Tag Archives: xoxolat

Chocolate 201: Pralus recap (plus extra goodies)

The focus of the second class in Chocolate 201: Pralus.

Last week highlighted Patric Chocolate, which was a great way to open the series. It was such a study in small-batch chocolate, a limited product line, and attention paid to every single detail. I think it’s safe to say that everyone in the room really liked each of the chocolates that we tasted.

Tonight was a mixed bag, with some people liking one chocolate while others disliking the same one. I will say that I have less of an emotional attachment to Pralus, having not met the chocolate maker, but that I respect the company for what it did for artisan chocolate. Pralus is probably best known for its 100% Madagascar bar (typically the best-seller in any shop that sells bean-to-bar chocolate) and for its tasting pyramid. The tasting pyramid features 10 of the single-origin chocolates from the Pralus line, complete with tasting notes. It was really the first marketing campaign that really pushed the idea of how different chocolate can be, based on where it’s from. I’d argue that there’s more to flavour and texture than just origin, but that’s fodder for a much longer post.

Anyway, tonight was a chocolate extravaganza. We tasted six selections from Pralus, and then an assortment of Ecuadorian chocolates that I brought from my personal collection. Finished off with some wackiness from Zotter and a shot of drinking chocolate, it’s safe to say that people left the class chock full of chocolate.

Pralus Venezuela 75%

This bar had some pretty characteristic Pralus quirks: exceptional smoothness and meltiness, due to the addition of extra cocoa butter. This bar had notes of butter and caramel, with just a hint of licorice in it. Last week, we tasted the Rio Caraibe bar from Patric Chocolate, which is also from Venezuela, and the two bars couldn’t be more different. It’s an interesting exercise in showing that bean origin is only one factor; the personality and preferences of the chocolatemaker also have a lot to do with it.

Pralus Madagascar 100%

We jumped right into things and tasted the 100% bar. We compared it to another 100% bar, which was astringent, tannic and bitter. In comparison, the Pralus bar is surprisingly sweet, with definite red fruit and red wine characteristics. It’s certainly not bitter, though it does take some getting used to. And, of course, the characteristic Pralus smoothness of the bar helps its palatability.

Pralus Madagascar 75%

This bar is a single-origin bar from Madagascar, and while it has the red fruit you’d expect for a bar from Madagascar, it isn’t as prominent as with other Madagascan chocolate. You have to look for it a little bit, but it’s there–accompanied with pleasant acidity and brightness, and just a hint of citrus. Again, as a comparison with the Patric Madagascar bar from last week, the Pralus is much more muted and less effusive.

Pralus Tanzania 75%

This one was an interesting study in the flavour of toast. Toast is a tricky one to master, as it can be pleasant to some people or just taste burnt to others. I think the roast on this bar is dangerously close to burnt, though it just manages to come across as toasted almond with a bit of smoke. I think some people in the class found it closer to burnt.

Pralus Ecuador 75%

Ecuador lays claim to its own genetic strain of chocolate, the Arriba Nacional strain. Others think that it’s just a genetic variation of Forastero beans. Either way, these beans are known for brash tropical fruitiness, with banana and citrus being common flavours. This bar elicited a lot of suggestions from the group, including figs, raisins and coconut. There were also suggestions of the bitterness of matcha tea (bitter, but in a savoury kind of way), and tobacco. One person astutely noted that the flavours in this chocolate are quite light–like the flute section in an orchestra–lacking middle or underlying flavours.

Pralus Fortissima 80%

The Fortissima is a blend of various beans, with a decided raisin aroma. It’s marked by acidity, a slight bitterness, and the sensation of spice. People in the class tasted butterscotch, coffee and toffee. If the Ecuador bar is the flute section of the orchestra, the Fortissima is the double bass, or perhaps the French horn: deeper tones, more brooding.

Republica del Cacao La Communidad Vinces 75% and Esmereldas 75%

The bar from La Communidad Vinces is the first certified organic bar from Republica del Cacao, who are a lovely little company in Ecuador. This one has some vague tropical fruit, though I taste a bit of a hay undertone to it. The Esmereldas bar is a bit hesitant, too, and the class had difficulty finding the purported lemon zest notes that are in it. I do love the company and think they’re doing great things, but have found some of the batches to vary widely. I’m crossing my fingers and hoping that they come up with a consistently good product, because I’d like to see them do well.

