Monday, November 28, 2011

Sale: 10% off all chocolate at World Wide Chocolate

World Wide Chocolate is having a cyber Monday sale today for 10% off all orders. Use coupon code 1day10-0 during checkout. This is a good deal for purchases under $25, as they usually require a purchase of at least $25 for 10% off.

Alternative offers include 20% off any combination of chocolate from Callebaut, Côte d'Or, and Guittard. For this discount, use coupon code SPECIAL20.

If you are interested in spending more on multiple chocolate brands, World Wide Chocolate also has other offers:
  • $10 off orders $60 or more: special10
  • 15% off orders $75 or more: 1day15-75
  • 20% off orders $250 or more: 1day20-250
  • 25% off orders $600 or more: 1day25-600

REMINDER: Only one coupon code is allowed per order.

Finally, there may still be a chance to get 5 free Valrhona chocolate squares with your order. Add "Free Valrhona Chocolate Squares" in the Comments field during checkout.

World Wide Chocolate only ships to United States, APO (military), and FPO (diplomatic) addresses. They do not seem to be offering free shipping today (typically available for orders of $150 or more). Shipping information can be found at World Wide Chocolate shipping policies.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Sale: 20% off Taza chocolate through Monday

Taza is running a sale today and tomorrow for 20% off everything at their online store.

On the Shopping Cart page, simply enter Take20M in the "Enter coupon or promotional code here:" field and press the SUBMIT button to apply the 20% discount.

This is the best deal I've seen from Taza, so now is the time to take advantage of the best prices of the year. The sale ends at 11:59 p.m. ET on Monday, November 28th.

Taza ships to the United States, Canada, and Europe. Additional shipping information can be found here.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Review: Taza Cacao Puro 70% Chocolate Mexicano

Lindy's Rating: 6.0
Richard's Rating: 6.0
chocolate makerTaza
barCacao Puro 70%
regionDominican Republic
plantation(blend)
cacao trees(unknown)
year(unknown)
size77g ~ 2.7oz
cocoa solids70%
added fat(none)
sweetenercane sugar
emulsifier(none)
flavoring(none)
other ingredients(none)
list price$4.50
colormedium brown
PANTONE 19-1015
Bracken
texturesmooth with scoring and letter imprints
aromaearth, fruit (berry, citrus, lime), wine, spice, roast
snaphard
tastesweet, fruit (berry), earth
meltgrainy
lengthmedium
finishslightly sweet
Taza crafted its Chocolate Mexicano line with cacao beans and cane sugar. Cacao Puro had no other ingredients. (The other nine chocolates in this line were flavored, mostly with spices). Cacao Puro was a single origin chocolate from the Dominican Republic.

The chocolate was made with 70% cocoa beans and 30% cane sugar. Cacao Puro was USDA certified organic. Taza had a direct trade arrangement with La Red in the Dominican Republic where they sourced the beans. The cacao beans were stone ground once by themselves and then a second time with the sugar.

The bars of Taza's Chocolate Mexicano line were formed into round discs (as pictured above), and two were included in the package. Each disc was scored into 8 pieces and each piece had an imprint of one letter of the Taza name. The bar came wrapped only in wax paper that was held closed with an informational sticker (ingredients, bar code, etc.). In addition to being an eating chocolate, Chocolate Mexicano can also be made into drinking chocolate by whisking it into hot liquid. There was neither a production date nor a best before date on the wrapper or sticker.

Cacao Puro had a medium-dark brown Bracken (PANTONE 19-1015) color. Its surface was smooth (and had no bubbles, unlike the Stone Ground line). The disc had a hard snap.

The chocolate had aromas of earth, fruit, and spice. We experienced the fruit as berry and citrus, and Lindy was able to clarify the citrus scent as lime. She also smelled some wine. A roast aroma was also present for me.

The taste of Cacao Puro was relatively simple: sweet and berry fruit. I also tasted some earth, but it was secondary to the pleasant sweet berry flavor.

The melt was grainy, as expected from a stone grind. The chocolate had a medium length, with the flavor lasting between 20 and 30 seconds after the chocolate was gone. The finish was slightly sweet.

You can purchase Taza Cacao Puro 70% online for $4.50 directly from Taza.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Ranking: best Colombia single origin chocolate

In a head to head comparison, I retasted the five single origin chocolate bars made from Colombia cacao that were on our Best Chocolates Overall list (i.e., those with average ratings of 7.0 or higher).

