Santander: Semi-Dark Chocolate

I recently received a sample of Santander's chocolate with an order of goodies I purchased online. This is a single origin bar with cacao from Colombia. It is 53% cacao and labeled "semi-dark." Since I only had a sample bar (0.21 oz) to work with my review here will be brief. The chocolate has a nice aroma to it, and a good sheen on the outside. It has a fruity taste, and is at the same time bitter and too sweet. It reminds me of eating semi-sweet chocolate chips from the grocery store (which is not a good thing).

Overall, I was not a fan of this bar. The "semi-dark" aspect of it may be appealing to those who don't like the intensity of dark chocolate, but want something more than milk chocolate. Also, it would probably be an interesting choice for someone who is into sampling origin bars, and likes to compare the differences between chocolate from different regions. However, if I'm looking for a plain chocolate bar...this is not what I would go for.

Xocolatl de David: Raleigh Bar

This is my second review of a Xocolatl de David (Portland, OR) product. Today I am sampling the Raleigh Bar. The Raleigh Bar contains pecan, nougat, and caramel (and bears the name of my hometown and the image of Sir Walter himself!).

I have to say, this is what all candy bars should be like. SO. DELICIOUS. The bar is coated in a thin layer of high quality dark chocolate. Inside, half the bar is made up of caramel, and the other half is nougat with little crumbles of pecan. The caramel is buttery, salty, and rich...some of the best caramel I've tasted. The pecans I can taste only a little, they add mostly texture. (I'm not sure it would make a huge difference if they were left out.) The nougat eaten by itself has a deep, delicious honey flavor--however, its flavor is somewhat masked by the power of the caramel. I think together the flavors and textures are divine, but also both the caramel and the nougat could each be a stand alone candy. (Hint to David...nougat bar, please!)

I can't get over how much I liked this bar. It was so freaking tasty! I tried to savor it and eat it slowly...but it's pretty small (0.9 oz), so it was quickly devoured. I feel good just thinking about it...

So, in conclusion it was a huge mistake to only order ONE of these. If you plan on trying one, at LEAST order two! Xocolatl de David also sells a Raleigh Bar with bacon in it, so for those of you into meat and chocolate you can try it that way, too.

The Raleigh Bar is $3/0.9oz bar straight from Xocolatl de David.

P.S. I'd also like to add that I found an invitation for "lab techs" on the company website. Apparently if you live in the Portland area you can sample the latest creations by David in exchange for your feedback! So, not only do I clearly work in the wrong lab, I also live in the wrong city...sigh.

Real Eggshell filled with hazelnut chocolate truffle

I remember one of my favorite Easter treats growing up were praline filled eggs. Real eggshells filled with chocolate and hazelnut. My mom used to find them at Williams-Sonoma or A Southern Season (Chapel Hill, NC). They came in a half-dozen egg carton, and the eggshells were dyed in pastel colors. It's been at least five years since I've come across these eggs, and this spring I decided to see if I could find them again. I searched online for days, finding them mostly on international sites (that would cost an arm and a leg to ship from). Then---I found them. Well, not exactly them, but what appeared to be close enough. I was strolling through the Fresh Market grocery store when something caught my eye. (Literally. Take a look at the above photo and tell me that sucker doesn't shine right in your eye!) So I look over and realize I have finally found a real eggshell filled with hazelnut chocolate! Sure, this single egg comes in its own package. And yes, the coloring is absolutely hideous (and I think I picked the best one)...but I was pretty darn excited to give this egg a try.

So the box tells me that the egg is made in Germany by Gut Springenheide. Inside is a real eggshell, spray painted a metallic blue (it had the potential to be beautiful) with blood red and dark blue stripes (sigh). At the base of the egg is a scalloped sticker (sprayed over by the coloring) which covers up the tiny hole they used to remove the real egg. (Now that I'm thinking about it...I wonder where all the real eggs went?) Inside, the egg is filled with chocolate and there is a small air pocket at the top of the egg (within the top 1/3 of the egg). To get the chocolate out, I tapped the egg on the counter and then peeled off the shards of shell.
The chocolate is smooth and soft. It's not too sweet for a milk chocolate truffle, and has a tasty, nutty hazelnut flavor. To me, it tastes exactly like a gianduiotto (one of those Italian gianduja candies that looks like an elongated pyramid or wedge wrapped in gold foil), which is totally delicious! And guess what? It tastes exactly like the eggs I remember from Easters past!

In all, I absolutely loved this egg. I ate the entire thing in one sitting, and I've already made plans to go back to the store and buy more of them. (I have to stock up!)

I found this egg at The Fresh Market, $4.99 for a 1.75 oz egg.

