Pralus has a dark reputation for roasting. Heavy roasting isn't something I am a fan of (Willie's Cacao comes to mind) - so I wondered how I would fare with Pralus, who is considered the deepest chocolate roaster
Heavy roasting, to me, seems like the action one takes when one has a cacao, what T.S Eliot had said in regards to Hamlet, "full of some stuff that the writer could not drag to light,
contemplate, or manipulate into art.” But I guess the proof of good chocolate is in the pudding tasting. Pralus, unlike many chocolate makers, are knowledgeable (they too have a cocoa plantation in Madagascar), so maybe in their roasts is an art, opposed to just a signature (think Mast Bros, they could not possibly smoothen their texture now - brittle/roughness is their signature)
The aroma was a bbq picnic in the woods: smoked (first thoughts: pork, and Polish Oscypek cheese, but probably more a smoked Gouda), blackberry, chilli roasted nuts, dark chocolate, wood shavings and somewhat floral. It was buttery and deep fruited sweetness
The flavour was smokey, cocoa, blackberry, spice (sweet), forest fruits, and an overall sweetness. This was a very easy-to-eat chocolate, surprising, when considering the influences (Pralus' roast, PNG volcanic soils, PNG drying techniques)
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| many bubbles |
I am fond of Willie's Indonesian (Java 69), and I know I cannot compare the two chocolates (too many variables) but I did anyway. The Papouasie was less smoky, more nuanced, softer on the palate
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