Dormouse Peru 80%

Cocoa beans from Piura, Peru of the Gran Nativo Blanco type, are such delicate and fine flavour cocoa beans. The beans, from Cacao Tales, are grown by cooperatives in Northern Peru, and they are the most awarded cacao beans grown in Peru, see here for more details.

Dormouse Chocolates, Manchester's first bean to bar chocolate maker, is a ridiculously skilled chocolate maker. So basically, this bar just suggests a real synergistic experience...

An 80% dark chocolate, made with cocoa beans and muscovado sugar only, meaning no added cocoa butter.

The aroma was caramel, lightly acidic, green apples. The taste had perfect acidity, with notes of lime, wheat, ash, rhubarb, and very caramel-rich from the molasses of the muscovado sugar. The flavour was so smooth, as was the texture, which could be explained by the grind and conche time having been 54 hours, all in a 2l capacity grinder, just some fine details for 'chocolate nerds'

This bar really amazed me. Sometimes 80% can be a little too high for me, but it was such an easy going 80%. So much so that I had the whole bar in just a couple of hours. Each piece literally made me say "wow", which I first noticed I was doing when biking in the sun through London 

Chocolate Tree Peru Chilique 70%

http://www.choctree.co.uk/product/peru-chililique-dark-70/

First tried this chocolate back in October 2016, and it became the ultimate highlight of the Chocolate Show that year, for me. It wasn't exactly ready for sale back then, and was only available to try on request - kinda like on a if you know, you know basis

A year later, and this Chocolate Tree Chililique 70% was again the highlight of the Chocolate Show for me, as well as the Gran Nativo chocolate they crafted (though this one was not for sale, more to showcase the Gran Nativo cacao to chocolate makers)

Aroma was at first not too loud, a little wheat and biscuity, some prunes. I go at it again, and bam! Sour sauce, peppery, herbaceous (oregano, thyme), um... Monster Munch crisps, MSG (monosodium glutamate), woaaaaah

It's a toasted bite, smoked. Then when on the tongue, it's sweet and sour, with the sour balancing with savoury notes. There is a strong acidic kick, like a squeeze of lemon juice. Nearing the finish, it's a smooth chocolate-y flavour that gets attention, a flavour that was probably always there, as the foundation

An avant-garde chocolate I feel. Good stuff

Solkiki Marañón 70 Unroasted

This post is well overdue, having been given the bar at last years Chocolate Show (London 2016) and then finally opening it the following Easter

Bob and Iris are the two chocolate makers behind Solkiki, and when we met for the first time, this friendship meant they wanted to gift me a chocolate bar of theirs. Tasted all, listened to Bob give a little background into each bar, and my choice had to be the UNROASTED Maranon

Solkiki's Marañón was smoky, astringent on tongue, a little metallic, black tea. The melt was somewhat gummy. And overall, it left me thinking: I like that

Both Solkiki and Chocolate Tree have mentioned how delicate the Marañón is when it comes to roasting the beans, so it's a Peruvian region worth trying 

The Chocolate Alchemist

The Chocolate Alchemist is a NOOOOTORIOUS chocolate maker in Philadelphia. The magic behind the chocolate is that they utilise cacao, and by doing so it becomes a "vehicle for true flavour, nutrition and energy"

The packaging, when in hand, is distinct. It is made from lokta paper (i.e. tree-free). The ingredients are all organic, and clean. Looking online there is great emphasis on paying fair prices for The Chocolate Alchemist's raw materials. Through and through this chocolate screams quality.

