Chapter Eight: Sea Salt Soiree

Ghirardelli is a well-known American chocolate brand so we thought it would be a good idea to try their sea salt and almond bar.  Last week’s tasting of Taza’s version of sea salt and almond didn’t seem to us to be a good representation of a traditional sea salt and almond bar so we set out to find another.  This classic combination tends to draw many followers, so our hope is to find a bar that would not only appeal to the masses but also be more readily available. Ghirardelli’s Intense Dark Sea Salt Soiree does not indicate the percentage of cacao used or the origins, though does state on their website that they source their beans worldwide.

Tasting No.: 6

Intense Dark Sea Salt Soiree

Initial Impressions:

Ghirardelli is a rich red in comparison to our base bar and has a much more pungent aroma, while the base bar is much milder.  The snap is much softer than our base bar; this could be due to the thickness of the base bar.

Flavor Profile:

Initial – Right away, there is a big almond flavor and milk.

Middle – The saltiness is pleasant and comes in soon after the salt.

After – Nutty finish, very sweet.

Texture:

Soft, velvety smooth chocolate with chunks of almond and subtle salt.  It melts pleasantly and the flavor envelopes your taste buds early on.

Overall:

This bar is especially sweet, and we think this overwhelms the taste of chocolate in it.  If the cocoa content were higher it could be so much more satisfying for someone seeking intense chocolate flavor.  We did some research and found that Ghirardelli roasts the inner part of the cacao bean (the nib), instead of the whole bean, which we believe would be better experienced with a higher cocoa content.  They also take strict measures to refine their chocolate, making it much smoother.

Rating: 5/10

*Notes:

This is a good quality bar for the price and is satisfactory for getting your fix.  Best of all, it is readily available in many grocery stores in the U.S. so you don’t have to go without.

Purchased at CVS

Price range Under $5

Next week we’ll review our first award winning chocolate bar!  Stay tuned. 

For now savor: “Your hand and your mouth agreed many years ago that, as far as chocolate is concerned, there is no need to involve your brain.” – Dave Barry, Dave Barry is Not Taking This Sitting Down!

Chapter Seven: Stone Ground Chocolate

This week’s bar is one of the bars that Gaby received as a gift.  It is stone ground, minimally processed and hails from Massachusetts in the U.S.  Furthermore, it is organic, direct trade, kosher, non GMO, and gluten, dairy, soy free and vegan.  It is 80% cacao with sea salt and almond.  This is a common combination, and we’re curious to see how this is presented with this bar.

Tasting No.: 5
Taza Sea Salt & Almond, 80% Dark Stone Ground Chocolate

Initial Impressions:

The color of this is darker, and browner, not as red as base bar.  This has a gritty look to it almost like Mexican hot chocolate, some chunks of almond are visible. The snap is soft, just a tad firmer than base bar.

Flavor Profile:

Initial – Cloyingly sweet

Middle – Fruity, overwhelmingly salty

After – Salty, fruity almost banana finish

Texture:

The texture of this bar is overwhelmingly gritty.  This is probably due to the fact that it stone ground and has sea salt and almonds.  The second ingredient listed is cane sugar, which could also contribute to the feel of this bar.  It is reminiscent of getting sand in your mouth while at the beach, with residual granules needing a beverage to wash them away.

Overall:

Because of the certifications of this bar and it being our first stone ground tasting, we had high expectations for the flavor.  The quality of this bar is not in question, however we were underwhelmed with the experience.  We hoped that the stone ground process would highlight the chocolate’s flavor, but in actuality we barely tasted the chocolate itself and could not detect any almond flavor.  If you’ve enjoyed a stone ground bar, please comment below with a recommendation!

Even though we did not enjoy this particular bar, we do respect and want to support this company because of their direct trade practices and so we will be purchasing more bars from this company for future tastings.

Rating: 1/10

*Notes:

Purchased at Central Market

Price range under $10

Next week we decided to try another sea salt and chocolate bar, this one by Ghirardelli.  See you then!

For now savor: “Oh, divine chocolate!  They grind thee kneeling, beat thee with hands praying, and drink thee with eyes to heaven.” – Marco Antonio Orellana

Remember, fairly traded chocolate is a responsible way to support farmers by ensuring that the chocolate that you consume has been bought for a fair price.  By choosing to purchase fair trade chocolate, you can honor the cocoa tree growers and support their way of life which in turn leads to better chocolate.