Askinosie San Jose del Tambo, Ecuador 70% and White Chocolate Nibble Bar

I really wish that Xoxolat carried Askinosie, because then I would have made Chocolate 201 into a five-part series and highlighted this great company from Springfield, MO. Whether it’s the picture of the farmer on the package, the lot number that lets you trace its origin, the innovative sustainable packaging, or the great story about the chocolatemaker, this is a fun product to talk about. The Ecuador 70% tastes distinctly like banana, with a pleasant toastiness to it. The white chocolate nibble bar–what I like to think of as a deconstructed cacao bean, with the cocoa nibs embedded in white chocolate–is slightly too sweet and a bit granular, but the shock of goat’s milk is really quite fun.

We capped off the evening with a selection of Zotter bars (beer, champagne, blood orange) and Xoxolat’s famous West Coast Breakfast Bar, featuring maple, double-smoked bacon and espresso. Breakfast for dinner never tasted so good.

I think everyone is looking forward to next week’s chocolate and whiskey extravaganza. I can’t think of a nicer pairing: the shocking flavours of Amano Artisan Chocolate, plus a crash course in smoky Islay scotches with Marcus von Albrecht.

Chocolate 201: Patric Chocolate recap

On Monday, I gathered with fellow chocophiles in the coziness that is Xoxolat. Our mission: to taste great chocolate. And my side mission was to regale the group with infinitely interesting and witty stories from chocolate travels past.

Over the course of the next 90 minutes, we covered a lot of ground. We talked about how chocolate is transformed from bean to bar, and just how difficult it is to get right. That was followed by a brief lesson on tasting chocolate, complete with bunny-rabbit sniffing technique that I learned from a perfumer. Imagine a room full of people cupping pieces of chocolate in one hand, the other hand cupped over their nose, sniffing like bunny rabbits. If we weren’t so distracted by chocolate, it would have been funny.

Well, it still was.

We ended up tasting five selections from Patric Chocolate.

Patric Chocolate 67% Madagascar

This was the gateway chocolate. With notes of plum and raisin and just the slightest sharpness of citrus, it’s a chocolate with character that isn’t overpowering. Its flavour is pretty typical of Madagascan chocolate, with hints of red fruit. This one also has added cocoa butter, so it’s particularly smooth and melty.

Patric Chocolate 70% Rio Caraibe

Where the previous bar was bright and fruity, this one was a bit more brooding. That makes sense, given that these beans come from Venezuela and have a very different flavour profile than Madagascan beans. Some people in the class tasted butterscotch and coffee, others a kick of spice and flowers.

Patric Chocolate 70% Madagascar

I wanted to compare this bar to the 70% Rio Caraibe bar, to illustrate the differences that bean origin has on the final product. The 70% Madagascar is bright, effusive and almost brash. The red fruit is there, but accompanied by a red wine or balsamic vinegar syrupiness at the back of the tongue.

Even more interesting is a comparison of the 70% and 67% Madagascar bars. Ostensibly from the same beans, but with marginal differences in sugar content and cocoa butter content, the two bars are very different. The 67% is more more muted, with the fruit flavours taking centre stage. The 70% has more of the acidic richness of the red wine and vinegar flavours I mentioned.

Patric Chocolate 70% Madagascar with Nibs

This bar is the 70% Madagascar bar with the inclusion of Madagascan cocoa nibs. Far more than just the sum of its parts, the nibs are hoppy—almost boozy, actually, with a nutty undertone. The effect this has on the tastebuds really pulls out the acidic qualities of the chocolate, drawing out the red wine syrupiness.

This is probably my favourite of the Patric line, and one that makes my ears tingle. No joke. It makes my ears tingle, and then I do a happy dance. Bribe me with this chocolate and I will show you the happy dance.

Patric Chocolate 75% Madagascar

We had small quantities of this, personally supplied by someone in the class. I love that I have people in this class who bring their own chocolate! With less sugar than the 67% or 70% bars from the same region, this one was less fruity with a more distinct cocoa flavour.

We finished off the night with some wacky selections from the Zotter line (avocado and mandarin orange, anyone?) and shots of drinking chocolate.

Tasting chocolate makes you full

One comment really stuck with me after the class, and that was that one of the participants felt full. And yes, we had been tasting chocolate for about 90 minutes, but the tasting portions were small. And there were long stretches of me yammering away about fermentation or ethics or something else, so we certainly weren’t stuffing our faces.

