20°N & 20°S

Vosges ~ Bacon Caramel Toffee

Vosges Bacon and Caramel Toffee

What on earth could exist in a finer combination than chocolate, caramel toffee, and bacon? Nothing! The answer is nothing.

Vosges has a collection of chocolate and bacon goodies. I took the plunge and ordered their Bacon & Eggs, Bacon Caramel Toffee, and a few of the Mo's Bacon Chocolate bars. Oh and lest I forget, their Mo's Bacon Chocolate Chip Pancake Mix.

Word is Bomb!

"I began experimenting with bacon + chocolate at the tender age of 6, while eating chocolate chip pancakes drenched in Aunt Jemima® syrup, as children often do. Beside my chocolate-laden cakes laid three strips of sizzlin' bacon, just barely touching a sweet pool of maple syrup. And then, the magic—just a bite of the bacon was too salty and I yearned for the sweet kiss of chocolate and syrup, so I combined the two. In retrospect, perhaps this was a turning point; for on that plate something magical happened, the beginnings of a combination so ethereal and delicious that it would haunt my thoughts until I found the medium to express it–chocolate.

From there, it was just a matter of time…and what began as a love of salt and sweet quickly unraveled into an obsession. No sooner could I wait to unveil the royal coupling in solid bar form, a deep milk chocolate with bits and pieces of applewood smoked bacon and just a sprinkling of Alder salt. Really, what doesn't taste better with bacon?"
–Katrina

Now I have to admit, I wasn't so easy on the Bacon & Eggs review. I had a taste in mind when I ordered these, and I didn't feel like they hit the mark for me personally. They were kind of small, kind of expensive, and overly sweet. I felt like salt was missing from the equation. It needed to be a salt caramel in the center and larger bacon bits. I also felt like they should have been in milk chocolate, not dark.

But then I tasted these bad boys and all was right with the universe again. This is what it's all about. Sweet and salty caramel toffee covered in chocolate with bits of bacon throughout the square, and yes they are covered in milk chocolate. The exact right balance I was looking for.

There is only one problem with these though. They taste so fucking good (excuse my language), and there isn't nearly enough in the package they come in. This is like drug dealer stuff. "Let's get them hooked on our special crack in the form of Bacon Caramel Toffee, and they will be begging for more! Muhahahahah!"

Damn you Vosges! DAMN YOU!!!

They did come in a silver package and were not just nestled in the box. Once again I do find this product kind of pricey for the amount you get, about $12 for four ounces or five chocolate covered squares. But based on the way these taste, I would say it's totally worth it. Vosges are crack dealers. You need to know what you are getting into with them. You will be hooked.

Ingredients: Toffee (58.6%) (sugar and butter), Milk Chocolate (42%) (sugar, cocoa butter, whole milk powder, cocoa mass, soy lecithin, vanilla), Uncured Bacon (10%) (pork, sea salt, raw sugar, white pepper, dry juniper berries, celery juice, lactic acid-starter culutre) salt, corn syrup, water, flavoring: natural hickory smoke.

The bacon revolution continues. 

Paul A. Young ~ 100% Manjari

Paul A. Young

Type: Extra bittersweet, 100%

Bean Varietal: Unknown

Ingredients: 100% Madagascar cocoa beans from Valrhona.

Sample Size: 50g 1.76oz



Appearance: Deep dark brown color, matted looking bar, spotted surface, simple non-monogrammed molding.

Score: 89

Snap: Very firm snap with excellent crisp snap sound and clean break lines.

Score: 94

Aroma: Pure roasted cocoa, fruit forward, very green, bananas, coffee, sweet and a little astringent on the nose. Fairly simple and straight forward on the nose. Not a lot of complications with this aroma. What is there presents itself and that is all.

Score: 95

Taste: Extremely bitter, wood, tar, acidic, berries are present but completely buried but bitterness, there is big green taste on the finish even some bananas but the bitterness once again completely overtakes the palate.

Score: 91

Texture: Smooth, creamy, medium melt time.

Score: 92

This was extremely bitter and almost sour tasting due to the extreme acidity. It hits all the right technical marks, but 100% bitter cocoa is just not for me. Especially with the characteristics of Madagascar beans being typically tart and acidic anyway even with sugar and cocoa butter smoothing it out. It's hard to rationalize that too because I like extraordinarily hoppy beers like big American Double IPA's and even Triple IPA's, I have a palate for extremely bitter offerings. But this is a different kind of bitter that I just do not enjoy. I gave the taste higher marks for the individual notes you can taste, but it's not as high for all the notes that were obliterated by it's intense bitterness. The berry notes were just dying to present themselves but just could not stand up to how deeply bitter this chocolate is.

But this is a statement chocolate. This isn't just for those who enjoy the insanely bitter side of chocolate, this is for the integrity of chocolate, that this is what it is without fluff and no additives. Like a model without make up, a cake without frosting, or bread without butter and jam.

