it helped keep the bar intact during shipping between Nashville, TN and Southern California.

The simple design of the outer packaging has a notch to help keep the box closed after being opened.

Once you open the outer cardboard packaging, you see the bar wrapped in a sealed shiny gold foil pouch. Since the bar is slightly smaller than the outer packaging, I wonder if this contributed to the blemishes and chocolate “dust” that appeared on the unwrapped chocolate bar.

This bar may have been my first encounter with Brazilian chocolate. Upon opening the foil wrapping, the aroma of olives was surprising. The bar’s mold is comprised of several rectangle sizes – all the better to choose how much you want to enjoy in a given sitting. While there was a medium to dull snap to the bar, I was surprised to see some “striation”: part of the piece looked smooth, then there was a dividing line and then the rest of the piece looked a little gritty.

The visual textural appearance seemed to vary a bit from piece to piece, yet this did not affect the taste; each morsel was smooth, creamy and melted relatively quickly.

What started off as a bitter taste (earthy/woody/leathery), changed to fruity with hints of peppercorns. After trying the 65% bar, this makes me curious to try the other percentages as well.

Honestly, I’m still not clear if the company name is “Q Chocolate” or “Chocolate Q.” Regardless, this has definitely been a revelatory experience, just like the wooden board predicted.

To learn more about the various chocolates available + exclusive collections, check out: http://chocolateq.com/

Q is for Q’uma Chocolate

It wasn’t until I started putting together the “wish list” for Eating the Chocolate Alphabet that I discovered that some letters were much less readily available than others. Many people assume that “X” and “Z” would be problems…but really “Q” and “Y” were what stumped me!

Back in late May (at least a week before publishing my first blog post), while I was sitting in my friend’s kitchen savoring Belgian chocolates & treats he had acquired on his recent trip to that country, I mentioned how impossible it was to find a “Q” chocolate. Unbeknownst to me during that tasting, he surreptitiously located and purchased some “Q” chocolate bars online! (Have you ever noticed that sometimes the best way of getting something done is to say that it can’t be done?) A little later, the secret purchase was revealed to me, but I had to curb my enthusiasm since I knew that my friend would be traveling overseas again soon for more than a month. Visions of melted chocolate languishing in a neglected box in the brutal summer sun plagued my thoughts. For months, I heard nothing about the status of the shipment and then one day I received a text message from my friend letting me know that the Peruvian “Q” chocolates had been delivered safely! He had intentionally delayed the shipment/delivery until someone would be at his house to receive the package 🙂 (Did I mention that I have the most supportive friends ever?!)

Stay tuned later in the week to hear the story about another “Q” chocolate “miracle”!

Q’uma Chocolate – Quinoa 70%

I don’t know about you, but Q’uma quinoa is a “double word score” in my book!

According to their website, q’uma comes from the Quechua word q’umara, which means “healthy.” Quechua was the official language of the Inca Empire (1438 through 1533 – source: Wikipedia), but is still used by a little more than 10% of the population of Peru today. I really wasn’t able to corroborate this definition with online translation services, but I did find that q’uma translates to “crime” in English. Also, interestingly, in K’iche (the indigenous language of mesoamerican Maya peoples in Guatemala), the word q’uma’r translates to “rotten” – maybe the more accurate word is “fermented” since that is a major step in converting cacao beans into edible chocolate? I’ll leave it up to you to decide which meaning to accept.

One thing that caught my eye on the outer box was what appeared to be an iguana at the bottom left corner. Its spiral design reminds me of Maori tribal tattoos. However, I’m sure that this graphic pays homage to the animals that live in the Peruvian rainforests, where the single origin, Criollo varietal cacao beans for this bar are grown.

Inside the colorful outer box, is a sealed black foil pouch – the front mimics the design elements of the outer package and the back provides information about Q’uma in both English & Spanish.

Upon opening the inner pouch, I stuck my nose into the opening and detected a raisin or dried fruit aroma. Unfortunately, the bar itself (comprised of 8 squares) wasn’t glossy/shiny and had a few blemishes + almost looked a little bloomed – probably due to the summer heat endured during shipping.

There was a medium snap when segmenting the bar & a slightly “industrial” smell. This chocolate doesn’t melt in the mouth easily, despite having cacao butter as an ingredient; besides, in my opinion, the crunchy/nutty quinoa begs for the chocolate to be “chomped.”