Although I personally preferred the flavor of Santander Colombian 70% to that of Santander Colombian 65%, I felt the latter had a slightly more interesting taste and less tannin in the finish, so I ranked it higher. Similarly, Guittard Chucuri was too sweet for me and I personally would buy Pralus Colombie before it, but I found Chucuri's aroma and flavor to be a bit more complex than that of Colombie. In any case, my final ranking was:

  1. Domori Teyuna
  2. Santander Colombian 65%
  3. Santander Colombian 70%
  4. E. Guittard Chucuri
  5. Francois Pralus Colombie
Notes
Clicking on a name above will take you to the detailed review of that chocolate bar.
To see updated information and other rankings, go to our Chocolate Rankings page.

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Review: Taza Stone Ground 60%

Lindy's Rating: 6.5
Richard's Rating: 6.5
chocolate makerTaza
barStone Ground 60%
regionDominican Republic
plantation(blend)
cacao treesTrinitario,
Criollo
year2011
size85g ~ 3.0oz
cocoa solids60%
added fatcocoa butter
sweetenercane sugar
emulsifier(none)
flavoringvanilla
other ingredients(none)
list price$6.50
colormedium brown
PANTONE 19-1015
Bracken
texturesmooth with scoring and lines, surface bubbles
aromaearth (must), fruit (berry, tropical fruit), roast (cocoa, hint of coffee), sweet
snapmedium hard
tastesweet (caramel), fruit (tropical fruit, berry), roast
meltgrainy
lengthmedium
finishslightly sweet
Stone Ground 60% is another single origin bar from the Dominican Republic made by Taza. The cacao beans, from La Red cooperative, were a mix of Trinitario and Criollo.

The chocolate was made with 60% cocoa solids (cacao beans plus some cocoa butter made from the same beans), Wholesome Sweeteners cane sugar from Sertãozinho, Brazil, and Villa Vanilla Spice Plantation vanilla beans from Villanueva, Costa Rica. Taza ground the beans using granite stone mills and did not conch the chocolate. The bar was certified organic by the USDA. Taza has a direct trade relationship with La Red.

The three ounce bar was scored into 16 pieces, each imprinted with three parallel lines, in the same form as the rest of Taza's Stone Ground line. It came wrapped in silver foil-sided paper inside a textured paper sleeve. The sleeve of the bar we reviewed had a large orange sticker labeled with batch number 475. There was no best before date, but by entering batch number 475 on their home page, you can see information about how that batch of chocolate was made. For example, the beans were roasted within two months after they were received, for a total of 46 minutes at a maximum temperature of 239°F. The bars of this batch of chocolate were wrapped on 30 August 2011.

The color of Stone Ground 60% was a medium brown Bracken (PANTONE 19-1015). Its surface was mostly smooth, with several bubbles. The bar had a medium hard snap.

Stone Ground 60% had aromas of a dry earthy must, fruit in the forms of berry and tropical fruit, and a cocoa roast. I also smelled a bit of coffee in the roast.

In addition to the obvious sweet flavor that Lindy identified as caramel, we tasted strong tropical fruit and berry flavors. I also experienced some roast.

The melt was grainy, as you would expect from a stone grind. The flavor lasted between 20 and 30 seconds after the chocolate was gone, giving it a medium length. The final aftertaste was slightly sweet.

You can purchase Taza Stone Ground 60% online for $6.50 directly from Taza.

Friday, November 18, 2011

Review: Taza Stone Ground 70%

Lindy's Rating: 8.5
Richard's Rating: 8.0
chocolate makerTaza
barStone Ground 70%
regionDominican Republic
plantation(blend)
cacao treesTrinitario,
Criollo
year2011
size85g ~ 3.0oz
cocoa solids70%
added fatcocoa butter
sweetenercane sugar
emulsifier(none)
flavoringvanilla
other ingredients(none)
list price$6.50
colormedium brown
PANTONE 19-1015
Bracken
texturesmooth with scoring and lines, surface bubbles
aromaearth, fruit (orange, berry), bubblegum, roast, sweet, floral
snapmedium hard
tastesweet, bubblegum, wine, fruit, floral
meltgrainy
lengthmedium
finishvery slightly sweet
Taza made their single origin Stone Ground 70% with a mix of Trinitario and Criollo cacao beans from La Red de Comercializacion Loma Guacanejo cooperative of the Dominican Republic.