Alaus Mathez: Truffles with Salty Toffee Chips

My mom recently sent me a package, and tucked inside was a box of Alaus Mathez truffles (from France). The oddly-shaped box is mostly in French, with some English translations. It actually reminds me of something I would expect from a Japanese candy box...the front of the box calls them "Fancy Truffles Toffy Salty Chips" and the side says "Toffee Salty cocoa dusted fancy truffles." The other side lets us know these are "suitables for vegetarians" and that we can find the best before date at "the back oh the ballotin."

Now that I've made fun of their package translator, I'll get on with the review. The truffles are markedly darker in color than the ones pictured on the box. They look like they're dusted in a very dark cocoa powder, and the inside truffle is the same color. The consistency is dense and smooth, like a very thick fudge. There are tiny toffee pieces all throughout

the truffles, plenty in each bite. The chocolate itself has a deep caramel flavor to it, which I found rather pleasing. The crunchy toffee bits taste like salty toffee (go figure).

Overall I liked these truffles. They're quite rich, so I only ate a few of them in one sitting (but I'll be back...). According to the back of the box Alaus Mathez produces truffles in several other flavors...I'm most interested in the "crambled chococolate chips cookies," "cocoa beans," and "nature/plain" truffles.

My mom found these at TJ Maxx for $2/ 8.8oz box (although the price tag suggests regular price would be $10). At that price I'd definitely buy them again, and probably throw them into a gift basket for a friend, too. I'm not sure where else you could find these (even TJ Maxx won't be a sure thing, since they change their inventory weekly), a brief internet search was fruitless.

Choco-Lina: Classic BIO Goat Milk Chocolate

This is my second review of a Choco-Lina product. This time I tried their Choco-Lisa Goat Milk Chocolate bar. According to Choco-Lina, this bar is "biologically cultivated and controlled." (As far as I can tell this means the bar is organic by American standards). It definitely includes organic goat's milk and doesn't contain any GMOs---I can't complain about that!

The bar is similar to the sheep's milk chocolate, with ingredients listed as: raw cange sugar, cocoa butter, whole goat milk, cocoa mass, and bourbon vanilla. All the ingredients here are also noted as organic. Rather than the squares being imprinted with little goats (as I was expecting), this bar is stamped with "Cocoa" and diagonal lines. This chocolate has a similar flavor to the sheep's milk chocolate...it is sweet and has a nice vanilla flavor. It also has a hint of goat taste to it (it reminds me of a mild goat's milk ice cream), but the goat's milk flavor is much more subtle than the off taste of the sheep's milk chocolate. I would rather eat this one plain, that use it in a dessert (as I suggested for the

more interesting tasting sheep).

Overall I liked this bar better than the sheep's milk chocolate. The chocolate it high quality and quite tasty. I would really love to see this company produce more chocolate bars with goat's milk. As of yet this bar is their only bar containing goat's milk, while they have fourteen bars with sheep's milk.

This bar was given to me as a gift, but it can be purchased at The Meadow, $8.50/3.17oz bar.

Choco-Lina: Classic Whole Milk Chocolate

Choco-Lina is a company out of Austria that produces chocolate bars primarily made out of sheep's milk (and one from goat's milk). Their chocolate bars come in a variety of flavors, from milk and white chocolate, to bars flavored with aloe vera, hempseed, and grapes and poppy. I was given their classic bar (whole milk chocolate), which is lactose-free.

The ingredients are raw cane sugar, cocoa butter, whole sheep milk, cocoa mass, and bourbon vanilla. The bar has a nice aroma to it, and each of the squares is stamped with a delightful looking sheep. The chocolate is sweet, with a definite vanilla flavor. It tastes eerily similar to a bar of Ghirardelli milk chocolate, but with a slightly off aftertaste (I've never tried sheep's milk, the closest I've come is Pecorino Romano and it definitely doesn't taste like that...so I have to say this chocolate tastes a little like goat's milk to me).

In all, the chocolate is pretty good. It is a bit pricey, and I'm not sure I would be willing to spend almost $9 on it myself...but I did enjoy it as a gift. Also, I really like that it has only a few ingredients which are very high quality. I think for someone who can't digest cow's milk, this bar would be a great alternative to regular milk chocolate. I think it would also make a really nice addition to an ice cream or mousse...the different taste that the sheep's milk brings in would really make for some interesting desserts.

This bar was a gift, but it can be purchased online $8.50/ 3.17oz bar at the Meadow.

Sahagun Handmade Chocolates: Dark Chocolate Bark with Exploded Corn

Sahagun Handmade Chocolates is out of Portland, OR. This company offers up several interesting treats, including exploding caramels and a KA-POW coffee bar (looks like chocolate, but it's made out of coffee...not quite sure how that works, but I'd like to find out).

