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The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.” – G.K. Chesterton

Tuesday 13 March 2012

Pralus Indonésie 75% Criollo Chocolate

I can count on one hand the number of times I've eaten chocolates made from rare Criollo beans, and three of those instances have been Francois Pralus' single origin chocolate bars. I fell in love with Criollo chocolate the first time I tried it, and to date the Criollo 100% chocolate - containing nothing but pure cocoa and cocoa butter - is the only 100% chocolate that I can honestly say I enjoy. The latest Pralus chocolate to come home with me from the supermarket is the Indonésie 75% Criollo bar, in that familiar wrapping with a map locating where the beans for the bar were grown (Java Island in Indonesia).

The description on the packaging about the flavour: "Fresh and subtle, woody aroma with wild mushrooms, slightly acid and long on the palate":

This single-origin bar contains nothing but cocoa, sugar, cocoa butter and some lecithin. Unlike the first two Pralus' bars we tried, which were made with Criollo beans from Madagascar, I did not detect much fruity notes. Instead a smoky earthy flavour dominates, with only a very slightly acidic finish. There is no bitterness at all, which I've come to expect from Criollo chocolates. It melts nicely on the tongue, but it is not as smooth as Swiss chocolates. This bar is quite enjoyable, but I do prefer the taste and texture of the Pralus Madagascar 75% Criollo bar over this one from Indonesia.

A rather scuffed bar, showing some signs of slight blooming, which does not affect its edibility or flavour, but likely to impact the texture:

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