The 80% Philly Blend, a 5 different region blend, had an aroma of dill, coconut cream, vanilla, Muscovado, and a taste herbaceous, coconut, Muscovado, cream. The melt was a little sandy. The sugar was coconut sugar

The 75% Cultivagro was a single origin from Ecuador, sweetened with coconut sugar. I had the notes: smoky, lapsang souchong tea, leather, butterscotch, some peaty whisky; the mouthfeel had thoughts of astringency and tannins

80% Philly blend

The 90% Zarumilla, made from Tumbes Peruvian cacao, was super lime juice, pancakes, brown sugar, grassy bamboo, acidic juiciness, flowers. This one was sweetened by Colombian panela sugar

Clasico 60% was a dark milk chocolate, with a blend of 5 different cacao and sweetened by brown sugar. This was an inclusion bar with roasted hazelnuts, coconut, vanilla and salt. I felt this really could have been harmonious and toasty, it was instead quite raw in flavour 

Goat Maple 65% dark goat milk chocolate, with a blend of Dominican Republic and Peruvian cacao, sweetened with local maple sugar! It was like a creamy creamy creamy chocolate pudding, made with goats cheese obviously. The maple sugar here was a nice touch

Out of the collection, I was very much for the dark chocolates; particularly the Cultivagro and Zarumilla - these two being very nuanced 

Forever Cacao Coconut Milk 55%

Pablo Picasso, Rothkos, Rilkes. The man behind Forever Cacao, Pablo.

Forever Cacao work with Ecotribal to protect the strains of heirloom Ashaninka cacao. The Ashaninka are indigenous people living in the Peruvian rainforests, and Ecotribal is an organisation that work alongside indigenous communities to promote sustainable livelihoods and rainforest conservation

The Ashaninka cacao, grown by the Ashaninka, is organic Peruvian Criollo beans that Forever Cacao solely uses, along with organic coconut sugar and organic cacao butter

Here is a coconut milk bar

An aroma coconut. Great snap. The chocolate melts so cooly. Taste of dark, rich butterscotch, coconut flakes, subtle notes of coffee and blackcurrants. It's not too sweet, and with a good cocoa hit. I love it

Congratulations to Forever Cacao for winning Silver in the International Chocolate Awards 2016! 

Cacaosuyo Piura Milk

Cacaosuyo's Piura Select 70% is my all time favourite chocolate. And here is the Piura Milk, it was the overall winning milk chocolate of 2015 in the International Chocolate Awards

The aroma was instantly butter. This surprised me, I was expecting a darker flavour profile. The taste was metallic, then very banana, coconut sugar, molasses, banoffee, lime zest. The flavour and the flavour development was better when the chocolate was chewed

When I first tried this chocolate, an opera was playing in the background. Baring in mind I do not enjoy opera, it really disrupted my experience. No way could this do such a well-respected chocolate any justice, I thought. And so, with some trial and error, I was then searching for pieces of classical music that I could pair with the chocolate, and to essentially augment my experience too

Listening, tasting, pause ... repeat

Bartók's An Evening in the Village from his Hungarian Pictures (click here to listen) had satisfied me. The piece of music was very relaxed, it walked me through a Peruvian village. The melody was smooth, soft and at times playful, which reflected the chocolate itself, whilst also allowing the chocolate to sing its own notes

Cacaosuyo Lakuna 70%

Cacaosuyo are award-winning Peruvian chocolate makers using Peruvian cacao. They have a few different bars in their range, each being made with Lakuna or Piura cacao

Cacaosuyo use solely cocoa mass and sugar, no added cocoa butter (apart from their milk bars). This 70% Lakuna chocolate won 2 silver awards in the International Chocolate Awards 2014. However, when it comes to chocolate like this, flavour reflects each cacao harvest, so what it tasted like in 2014 doesn't necessarily mean it will have the same flavour profile two years later (similar, but not the same)

An aroma of vanilla, leather, green and metallic notes. The taste started tannic, developing into liquorice, clove, vanilla, pepper, root beer, cola and Dr Pepper®

The Lakuna was much like the Piura Select (which is my absolute favourite), but it wasn't as "rough minded". I felt as if the Lakuna beans had more fat than the Piura, and overall it was a lot softer than the Piura

Cacaosuyo, you are incredible

Ajala Peru 73%

Ajala make chocolate in small batches in the Czech Republic, and have supposedly received high rating by Georg Bernardini in his 'Chocolate: The Reference Standard' book. This chocolate is made with 73% Peruvian cocoa beans and the rest Ecuadorian sugarcane juice 

