Molucca Cacao from Indonesia and Chocolate Bar Review

Molucca Handcrafted Single Origin Chocolate Bar and Cacao Beans from Indonesia


Tasting Tip:

I spent the week tasting these cacao beans from Indonesia without even opening the bars so that when I did eventually have the time to taste the bars I would have a much better understanding of where the flavor notes come from.  It was a great way to taste get to know these beans as well as prepare for the bars.  Try it sometime.


My impressions...

The beans:  Very mild.  Almost no astringency.  Little acidity.  The small amount of bitter seems to come from the roast.  Big on roasty notes.  Even though they were "raw" they tasted and crunched like they are roasted because of the mechanical drying process needed in Indonesia due to heavy rainfall. 

All three bars:  Texture and melt coats the mouth and lasts a long time as if there is a high cocoa butter content.  Reminds me of some french chocolate makers who are famous for using loads of cocoa butter.

85% :  Fruity/floral start that gets roasty real quick and finishes with a coffee like bitter roast. 
70% :  Similar to the 85% but more muted.  The fruity/floral start is quick so let it melt slowly in you want to catch it.  Roast notes are also muted.
56%:   Reminds me of a white chocolate bar.  Lots of cocoa butter with vanilla and a little bit of the acid from the beans transfers into a sweet tart taste.  There are some cacao notes but not too many.  This bar is for those who love white chocolate and want and entry point into dark chocolate.





Question of the day:
What are your questions about growing or processing cacao in Indonesia?  Put them in the comments below or on You Tube.  


Tasting and setting up at Chocolat Vitale in Seattle.
I ran out of memory mid way through and recorded the video above later at home.

Molucca Chocolate not only makes handcrafted single origin bars but they also import the beans from Indonesia and sell those beans to other chocolate makers.  I'm curious, will I recognize these beans when used by another chocolate maker?  Where will I encounter them next?

Everything starts with the bean, then the chocolate maker adds processes, ingredients, and personality to the beans which gives us the final product.  I'm so grateful to the people behind Molucca Chocolate so very much for providing both the beans and the bars which paved the way for this experience.


Find Molucca at www.Moluccachocolate.com



Comments

Popular Posts