Review: Rogue Rio Caribe

Lindy's Rating: 7.5 (previously ***)

Richard's Rating: 7.5 (previously ***)

chocolate maker Rogue bar Rio Caribe region Venezuela plantation (unnamed) cacao trees Trinitario year (unknown) size 60g ~ 2.1oz cocoa solids 70% added fat cocoa butter sweetener cane sugar emulsifier (none) flavoring vanilla other ingredients (none) list price $6.99

color medium brown PANTONE 19-1217 Mustang texture smooth aroma floral, roast snap hard taste roast (coffee), fruit (orange), nut, sweet melt more smooth length short finish slightly ashy

Rogue Chocolatier currently makes four chocolate bars. We've previously reviewed the other three, all of which were so good that they made it onto either Lindy's or my favorite list. With this review, we will have tasted Rogue's entire line of chocolates.

Rio Caribe is made from Trinitario cacao trees in the Paria Peninsula of Venezuela (near Trinidad). According to the information on Rogue's website, this bar is made from the cacao beans of a single plantation, though it is not named.

As with all of the Rogue bars, this one had a simple presentation: a plain slab of smooth-textured chocolate without imprints or scoring. However, unlike the others, Rio Caribe includes tahitian vanilla among its ingredients (Rogue's other bars had no flavoring whatsoever).

This chocolate's color was a medium brown Mustang (PANTONE 19-1217). The bar had a hard snap. The aroma was somewhat weak, but included clear floral and roast scents. The taste of Rio Caribe was initially a coffee roast, which transitioned to include something nutty and then also a fruity orange. I also tasted sweetness.

The melt was smoother than average. The duration of the flavor after the chocolate was gone was 10 to 15 seconds, for a short length. The final aftertaste was slightly ashy, but not bitter.

Lindy and I both rated this bar *** due to its nice melt and taste, but it was on the low end of that rating and not as good as Rogue's other excellent chocolates.