While tasting the chocolate, there was no raisin or dried fruit notes. I was overwhelmed by a bitter roasted flavor and an astringent/funny after taste – I wasn’t sure if this was attributable to the added quinoa or the chocolate itself…so, as they say, there is only one way to find out!

Q’uma Chocolate – Extra Dark 70%

One thing that I didn’t notice as much on the quinoa packaging, is that there is a tree in the background behind the logo – probably since Q’uma refers to themselves as a “tree-to-bar” chocolate company (which, I suppose is a step beyond just bean-to-bar). It was fun to discover the variety of animals hiding amongst the branches.

rev-collage

Upon opening this inner packaging, the bar smelled heavily roasted + almost a bit ashy. Like the quinoa bar, this Extra Dark 70% bar also had some blemishes + a matte finish. Thankfully, this bar appeared less bloomed.

Even though both bars are 70% cacao content, the quinoa one appears to be lighter in color…is that because of the inclusions?

Like the quinoa bar, it had a medium snap & was slow to melt. I noticed a slightly gritty mouthfeel, though not like one attributed to stoneground cacao (aka Taza or Olive & Sinclair).

There was no odd after taste & this bar was much less astringent, so my guess is that the quinoa had somehow compromised the taste of the chocolate. While I admire that Q’uma strives to maintain the original taste of the beans through minimal processing and that their bars usually have only 4 ingredients, free from artificial flavors and/or emulsifiers, neither of these bars were complex and both lacked the bright fruity notes that are typically a characteristic of Peruvian chocolate. My friend kept 2 chocolates for himself (a milk chocolate + a 70% dark Maras salt chocolate), so hopefully his results will be better than mine!

If you’d like to purchase bars for yourself, here is the link to a U.S. company that imports and distributes these chocolates: http://www.makigourmetorganic.com/

To learn more about the Q’uma product line & philosophy, check out: http://www.qumachocolate.com/

P is for Patric Chocolate

Alan “Patric” McClure started his bean-to-bar chocolate company just a decade ago after spending a year in France. Since 2011, his chocolates have annually garnered prestigious Good Food Awards; and since 2013, he has received three or more Awards each year! With 15 Good Food Awards in total, sources say that “this makes Patric Chocolate the all-time winner of more Good Food Awards than any other company nationwide, in any category.”

With a pedigree like that, it’s no wonder that his chocolates are elusive! When you finally find one at a local store, there is no question about whether or not to purchase it, you just do. Then you notice that the label says “Limited Edition” – well, now you feel that you should go out & buy lottery tickets…there’s no stopping your winning streak! 🙂

If you’ll allow me the “artistic license” of re-ordering the words slightly, this bar’s name becomes a bit of an alliterative tongue twister: Patric Peru Piura (I wish I could figure out a few more appropriate words to add so that we can complete the Pa, Pe, Pi syllabic series!) But I digress…

The easy-to-open cream colored packaging made from 30% recycled post-consumer fiber & printed with soy ink sports a large eye-catching fleur de lis on the front.

Ingeniously, this packaging can be used for multiple bars since the specific bar’s information is simply added with a clear sticker in the appropriate spot on the front.

Before getting to the bar itself, you can read some history about the company, as well as the 10 steps that were taken to produce each bar.

The first thing you see when opening the outer packaging, is a pristine matte rectangle wrapped in plastic, with a stylized embossed “signature” facing you. For a 67% bar, the color is a deep, rich brown.

Maybe it’s me, but the “P” almost looks like a ballet dancer or an ice skater in an arabesque position.

Unwrapping the bar, there was no mistaking that the carefully selected, rare Criollo beans from the high-altitude Piura region of Peru had been roasted. After precise roasting at a low temperature to bring out the fruity notes, the ground nibs underwent a long conching (refining) time to ensure a smooth mouth feel. Instead of breaking a bar apart with my fingers (since fingerprints tend to make the bar less photogenic), I generally use a knife. I was surprised that slicing through the bar proved to be a bit difficult since it was denser than I expected.

Despite this, there was a satisfying sharp snap when creating bite sized tasting morsels. The slow melting, not-too-sweet chocolate started out with bright fruit notes that made me think of both citrus and berries. During the melt, it was as if there were little effervescent bursts of flavor and it finished like a warming port or dessert wine for me.