The aroma was earthy and lime. Here is then the part where I incorrectly say "the taste was...", when really I mean "the flavour". It started bitter and cocoa, then roasted coffee, jaggery seeps in, raising notes of sweet rum. A rich and intense dark chocolate flavour lingers

The texture was smooth, so smooth. This chocolate was bought from chocolatiers.co.uk

Hotel Chocolat Rabot 1745 Peru Pichanaki 100%

http://www.10dollarcoffee.com/

This is the first 100% I've featured on Chocolat Indulgence. This chocolate is 100% Peruvian Pichanaki cacao, grown at high altitude, from an "advanced farmer's cooperative"

A chocolate oh so coconut. The aroma was creamy coconut and vanilla. The flavour was coconut still, with a heavy roast, comings of fruit, and chocolate; all amongst a subtle bitterness. The texture was buttery and melted smoothly. The finish was excellent

I thought I would make a hot chocolate with it, adding muscovado, honey or maple syrup to sweeten. However, surprisingly I found it very easy to eat on its own. Although I once added it to my peanut butter & molasses porridge for breakfast, and what a great idea that was! It was heavenly

Blanxart 77% Perú

White Criollo from Piura. Chocolate made from these beans have never disappointed me, and I have had several different bars! For this 77%, the cacao beans have been cultivated in plantations in the area of Quemazon and Chulucanas - and these are two names I like a lot

The aroma was vanilla, sweet 'n sour, bamboo leaves, pineapple. Snapping the chocolate, it looked smooth and 'well made', as there were no air bubbles. The taste started bitter then sour acidity, cherry blossom, toasted. The chocolate had a bitterness throughout

The texture was surprisingly grainy, I was literally crunching sugar. From previous experience with Blanxart, I do not remember their chocolate being this grainy

This was a difficult bar to finish. It wasn't bad chocolate, just not a chocolate for me. As 77% is a fairly high percentage, there was too much of a roasted profile dominating the ratio to sweetness 

The Chocolate Tree 60% Peru Marañón Milk

image from Chocolate Tree

The Chocolate Tree, since my last series of reviews, have changed their packaging. It now seems more reflectant upon the cacao, of which it is, as the tessellations are inspired by the cacao's country of origin, so their Madagascar, Peruvian and Venezuelan bars each have different patterns 

This is a dark milk chocolate, made from Nacional cacao grown in a remote canyon at the foothills of the Andes. I recently had another 60% dark milk, from Seaforth, however this Chocolate Tree bar feels more of a milk chocolate

Opening up the plastic packaging, it became a bag of toffee popcorn. The chocolate itself was more floral and milky, with some metallic blur

The taste, however, did have rich toffee, with then a blunt bitterness on the back of the tongue and again metallic. This chocolate is very enjoyable. It was less sweet than a 70%, I would have liked more sweetness, however the creaminess makes up for that

Zotter Labooko Peru Barranquita 75%

This chocolate had a 20 hour conch. The beans were from Barranquita village, which is on the banks of the Rio Huallaga, in Peru. They were said to be fruity and floral and 100% Trinitario

An aroma of bubblegum, blueberry and raspberry. I thought of the Hubba Bubba® tape. It was very flowery, though nothing specific to myself. There was a numb (zest-less) citrus orange and cherry brandy too. Overall, very comical

A scuffed surface

The taste started cocoa, it was very slow and buttery, then came the blueberry/raspberry and flowers, then back to cocoa and cocoa butter. It was a short lived flavour, as in the fruity/floral notes. It was a shame to receive so much of a 'cocoa' flavour

Overall, a slight dissatisfying Labooko bar, especially when I had such high expectations. It had too much cocoa butter for my liking, making it very fatty, disrupting the flavour and creating a very buttery texture

Fruition 70% Peru

I've had Fruition before, the Rustic Crunch, that was impressive. Fruition are bean-to-bar makers in the Catskills Mountains, NY who have revolved their chocolate around Peruvian beans from small organic co-operatives. They specifically have made a Marañón bar, which is still Peruvian but more traceable to the consumer. However, they have also made bars with Hispaniola and Camino Verde (Ecuador) beans!