If you are someone who loves black, robust coffee with no sugar or cream or a straight up espresso, this might be something you would enjoy. It's something you would want to have to gain a better understand of raw chocolate, and then expand on with different percentages and blends using the same kind of beans. As a base if you will.


Final Score: 92.2

score
B+

Paul A. Young ~ Madagascar 64%

Paul A. Young  Madagascar 64%

Couverture chocolate from Valrhona using their Manjari 64%. Paul Young uses a simple style for moldings and packaging. He uses the finest quality cocoa beans for couverture chocolate to make more worldly-style products versus the sweeter styles I am coming to know as a classic hallmark of British chocolate.

Again, for a Paul A. Young review there is barely any information available about there products. I have talked to one of the people behind Paul Young and we had a quick discussion about the website having more information. They were very nice and receptive. I think they should bulk up their website a bit with more information. I did explain my background with reviewing and I understand most people will not require as much information as I am seeking, but it would help if more people asked for the information about what kinds of beans are being used and where they come from. People should learn about the things they put in their bodies.

So without a lot of information and other posts with information about Paul himself or Manjari beans themselves, this doesn't need to be a redundant post. I will just get right into the review.








Type: Bittersweet, 64%

Bean Varietal: Unknown

Ingredients: Cocoa beans, cocoa butter, sugar, soya lecithin, vanilla.

Sample Size: 50g or 1.76oz



Appearance: Simple, non-monogrammed molding, smooth, shiny surface, but a bit matted from plastic packaging, but significantly less that then other bars.

Score: 91

Snap: An excellent firm crisp snap. Clean break lines with a decent snap sound.

Score: 94

Aroma: Like a fresh poured beer! It smelled overwhelming like a dry Irish stout. A little sweet with roasted cocoa notes, but crack open a Guinness or a O'hara's and inhale deeply. That's what this chocolate smelled like with roasted cocoa in the finish. I have never encountered this before. But as a beer person, I love it.

Score: 96

Taste: Bright, big fruits upfront, huge cherries and strawberries, sweet, tangy, but not too acidic or I should say it doesn't jab you in the neck with acidity. Hints of cedar wood, a bit astringent and bitter as a lingering finish on the palate.

Score: 96

Texture: Smooth, a bit creamy once it opens up, slight tannins, a bit drying on the palate, medium melt time.

Score: 93

I have had Valrhona's actual bar of Manjari before but it wasn't this fruity. I have had others who have also used Manjari as a couverture, but I don't know how Paul Young managed to get this bar so fruity and delicious. It's sweeter than other bars who use Valrhona as couverture chocolate. I love how fruity this was. It was fantastic.

The stout aroma was quite fascinating too. I opened it up and took a big inhale of it's aroma and I felt like I was drinking a beer. I called my husband into make sure I was on the right page with that description of the aroma. I trust my senses, but it's not everyday you get a chocolate that smells like a stout. He confirmed that aroma without any prompting.

I would love to pick Paul Young's brain and find out how he managed to draw out such a strong fruit flavor and the stout aroma.

Final score: 94

score
A-

Rococo ~ Basil & Persian Lime 65%

Rococo Basil and Persian Lime

Sadly, this was the last bar of chocolate from Rococo in my British Chocolate Invasion collection. I don't want my journey with Rococo to end here. I have become a fan and I look forward to getting back to London, where I can visit one of their shops.

What is a Persian lime? Well for us, it's just a fancy name for limes commonly found in any grocery store or the. That's not to say this is a bad or generic combination by any means. These limes have a distinctive taste which I think work well with basil.

Description

The Tahiti lime tree is moderately vigorous, medium to large, up to 15 or 20 ft (4.5-6 m), with nearly thornless, widespread, drooping branches. The leaves are broad-lanceolate, with winged petioles; young shoots are purplish. Flowers, borne off and on during the year but mainly in January, are slightly purple-tinged. The fruit is oval, obovate, oblong or short-elliptical, usually rounded at the base, occasionally ribbed or with a short neck; the apex is rounded with a brief nipple; 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 in (4-6.25 cm) wide, 2 to 3 in (5-7.5 cm) high; peel is vivid green until ripe when it becomes pale-yellow; smooth, thin, tightly clinging; pulp is light greenish-yellow when ripe, in 10 segments, tender, acid, but without the distinctive bouquet of the Mexican lime; usually seedless, rarely with one or a few seeds, especially if planted among a number of other Citrus species. The Tahiti lime flowers have no viable pollen.

