Review: Francois Pralus Madagascar

Lindy's Rating: 8.0 (previously ***)

Richard's Rating: 8.0 (previously ***)

chocolate maker Pralus bar Madagascar region Madagascar plantation (blend) cacao trees Criollo 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 €4,00

color medium brown PANTONE 19-1526 Dark Red Brown texture smooth with text imprint and scoring aroma fruit (red berry, hint of citrus), roast (cocoa), earth, spice (pepper) snap medium hard taste roast (cocoa, coffee), fruit (red berry, citrus), sweet, nut melt smooth length short finish slightly acidic

Pralus Madagascar is a single origin bar made from Criollo cacao beans. It was made of 75% cocoa solids, with sugar, added cocoa butter, and soy lecithin. The chocolate was certified organic by the French Agence Bio.

As usual for Pralus, the bar was packaged in a paper wrapper over gold foil-covered chocolate. The 100 gram bar we reviewed had a best before date of 27 January 2012.

The bar was scored into 24 small pieces and one large piece (that is the same size as 8 small ones) with the "Pralus" imprint. The color of the chocolate was a medium brown Dark Red Brown (PANTONE 19-1526). It had a medium hard snap.

Madagascar had a wonderful collection of aromas: fruit consisting mostly of red berry, but also a bit of citrus, roast in the form of cocoa, a spice that was primarily pepper, and some earthiness.

As Lindy put it, Madagascar "tastes like it smells", with fruit and roast flavors nearly identical to their aroma. The fruit flavor was a combination of red berry and citrus (the citrus was relatively stronger in the flavor than the aroma) and the roast flavor was predominantly cocoa (but I also noticed some coffee). The chocolate tasted sweet to both of us and we also noticed a nutty flavor.

The chocolate had a smooth melt. The length was short, with the flavor lasting 10 to 15 seconds after the chocolate was gone. There was no bitterness in the aftertaste, giving only a slight acidity for the finish.

Both of us liked Madagascar and rated it a solid ***.

You can purchase Pralus Madagascar online directly from Pralus for €4,00, or from Chocolopolis for $7.99.

Review: Francois Pralus Djakarta

Lindy's Rating: 7.0 (previously ***)

Richard's Rating: 6.0 (previously **)

chocolate maker Pralus bar Djakarta region Ghana, Indonesia plantation (blend) cacao trees Criollo, Forastero?, 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 €4,00

color medium brown PANTONE 19-1317 Bitter Chocolate texture smooth with text imprint and scoring aroma earthy, roast (cocoa), sweet snap hard taste hint of bitter, roast (cocoa), fruit (apple, citrus), hint of dairy melt smooth length short finish slightly bitter

Despite its name, Pralus Djakarta is a mixed-origin bar from Ghana and Indonesia. The wrapper indicated the beans were a mixture of Trinitario and Criollo, but Pralus wrote on their website that Djakarta was made from a combination of Forastero and Criollo beans. The latter seems more likely, given Ghana as the origin of the non-Criollo beans.

Djakarta was made of 75% cocoa solids, with sugar, added cocoa butter, and soy lecithin. This bar was packaged as usual for Pralus chocolate bars: paper wrapper over gold foil-covered chocolate. The 100 gram bar we reviewed had a best before date of 3 February 2012.

The bar was scored into 24 small pieces and one large piece (that is the same size as 8 small ones) with the "Pralus" imprint. The color of the chocolate was a medium brown Bitter Chocolate (PANTONE 19-1317). It had a hard snap.

Djakarta had aromas of roast in form of cocoa, an earthiness, and some sweetness. The initial taste gave a slight bitterness, and then revealed the cocoa roast we smelled, along with some fruit flavors. Lindy identified apple and I found some citrus. I also noticed a hint of dairy.

The chocolate had a smooth melt. The flavor only lasted 10 to 15 seconds after the chocolate was gone, giving a short length. The aftertaste was slightly bitter.

Overall, Lindy described Djakarta as enjoyable to eat, and rated it a low ***. I found it somewhat less desirable and rated it a high **.

You can purchase Pralus Djakarta online directly from Pralus for €4,00, or from Chocolopolis for $7.99.

Sale: Domori 15% off, and many other brands, too

World Wide Chocolate is having a few sales through April 4th, including 15% off Domori and some other Italian chocolates, including L'Artigiano, Cuorenero, Maglio, Slitti and Venchi. For this discount, use coupon code ITALIAN15 during checkout.