The chocolate was made with 70% cocoa solids (cacao beans plus some cocoa butter made from the same beans), Zucc cane sugar from Sertãozinho, Brazil, and vanilla beans from Villa Vanilla Spice Plantation in Villanueva, Costa Rica. Taza ground the beans using granite stone mills and did not conch the chocolate. The bar was certified organic by the USDA. Taza has a direct trade relationship with La Red.

The three ounce bar was scored into 16 pieces, each imprinted with three parallel lines, in the same form as the rest of Taza's Stone Ground line. It came wrapped in silver foil-sided paper inside a textured paper sleeve. The sleeve of the bar we reviewed had a large orange sticker labeled with batch number 484. There was no best before date, but by entering batch number 484 on their home page, you can see information about how that batch of chocolate was made. For example, the beans were roasted within three months after they were received, for a total of 47 minutes at a maximum temperature of 238°F. The bars of this batch of chocolate were wrapped on 23 September 2011.

Stone Ground 70% had a medium brown Bracken (PANTONE 19-1015) color. Its surface was mostly smooth, with several bubbles. The bar had a medium hard snap.

The aroma of this chocolate was interesting, with scents of earth, an orange fruit with berry or cherry, bubblegum -- yes, bubblegum, roast, and sweet. Lindy also noticed a floral scent.

We tasted the same sweet bubblegum that we experienced in the aroma. Other flavors included wine and fruit, or as Lindy described it: a flavor midway between the two. She also tasted something floral.

The melt was grainy, as you would expect from a stone grind. The flavor lasted between 20 and 25 seconds after the chocolate was gone, giving it a medium length. The final aftertaste was very slightly sweet, almost minimal.

You can purchase Taza Stone Ground 70% online for $6.50 directly from Taza.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Review: Taza Stone Ground 80%

Lindy's Rating: 6.0
Richard's Rating: 6.0

chocolate makerTaza
barStone Ground 80%
regionDominican Republic
plantation(blend)
cacao treesTrinitario,
Criollo
year2011
size85g ~ 3.0oz
cocoa solids80%
added fatcocoa butter
sweetenercane sugar
emulsifier(none)
flavoringvanilla
other ingredients(none)
list price$6.50

colormedium-dark brown
PANTONE 19-1015
Bracken
texturesmooth with scoring and lines, surface bubbles
aromasour, roast (cocoa), earth, fruit (citrus, berry, blueberry), sweet, spice
snapmedium hard
tastefruit (berry), sweet, wine, port, sour
meltgrainy
lengthshort
finishslightly sour, very slightly acidic
Stone Ground 80% is a single origin bar made with a combination of primarily Trinitario cacao beans and some Criollo cacao beans, all sourced with direct trade from La Red de Comercializacion Loma Guacanejo cooperative in the Dominican Republic. The chocolate was made with 80% cocoa solids (cacao beans plus some cocoa butter made from the same beans), cane sugar from Sertãozinho, Brazil, and vanilla beans from Villa Vanilla Spice Plantation in Villanueva, Costa Rica. Taza ground the beans using granite stone mills and did not conch the chocolate. The bar was certified organic by the USDA.

As with all of the bars in their Stone Ground line, this three ounce bar was scored into 16 pieces, each imprinted with three parallel lines. Stone Ground 80% came wrapped in silver foil-sided paper inside a textured paper sleeve. The sleeve of the bar we reviewed had a large orange sticker labeled with batch number 487. There was no best before date, but by entering batch number 487 on their home page, you can see information about how that batch of chocolate was made. For example, the beans were roasted within three months after they were received, for a total of 48 minutes at 237°F. The bars of this batch of chocolate were wrapped on 28 September 2011.

Stone Ground 80% had a medium-dark brown Bracken color (PANTONE 19-1015). Its surface was mostly smooth, with slight scuffing and several bubbles (much less substantial than on Stone Ground 87%). The bar had a medium hard snap.

Initially after breaking the chocolate, we received a sour aroma, quickly followed by scents of roast, earth, and fruit. The roast was cocoa and the fruit was a combination of citrus and berry. Lindy identified some blueberry in addition to the generic berry scent. We also smelled sweet and spice.

The taste of Stone ground 80% was sweet with a berry fruit flavor. I tasted a red wine flavor and Lindy tasted port. We also both experienced some sourness, which was a good contrast to the sweetness.