You can be sure that the next time I find Patric Chocolates in a local store, I’ll be stocking up on more flavors…especially the Triple-Ginger and Red Coconut Curry which won awards in 2016!

Even though the online store is closed until the next chocolate bar release, check out http://patric-chocolate.com/ for more information about the 10 year history of the company + their philosophy on sustainability practices. As a respected leader in the burgeoning craft chocolate movement, Alan also provides chocolate consultation services!

O is for Only Child Chocolate Co.

Several months ago, I saw a “flat lay” of a variety of chocolate bars on someone’s Instagram feed and was captivated by the endearing hedgehog graphic of an unknown-to-me bar. Luckily, the post hash-tagged that chocolate by name so that I could search them out for myself! After reading the “backstory” of each bar on Only Child Chocolate’s website, I knew I had to try their trio of inclusion bars with adorable graphics & even cuter, pun-inspired names!

Since this purchase was made during the summer heat, owner Yana Yakhnes sent me a sweet, detailed email to ensure that I was aware of all the caveats of shipping from Portland, Oregon to Southern California. I assured her that I would be home to greet the mail carrier and that the chocolates would be well cared for once they arrived to me. What a thrill to receive the chocolates just a couple of days later…she had thoughtfully included a few bonus nib-topped solid chocolate heart bonbons + a colorful fringed, party paper blowout (think of a vintage noisemaker toy that doesn’t actually make noise!) Receiving that package brightened my day & was the perfect way to start the weekend 🙂

Hedgehog in the Fog (34% white choc with bergamot & black pepper)

This bar was named after a Russian cartoon where the two animal characters (a hedgehog and bear) would search for each other in a misty forest so that they can have tea together. This particular hedgehog must be drinking an Earl Grey tea since bergamot oil is what gives Earl Grey its distinctive taste.

The thick plain brown cardboard outer box is completely wrapped by a sticker with the eye-catching graphic on one side and the ingredients/informational details on the other. Since that sticker covers the flaps of the box, I needed a knife or letter opener to slice open the package so as to preserve the sticker intact…a minor inconvenience that most people probably wouldn’t notice or care about.

The four rectangle bar is wrapped in a re-sealable plastic sleeve and upon opening that, lemon was the predominant aroma (I’m so surprised that I didn’t sneeze when sniffing the cracked black pepper inclusion side!)

I always thought of bergamot as an orange-y flavor, so I decided to do some research on this citrus fruit. In case you’re interested too, here is a link to an article with more information.

Ordinarily I’m not a fan of white chocolate…this not-too-sweet bar was creamy & smooth, with just the right amount of cracked black pepper to provide a gentle back-of-the-throat lingering heat. While taking photos, I had to remind myself that this was not a savory white cheddar cheese 😉

Rosemary and Ginger Walk Into a Bar (38% milk chocolate with rosemary & candied ginger)

How can you not smile when looking at the slender sprig of rosemary and the ginger rhizome enjoying a cocktail together on the front of this packaging?

Like the white chocolate bar, the inclusion side of this bar is so photogenic, with its mostly evenly distributed clusters of crumbled candied ginger sitting atop rosemary-infused milk chocolate.

During the first couple of bites, I tasted and smelled mostly rosemary (which is a pleasant aromatherapy experience in itself!) The distinctive tangy “bite” of the candied ginger seemed to be cumulative & made itself known soon enough. While ginger might be a divisive ingredient, it is personally one of my favorite flavors. In my opinion, the creamy, smooth milk chocolate flecked with earthy rosemary paired well with the savory candied ginger. There are so many culinary and herbal benefits to rosemary and ginger…maybe this bar should be considered a “health food”?! ;-p

The Sun and the Sea (70% Venezuelan dark chocolate with sunflower seeds & sea salt)

Saving the best for last!

Upon removing the bar from the packaging, it was obvious why sunflower seeds were listed as the first ingredient 🙂 This bar reminded me more of a thin Rice Krispies treat than an inclusion bar!

It seems like generous handfuls of unsalted roasted sunflower seeds were coated with dark chocolate, formed into a bark/slab and dotted with quick melting large sea salt crystals.

I didn’t really notice olive oil, though it’s listed as an ingredient. Maybe this helped to keep the bar shiny and smooth? While it was hard to isolate the chocolate from the seeds themselves, I certainly didn’t mind as I munched away blissfully and tried hard not to eat the entire bar in one sitting!