Origin and Distribution

The origin of the Tahiti lime is unknown. It is presumed to be a hybrid of the Mexican lime and citron, or, less likely, the lemon, and it is genetically a triploid though only the normal 18 chromosomes have been reported. Dr. Groff, in a reference to Citrus aurantifolia in his "Culture and Varieties of Siamese Pummelos . . . ", said: ". . .it is represented by a large variety known as Manow klom and by a small one known as Manow yai." One might speculate as to whether the large variety might be the female parent of the Tahiti lime. At any rate, it is believed that the Tahiti was introduced into the Mediterranean region by way of Iran (formerly called Persia). It is said that, for some centuries, a virtually identical lime called 'Sakhesli' has been cultivated on the island of Djerba off the coast of Tunisia, and that the local name means "from Sakhos", an old Arabic name for Chios, a Grecian island. Portuguese traders probably carried it to Brazil, and it was apparently taken to Australia from Brazil about 1824. It reached California from Tahiti between 1850 and 1880 and had arrived in Florida by 1883. It was being grown at Lake Placid in 1897. This lime was adopted into cultivation in California but is not extensively grown there, the bulk of California's lime crop being mainly the Mexican lime. In Florida, the Tahiti quickly took the place of the more sensitive small lime and the lemon. Following World War I, the Tahiti lime became a well-established commercial crop. At first, there was market resistance, buyers viewing the Tahiti lime as a "green lemon", and, for some time, Canadians would not accept it because they were accustomed to the more flavorful Mexican lime. In the 1930's, many Florida citrus growers planted limes for extra income and, in 1949, the development of limeade concentrate provided further impetus to the Tahiti lime industry.

In 1954, Libby, McNeil & Libby topworked 100 acres (40 ha) of grapefruit trees in Florida to Tahiti lime. Production increased 60% from 1970 to 1980. In 1979, the total crop was valued at close to $9 million. Nearly 1 million bushels (250 limes per bushel) were shipped fresh and the same amount was processed. By 1980, there were approximately 8,000 acres (about 3,250 ha) of commercial groves. Five years later, Dade County shipped 110 million lbs (50 million kg) of fresh fruit worth about $14 million to the growers, from a total of 6,500 acres (2,630 ha). Florida produces 90% of the national crop, for marketing fresh and for canned lime juice, frozen lime juice, frozen lime juice concentrate, frozen limeade and powdered lime juice. The Florida Lime and Avocado Administrative Committee conducts research on production and carries on national promotional activity.

  

[Source: Perdue University]

Type: Flavored Bittersweet, 65%

Bean Varietal: Unknown

Ingredients: Cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa powder, Persian limes, basil essential oil, soya lecithin.

Sample Size: 70g or 2.4oz



Appearance: Deep dark brown with a glossy surface. Classic molding from the 17th century chocolate molds used by Rococo. A few spots of matting from sticking to the inside of the package, but not much.

Score: 93

Snap: Very firm, deep snap. Excellent, but the cracking snap sound was just a tiny bit subdued.

Score: 96

Aroma: Immediately out of the package it was very robust with basil. It was completely dominate and over powering at first. There was also a very strong pepper aroma coupled with roasted cocoa. I let this one sit out of for a bit and the basil toned down quite a bit allowing a bit of a lime aroma to present itself. It still had a lot of pepper notes though. Also, it had a light sweet aroma as well once the basil toned down a bit. Like sweet roasted cocoa not just the wood and toasted aromas on cocoa.

Score: 94

Taste: Roasted cocoa, pop of pepper up front, basil upfront, it is pleasant and light, cocoa is robust and intense, and the lime is very soft. I expected a much bigger basil taste based on the initial aroma. Cocoa is rich and dark, not acidic, or tart. There is nice lingering lime flavors on the after taste and through retro-olfaction. This is balanced with soft flavors that help tame this potent chocolate.

Score: 96

Texture: Smooth opening but some grittiness towards the end of the melt. Medium melt time.

Score: 92


I expected a much bigger basil taste based on the initial aroma. The cocoa is rich and dark, not acidic, or tart. The flavors of basil and lime are soft and delicate.

This is lovely flavored chocolate. I honestly wasn't sure I was going to like this one at first because the first time I encountered basil and lime in chocolate, the basil was so overwhelming. This was very soft and pretty. The basil and lime ended up being a lovely compliment to the robust chocolate.

The chocolate was rich and robust, but also very sweet. Characteristics of British chocolate I am coming to know. But this was beyond just being a sweeter dark chocolate. It was fairly robust and hearty chocolate for a 65%. Sometimes you can get 65% and it's too light or too sweet, and sometimes you can get fantastic flavors of the chocolate to come through. It was big cocoa content after all.

But it can all depend on the cocoa butter content. A little known secret to the average fan of chocolate, is that if a chocolate bar says 65% it could only have 50% cocoa and 15% cocoa butter. Since cocoa butter is derived from the beans even if it's different beans than the cocoa being used, it can technically be called 65%. You can taste it when it's not as big as it should be.

I liked this chocolate a lot. I have only had 3 bars from Rococo, but I am starting to get the big picture here. Someone with almost 30 years of experience, Chantal Coady knows chocolate and knows how to balance flavors in chocolate the right way.