The difference was that we were tasting. Consciously. We were thinking about what our tongue tasted, what our nose smelled, what our eyes saw. And while I know that my eating and tasting experiences have changed drastically since I’ve become conscious about these senses, it was very interesting to hear someone else say it. And for him to have observed it in such a short period of time. I think he was just surprised at how full he felt from eating so little, but considering how much mental energy went into tasting those samples of chocolate, I’m not surprised.

Next week: Pralus

I started with Patric Chocolate because they’re an interesting small company based in North America (Missouri, to be exact). Next week, I’ll look at one of the old-school French producers, Pralus. I can’t wait.

Chocolate 201 on CBC Radio One

This Monday was Easter Monday. While most people were at home in a ham-induced coma, topped off with a healthy dose of easter egg and bunny ear goodness, I was at CBC headquarters in Vancouver.

Here’s a tidbit for you: the green room at CBC is, in fact, red.

I was waiting to speak with Stephen Quinn, host of CBC Radio One’s On the Coast. Specifically, I was there to talk about artisan chocolate and to plug the upcoming Chocolate 201 class that I’m hosting.

If you missed it, here’s the interview.

And if you haven’t yet registered, get moving! A few spots are still available, but they won’t be around long. Here are more details about Chocolate 201. Call 604.733.2462 to register.

Chocolate 201: Artisan chocolate tasting series at Xoxolat

Chocolate 201I’ve tasted a lot of chocolate. While I try to be objective, I definitely have my favourites. Over the past few years, I’ve had the opportunity to meet some of the chocolate makers behind my favourite bars.

Every time I meet one of these chocolate makers, I’m simultaneously thrilled and awed. Thrilled, because it’s an honour to meet the person who creates such a great product, and awed because I think chocolate makers are a little bit crazy. You’d have to be crazy to go into a profession where you need to be comfortable with agriculture, chemistry, biology, physics, mechanics and engineering. And that isn’t even accounting for the challenges of getting an agricultural product across international borders. And at the end of all that, to come up with chocolate that doesn’t taste like dirt? And somehow manage to pay your bills? That’s nothing short of a miracle.

I have been itching to tell these stories. Each chocolate maker has a unique personality and philosophy—and while the chocolate itself is lovely, I think the underlying story is what makes it magical.

So, I’m thrilled to announce my latest collaboration with Xoxolat. Together, we’re presenting Chocolate 201, a four-part artisan chocolate tasting series.

Chocolate 201: Artisan Chocolate Tasting Series

When. Monday evenings:: April 12th, April 19th, April 26th, May 3rd
Time. 6:30–8:00 p.m.
Where. XOXOLAT, 2391 Burrard St (@ 8th Ave)
Who. Me! With guest scotch expert, Marcus von Albrecht, Von Albrecht & Association
Price. $100 (Includes four evenings of chocolate tasting & learning, with one session including a guided scotch tasting.)
Registration. Space is limited. Call 604.733.2462 to book now.

Join our introductory Chocolate 201 tasting series and hear stories of how the chocolate was transformed from tree to bean to bar. Learn about how chocolate is made and how to taste it. We’ll explore the artisan products of Patric Chocolate, Pralus, Amano Artisan Chocolate, and Claudio Corallo.

Each 90-minute evening session will include samples from each of the featured chocolates, plus engaging stories about the people and company behind the scenes. Each class will also include samples from favourites like Zotter & Xoxolat’s house line, and will close with a drinking chocolate shot. The Amano evening will be complemented with the VonAlbrecht & Association Islay series of scotches.

Space is limited. Call 604.733.2462 to book now.

Artisan Chocolate Tasting Classes in Vancouver

I’ve collaborated with Xoxolat in the past, mostly on scotch and chocolate pairing events. We did a scotch and chocolate night for the Westcoast Chocolate Festival, and a scotch, chocolate and cheese night for Hopscotch. I’ve since been playing around with scotch and chocolate pairings, which is certainly a nice way to pretend to work.

Scotch pairings aside, I’ve been thinking about teaching a few classes on artisan chocolate. I’d really like to highlight some of my favourite chocolate makers and tell the stories behind the chocolate.

In short: I’m working with Xoxolat to develop a workshop series on artisan chocolate tasting. Details are forthcoming, but be forewarned that the sessions will be small. If you’d like a heads up before anyone else finds out, fill out the contact form below. I’ll make sure you get the goods. Well, the information goods, anyway. Until they figure out a way to transmit chocolate through the interwebs, that’ll have to do.