Paraphrasing from the website, these unexpected flavors seize you by the hand and take you on a joyful adventure. To learn more, check out: http://onlychildchocolate.com/

N is for NOMNOM Chocolate

There will probably come a time when friends will refrain from telling me of their travel plans (I DREAD that day!!) Until then, when you tell me about your upcoming trip, especially if it is to New Zealand, Australia or Europe, there will be a gleam in my eye while I scan through a mental rolodex…be prepared for a kindly request to acquire some “wish list” chocolates for me! 🙂

Right around the letter “G” (early July), I came to a startling realization that my coveted “N” chocolate was actually a “C” – more on that story later in the week. In a panic, I started combing through resources to find alternate “N” chocolates and became fixated on NOMNOM Chocolate from Wales based on the endearing tales of silliness and mischief by the norty (aka naughty) weasels on their Instagram feed.

Shipping from Wales was going to be cost prohibitive, so I sent out several inquiries to friends who a) live in the UK, b) were going to be visiting the UK soon or c) knew someone who knew someone with any connection to the UK. All this effort resulted in dead ends 🙁 But, then, my boyfriend mentioned that one of his work colleagues would be traveling back to England soon for a visit (cue the choir of angels singing!) Imagine my delight! I wasn’t sure what flavors were available, so I couldn’t make specific bar requests. After several weeks of not hearing updates, I was told not to get my hopes up since this might not pan out either. After moments of distress and disappointment, I began searching for other Ns that might be acquired more locally. Then in the middle of a humdrum day, I received a text message with a picture attachment, but no actual verbiage. Ta da…a stack of SIX NOMNOM Chocolate bars. Good thing my boyfriend wasn’t around to take a video of my “happy dance” 😉

With so many delicious options to now choose from, I decided to feature the only dark chocolate bar of the bunch (follow me on Instagram to hear about the milk chocolate ones later).

Lemon Curd (72% Ecuadorian Chocolate + Welsh Lady’s Lemon Curd)

Before each thick bar receives a fairly plain brown paper outer sleeve, the bars are hand wrapped in a different colored rectangle of shiny thin aluminum foil. During the recent Olympics, NOMNOM had a friendly wrapping competition among their employees. First place was a record of 12 bars in 1 minute and 17 seconds! The wooly lamb that is part of their logo reminds me of the mischievous “Shaun the Sheep” cartoon.

Upon unwrapping the foil, there was the unmistakable scent of citrusy lemon & it was then that I noticed some small cracks on the back of the bar due to its transit from England to California. Since there is a bit of heft to the bar, the crack didn’t go all the way through and the top side of the dark brown bar was intact.

Using the existing fissure as my “breaking point,” I was so surprised to see that the chocolate bar was filled with creamy, tart lemon curd.

(my penguin alter ego above, was VERY curious about the curd 🙂 )

According to Amazon.com, Welsh Lady Preserves was voted in the Top 50 Foods by the Guild of Fine Foods, with judges describing it as “The creamiest, most lemoniest spoonful of deliciousness ever offered to man or woman.” The recipe had been perfected over 50 years, each batch lovingly prepared from the finest ingredients and cooked slowly just like you would at home. This is in keeping with NOMNOM’s philosophies which are explained on the back of the outer sleeve:

Honestly, I wasn’t expecting a messy photo shoot today, so I had to suppress giggles during this process: “stage” the chocolate pieces so that they were ready for their close ups, lick fingers, take photo & repeat.

What a great way to start the week!

It was a little difficult to taste the 72% Ecuadorian chocolate separately from the lemon curd, so I don’t have much to say about that other than it was tasty and worked well with the citrus notes. Based on this initial taste of NOMNOM, I can’t wait to dig into the other 5 flavors that I acquired: welsh cake, peanut butter, waffle, orange marmalade & Halen Môn (Anglesey Sea Salt).

Here’s a thought for the day from the nutritional info on the back of their wrapper: “Never eat more chocolate than you can lift.” – I think that’s a motto we could all live with 😉

When you visit their website (http://www.nomnom.cymru/), one of the first things you will see is this greeting: “hello we’re NOMNOM and we haven’t a proper website” + these notes:

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Since flavors change weekly, my recommendation is to send them an email since the super friendly “Keeper of Deliciousness” (Lili Woollacott) will be happy to assist you! (P.S. wish her a belated 21st birthday too!)