Final Score: 94.2

score
A-

Vosges ~ Bacon & Eggs

 

Vosges


Easter sales are always a good idea. What people don't get is that chocolate has a very long shelf life. So whenever Easter or any good holiday for chocolate comes around, remember the day-after sales. Believe me, with all the hard work these chocolate makers go through for certain holidays, reward them with buying their efforts and then helping them to get rid of it after the fact. Let nothing go to waste.

I totally took advantage. I bought a complete bacon collection from Vosges.  Bacon Caramel Toffee, Mo's Chocolate Chip Bacon Pancake mix, two Mo's Bacon Chocolate Bars in milk and dark chocolate, and the Bacon & eggs.

I had been taunted for months by the people behind the Vosges Twitter page. Taunts of posts about their Bacon Pancake mix. Finally, I gave in. I had previously reviewed the Mo's Bacon Bar with Milk Chocolate before. The bar was so delicious, I had to get more products from them.

So, I took advantage of the post-Easter sale and bought their Bacon & Eggs.



 


Five flat bottomed eggs with intricate moldings. The inspiration for these eggs:

 

"I was drawn to the different textures on these egg molds and love their antique-feel. I have been thinking about soft caramel fillings for years and these presented the perfect opportunity to introduce some of the first. The Wink of the Rabbit and the Bacon Caramels are the first of more soft caramel fillings to come." -Katrina

 

 

 

This one was a bit damaged on top with a slight cracked and sunken in top. I ate that one first.

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients: Dark Chocolate (cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, vanilla), organic cream, wheat glucose syrup, sugar, butter, uncured bacon (pork, sea salt, raw sugar, white pepper, dry juniper berries, celery juice, lactic acid starter culture), water, salt, and natural hickory smoke flavoring.

Dark chocolate (55%) contains 30% cocoa solids minimum.

 

These were one ounce eggs, and were a little bit smaller than I had anticipated. They are expensive for a pack of 5 originally priced at $22. The sale price was $18.

I didn't find them to be as good as the Mo's Bacon bar with milk chocolate. The bar had more bacon and salty contrast to the sweet milk chocolate. There wasn't as much of a balance or a contrast as I had hoped for with these eggs.

The caramel was dark and sweet, but not as buttery as I had hoped. I think it needed to be sea salt caramel with nice, course salt mixed in. The bacon bits were too small. This was on opportunity to have had bigger chunks of bacon it to give it more of a hickory taste and add more of a salty contrast since the caramel was regular caramel.

The first egg had very little bacon in it. The second one was more loaded with bacon and had a better smokey flavor. The chocolate is sweet and rich. It's more like a dark milk chocolate than actual dark or semisweet chocolate.

Now having said all that, these were good. I ate two of them back to back and if I weren't in great control of my gluttonous ways, I could have easily plowed through this package. The price however, stops me from devouring these completely. I need to take my time with these to ensure the value. 

Still, this is a fun a holiday gift and with the bacon in it, it's perfect for an Easter gift. 

The Bacon Revolution continues.

Rococo ~ Sea Salt Organic Milk

Once again that pretty eye catching packaging from Rococo takes all the attention. This bar had more details on the inside flap about the molding for the chocolate bars.

These highly acclaimed bars are made using our own special blend of organic chocolate with recipes developed over the last twenty years. These moulds are an antique design, reflecting the bar wrapper which is made up of motifs from Letang Fils' 19th Century catalogue of chocolate moulds.

The organic dark chocolate has a 65% cocoa content and a particularly high percentage of cocoa butter (the only fat used) which gives the bars their silky texture and crisp snap. The flavor of the chocolate is robust enough to compliment the botanical flavours without overpowering them. Only the finest and where possible organic ingredients are added to flavour the chocolate.

I really adore the packaging, the moldings, and classic styles all a fitting theme with the name Rococo. It's classic and cute.

Speaking of cute, I want to get my hands on this cute box of truffles! It's called The Cat Who Got The Cream. I love it. I am a crazy cat lady and obviously I am crazy about chocolate, so this is perfect for me.

Flavours include jasmine tea, Manjari Madagascar, lychee rose and raspberry, Irish coffee, sour cherry with dark chocolate, and Jivara marc de champagne, passionfruit and mango, crushed lemon praline with milk chocolate.

I am also proud to say that Rococo highlighted my first review of their chocolate on their blog. That is very exciting news for me. That means they see what I am doing, and they cared enough to highlight it.

Valrhona Grand Cru No. 1 Manjari 93% rating.

Rococo Sea Salt Organic Milk Chocolate

Type: Flavored Milk Chocolate, 37%

Bean Varietal: Blend

Ingredients: Organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter, organic full cream milk powder, organic cocoa mass, organic Halen Mon (Welsh) sea salt, soya lecithin.

Sample Size: 70g or 2.4oz




Appearance: Shiny, classic 18th century molding, a little bit matted markings on the bar but overall very shiny and smooth. Light, soft brown color.