They have several other chocolate brands on sale, including Côte d'Or, Lindt, Valor, and Zotter. Some of these sale prices are good; others are not particularly interesting. Here is the complete list of their special offers.

They also have two weekend specials:

• $10 off $40 order: WEEKEND10
• $20 off $100 order: WEEKEND20

as well as their more or less normal offers:

• 5% off all orders: 1day5-0
• 10% off orders over $25: 1day10-25
• 15% off orders over $40: 1day15-40
• 20% off orders over $275: 1day20-275
• 25% off orders over $750: 1day25-750

REMINDER: Only one coupon code is allowed per order.

World Wide Chocolate only ships to United States, APO (military), and FPO (diplomatic) addresses. Shipping is free on orders over $150. Full information can be found at World Wide Chocolate shipping policies.

Review: Moonstruck Venezuela

Lindy's Rating: 5.0 (previously **)

Richard's Rating: 5.0 (previously **)

chocolate maker Felchlin bar Venezuela region Venezuela plantation (blend) cacao trees (unknown) year (unknown) size 56g ~ 2.0oz cocoa solids 74% added fat cocoa butter sweetener cane sugar emulsifier (none) flavoring vanilla other ingredients (none) list price $7.50

color medium-dark brown PANTONE 19-1015 Bracken texture smooth with image imprint and scoring aroma earthy (musty), floral, sweet snap medium hard taste initial tart, fruit (citrus), sweet, earth melt smooth length short finish slightly astringent

Moonstruck Venezuela is the second single origin bar we've reviewed by this chocolatier. The bar was wrapped in silver foil inside a paper box with raised graphics. The best before date was August, 2012. The chocolate was made from 74% cocoa solids plus cane sugar, cocoa butter, and vanilla bean. The two ounce bar was scored into 15 pieces, each with an imprint of Moonstruck's crescent moon and flute player. The color of the chocolate was a medium-dark brown Bracken (PANTONE 19-1015). The bar had a medium-hard snap.

Venezuela had a musty earthy aroma similar to that of their Dominican Republic bar, but it also had floral and sweet scents. The chocolate had an initial tart taste, and then gradually revealed a fruit in the form of citrus and sweetness.

The melt was smooth. The flavor after the chocolate was gone lasted about 10 to 15 seconds, a short length. The finish was slightly astringent.

This chocolate bar won a silver medal at the 2010 Los Angeles Luxury Chocolate Salon.

You can purchase Venezuela online directly from Moonstruck for $7.50 or in person at one of their chocolate cafés or from one of their retail partners.

Review: Moonstruck Dominican Republic

Lindy's Rating: 5.0 (previously **)

Richard's Rating: 6.0 (previously **)

chocolate maker Felchlin bar Dominican Republic region Dominican Republic plantation (blend) cacao trees (unknown) year (unknown) size 56g ~ 2.0oz cocoa solids 72% added fat cocoa butter sweetener cane sugar emulsifier (none) flavoring vanilla other ingredients (none) list price $7.50

color medium-dark brown PANTONE 18-1314 Acorn texture smooth with image imprint and scoring aroma earthy (musty), hint of fruit snap medium hard taste initial cinnamon, sweet, fruit (berry, apple, melon, citrus, prune) melt less smooth length short finish slightly ashy, slightly acidic

Moonstruck Chocolatier is a small U.S. chocolatier in Portland, OR. In 2008, after 7 years at Barry Callebaut, Julian Rose joined the company as master chocolatier and head of research and development. Moonstruck makes a wide variety of chocolate products and has six chocolate cafés in the Portland area. They also sell a few chocolate bars, including four single-origin bars from the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and the famous Fortunato No.4 from Peru.

I spoke with a company representative and discovered they are not a bean to bar chocolate maker. I was forwarded to one of their press representatives to find out their chocolate maker, and am awaiting an answer. I'll update this post once I hear back from them.

Dominican Republic is a single origin bar. The chocolate was made from 72% cocoa solids plus cane sugar, cocoa butter, and vanilla bean. The bar was wrapped in silver foil inside a paper box with raised graphics. The best before date was August, 2012. The two ounce bar was scored into 15 pieces, each with an imprint of Moonstruck's crescent moon and flute player.

The color of the chocolate was a medium-dark brown Acorn (PANTONE 18-1314). The bar had a medium-hard snap that revealed an earthy aroma, which seemed primarily musty. I also smelled occasional hints of fruit.