I had the privelege of trying their dark chocolate bark with exploded corn. This bark is made with 71% bittersweet chocolate, exploded corn, ground chiles, and sea salt. The combination is quite divine! The chocolate is shiny and rich, but it really takes a back seat to the other players in the bark. The corn is crispy and crunchy, with a sweet and nutty taste. It reminds me of the texture of soynuts, but with the flavor of those half-popped corn kernels at the bottom of my popcorn bowl. I also got a hint of heat from the chiles and the perfect amount of salt.

I originally planned on sampling this one, then saving the rest for later. But before I realized it, I had eaten the entire thing---and then I was very sad. Next time I will be buying a bigger chunk of bark, and perhaps trying out that coffee bar. This is perhaps one of my new favorite snacks...I only wish I could buy it somewhere closer, so I won't be paying overnight shipping to feed my summertime cravings.

I found this bark at The Meadow, $5 for 1.2oz bag.

Komforte Chockolates: French Toast

This is the third and final bar from Komforte Chockolates, French Toast. The bar is milk chocolate with bagel chips ("french toast"), molasses, and sea salt (among other ingredients). The bagel chips were crisp (with a size and texture like crisped rice) and fairly sparse. The sea salt has a definite presence in the chocolate bar, as does a syrupy taste. Not like maple syrup, but like Mrs. Butterworth's. There is also a subtle hint of cinnamon.

I wasn't crazy about this one. I love french toast, so I liked the idea of a french toast chocolate bar...but this one doesn't deliver on the flavor of custardy bread and maple syrup. However, it wasn't bad. It's worth a try if you're into sampling chocolate that is different fromthe norm, but don't expect it to taste like your Sunday breakfast.

Purchased at The Meadow, $2.95 for a 2.5oz bar.

Komforte Chockolates: Tortilla Lime + Salt

The Tortilla Lime + Salt bar is the second bar I've reviewed from Komforte Chockolates. This bar is milk chocolate, with

crumbles of corn tortilla chips, lime zest flavor, and lime salt. The tortilla chips are not quite as profuse as in the ramen bar, but there are enough to get a least a little bit in each bite. There is a definite taste of lime, and some bites are saltier than others.

Overall I really enjoyed this bar. The mix of chocolate, crunchy chips, zesty lime, and salt (a little something for everyone) is quite pleasing--and very different! Since I already ate half of it in one sitting, I'll probably be investing in another one quite soon.

Tortilla Lime + Salt bar can be found at The Meadow, $2.95 for a 2.5oz bar.

Komforte Chockolates: Ramen Noodle

Komforte Chockolates (Orange, CA), produces three chocolate bars: Ramen Noodle, Tortilla Lime + Salt, and French Toast. In an effort to not eat all three bars in one sitting, I'm going to break these bars into three separate reviews. First, I sampled the Ramen Noodle bar. This is a dark chocolate bar full of uncooked (plain) ramen noodles.

I found the dark chocolate to be pretty good (or good enough for a $3 chocolate bar). There is a satisfying amount of ramen noodles in the bar, and I found the texture to be quite appealing. I think this bar would make for a good snack, or a nice gift for a friend who's into novelty candy. I'm not sure if I liked it enough to want to buy another.

That being said, I noticed the ingredients lists "preserved by tbhq" (and BEFORE the "contains less than 1% of" ingredients)! TBHQ is a compound used to preserve vegetable oils and animal fats, and I have never seen it listed as an ingredient in chocolate I've purchased before. What puzzles me even more is that TBHQ is not listed in the ingredients for the other two bars (both milk chocolate) made by Komforte. So, I wonder what is it about their dark chocolate that requires the addition of tbhq? In addition, on the front wrapper of the Tortilla and French Toast bars it says "made in small batches of artisan quality and natural ingredients." I couldn't help but notice that the wrapper for the Ramen bar ends with "artisan quality," leaving out the natural ingredients part...hmm...

In all, I thought this one was okay. You can find this bar at The Meadow, $2.95 for a 2.5oz bar.

Xocolatl de David: Xocolatle Honey Beans

Xocolatl de David is a company out of Portland, Oregon that produces various chocolate products by hand. Some of their tasty treats include chocolate bacon caramels and Foietella (a foie gras chocolate spread). For a (late) Valentine's gift I was given a bag of their Xocolatle Honey beans, whole roasted cacao beans covered in a honey glaze and sprinkling of fleur de sel.
I really liked these beans. The glaze is salty and sweet, with a deep caramelized honey flavor. I really wish they sold the glaze in the form of a brittle or hard candy...yum! The beans are crunchy and nutty, with a deep cocoa (and slightly bitter) taste. I couldn't eat just one!

Overall these make for a really good snack! They can be purchased at The Meadow, $4.95 for a 1.2oz bag.