Score: 93

Snap: Rubbery, dull sounding snap, but still fairly firm.

Score: 90

Aroma: Soft nutty aroma with creamy and milky aromas. A little bit of a floral character but mostly what is dominating is a buttery and caramel nose.

Score: 94

Taste: Blended in sea salt, perfect balance of sweet and salty, nutty, creamy, sweet honey tones, caramel, some fruity notes do come through, but the milky finish really erases all traces of any subtleties.

Score: 96

Texture: Super smooth, soft, creamy, medium melt time.

Score: 95

Usually when I am tasting chocolate, I sample a few small squares of chocolate from the bar, enough to get a good feel for the chocolate or enough until I completely understand it. Then I wrap up the rest to be eaten at another time or share with friends. I ate nearly half of this bar! Not because I didn't understand it, but because it was to satisfy the glutton in me. It was wonderful.

This bar made me miss milk chocolate for the first time. I noticed this feeling before with Vosges' Mo's Milk Chocolate Bacon bar, but I thought maybe the sweet milk chocolate and bacon were working because of the bacon. Everything is better with bacon. So shall it be written, so shall it be! I don't dislike milk chocolate by any means. But when you eat dark chocolate nearly 99.9% of the time, and then you try a fantastic bite of milk chocolate, it makes you wake up to what was missing in your life.

The salt was mixed through out the bar which I liked. It's usually coated on one side of the bar for appearance to and say see look this is a salt chocolate bar. The blending was great because it gave each bite the right balance of sweet and salty. Honey and caramel notes from the sweet chocolate balanced with lovely salt.

I think I hate you Rococo Chocolates! I hate you because I think I found sinful new treat that is going to end up costing me limbs to have shipped over to the U.S. frequently.


Final Score: 93.6

score
A-

Customer Service

This is a post about giving credit to companies with great customer service. I have been writing about chocolate as much as I can from the start of the new year. It was a project I meant to start last year, but with the new year came a fresh slate to start this new hobby, passion, project.

Since that time, I have had mostly amazing chocolate. The reviews are heavily on the good side. Technical marks can make or break certain chocolates. It's more than just tasting.

A few times though, there have been some bumps in the road. Banged up truffles from transport, build-your-own chocolate mishaps, off tasting chocolate, and damaged bars or the appearance of bloom.

When this happens, it's not the easiest thing in the world to write harshly about the product. For others with shitty lives or just drama filled people who seek to write with pleasure while they destroy a product or a business, they might find that kind of thing easy. Not for me. I have no problems in tearing apart drug addicted celebrities and plastic surgery nightmares all in the name of vanity. But it's not so easy to be so crassly judgmental about someones actual hard work and livelihood.

I am not saying I write with bias. I am pretty fair from top to bottom about the chocolates I review. But it's not always easy to write negatively about certain products that might hurt or detract for the overall presentation, product, or business itself.

This post is about giving credit to those who take their work very serious and are interested in positive customer satisfaction. Even for tiny, amateur blogs such as 20°N & 20°S.






First we have Amano Chocolates. I first wrote about their chocolate with their Madagascar 70% bar which was given to me in trade by the chocolate buyer Emily Shartin, at Formaggio Kitchen.

Upon seeing this review, the PR team behind Amano asked if they could send me more bars of chocolate from their newer collections. Who am I to say no? So they kindly sent me 3 more bars to try. As well as another product they sell because they actually read the small blurb I have written for my bio. I am a BeerAdvocate and my husband owns BeerAdvocate. So they sent Sahale BBQ flavored Almonds.

Well, I reviewed two chocolate bars and my husband stole the almonds. Technically the almonds were meant for him and not me. But I didn't tell him that. He always get's beer sent to the house for review and never shares. And he stole them anyway not knowing anything about them.

I sent the PR team back the new reviews and they asked me about the almonds. I was forced to admit that I never got to try them. Now from here it sounds like I am a huge moocher. But I swear up and down my intentions are pure and I am not seeking out any favors. They sent me more almonds and this time they sent two other products as well. The Soledad Almond mix and a Cashew mix.

Then I had a kind of an odd experience with the last bar. The limited-edition Montanya bar. It had some banged up edges on it and it had the appearance of sugar bloom. The bar was absolutely amazing. But sadly it couldn't get higher marks because of the appearance.

Once again the PR team contacted me immediately to apologize about the condition of the bar and asked if they would be send more chocolate directly from the Amano chocolate factory in Utah.

This kind of made me paranoid. It's not my intention to get free things. I told them they can do it if they felt it was necessary but it's not my intentions. Apparently Art Pollard himself, saw the reviews and wanted to make sure the issues were corrected. Well thank god for egos and passions. Amano chocolate is amazing and if more bars do end up on my door step, I will be so happy. Still have to be fair, but grateful for a chance to even taste these fine chocolates.

It means a great deal to me that they care so much about my little blog of reviews. They care about quality and making an impression. Well, they certainly have made an impression with me.