Bonus “M” bar – Marou Faiseurs De Chocolat

Up until now there hasn’t been an opportunity for me to taste chocolates made from Vietnamese cacao beans, I had to content myself with drooling over photos posted on other people’s Instagram feeds and reading articles about them. So, imagine my delight when I found a nice selection of Marou bars at a local chocolate shop!

It was so hard to choose just one, so these are the two that ended up following me home (two is better than one for comparing & contrasting…at least that’s my story & I’m sticking to it!) 🙂 It finally “clicked” this morning that the company name is a combination of the last names of the owners (Sam Maruta and Vincent Mourou) rather than a foreign word that needed to be translated!

Cacao trees were first introduced to Vietnam in the late 1800s by the French during their colonial rule, however less than 20 years later they rescinded paying the farmers to grow the crops since they felt that the cacao was “completely useless” and had “not yielded any satisfying result.” Many of those trees are still in the Mekong Delta provinces. About a decade ago, cacao covered less than 2,000 hectares (equivalent to about 5,000 acres); now that quantity has increased by almost 1000% to more than 54,000 acres. Marou was founded in 2011 by two expatriate Frenchmen from non-food backgrounds who had the ambition to create the first bean-to-bar and single-origin chocolate company in Vietnam, using only local ingredients from that country. This article provides more information about Marou’s beginnings.

In addition to the attention to detail in terms of ingredients, each one of the labels is stunning and eye-catching. In this 5-6 minute video you can see the multi-step, labor intensive process to silk-screen the hand-drawn images onto the hand-printed outer wrappers and then emboss each label individually (packaging design by Rice Creative). Additionally, the main color of the wrapper pays homage to the color of the cacao pods that the chocolate was made from.

74% Lâm Đong

This turquoise/teal outer wrapper has images of clouds, a cacao pod, flowers and leaves among a golden trellis/lattice background. From the label, this is a rare and delicate chocolate made in micro batches from beans cultivated in hilly woodlands at the edge of the Vietnamese Central Highlands between Madagui and Bao Loc. I’ve seen the picture of the cacao pod rainbow, but I still can’t believe that there is a pod that is naturally a light blue.

Unwrapping this chocolate from the gold foil inner wrapper sealed with the Marou label, was a beautifully shiny, deep brown bar with only a few air bubbles marring the surface.

The aroma was earthy and woody and reminded me a little of leather. Although some might consider it “cheating,” I like to refer to tasting notes before, during and after tasting. This is partly to know what to expect, as well as to see how close I could get to the description. Some tasting notes that I’ve seen refer to this bar as “intense” and “roasted”…I didn’t get that. The taste, to me, was more mild and subtle: starting buttery (like caramel), continuing as light sweet fruit (like raisins) and ending with a wine or tannic note. While I know that taste is subjective, I’m a little disappointed that my palate & the tasting notes didn’t match.

For another person’s perspective, check out these tasting notes.

80% Tien Giang

Maybe it’s because I went to a baseball game last night, but the lines on this light green outer packaging remind me of the lawnmower patterns that can be seen in the outfield. However, the true story is that these stripes are extensions of the asterisk logo from the lifestyle, travel and design magazine Wallpaper*.

Don’t blink or you might miss the asterisk that appears on the “spine” of the chocolate bar.

First impressions are important, so I really like that Marou packages their bars with the logo facing up so that this is the first thing you see after unwrapping the outer layers. Their logo reminds me the molten candle wax seal and stamp that have been used on important documents since the Middle Ages. It almost looks like the M is wearing a tiara, so I’m curious about the significance of the small emblem that looks like a truncated fleur de lis.

Generally the Tien Giang bar is made of 70% cacao from the Cho Gao & Mekong Delta, but since this is a special edition bar for Wallpaper*: The Handmade Issue, the percentage was increased to 80% – the darkest of the Marou bars in terms of percentage of cacao. Surprisingly, though, the color of the chocolate itself is slightly lighter than the 74% bar that I tasted earlier (in the picture below, the top is the 80% bar & the partially consumed one on the bottom is the 74%).