This chocolate had the expected grainy melt from a stone grind. The flavor lasted about 15 seconds after the chocolate was gone, giving it a short length. The final aftertaste was slightly sour and very slightly acidic.

You can purchase Taza Stone Ground 80% online for $6.50 directly from Taza.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Review: Taza Stone Ground 87%

Lindy's Rating: 5.5
Richard's Rating: 5.0

chocolate makerTaza
barStone Ground 87%
regionBolivia
plantation(blend)
cacao treesCriollo,
Forastero
year2011
size85g ~ 3.0oz
cocoa solids87%
added fat(none)
sweetenercane sugar
emulsifier(none)
flavoringvanilla
other ingredients(none)
list price$6.50

colormedium-dark brown
PANTONE 19-1015
Bracken
texturesmooth with scoring and lines, surface bubbles
aromaroast (cocoa), earth, spice, sweet, hint of floral
snapmedium hard
tasteroast (cocoa), sour, bitter, nut, hint of butter, hint of sweet
meltgrainy
lengthshort
finishslightly sour
Taza introduced their Stone Ground 87% chocolate bar this year. It is a single origin bar with a combination of Criollo and Forastero cacao from Bolivia. The chocolate was made with 87% cacao beans, cane sugar from Sertãozinho, Brazil, and vanilla beans from Villa Vanilla Spice Plantation in Villanueva, Costa Rica. No cocoa butter was added. Taza ground the beans using granite stone mills and did not conch the chocolate.

As they have done with all of their suppliers, Taza established a direct trade relationship with Central Integral Agroecologica de Alto Beni cooperative in Bolivia, from whom they sourced the cacao beans for this chocolate. The bar was USDA certified organic.

The three ounce bar was scored into 16 pieces, each topped with three imprinted parallel lines. Stone Ground 87% came wrapped in silver foil-sided paper inside a textured paper sleeve. The wrapper was stamped with batch code 473 and a best before date of 22 August 2012.

By entering the batch number on their home page, you can see information about how that particular chocolate was made. For example, the beans for the bar we reviewed were roasted within two months after they were received, for 45 minutes at 276°F. The bars of this batch of chocolate were wrapped on 23 August 2011 (revealing that Taza recommends eating their chocolate within one year after production).

The color of the chocolate was a medium-dark brown Bracken (PANTONE 19-1015). The surface was mostly smooth, but had several bubbles, including a few substantial ones. The bar had a medium hard snap.

Stone Ground 87% had an aroma that included a rich cocoa roast, with earth, spice and sweetness. I also smelled a suggestion of something floral.

The taste of this chocolate was primarily that of a sour roast. Both of us found it slightly bitter. I tasted additional flavors of nut as well as a hints of butter and sweetness.

As desired for a stone ground chocolate, Stone Ground 87% had a grainy melt. The length was short, with the flavor lasting 15 to 20 seconds after the chocolate was gone. The finish was slightly to somewhat sour.

You can purchase Taza Stone Ground 87% online for $6.50 directly from Taza.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Maker Profile: Taza Chocolate

company nameTaza Chocolate
websitehttp://www.tazachocolate.com/
emailinfo@tazachocolate.com
chocolate makers
Alex Whitmore
Mike Schechter

factory location561 Windsor St,
Somerville, MA 02143
factory tours$5 per person
click here for more information
direct online purchaseTaza
direct storesTaza Factory Store
561 Windsor St,
Somerville, MA 02143
(617) 284-2232
retail store purchaseTaza retail store finder
selling bars since2006
plantation barsnone
single origin bars Cacao Puro Mexicano 70% (Dominican Republic)
Stone Ground 87% (Bolivia)
Stone Ground 80% (Dominican Republic)
Stone Ground 70% (Dominican Republic)
Stone Ground 60% (Dominican Republic)
Wicked Dark (Dominican Republic)
blend barsnone
other barsnine single origin flavored Chocolate Mexicano bars
production cyclebean to bar
added fatcocoa butter from same cacao beans
sweetenercane sugar
flavoringvanilla bean
emulsifiernone
organicall bars USDA certified
sustainablezero percent waste, local bike delivery, carbon neutral shipping, etc.
economicsdirect trade
last updatedNovember 15, 2011

From their website: "Taza Chocolate was born out of a desire to combine the Mesoamerican tradition of chocolate with a modern, high-quality product manufactured in a socially responsible way."