This bar was £8.95 from Cocoa Runners so, for a non-US resident, this bar is expensive!

The aroma was chocolate, toasted, leather and vanilla. The snap: good, the texture: smooth

The taste was cocoa, with the roast evident, then came a distinct lemon which is very buzzy. This acidity also suggested apple cider vinegar (to my surprise, I see that I found an apple taste in the Rustic Crunch too). Beneath this acidity, the dark chocolate flavour and greenery balances with the lemon, so it's not overly sour. There was cinnamon spice, and mint: of which almost seemed to cleanse the palate! 

Having this chocolate, you almost feel as if it has lemon oil in it

Cacaosuyo Piura Select

Cacaosuyo are Peruvian, distinctly not bean to bar but, tree to bar makers. They do not buy beans but select the trees where their cocoa fruit will be harvested, which confirms traceability and cacao type. They then supervise the harvest and when ready Cacaosuyo begin the fermentation process. This particular bar was made from organic white cacao beans from the Piura region of Peru. The 70g bar was £6.95 from Cocoa Runners. Cacaosuyo suggested I should come and visit them, why thank you

The aroma was acidy, black tea, green/earthy, a real dark depth to it, blackberry, prune and mango. At first I didn't pick up on the acid, but really it was so conspicuous. My God, it smells like chocolate in a wild, mineral-rich-soiled forest 

The taste was bitter, with then slowly a sweetness pouring in amongst 'cocoa' and earthen flavours. It then opened up tangy citrus notes and all those found in the aroma (listed above) and eventually came a chocolate flavour too. It was very chocolatey, contrary to what C-Spot suggested (a low CQ: chocolate quotient) 

SECOND BAR (6-7.12.2015) the taste was so fudge-y and liquorice WOW WOW WOW. The texture was softer

The texture was suede verging on sandy, far far from what other chocolate makers aspire to. Cacaosuyo do not add cocoa butter

At first I was not impressed, but it really grew on me. It felt like old-school chocolate. For example, if it were a blind tasting, I'd have thought this was the epitome of micro-batch craft chocolate. It reminded me of my own bean to bar chocolate, in that it had this 'down to earth' vibe, with its brazen texture and temper and its "no chill" flavour, of which is very acidic (a trait I love), thus separating itself from the silky smooth and more perfected flavour that chocolate makers who make 'bean to bar' tend to achieve. This is of course all down to the chocolate maker's preference; I am in no way degrading this approach of 'perfection'! Whatever it takes to make great chocolate - I'm in. The juxtaposition was to understand how 'old-school' this Piura Select really was...

I enjoyed this bar and so did many others, I was even told it was "one of the best bean to bar chocolates in the world"

Pacari 70% Piura Quemazón

Pacari are 100% organic, single-origin, bean-to-bar chocolate makers in Ecuador. The Piura Quemazón is Pacari's first chocolate made from cacao sourced from outside of Ecuador. This 50g bar was made from Nacional (Arriba) beans from the Peruvian region of Piura (north-west Peru), cane sugar, cocoa butter and sunflower lecithin

high sunlight exposure

I have had chocolate made from cacao from La Quemazón before, though it was specifically said to be the Porcelana bean. But checking the light, milk chocolate colour of this chocolate and its aroma ... it seems the geographical location of La Quemazón is vastly influential, as this Nacional and that Porcelana I once had are very similar

The aroma was green, very fresh, citrus, a little sherbet, leather, yellow plum and a faint catch of chocolate. The taste was initially cocoa, with then: greenery, tannin, toffee (yum) and toastiness, then slowly came out vinegar and lots of acidity! It was very creamy and so was the texture. There was dill and gherkin too, it reminded me of Madécasse's 80% (Madagascar). In the distant finish was a very fresh, lively coffee

Piura has wowed me yet again! Pacari's Piura Quemazón was super enjoyable. Although it is definitely the northernly-west Peruvian cacao I enjoy, as Pacari had executed it so well (roast, texture - these guys know how to work good beans) I would love to try more from them