From the tasting notes, this is full-bodied with notes of spices, fruits and honey. It certainly was the more complex of the two bars, with a scent that wavered between a delicate sandalwood perfume and a freshly made gourmet hot chocolate. What I tasted was tangy, tart and acidic (while also a little metallic), with cherries and apples coming to mind. Maybe as I continue with my sensory experiences, one day I too can detect the earthy, grassy, woody, banana and citrus fruit notes mentioned in other reviews.

If you’ve tried Marou’s chocolates, I’d love to hear your impressions!

In the meantime, please visit the company’s website to learn more about the rest of their product line: http://marouchocolate.com/

M is for Map Chocolate Co.

Maps are multi-faceted. They can evoke memories of journeys from the past, they can open up a whole new world of places you have yet to explore and can also serve as a guide to help you find your way while on your present path.

“M” week is finally here! This is one of the bars that I have been eagerly awaiting for MONTHS! When I first started using Instagram at the beginning of the year, I was mesmerized by gorgeous photos of Map Chocolate’s square bars. If I’m honest with myself, I might have designed the whole Eating the Chocolate Alphabet project simply as an excuse to try this chocolate brand for myself!

Since this chocolate wasn’t available locally, my only viable option was to visit Map’s website to make my selection. It was such a treat to scroll through more mouth-watering pictures and smile while reading each bar’s unusual and unique name. In the end, I selected one inclusion bar (Still Life with Pi: a renaissance of candied orange peel & vanilla seeds / Belize 65%) + one bag of hot chocolate mix. (Let me tell you, it’s been such a challenge not to indulge in a cup of cocoa, I’m so glad that the self-imposed moratorium is finally over…stay tuned on Instagram for that!)

It’s evident that much care and thought have been put into each small detail, including the packaging. Rather than revealing itself too quickly, this chocolate bar arrived packaged like a small gift to be unwrapped.

The simply folded plain brown tissue paper, adorned with a bit of gold ribbon, was kept closed with a small black sticker emblazoned with an “M” in gold calligraphy amongst a cloud of decorative curlicues.

I was especially touched by a personalized, handwritten note on the back of a small map square tucked into the ribbon at the back of the package.

Once that layer was removed, an old world style map peeked out from the sides of a simple, yet elegant outer sleeve providing ingredient information.

The clear sticker used to keep the sleeve closed exhorts you to “find open roads” and begin an exciting adventure! 🙂

Sliding the map-wrapped bar from the sleeve, I saw a familiar sight! An aerial view featuring the colonnade and piazza of St. Peter’s Basilica, an Italian Renaissance church in the Vatican City, the papal enclave within the city of Rome. This map transported me back to my 2009 trip to Italy and a treasured photo that a friend took from the top of the dome, overlooking the city below.

As I peeled away each layer of protective packaging, the heady chocolate aroma was both enticing and intoxicating. After months of waiting and worrying, would the square be broken into pieces or perfectly intact? Now came the moment of truth! I delicately unwrapped the final layer of coated white paper to reveal a pristine shiny square which brings back memories of the Moorish tiles I saw at the Alhambra in Spain during my first European trip as a teenager.

Maybe it’s me…but from within the 12-pointed star (which is said to depict completeness), I can almost see the outline of the Castel Sant’Angelo, which was also on the map of Rome.

In an interview, Mackenzie Rivers (Map Chocolate owner and chocolate maker) revealed that this Belgian-made mold is called “Scheherazade” – as in the storyteller of “One Thousand and One Nights.” This seems to go well with a quote that was included as part of the non-traditional tasting notes page: “…chocolate carries an amazing story of cultivation, travel, wild places, people, birds landing amongst its leaves, rain falling, farmers tending it, and mouths tasting it. every bite the story unfolds.”

The reverse (or inclusion) side is equally complex with the combination of slightly chewy vanilla seeds, crunchy candied orange peel and tiny perfectly shaped sugar crystals.

It seemed like such a shame to break the bar into pieces, but it had to be done! Not surprisingly, the same adjectives can be used for both the mold and the chocolate itself: overlapping, interlaced and intricate. Biting into the smooth & creamy chunks, there were long lasting layers of flavor as well as bright/tart fruit notes.

In the words of Mackenzie: “this bar is about coming full circle, by way of the meandering tangent.”