Thank you to Adrienne DeAngelo and Anja Hakoshima who have both been so kind and generous from Fortune Public Relations.

Alan McClure from Patric Chocolates deserves credit for being very hands on about reviews and customer service. He makes himself personally available to answer any questions posed. He then took personal responsibility for some truffles I ordered made by Elbow and Kakao using his cocoa. There was a slight matted and sunken in appearance on the Elbow truffles, but they were quite possibly some of the best truffles I have ever tasted. We're not sure what caused this exact effect but possibly it happened during shipping.

He too asked if he should send more. I said no this time because I was still working on the order I had in front of me and I loved eating them. in this case, a simple issue over appearance isn't a big deal especially when they tasted amazing.

He also sent me his entire profile to be reviewed. I fell in love with the Madagascar 70% with cocoa nibs. He also sent a package of cocoa nibs which I made into cocoa nib cookies following his recipe. 

William Curley contacted me via Facebook to express his concerns with one of the bars I tasted from his shop. Something was off about this one particular bar, the House Dark 65. I had a few friends taste this bar and they agreed something was kind of off about it.

It was a strange introduction to a famed chocolatier of London. But thankfully I had two other products of his on hand. The Sea Salt Caramel bar which was TO DIE FOR! And a dark chocolate bar with chili pepper spice. From those two, I was able to understand the hype and the accolades.

Then there is Chocri. The customize and build-your-own chocolate bars company. You can even name your own creations. With dozens and dozens of toppings, you can literally create thousands of combinations. Not to mention they accept donations to help fight the child labor issue in the Ivory Coast with cocoa harvesting.

Carmen Magar from Chocri, is the hero of this little story. One of my bars that I ordered was specially requested to be made with dark chocolate and it came in white chocolate.

I am not a fan of white chocolate at all except in the right circumstances. White chocolate and macadamia nuts always works. For my "Health Bar" it was terrible.

Carmen read my review and and immediately sent a replacement bar with dark chocolate this time and one of their popular creations called The "Cinnamon Girl" bar. Again this wasn't what I had planned on. I like this company, the people behind it, their ethics involved, and the concept. But this kind of easy customer service and care and concern from the people behind the scenes makes a big difference.

We created this bar for the Cinnamon Girl (Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice blog), who started our blog relay race (female bloggers vs. male bloggers) for us! A thoughtful concoction of all those flavors that Cinnamon Girl used in recipes on her wonderful blog, congregating around... what else... cinnamon!

Made with: Milk chocolate, apple bits, cinnamon, rice crispies, and Bourbon vanilla.

My bar originally requested was called the "Health Bar".

Made with: Dark chocolate, Blueberries, Cranberries, Organic Flax Seeds, Goji Berries and mymuesli - Organic Muesli.

Click the "I Ordered" link above to see some of the other cool creations I made. Trust me it's worth it if you want to see how some of the creations and various toppings came out.

And last but not least Modern Dwellers. A small tiff arose over the state of some truffles sent to me from Alaska. A small disagreement ensued over what was the proper way to have handled the shipping, but I am happy to say it ended with good vibes, beer and chocolate discussions, and new truffles.  Lindsay Clark takes some serious pride in what is being offered in Alaska. And rightly so.


Beat Up Truffles

Making Up With Modern Dwellers


From this mess (after I straightened them out a bit):

To these beauties:

After the first batch you could clearly see why I was disappointed. But then when they sent fresh truffles, I could clearly see and taste why they were upset about my review. But now I get it and now I understand. Now they are allies in this chocolate world.



Again the point of this was not to highlight mistakes, but to highlight good customer service and how little it takes to correct a situation. These people care about their products, care about their craft, and care about even the smallest person's voice out there talking about their products.

Patric Chocolate ~ Madagascar 75%

Patric Chocolate Sambirano Valley Madagascar 75%

Madagascar cacao sweetened only with pure cane sugar and no other added ingredients. Pure and simple.

[Image via Nasa, and Madagascar VTT Trekking.]

Images of the Sambirano river delta from space. And images of the valley and cocoa drying from the Sakalava Village. These images are unrelated to Patric Chocolate, but this is what the region looks like.

 



Type: Bittersweet, 75%

Bean Varietal: Hybrid

Ingredients: Cocoa beans and pure cane sugar.

Lot #: 101833

Appearance: Smooth, shiny, simple monogrammed molding. Very deep brown color.

Score: 95

Snap: Good firm, deep snap. Asymmetrical break lines, but clean.

Score: 94

Aroma: Roasted cocoa, cedar wood. bright and citric, but a lot more subdued than the other Madagascar bars from Patric. Very mild overall.

Score: 93

Taste: Tart, notes of dried tart cherries at the beginning, very citrus forward, acidic, once it's opened up a bit big cedar wood, vodka notes, roasted cocoa, tiny hints or tar and rubber but very slight. Dry, bitter retro-olfaction finish.

