Review: Amano Chuao

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

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

chocolate maker Amano bar Chuao region Venezuela plantation (blend) cacao trees Criollo year (unknown) size 56g ~ 2oz cocoa solids 70% added fat cocoa butter sweetener cane sugar emulsifier (none) flavoring vanilla other ingredients (none) list price $9.95

color medium-dark brown PANTONE 19-1015 Bracken texture smooth with text imprints and scoring aroma coffee, earthy, musty, hint of coconut snap hard taste strong blackberry, plum, hint of earthy melt less smooth length short finish slightly dry

Amano is a small U.S. chocolate maker founded by Art Pollard in Orem, Utah. They only began publicly selling chocolate bars in 2006, and released their first bar made exclusively from Criollo cacao beans from Chuao, Venezuela, just this year.

The first thing we noticed about Amano's Chuao bar is that it is a darker brown than the other Chuao bars we've reviewed. Breaking the pieces to test the snap revealed a couple of air pockets in the chocolate, indicating imperfect tempering.

This chocolate had a surprising coffee aroma, with an earthy background we decided was musty, and a hint of coconut. The taste of the Amano Chuao was an intense blackberry, some plum, and yet also just a bit earthy. The melt was less smooth, but not grainy; just not as smooth as other comparable chocolates. Sadly, the flavor didn't last long, but the finish left no bitterness -- we were left with only a slight dryness.

Overall, we were both a little disappointed by Amano's Chuao bar, having had high expectations from this respected chocolate maker using top quality beans. We both ranked this bar in our respective top 10, but it was noticeably below the other Chuaos we've tasted.