Taza makes chocolate using granite millstones to stone grind their cacao beans and they do not conch their chocolate, resulting in a grainy texture and unrefined flavors. The cocoa butter they use is from the same cacao beans. Taza does not use an emulsifier in their chocolate. All of their ingredients are certified USDA organic and grown using sustainable agricultural practices.

They have built direct trade agreements with the suppliers of their cacao beans. Their primarily suppliers are the La Red Guacanejo cooperative and Finca El Vesia in the Dominican Republic. This year, Taza also sourced cacao from the Central Integral Agroecologica de Alto Beni cooperative in Bolivia and they are in the process of expanding and diversifying their cacao suppliers.

Taza pays at least $500 per metric ton above market price in exchange for quality cacao beans with at least 95% fermentation and a maximum of 7% moisture. They are quite open about the details of their direct trade practices and document them on their website. Taza published an Annual Cacao Sourcing Transparency Report in September.

In addition to disclosing information about their suppliers, Taza generously shares information about how each batch of chocolate was made. On their home page, you can type in the batch number from the back of the wrapper and Taza displays where the cacao beans and other ingredients came from, when the beans arrived, roasting details including temperature and time, grinding date, etc.

The company was founded by Alex Whitmore (pictured above), Larry Slotnick, and Kathleen Fulton. Mike Schechter joined Taza in 2007 and took over for Alex as head chocolate maker. You can read more about the people of Taza in the About Us section of their website.

Taza has its factory and store in Somerville, Massachusetts, just northwest of Boston. They give public factory tours (with sample chocolate) nearly every day for $5, and you can purchase chocolate at the factory store. You can buy directly from Taza online, and Taza chocolates are found in many retail stores.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Chocolate Rankings page added

In the past, we've done a few head-to-head comparison tastings of different chocolate categories and labeled them with ranking label.

To make these more accessible, we've put a summary of the ones so far on a permanent Chocolate Rankings page. As we do additional comparative tastings (e.g., other single origins), we'll add them to the permanent page, as well as post to the blog.

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Review: E. Guittard Chucuri

Lindy's Rating: 7.0
Richard's Rating: 7.5

chocolate makerGuittard
barChucuri
regionColombia
plantation(blend)
cacao treesTrinitario
year(unknown)
size57g ~ 2.0oz
cocoa solids65%
added fatcocoa butter
sweetenercane sugar
emulsifiersoy lecithin
flavoringvanilla
other ingredients(none)
list price$3.89

colormedium brown
PANTONE 19-1317
Bitter Chocolate
texturesmooth with signature imprints and scoring
aromasweet, roast (smoke), floral, hint of vanilla
snaphard
tastesweet (butterscotch), floral (rose), herbal (mint), tannin, fruit (melon), hint of nut
meltsmooth
lengthmedium
finishtannin
E. Guittard made single origin Chucuri with Trinitario cacaco beans from the San Vicente de Chucuri Valley in Santander, Colombia. This chocolate had 65% cocoa solids (including added cocoa butter) and additional ingredients of cane sugar, soy lecithin, and vanilla beans.

This two ounce bar was scored into 12 pieces, each with the E. Guittard signature imprint. The chocolate came wrapped in brassy-colored foil inside a paper cover. The best before date on the wrapper of the bar we reviewed was April 2012.

Chucuri had a medium brown Bitter Chocolate (PANTONE 19-1317) color. The surface was smooth, with a few tiny bubbles. The bar had a hard snap. The aroma of this chocolate was sweet, with a smoky roast and obvious floral scents. I also smelled a hint of vanilla.

The taste of Chucuri first gave us a butterscotch sweetness. We tasted an unusual rose floral flavor, along with a herbal mint. Lindy also noticed tannin, and I experienced a melon flavor and a slight nuttiness.

The melt was smooth. The flavor lasted 25 to 30 seconds after the chocolate was gone, giving it a medium length. Lindy tasted a flash of bitterness before the finish. The final aftertaste for both of us was tannin.

Overall, while not as wonderful as the magnificent Colombia bars of Santander or Domori Teyuna, Chucuri is a good single origin chocolate from that area and better than Pralus Colombie.