Dominican Republic had an initial cinnamon flavor, followed by a sweetness and multiple fruit flavors. Lindy noticed berry and apple. I tasted berry, overripe melon, citrus, and prune.

The melt of this chocolate was less smooth. The length of the chocolate was the middle of short (with the flavor lasting roughly 15 seconds). The aftertaste was slightly ashy. I also found it slightly acidic, and Lindy described it as vaguely metallic.

In spite of the seemingly interesting flavors, neither Lindy nor I particularly liked the taste of this chocolate, and we both rated it **. Moonstruck Dominican Republic won a silver medal at the 2010 Los Angeles Luxury Chocolate Salon.

You can purchase Dominican Republic online directly from Moonstruck for $7.50 or in person at one of their chocolate cafés or from one of their retail partners.

Review: Bonnat Libânio Brésil

Richard's Rating: 8.0 (previously ***)

chocolate maker Bonnat bar Libânio region Brazil plantation (blend) cacao trees (unknown) year (unknown) size 100g ~ 3.5oz cocoa solids 75% added fat cocoa butter sweetener sugar emulsifier (none) flavoring (none) other ingredients (none) list price N/A

color medium-dark brown PANTONE 19-1518 Puce texture smooth with text imprint and scoring aroma earthy snap hard taste earthy (moss), sweet, fruit, hint of mold melt smooth length medium finish very slightly acidic

Bonnat Libânio is a single origin bar from Brazil. As with other Bonnat bars, this chocolate was made from 75% cocoa solids, with added cocoa butter and sugar. The 100 gram bar was in Bonnat's typical form, with their imprint on the larger middle piece and scored into 32 small pieces around it. The bar arrived broken into three pieces (which you can see in the picture above, if you look carefully on the right side of the full-size image).

Libânio was the third colorfully wrapped new Bonnat bar that Lauren, Emily, and I tasted together. This chocolate had a light medium-dark brown Puce (PANTONE 19-1518) color. The bar had a hard snap that was a little brittle (spreading tiny chocolate shards when broken).

The only blatant aroma from this bar was an earthiness. The chocolate had a similar earthy flavor that Lauren quickly identified as mossy. We also tasted sweetness and some fruit. A subsequent piece revealed a hint of mold in the earthiness in addition to the mossy flavor.

The melt was smooth. The chocolate flavor after the chocolate was gone lasted longer for Libânio than either Cusco or Cuba, remaining for 20 to 30 seconds, and thus a medium length. The finish was not bitter, only very slightly acidic.

Even lacking a complex aroma, Libânio seemed the best among these three bars and I rated it ***.

You can purchase Bonnat Libânio online for $12.25 from Chocosphere.

Review: Bonnat Cuba

Richard's Rating: 6.5 (previously **)

chocolate maker Bonnat bar Cuba region Cuba plantation (blend) cacao trees (unknown) year (unknown) size 100g ~ 3.5oz cocoa solids 75% added fat cocoa butter sweetener sugar emulsifier (none) flavoring (none) other ingredients (none) list price N/A

color medium-dark brown PANTONE 19-1317 Bitter Chocolate texture smooth with text imprint and scoring aroma coconut, roast (cocoa), hint of nut snap medium hard taste sweet, roast, fruit (cantaloupe), hint of nut melt smooth length short finish slightly bitter

Bonnat Cuba is a single origin bar from (surprise) Cuba. As with other Bonnat bars, this chocolate was made from 75% cocoa solids, with added cocoa butter and sugar. The 100 gram bar was in Bonnat's typical form, with their imprint on the larger middle piece and scored into 32 small pieces around it.

Cuba was the second colorfully wrapped new Bonnat bar that Lauren, Emily, and I tasted together. The color of the chocolate was similar to the Bitter Chocolate (PANTONE 19-1317) of Cacao Cusco, with a slightly darker brown. It also had a medium hard snap.

The primary aromas from this bar were coconut and a roast in the form of cocoa. Lauren also smelled a hint of nut.

Cuba took several seconds before the chocolate melted enough to release any flavor, but then we tasted sweet and roast, as well as a fruit that I experienced as cantaloupe. There was a hint of nut in the taste as well as the aroma.

After the slow start, the melt was smooth. The length was short, and the finish was noticeably less bitter than the Cusco bar.

Overall, I found Cuba better than Cusco, but it was not interesting enough to rate ***, so I rated this bar a high **.

You can purchase Bonnat Cuba online for $12.25 from Chocosphere.