Academy of Chocolate 2015 Awards

The London Academy of Chocolate released their ridiculously large number of award winners for 2015.

They had two bean to bar dark chocolate categories: under 80% and at least 80%.

GOLD under 80%
Åkesson's Madagascar 75% Criollo
Amano Ocumare 70%
Bar au Chocolat Dominican Republic 70%

SILVER under 80%
Åkesson's Bali 75% Trinitario
Bar au Chocolat Madagascar 70%
Castronovo Colombia Sierra Nevada 72%
Chocolat Madagascar Fine Dark 65%
Chocolat Madagascar Organic Fine Dark 70%
Dick Taylor Madagascar Sambirano
Green & Black's THIN Dark 70%
Hotel Chocolat 70% Saint Lucia Rabot Estate Bord du Lac
Pump Street Bakery Grenada 70% Crayfish Bay Estate
Pump Street Bakery Madagascar Criollo 74% Åkesson's Estate
Red Star Duffy’s Honduras Indio Rojo 72%
SPAGnVOLA Nigeria 70% Oda Cocoa Estate
SPAGnVOLA Dominican Republic 70% Single Estate

BRONZE under 80%
Amano Chuao 70%
Amano Cuyagua 70%
Amano Madagascar 70%
Amano Morobe 70%
Amazona 74% El Shunté (Tiesto)
Amazona 72% Valle del Chanka (Lamas)
AQUIM Q 65%
Chocolate Tree Madagascar Sambirano 72%
Chocolate Tree Peru Marañon 69%
ChocXO Camino Verde Ecuador 72%
ChocXO Guantupi Ecuador 75%
ChocXO Tres Rios Peru 68%
Damson Ecuador 70% Los Rios
Damson Madagascar 70% Åkesson Estate
Dick Taylor Belize Toledo
Dick Taylor Ecuador Camino Verde
Doble & Bignall Raven Johe 72%
Domori Ocumare 77 Criollo 70%
Du Jour Pure 70%
Hotel Chocolat 70% Honduras Mayan Red
Idilio Origins No. 3 Selección Cata Ocumare
Idilio Origins No. 4 Carenero Urrutia Superior
NAÏVE Nicaragua Nicalizo 72%
Omnom Madagascar 66%
Original Beans Papua Kerafat
Original Beans Piura Porcelana
Pacari Esmeraldas 60%
Red Star Duffy’s Nicaragua Chuno 70%
Ritual Mid Mountain Blend
Rococo Organic Dark 65% Artisan Bar
Rozsavolgyi Madagascar Criollo 71% Åkesson Estate
Rozsavolgyi Puerto Cabello 74%
Rozsavolgyi Porcelana 71%
Tobago Cocoa Estate

GOLD at least 80%
Åkesson's Madagascar 100% Criollo

SILVER at least 80%
Papa 80% Peru
Pump Street Bakery Honduras Finca Tres Marias 80%
SPAGnVOLA Dominican Republic 80% Single Estate

BRONZE at least 80%
Bar au Chocolat Trinidad 80%
Baravelli's Madagascan Sambirano 82%
Chocolat Madagascar Fine Dark 85%
Michel Cluizel Noir Infini 99%
Domori Criollo 100% Hacienda San Jose
Hazel Mountain 87% Venezuela Bean Sur del Lago
Szanto Tibor Baracoa Cuba 88% Ocenta y Ocho

Here's a link to the full lists of 2015 Award Winners in all of the categories.

Store: Kakao

Last month I ran across kakáo (pronounced kuh-key-oh) while on a walk in the South Lake Union neighborhood of Seattle. I saw the sign in the window and felt compelled to check it out. I'm glad I did.

kakáo is a combination chocolate and coffee shop, with lots of bright, open space in which to hang out. In this converted warehouse, under 15' high wooden ceilings, they have ten tables with chairs, two loveseats, two lounge chairs, free Wi-Fi for internet access (wireless network 415: just ask them for the password), and lots of outlets around the walls and windows (to power your laptop, etc).

chocolate store	kakáo
website	http://www.kakaoseattle.com/
address	415 Westlake Ave. N. Seattle, WA 98109 United States
phone	(206) 388-5467
hours	Mon-Fri	7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
	Sat	8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
online shopping	no
shipping area	N/A
warm weather shipping	N/A
chocolate makers	Amedei Michel Cluizel Claudio Corallo Dagoba Fran's Green and Black's Guittard Kallari Komforte Lindt Madécasse Moonstruck François Pralus Republica del Cacao Scharffen Berger Taza Theo Valrhona Vosges
special deals & events	free Wi-Fi
last updated	February 24, 2012

With more than 50 different chocolate bars of more than a dozen different brands, kakáo has the second largest collection of quality chocolate in Seattle (including some not available at Chocolopolis).

At the espresso bar, they serve Valrhona Celaya drinking chocolate in addition to more traditional drip coffee and espresso. Their coffee is from local Seattle green coffee maker Herkimer. A small collection of pastries is also available.

The shop is officially open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., but a barista let me know that they are usually open by 7:15 a.m. Their website is only a placeholder at present, but the owner, J.B., intends to add content and perhaps eventually sell chocolate online (I'll let you know if he does!)

kakáo has a side room that holds up to twenty people that is available for free, and can even be reserved. They also have a huge venue space for rent in back that has a capacity of 300 people (200 for a seated event). Call and talk to Jim if you're interested in more information about their venue space.

Sale: Amano Chocolate 20% off, EVERYTHING 10% off

World Wide Chocolate is having a few sales through April 11th, including 20% off Amano, Dolfin, and Green and Black's. For this discount, use coupon code TRY20 during checkout.