You can purchase Guittard Chucuri online for $3.89 directly from Guittard or for $3.35 from Chocosphere.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Review: E. Guittard Ambanja 65%

Lindy's Rating: 7.5
Richard's Rating: 8.0

chocolate makerGuittard
barAmbanja
regionMadagascar
plantation(blend)
cacao treesCriollo,
(unknown)
year(unknown)
size57g ~ 2.0oz
cocoa solids72%
added fatcocoa butter
sweetenercane sugar
emulsifiersoy lecithin
flavoringvanilla
other ingredients(none)
list price$3.89

colorlight brown
PANTONE 19-1431
Fudgesickle
texturesmooth with signature imprints and scoring, slightly uneven sheen
aromaearth, spice (clove), roast (cocoa), coconut, vanilla
snaphard
tastesweet (brown sugar, honey), blueberry, orange, spice, roast, earth
meltsmooth
lengthmedium
finishsweet, slightly sour, slightly tart
Ambanja is a single origin bar made by U.S. chocolate maker E. Guittard. It was made with a mix of Criollo and other cacao beans from the Sambirano Valley of Madagascar. Ambanja had 65% cocoa solids (cacao beans and cocoa butter); the other ingredients were cane sugar, soy lecithin, and vanilla beans.

This two ounce bar was scored into 12 pieces, each with an E. Guittard signature imprint. The chocolate came wrapped in brassy-colored foil inside a paper cover. The best before date on the wrapper was October 2012.

The color of Ambanja was a surprisingly light brown Fudgesickle color (PANTONE 19-1431), almost as if it were a milk chocolate. The surface was smooth, with some slight differences in sheen. Those differences appear more dramatic in the photo above than they were in person. The bar had a hard snap.

This chocolate had a strong earth aroma, but with other scents as well. We smelled a spice that I experienced as clove, a roast in the form of cocoa, a scent of coconut, and vanilla.

Ambanja had sweet flavors of brown sugar and honey, but the strongest flavor became blueberry as the chocolate melted. Adding complexity were an orange and a mixed spice. Note that the orange wasn't a citrus fruit, but more like an extract. I also tasted roast and earth.

The melt was smooth. The flavor lasted about 30 seconds after the chocolate was gone, giving it a medium length. The finish was sweet and slightly sour, and after a few minutes the final aftertaste was slightly tart as well.

You can purchase Guittard Ambanja online for $3.89 directly from Guittard or for $3.35 from Chocosphere.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Review: E. Guittard Quetzalcoatl 72%


Lindy's Rating: 5.5
Richard's Rating: 6.0

chocolate makerGuittard
barQuetzalcoatl
region(unknown)
plantation(blend)
cacao trees(unknown)
year(unknown)
size57g ~ 2.0oz
cocoa solids72%
added fat(none)
sweetenercane sugar
emulsifiersoy lecithin
flavoringvanilla
other ingredients(none)
list price$2.89

colormedium-dark brown
PANTONE 19-1015
Bracken
texturesmooth with signature imprints and scoring
aromaroast (cocoa, smoke), sweet, vanilla, hint of floral
snaphard
tastesweet, vanilla, roast (cocoa)
meltsmooth
lengthshort
finishslightly bitter, slightly chalky
United States bean to bar chocolate maker E. Guittard makes both single origin and blend chocolates. Quetzalcoatl, named for the feathered serpent god who brought us chocolate, was made from a blend of cacao beans and is the only chocolate Guittard makes without added cocoa butter. The ingredients were 72% cacao beans, cane sugar, soy lecithin, and vanilla beans.

The bar was the standard two ounce size of Guittard's chocolates. It was scored into 12 pieces, each with an imprint of the E. Guittard signature. The chocolate was wrapped in brassy-colored foil and enclosed in a paper cover. The best before date on the chocolate we reviewed was April 2013.

Quetzalcoatl had a medium-dark brown Bracken color (PANTONE 19-1015). The surface was smooth, with only a little scuffing. The bar had a hard snap.

We both smelled aromas of roast, sweetness and vanilla. The roast was primarily cocoa, but also included clear scents of smoke. Lindy clarified the vanilla aroma to be vanilla bean. I also noticed the suggestion of something floral. As for taste, this chocolate had a straightforward and simple flavor profile: it tasted sweet, with flavors of vanilla and cocoa roast.

The melt was smooth and Quetzalcoatl had a short length, with the flavor lasting 10 to 15 seconds after the chocolate was gone. The finish was slightly bitter and slightly chalky.