Score: 91

Texture: Smooth, soft and creamy, medium melt time.

Score: 94

This wasn't my favorite from Patric Chocolate, but still a fantastic chocolate over all. I personally found it to be too tart and acidic over all but still this bar had some fantastic notes like tart cherries right up front, and awesome cedar wood flavors. I have really come to appreciate and love the woody characters. I am still in total awe as to what is in the terroir that has the ability to give cocoa beans vodka notes.

It is incredibly smooth without using cocoa butter. It has a fantastic creamy texture once it's opened up and melts beautifully. Alan McClure is a master at taming raw cocoa with little or no additives.

Final Score: 93.4

score
A-

L.A. Burdick ~ Venezuela 72%

Since there is virtually no information about this chocolate provided on their website and I have already written a little bit about Burdick's before, I will skip right to the technical marks.

It gets very frustrating not having specific information about these bars. A lot of chocolate websites are like this. I realize most people do not require the kind of information I am seeking for reviewing purposes, but chocolate is becoming a bigger hobby for more and more people. Knowing where the beans come from and the ingredients is at least the very basic information that could be provided.

There is  mention of them working with Grenada cacao and The Grenada Chocolate Co. This is fantastic news, as Grenada could use all the help they can get after Hurricane Emily came through and made a huge mess of the chocolate production. Also Grenada beans from what little I have experienced from the region is fantastic and very flavorful.

Why Grenada?

Grenada, a lush mountainous realm covered with fragrant spice trees and tropical flowers, is known as the “Spice Isle,” redolent in the scents of nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and vanilla. We would like it to be known as the “Cocoa Isle” as well – part of a “Golden Triangle” of cocoa production along with Trinidad and Venezuela.   Additionally, the island has thousands of independant farmers with intimate knowledge of the cocoa production process.

They use fertilizers and pesticides sparingly, if at all. Grenada, cocoa trees mostly grow in their natural, optimal state scattered amidst the fruit- and nut-bearing trees of the tropical forest. These are other reasons Burdick Chocolate has been so keen on making Granada cocoa a benchmark flavor in its bonbon assortment.

In visits over the past four years, we’ve established relationships with numerous small farmers and with the island’s cocoa growers association. We received our first shipment of cocoa from Grenada last year and now have a secure source of high-quality beans to work with, as well as for the consumer to enjoy. We then shipped the beans to a small, independently owned manufacturer in Switzerland, to have them processed into couverture from our recipes. Apart from adding to the evolving flavor of Burdick Chocolate, we'll be supporting sustainable agriculture and - in our own way - striving to make the world a better and tastier place.

But what region are the Venezuelan and Madagascar beans coming from? Who are they sourcing from?

L.A. Burdick's Venezuelan 72%


Type: Bittersweet, 72%

Bean Varietal: Unknown

Ingredients: Unknown

Sample Size: 3.5oz or 100g



Appearance: Smooth, simple, non-monogrammed molding, shiny, but a little matted from plastic.

Score: 92

Snap: Good, crisp snap. Clean break lines.

Score: 94

Aroma: Rich roasted cocoa, deep wood notes, a little peppery, ashy, musty, and deep berry notes.

Score: 95

Taste: A little inky and bitter, then sweet,a little waxy at first before opening up into rich roasted cocoa, berries, cedar wood, virtually no acidity or astringency.

Score: 94

Texture: Very smooth, a little creamy, medium melt time.

Score: 93

This is very good chocolate, very smooth. It takes a second to open up, but once it does it's fantastic. It has some big cedar notes which seemed to dominate the flavor. Sweet berries and rich roasted cocoa balance out the deep wood taste. Simple and fantastic.

Very smooth texture, very little acidic bitterness. Slightly creamy once it opens up and begins to melt.

It makes it much more of a shame that little information is provided about their chocolate bars. What region do these beans come from in Venezuela? Who are they sourcing their beans from? I am still learning about single origins. And while I can recognize some classic hallmarks, I am a long way from identifying specific regions.

Still, go to their shop or visit them online, order some of their unbelievably good truffles and order one of these bars. They are fantastic quality and no one seems to be talking about them except for me. See my side bar for the other reviews. They deserve some credit here. And they should be doing more to highlight that they have these fantastic bars.



Final Score: 93.6

score
A-

Amano ~ Montanya Limited Edition 70%

Amano Artisan Chocolate

Artwork by Cary Henrie. Image via Amano.

I have seen notes about cocoa beans from the Ocumare region of Venezuela, but have yet to experience these beans until now. They come from northern Venezuela in the mountain region.

This bar was sent to me from the Amano team. It was the last one I had to review in a set of 3 that they sent to me. With it was the Dos Rios, and the Guayas. The Dos Rios is to date the only bar of chocolate that has received a 100% score for the aroma. No other bar has yet to receive a 100% in any category.

