Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Review: Dandelion Chocolate: Madagascar 70%, Costa Rica 70%, and Venezuela 70%

Dandelion Chocolate is a new U.S. bean to bar chocolate maker in East Palo Alto, California. Starting last year, Todd Masonis and Cameron Ring began hand-crafting single origin chocolates made with only two ingredients: 70% cacao beans and 30% sugar. At present, they make three chocolate bars: Madagascar, Costa Rica, and Venezuela.

Last week, I had the opportunity to try all three of these chocolates thanks to Lauren Adler of Chocolopolis bringing them back from the Fine Chocolate Industry Association meeting in Washington, D.C.

Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera, so I do not have any pictures to post. Also, I tasted each chocolate only once, so I apologize in advance for the brevity of a table summary for each. I've put all three mini-reviews together here in a single posting.

More recent complete reviews of each of these chocolates can be found here:

chocolate makerDandelion
barMadagascar
regionMadagascar
plantation(unknown)
cacao trees(unknown)
year2011
size56g ~ 2.0oz
cocoa solids70%
added fat(none)
sweetenersugar
emulsifier(none)
flavoring(none)
other ingredients(none)
list price$8.00

colormedium brown
texturesmooth with scoring
aromaearth, spice
snaphard
tastefruit (citrus, berry)
meltsmooth
lengthshort
finishvery slightly acidic


chocolate makerDandelion
barCosta Rica
regionCosta Rica
plantation(unknown)
cacao trees(unknown)
year2011
size56g ~ 2.0oz
cocoa solids70%
added fat(none)
sweetenersugar
emulsifier(none)
flavoring(none)
other ingredients(none)
list price$8.00

colormedium-dark brown
texturesmooth with scoring
aromaroast, earth (mold)
snaphard
tastesweet, roast (cocoa)
meltsmooth
lengthminimal
finishvery slightly bitter


chocolate makerDandelion
barVenezuela
regionVenezuela
plantation(unknown)
cacao trees(unknown)
year2011
size56g ~ 2.0oz
cocoa solids70%
added fat(none)
sweetenersugar
emulsifier(none)
flavoring(none)
other ingredients(none)
list price$8.00

colormedium-dark brown
texturesmooth with scoring
aromaroast, fruit
snaphard
tastesweet, berry, roast, fruit
meltsmooth
lengthshort
finishvery slightly bitter
Overall, I would rate the Madagascar 7.0, the Costa Rica 5.0, and the Venezuela 6.0. These chocolates were great for a first year production, and I look forward to tasting more chocolate from this promising new chocolate maker.

You can purchase Dandelion chocolate bars online for $8.00 each (or $20.00 for a set of all three bars) directly from Dandelion Chocolate.

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