The 20% discount is not worthwhile for Green and Black's or Dolfin (as their regular prices are high), but it is a good price for Amano. Here's a direct link to Amano chocolates on World Wide Chocolate.

They also have Zotter on sale for 25% off (coupon code ZOTTER25). Here is the complete list of their special offers.

If you are interested in multiple chocolate brands, World Wide Chocolate is currently offering 10% off all orders (coupon code 1day10-0) -- typically this is only 5%, as well as their more or less normal offers:

• 15% off orders over $40: 1day15-40
• 20% off orders over $225: 1day20-225
• 25% off orders over $550: 1day25-550

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.

Sale: Green & Black's (and Lindt) 2 for $4

Walgreens is have a sale starting tomorrow, Sunday, March 27th, through Saturday, April 2nd, on Green & Black's, Lindt, and Dove chocolate bars: 2 for $4. This is a good price for Green & Black's Organic Dark bars.

Although the sale officially begins tomorrow, it seems to be available for online purchases starting today. Unfortunately, they only have one Green & Black's bar online -- the Organic Dark 70% (more are available in some stores). They have several Lindt bars online and some Dove bars. Shipping to the continental United States is free with purchase of $25 or more.

For more info on the four of these bars we've reviewed, here are direct links:
Green & Black's Organic Dark 70%
Green & Black's Organic Dark 85%
Lindt Excellence 70%
Lindt Excellence 85%

Review: Green & Black's Dark 85%

Lindy's Rating: 3.0 (previously *)

Richard's Rating: 4.0 (previously **)

chocolate maker Green & Black's bar Dark 85% region (unknown) plantation (blend) cacao trees Trinitario year (unknown) size 100g ~ 3.5oz cocoa solids 85% fat cocoa butter sweetener cane sugar emulsifier soy lecithin flavoring vanilla extract other ingredients cocoa powder whole milk powder list price N/A

color medium brown texture smooth aroma vanilla, grapefruit, hint of red fruit snap hard taste malted, grapefruit, some bitterness melt smooth length short finish bitter

Like the Organic Dark 70%, Green & Black's Organic Dark 85% bar is certified organic, is made from Trinitario cocoa beans, and uses organic whole milk powder as an extra ingredient. It also adds organic fat-reduced cocoa powder to increase the chocolate flavor and uses less sugar and possibly more vanilla than the 70% bar.

The aroma was similar to the 70%, with the addition of an elusive hint of red fruit. The taste, though, was quite different: a malted flavor was strongest, with the grapefruit more in the background. There was also some bitterness. The melt was a little smoother than the 70%. The length was short, but the malted flavor lasted longer than the grapefruit of 70%. The finish was definitely bitter.

The increased bitterness of the 85% bar made it distinctly less enjoyable, and overall we both liked the 70% better. Lindy liked both the Lindt 85% and 70% better than the Green & Black's. I liked the Green & Black's 70% better than both Lindt bars, but found the Lindt 85% better than the Green & Black's 85%.

As I wrote before, there is no list price for the Green & Black's bars, but I found them in the organic section of our local grocery store for $4.49.

Review: Green & Black's Dark 70%

Lindy's Rating: 4.0 (previously **)

Richard's Rating: 5.5 (previously **)

chocolate maker Green & Black's bar Dark 70% region (unknown) plantation (blend) cacao trees Trinitario year (unknown) size 100g ~ 3.5oz cocoa solids 70% fat cocoa butter sweetener cane sugar emulsifier soy lecithin flavoring vanilla extract other ingredients whole milk powder list price N/A

color medium brown texture smooth aroma vanilla, grapefruit snap hard taste fruity, grapefruit melt smooth length short finish somewhat bitter

Green & Black's Organic Dark 70% bar is certified organic by the California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF), one of the 97 USDA Accredited Certifying Agents. In addition to being certified organic (for every ingredient other than soy lecithin), this bar is also the first to have organic whole milk powder as an ingredient. It's also notable that Green & Black's call out the use of Trinitario cocoa beans on the front cover.

Lindy and I both had a difficult time identifying aromas beyond the scent of vanilla. I noticed something that seemed to be grapefruit; Lindy clarified the vanilla scent as that of a liquor. The taste revealed a fruity flavor with a hint of citrus, that I experienced as grapefruit. Both of us found the length short, but for Lindy it was nearly minimal. She also found the finish to be more bitter than I did.

There is no list price for the Green & Black's bars, but I found them in the organic section of our local grocery store for $4.49.

Because we tasted the Green & Black's Dark 70% and Dark 85% bars after reviewing the Michel Cluizel Vila Gracinda bar, I retasted them again this morning to confirm our findings, and the grapefruit aroma and taste were even clearer (or perhaps just easier to notice since I was seeking them :)

Not just the percentage

Up until a little over a year ago, I used to believe that good chocolate was measured simply by the proportion of cocoa in the chocolate. My favorite chocolate bars were the 85% and 70% bars from Green & Black's and Lindt that you could buy in some grocery stores.

I didn't consider that the type and quality of cocoa beans varies like that of coffee beans for coffee or grapes for wine, but of course it does.

Just as important to a chocolate bar are the other ingredients. In addition to cocoa solids, chocolate requires fat (best as cocoa butter) and a sweetener (typically sugar). Nearly all chocolates also use an emulsifier (to make the chocolate smoother, often in the form of lecithin) and flavoring (usually vanilla). Some chocolates also include other ingredients and flavorings (though the better chocolates seem not to).

I'm going to try to review and rate the chocolates I taste over the next 10 months. Admittedly, the rating part will be completely biased by my own preferences. Please note that the chocolates I taste here will be almost exclusively "dark" chocolates, with at least 50% cocoa solids, as those are the varieties I like best.

By the way, it turns out that Chocolopolis has its own blog.