[Images via travelmarcelo.com, Tourismodeplaya.com, and Jaime Perez via fotopaisis.com]




Flavor profiles and general descriptions via The Nibble:

•Criollo & Trinitario •Sharp •Spicy, peaches, red fruits •Dairy

Ocumare 61. Originally from the Ocumare de la Costa valley; Criollo and Trinitario hybridized blend. This cacao is gentle and light, but it still possesses a slight acidic punch. Flavors can vary, but most often, it yields earthy spiciness, peaches, red fruits and fresh dairy.

•Criollo & Trinitario •Darker, robust •Cashews, peanuts •Spice, pepper

Ocumare 67. Originally from the Ocumare de la Costa valley, a Criollo and Trinitario hybridized blend. Interesting flavors of cashews, peanuts, spice, pepper, and sometimes dairy. The tone is a little darker than Ocumare 61 and it does not possess 61’s sharpness. It is more robust than 61 in overall character, with a heavier body.

Via Amano:

Product Details:

It is rare that cocoa is grown in the mountains, most all cocoa is grown in secluded valley's or in flat areas. This chocolate is made from cocoa beans that break this mold. The cocoa beans for Montanya come from deep with in the mountains of Venezuela. The only way to reach these secluded farms is either to hike or by horseback. Similarly, the cocoa beans are brought out by horseback after the farmers have carefully harvested, fermented, and dried the beans to bring out their most beautiful flavor. These rare cocoa beans produce a chocolate like no other with a complex deep and rich flavor that is sure to make chocolate lovers swoon.

This chocolate is being released as a “Limited Edition” due to the rarity of the cocoa beans we use to produce it.

The Chocolate Maker's Notes:

When I discovered the cocoa beans that are being produced by a small group of farms deep in the mountains of Northern Venezuela, I was enchanted. The more I learned about these farms, the deeper my appreciation for them became.

There are few places in the world where cocoa is grown in the mountains and this is one of them. The heritage of the cocoa comes through Ocumare. In the 1940's, graftings were taken from Ocumare and brought to these remote farms. Since that time, much Trinitario (a variety of cocoa bean that has its roots in Trinidad) has been brought to Ocumare. It is very possible, these remote farms hold purer Ocumare than Ocumare itself does today.

In our small factory, just south of Salt Lake City, I tested a small batch of these beans and their flavor was incredible. From them, I made a small batch of chocolate. The instant I tasted them, I was in love with the deep complexity of flavor produced by these beans. This experience was shared by each person I shared them with. It was not long before I had brought these rare beans to our factory to turn them into chocolate.

There will be those who debate how much of Montanya's flavor comes from the cocoa bean's roots in the mountains of Venezuela. While altitude the soil and growing conditions unique to the mountains surely have a significant impact on the flavor of the finished chocolate. How much the altitude affects the flavor, it is impossible to say, there simply are too few places in the world where cocoa is grown in the mountains to make this kind of judgment. In the end, it simply does not matter. The flavor is enchantingly complex and it will create a passionate lover of this beautiful chocolate out of each person who tries it.

Art Pollard
Founder, Head Chocolate Maker

 

Montanya 70%


Type: Bittersweet, 70%

Bean Varietal: Hybrid, Trinitario

Ingredients: Cocoa beans, pure cane sugar, cocoa butter, whole vanilla beans.

Lot #: 3/4/69 or 314169

Sample Size: 2oz or 56g



Appearance: Simple square shaped bite size bits with monogrammed molding, deep brown color, muted and ashy (maybe the start of sugar bloom), and bit banged up.

Score: 83

Snap: Great snap. Crisp, loud, and firm. Clean break lines.

Score: 95

Aroma: Soft, sweet, pretty and perfume-y, deep berries, a tiny bit inky and slight hints of rubber, and sweet vanilla.

Score: 94

Taste: Intense flavor, very bitter and very sweet, deep roasted cocoa, big apricot notes, fruity with red wine grapes, slight hints of ink and tar.

Score: 96

Texture: Smooth, and soft, quick melt time.

Score: 94

One day I will get an Amano bar that is shiny and beautiful. I desperately want to give their bars good marks for appearance, but for all the bars I have tried from them, they all have this beat up look to them. This one also had what looks to be the start of some sugar bloom happening to it. I think that coupled with some banged up edges made for an ashy, tarnished appearance. It makes me kind of angry because this chocolate was fantastic. It deserves all the right marks. But I can't seem to get a decent appearance on these bars.

The aroma is completely disarming compared the bold and intense flavor. It's very delicate, sweet, soft, and perfume-y on the nose, and then you taste it and it's intensely bitter and yet very sweet to balance it. Bold fruit flavors, and hints of tar and ink. Very sexy and intriguing chocolate, it's stunningly good.

Very bold and fantastic chocolate. I am disappointed to give it a lower score. It deserves much higher, but I can't give it what it deserves based on the appearance.


Final Score: 92.4

score
B+