Review: Chocolove Extra Strong Dark 77%

Richard's Rating: 5.5

chocolate maker (unknown) bar Extra Strong Dark region (unknown) plantation (blend) cacao trees (unknown) year (unknown) size 90g ~ 3.2oz cocoa solids 77% added fat cocoa butter sweetener sugar emulsifier soy lecithin flavoring (none) other ingredients (none) list price $3.09

color medium-dark brown PANTONE 19-1015 Bracken texture smooth, scoring, scuffing, adhered bits aroma earth, roast (coffee, tobacco), floral snap hard taste roast (cocoa, coffee), earth, sour, fruit, bitter, hint of ash melt smooth length medium finish bitter, slightly sour

U.S. chocolatier Timothy Moley started Chocolove ten years ago and now produces more than 20 different Belgian chocolate bars. Most bars are flavored, and they vary in cocoa content from 33% to 77%. This review is for their unflavored chocolate bar with 77% cocoa solids: Extra Strong Dark.

The chocolate was made from cocoa liquor, sugar, cocoa butter, and soy lecithin. The liquor came from a blend of African and Caribbean cacao beans.

Each Chocolove wrapper is intended to represent a love letter, and inside each is a love poem. The poem of Extra Strong Dark was the beginning of Elegy 19: To His Mistress Going To Bed by John Donne. The substantial 90 gram bar itself was wrapped in gold foil-sided wax paper. The best before date was October 2013.

The color of Extra Strong Dark was a medium-dark brown Bracken (PANTONE 19-1015). The surface was smooth, with a little scuffing and some adhered bits of chocolate. The bar was scored, but not deeply enough for the chocolate to break cleanly on the scoring lines. The snap was hard.

Extra Strong Dark had a strong aroma of earth and roast, with some floral scent as well. The roast included both coffee and tobacco scents.

The chocolate tasted of roast and earth as well, but with cocoa and coffee flavors, and without the tobacco in the aroma. There was a fruit flavor I was unable to more specifically identify. I found the taste sour and bitter as well, and noticed a hint of ashiness.

The melt was smooth. The length was medium, with the chocolate flavor lasting 20 to 25 seconds after the chocolate was gone. Extra Strong Dark had a bitter and slightly sour finish.

I was surprised by how much I liked this chocolate: it's one of the better bars priced under $1 per ounce, as you can see on our Best Chocolate Values page.

You can purchase Chocolove Extra Strong Dark online for $2.95 from Chocosphere.