Birthday chocolates: La Maison du Chocolat bars

It has become a bit of a birthday tradition for hubby and I - one that does not involve flowers or bling. Every year for the past four years, hubby has given me a box of gourmet chocolates on my birthday. And I love getting them, and hubby loves that I insist on sharing the chocs with him - it gives him incentive to keep on giving me the chocolates! This year he gave me three chocolate bars from La Maison du Chocolat, and each had distinctive flavour and aroma of their own. It was fun comparing the flavours, and we even did a blind taste test fo pick out the Criollo chocolate (and I guessed correctly!).

(left to right) Pariguan 69%, Cuana 74% and Coro 100% - the chocolate's colour darkens with purity:

The Pariguan bar is my faourite, made from the rare Criollo beans from Venezuela. I've previously tried a Criollo chocolate with 100% cacao content, and I loved its mild and fruity flavours, so it's no surprise that I like the Criollo bar the best out of the three types. Hubby likes the full-bodied flavours of the Cuana bar more than the Pariguan, which he said was a bit too sweet. The Cuana indeed has a strong and robust flavour, and I certainly appreciate as well. I'm still learning how to eat the Coro bar, which is intensely bitter and too tannic for my palate. I think my limit for 100% chocolates at the moment are the ones made with the Criollo types, but I'm still learning to cultivate my tastebuds.

Close up of the Coro 100% - check out how intensely dark the colour is compared to the 69% chocolate below:

Close up of the Pariguan 69%:

I love dark chocolates!