Overall, this chocolate wasn't particularly interesting, but it was better than most comparable mainstream bars, such as Ghirardelli, Godiva, Green and Black's, and Lindt.

You can purchase Guittard Quetzalcoatl online for $2.89 directly from Guittard or for $2.50 from Chocosphere.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Chocolate Bar Reviews now directly accessible

I put together a permanent index page (like a site map for chocolate bar reviews), with small pictures and links to all of the chocolate bars we've reviewed. It is organized alphabetically by chocolate maker. This page can be accessed by the Chocolate Bar Reviews link in the Pages section on the top right.

In addition to those bars we've already reviewed, I've included placeholders for bars that we expect to review in the next month or two (review coming soon) as well as those we do not yet know when we'll review (not reviewed).

I also have yet to add some of the new chocolate makers we met at the Northwest Chocolate Festival. I anticipate adding them to that page this weekend.

Finally, I hope you enjoyed our first chocolate maker profile (of Kallari). I hope to post a few more of them before the month is over.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Sale: 20% off Michel Cluizel and 5 free Venchi squares

This week World Wide Chocolate has 20% off Michel Cluizel and Lindt chocolate (through November 14th). Twenty percent off Michel Cluizel is a good deal, but you can frequently find Lindt priced lower on sale in retail stores. Use coupon code SPECIAL20 during checkout for this 20% discount.

As a bonus treat during checkout, the first 30 buyers to add "Free Venchi Chocolate Squares" in the Comments field will receive 5 free bite-size 3 gram chocolate squares of Venchi chocolate. That giveaway ends today, but they are also running a free t-shirt giveaway for the first 100 buyers who add "Free T-Shirt" in the Comments field (ends November 14th). Only one giveaway per order.

World Wide Chocolate has some additional promotions available, but none are especially compelling.

REMINDER: Only one coupon code is allowed per order.

World Wide Chocolate only ships to United States, APO (military), and FPO (diplomatic) addresses. Full information can be found at World Wide Chocolate shipping policies.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Review: Francois Pralus Indonésie

Lindy's Rating: 7.5
Richard's Rating: 7.5

chocolate makerPralus
barIndonésie
regionIndonesia
plantation(blend)
cacao treesCriollo
year(unknown)
size100g ~ 3.5oz
cocoa solids75%
added fatcocoa butter
sweetenersugar
emulsifiersoy lecithin
flavoring(none)
other ingredients(none)
list price€4,00

colormedium-dark brown
PANTONE 19-1317
Bitter Chocolate
texturescuffed, but otherwise smooth with text imprint and scoring
aromaroast (smoke), earth, overripe fruit
snaphard
tasteroast (cocoa), fruit (cherry, cranberry, citrus), tart, hint of sweet
meltmore smooth
lengthmedium
finishslightly sour, very slightly acidic
Indonésie is another single origin chocolate bar from French chocolate maker Francois Pralus. The Criollo cacao beans for this chocolate came from from the island of Java in Indonesia. The chocolate was made with 75% cocoa solids (including added cocoa butter), sugar and soy lecithin, as is typical of Pralus.

The 100 gram bar was formed into the traditional Pralus shape: a thick bar with a cursive Pralus imprint in the unscored bottom right quadrant and the rest scored into 24 pieces. The bar was then wrapped with gold foil and enclosed in a paper cover. The best before date on the chocolate we reviewed was 18 March 2013.

The color of the chocolate was a medium-dark brown Bitter Chocolate (PANTONE 19-1317). The surface was smooth, but very scuffed. The bar had a hard snap. Aromas from Indonésie included a smoky roast, earthiness, the scent of overripe fruit. The earthy smell was strongest. We couldn't quite nail down the overripe fruit: I thought it might be melon with a hint of cherry; Lindy thought it might be a pit fruit.

Indonésie tasted initially of a cocoa roast. I also noticed a bit of coffee in the roast. It was soon followed by unfolding fruits: we both experienced cherry, Lindy detected some additional red fruit, I tasted some cranberry and citrus. Flavors of tartness and a hint of sweetness were also present.

The melt was better than usual, and came in as more smooth. The length was medium, with the chocolate flavor lasting 20-25 seconds after the chocolate was gone. The final aftertaste was slightly sour and very slightly acidic.