With my apologies, here are some of my thoughts on the reason for choosing “Pi” as part of the bar’s name (with help from an online article from wonderopolis.org):

“Pi is an irrational number, which means that its value cannot be expressed exactly as a simple fraction.” Since taste is very subjective, it would be impossible to create a definitive, one-size-fits-all description for any chocolate bar. Therefore, just like there is no end to Pi’s decimal places, there is an infinite number of ways to encapsulate the experience of tasting chocolates.
“Since circles can vary in size, yet they all retain the same shape, ancient mathematicians knew there had to be a special relationship amongst the elements of a circle. That special relationship turns out to be the mathematical constant known as pi.” I’d like to think that, regardless of each person’s history/backstory, chocolate can be the connection that unifies us all.

To find the chocolate bar that “speaks to you” and begin your own adventure, check out: http://www.mapchocolate.com/

Bonus “L” bar – L’Amourette Chocolat

The origin of L’Amourette Chocolat sounds just like a romantic movie plot (and if it isn’t one already, it should be)!

A young chocolatier’s love is unrequited, so he travels the world to forget the woman of his dreams. While in Paris, he visits a used bookstore and purchases a book called “Practical Magic.” After reading about aphrodisiacs and magic rituals, he experiments with different chocolate recipes until he finds the most intriguing one. With a bouquet of flowers and this special chocolate bar, he proposes to his sweetheart and she accepts after eating a single piece of decadent chocolate. And so begins this “love affair.”

What attracted me to this 72% Noir chocolate bar? Well, I couldn’t resist its bright/colorful packaging with vintage-inspired artwork + I had never seen a bar with pomelo peel. Until today, I thought that “pomelo” was just an alternate name for “grapefruit” – so reading this article was an eye-opener. Pomelo (the largest fruit in the citrus family) is considered the ancestor of the grapefruit since pomelos are a natural (non-hybrid) citrus fruit, whereas grapefruits are a hybrid between an orange and a pomelo. One of the main differences between these fruits are their peels. Pomelos have thick, pebbly, soft skins, while grapefruits typically have thinner, smooth skins. To maintain the true taste of the pomelo peel, L’Amourette candies them naturally, without sulfur dioxide.

Sometimes it’s easy to overlook small details upon first glance. Such is the case with the various citrus wedges that are printed on the front and back with spot high gloss UV varnish. You have the hold the package just so and in the right light to fully appreciate these images that hint at the flavor of the bar inside. I wonder if the rest of the bars in the Art Noveau line have the same type of design element?!

There was a heft to this chocolate bar, so upon removing the 10 segment tablet from the shiny blue-ish green foil inner wrapping, it came as no surprise that the mold they used was a little thicker than usual. The domed shaped segments make me think that this mold could serve a dual purpose, if they wanted to make filled chocolates. While this bar had a glossy finish, there were a few remnants of bubbles on the surface. Each of the segments have the company logo embossed on them: a romantic cursive script font within a stylized heart.

Due to the thickness of the segments, it was a little difficult to break them in half. However, there was a medium to dull snap once I was able to do so. It’s difficult to fully describe the aroma of the blend of Rio Caribe and Carenero Superior beans from Venezuela: it reminded me of a freshly-made gourmet hot chocolate with warm nutty spices…I wonder if the Bourbon vanilla beans and cocoa butter had anything to do with this?! Both of these cacao beans have distinct characteristics. Carenero Superior beans are known for a lighter flavor while also being more bitter and less earthy, though they still have complex, yet delicate, woody and flowery notes. Rio Caribe beans, on the other hand, are reported to be less complex and exhibit sweet, rich earthy and fruity notes. Overall this blend produced a not too sweet bar that hinted at bitter notes without being harsh. Some would say that this is not a complex bar, but I found it to be very enjoyable since you could savor both the chocolate itself and the other ingredients without being distracted by the separate elements.

Even though a segment might outwardly appear not to have any candied pomelo peel, you will be rewarded with a tangy morsel whether you let it melt slowly or chomp into it. I personally prefer the “chomping” method since that seems to release more of the lightly roasted flavor notes. While the packaging says that this bar was produced using a 36-hour conching process; the texture was not the silk-smooth that I was expecting, it was slightly coarser, though not really gritty either.

If Hollywood ever decides to immortalize Andre V’s story, which actors should portray him and his wife and, more importantly, will that secret chocolate recipe ever be revealed?! 😉

To see their various chocolate lines and discover if they are available in your area, please visit: http://www.lamourettechocolat.com/

Category: dark chocolate