Amedei

Ingredients: cocoa mass, cane sugar, cocoa butter, vanilla

Toscano Black 63%
The Toscano Black range is made from a blend of Trinitario and Criollo beans. The aroma was chocolatey, some acidity. The taste was smoked tobacco, hazelnut, Italian chocolate

Blanco de Criollo

A Peruvian Criollo bean blend. It had the classic Peruvian acidity, which yielded to a robust wild mushroom (oh wow, authentic). There was chocolate too and overall it was very mellow

Grenada

Finally, chocolate from Grenada - only my 3rd Caribbean cocoa (if I include the Venezuelan Rio Caribe). It had a chocolatey and floral nose. The taste was coffee (mocha) and coconut

n.b. having only one each of these napolitains (small square tablets-intended to be served with a cup of coffee) meant that I could not sufficiently pick up each nuance, but I imagine each in bar form offers up so much more. For example, the Blanco de Criollo was said to have dried plums and toasted almonds 

The Chocolate Tree Peru 80% and 70% Nibs & Salt

This is my final instalment of The Chocolate Tree's bean to bar chocolate bars. I do hope it's not my last taste of The Chocolate Tree though, as I'd love to try more of their artisanal chocolates. The two small batch, made from the bean chocolate bars I have left are made from Peruvian cacao

The 80% was mixed with cane sugar only. It had a delicate aroma, I liked it. It's worth noting that the 84% Ecuador chocolate from The Chocolate Tree was Arriba Nacional cacao too, yet the chocolates compared are so different. That is one of the great things about cocoa: how it varies from terrain to terrain, despite being the same variety. It had a rich chocolate undertone, with a citrus acidity (grapefruit), floral, raisin,  and a little spice

The flavour slowly opened with intense tannins, and eventually surfaced raisin, caramel, and spice. It was somewhat acidic, and had a dry finish with wood and tannin flavours. The caramel was superb 

The 70% Nibs & Salt "is a lighter version of the 80% Peru, but with the addition of the salt and nibs it becomes a completely different beast - and a much more complex one at that" - Chocolatiers 

It had a similar aroma, but with highlight to the salt. The flavour was intensely chocolatey when it was chewed. The nibs added a more distinct acidity, yet thankfully didn't taste metallic. The flavour was very nice, it wasn't salty and rather sweet. I preferred its flavour when chewing, because this way the extra chocolatey flavour [from the nibs] would overpower the salt. There was blackberry, minimal taste of tannins, and it wasn't as dry as the 80%

The Chocolate Tree being small batch craft chocolatiers and having textures this smooth was great. The 80% was smoother than previous bars I've had from The Chocolate Tree, which could be down to the 60 hour conch time, which may or may not be longer than their other bars. I thought the Peruvian cacao from Marañón was excellent!

Cocoa Raw 70% with Pecans

Cocoa Raw are a Poland based bean to bar company, sourcing direct from farmers. The aroma was distinctly Peruvian yet, admittedly, more so Polish. Bear in mind that my definition of what smells Peruvian and what smells Polish is purely subjective. Despite the hindering metallic note, it was rich with cherry liqueur, fruity syrup, blackberry, coffee and coconut. The nuts gave their natural scent, and there was also a prominent savoury scent

The flavour was difficult to decipher. I knew I liked it, but no words were coming to mind. Now this wasn't because I was mesmerised, but simply because I didn't have a clue what I could taste. This would be down to the fact that the chocolate was 'raw', meaning roast was kept to a minimum, therefore flavours hadn't fully developed, and rather they remained soft and balanced. Eventually words of the tongue surfaced: red wine, quite acidic, hammy (slightly smokey), mustard, brown bread, seeds, red berries, dark chocolate and the Bourbon vanilla

The pecans and hazelnuts had their nutty flavours, but did not affect the chocolate. The pecans were very buttery, with a walnut-like taste and slightly sweet