You can purchase Francois Pralus Indonésie online for €4,00 directly from Pralus. The best deal online in the U.S. is for $7.99 at Chocolopolis. In the U.K., you can buy it online for £5.25 from Chocolate Trading Co.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Why are good beans so hard to get?

One of the more interesting topics of discussion at the Northwest Chocolate Festival was the difficulty for chocolate makers to get high quality cacao beans. Unfortunately, the quality problem was not due to any single cause. The primary issue, though, seemed to be the existing structure of financial compensation for farming cacao.

Commoditization
Nearly all cacao is sold based on commodity exchange market prices per metric ton (or tonne) of beans (recently around $2700), with a premium of $0 to $160 per ton based on origin. However, in the cacao market, the premium is not based on quality, but rather on consistency. Thus, traditionally high volume and low-quality cacao bean markets such as the Ivory Coast and Ghana are given the highest $160 premium.

As I explained in Chocolate Labeling Revisited, Fair Trade typically only adds about 5% to the price, and again such deals do not consider the quality of the cacao beans. The beans are simply a commodity.

Thus, the typical financial incentive for cacao farmers is simply to produce as much as possible, regardless of the bean quality.

Hybrids
So, what's a farmer to do when a hybrid cacao comes along that is twice as productive as their existing trees? CCN51 is such a hybrid, and it seems to make financial sense to plant it. When some disastrous weather ruined large numbers of cacao trees in Ecuador in 1997-98, many farmers replanted with CCN51. Planted near other cacao, cross-pollination occurs with existing trees. Touted as twice as productive with the same quality, CCN51 lives up to the former, but fails at the latter. It is now prevalent in Ecuador, Peru, and Colombia, and there are new hybrids on the horizon that may increase yields by a factor of four over heirloom cacao.

Not only does CCN51 cacao have worse flavor than heirloom cacao, but it also has different fermentation times and destabilizes the land. CCN51 requires a longer fermentation time than the heirloom cacao with which it is often grown, fermented and dried. As a result, something has to suffer: the CCN51 ends up underfermented, the heirloom cacao overfermented, or sometimes both!

The biggest problem for the farmer, though, is that the higher productivity of CCN51 has a cost: it depletes the soil after about 8 years. Much of the extra income from CCN51 then needs to be spent on fertilizing (and that can be especially problematic for less accessible farms) and organic homeostasis is over.

Prices
Once artisan chocolate makers find great cacao beans, they pay a much higher premium to ensure they get the beans they want. Chuao and Porcelana beans typically cost around 400% of the market price for generic cacao.

At those prices, farmers can earn a good living with lower yield cacao. However, even most other quality cacao is sold for much less, and the lower prices may not be sufficient to incentivize farmers to continue to grow heirloom cacao. Alternatives include planting higher yielding cacao, growing other crops instead of cacao, or quitting farming altogether. On many farms, other crops, such as plantains, are already grown alongside cacao.

Fermentation and Drying
Great genetic heritage alone, though, isn't sufficient for getting quality beans. The cacao beans must be properly fermented and dried as well. Many makers are actively involved with the process and help educate their suppliers to improve fermentation and drying of their cacao beans. The chocolate experts at the Northwest Chocolate Festival were generally positive that improvements in fermentation and drying are occurring throughout the industry, even with mainstream cacao.

Conclusion
Of course, cacao farmers are not motivated solely by money. As a general rule, they love their farms and care about their trees. However, when financial incentives are aligned against growing quality cacao and instead encourage increasing yields, it is more difficult for heirloom cacao farmers to make a decent living.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Sale: 20% off Guittard and 5 free chocolate squares

This week World Wide Chocolate has 20% off Guittard and Godiva chocolate (through November 7th). Twenty percent off Guittard is a good deal, but you can frequently find Godiva priced lower on sale in retail stores. Use coupon code SPECIAL20 during checkout for this 20% discount.

As a bonus treat during checkout, the first 30 buyers to add "Free Venchi Chocolate Squares" in the Comments field will receive 5 free bite-size 3 gram chocolate squares of Venchi chocolate.

World Wide Chocolate has some additional promotions available, but none are especially compelling.

REMINDER: Only one coupon code is allowed per order.

World Wide Chocolate only ships to United States, APO (military), and FPO (diplomatic) addresses. Full information can be found at World Wide Chocolate shipping policies.

Congratulations to Jen H!

Jen H was the lucky winner of two free tickets to the New York Chocolate Show.

Thanks to everyone who emailed us to enter.