Review: Pralus Papouasie

Lindy's Rating: 6.5 (previously **)

Richard's Rating: 6.5 (previously **)

chocolate maker Pralus bar Papouasie region Papua New Guinea plantation (blend) cacao trees Trinitario year (unknown) size 100g ~ 3.5oz cocoa solids 75% added fat cocoa butter sweetener sugar emulsifier soy lecithin flavoring (none) other ingredients (none) list price €3,79

color dark brown PANTONE 19-1015 Bracken texture smooth with text imprint and scoring aroma earthy, musty, allspice snap hard taste smoky, sweet cinnamon, hint of orange melt smooth length short finish very slightly bitter

As suggested by the name of this bar, which is French for Papua, Francois Pralus's Papouasie is made from Trinitario cacao beans from Papua New Guinea.

Papouasie is another dark brown chocolate from Pralus, but Bracken in color rather than the Dark Red Brown of Le 100%. The appearance of the bar is otherwise quite similar to Le 100%, with identical scoring and imprint. This bar had a hard snap that caused tiny pieces of chocolate to flake off at the break, so it was slightly messy.

The aroma was earthy, which we later clarified as musty, along with the scent of allspice. Note that the musty aroma was not unpleasant at all, just the most specific description we thought of to reflect the earthy smell.

The taste of this bar was interesting. There was an overall smoky flavor, along with what Lindy identified as a sweet cinnamon with a hint of orange. We both liked the taste, though were disappointed that the flavor disappeared so quickly (short length). There was little finish, with only a very slight bitterness.

Ultimately, we both enjoyed this chocolate enough to add the bar to our respective top ten rankings.

Pralus Papouasie is available at Chocolopolis for $9.50.