The texture was grainy but with that 'raw' title you couldn't possibly expect it to be silky smooth. There was a sweetness in taste, but not like other chocolate so it could be that coconut blossom sugar isn't as sweet as cane sugar. The flavours being so in equilibrium made the chocolate taste calming and I strangely enjoyed it, it was like a glass of red wine (not the sweet kind). I say 'strangely' because of the more savoury flavours it had... quite bizarre, I did not enjoy the metal smell/taste but the fruity aspect of it was my favourite

Fruition Rustic Crunch

Fruition are an American bean to bar company- located in the Catskill Mountains of New York- who've sourced their cocoa from a cooperative in San Martin, Peru 

The 70% Rustic Crunch was handcrafted from Peruvian cocoa and the "crunch" came [inevitably] from the cacao nibs studded on the bottom

Cinnamon and vanilla pranced around the nose. Behind those well defined yet delicate spices were light coconut and roasted notes. I quite enjoyed it. The nibs themselves had a subtle aroma: acidic and slightly alcoholic

On the tongue, right away, was cinnamon and, like a soldier, it persisted with great power too. A taste of cocoa gradually built up- making itself most clear when the nibs were nearly all what was left. I tasted apple, and I don't think that was my brain fooling me by pairing apple and cinnamon. When chewing, the Demerara sugar enhanced the sweetness, and boy was it sweet - I really liked it. The Demerara augmented the "crunch" sensation and made for a coarser melt. The flavours developed superbly when chewing, i.e. a 'chocolate' flavour kicked in and a rich, dark, caramel flavour came from the Demerara

The nibs added acidity but overall their unique taste disrupted the chocolate, though more satisfying than those in Chocolate and Love's. As I didn't enjoy the "crunch" of the nibs either, I don't think I'll ever acquire appreciation for nibs on chocolate. However, per se it was real great chocolate. I absolutely loved the coarser texture, crunchiness and the deep flavour all from the Demerara sugar

3 reasons why this chocolate worked: 1) the Demerara sugar took it to another level 2) I have big love for cinnamon and 3) the quality of cacao used (so, why thank you Mr.Chocablog)

Original Beans Piura Porcelana

The Porcelana, considered the Holy Grail of cacao, is a pure Criollo variety, possibly the purest, and is prized for its delicacy. It is amongst the rarest and most expensive of all beans around the world. The Porcelana pods are unique due to their white/light colouring (they lack the flavonoid anthocyanin which contributes to the purple colouring)

In Peru, this "forgotten" cacao was discovered and, after near extinction, was brought back into production by Original Beans who worked with the local farmers. Original Beans' sustainable proposition of "one bar plants one tree" has meant they've planted over 1 million trees in the rainforest. Porcelana cocoa has not been found anywhere else in Peru other than La Quemazón (a village in the Piura Region). The cocoa farmers of La Quemazón are proud of their white cacao and ensure quality control to maintain their cacao in the fine chocolate market

Original Beans Piura Porcelana was of 75% cocoa solids made with direct trade Porcelana beans (from La Quemazón), organic and Fairtrade cocoa butter and organic cane sugar. The chocolate had outsourced its manufacture by chocolate maker Felchlin (Swiss company). My 70g bar had broken up in the packaging and was a little scuffed. It was of the lighter brown spectrum and had a medium snap

I breathed in a perfume of potent vanilla, yellow plum, leather and cream. The flavour opened with a bitter cocoa and sweetened up with a low acidity. There was such an authentic raspberry note, it was really quite unbelievable. The raspberry flavour wasn't always there, and when it wasn't I would [unsuccessfully] try to find it. It did always make itself present in the finish though. The chocolate overall was soft in flavours with a creaminess. There were hints of lightly toasted pecan, and along with the raspberry, a marscapone and cacao flavour it created a dessert-like finish. The texture in the mouth was exceptionally smooth

This delicate Porcelana cacao truly is white gold, and La Quemazón is the goldmine that domesticates it. I did enjoy and appreciate this chocolate and I really did love the authenticity of that raspberry: it was tart, creamy and quite sensational. That trait alone made this Piura Porcelana the James Dean of chocolate. Initially shy, gives an unpredictable yet talented and inspirational performance (the raspberry = "you're tearing me apart")