Ecuador 100
by C-AMARO
Impact
100% used to be a punishing percentage, enough to crush a man's testicles.
Either barsmiths are getting much smoother at this or, after being brutalized by consuming so many unsweetened 100s that the gonads are now pulverized & worn down if not gone, it's a lot harder to tell the difference between smooth & brutal.
REDUX REVIEW -- below are segments of C-AMARO's Ecuador 100%, initially released in 2011 followed by a refresher in 2013
Either barsmiths are getting much smoother at this or, after being brutalized by consuming so many unsweetened 100s that the gonads are now pulverized & worn down if not gone, it's a lot harder to tell the difference between smooth & brutal.
REDUX REVIEW -- below are segments of C-AMARO's Ecuador 100%, initially released in 2011 followed by a refresher in 2013
Appearance 4.2 / 5
| Color: | as expected - purple-spangled deep brown |
| Surface: | the flair of the Italians -- even imperfections look stylized; swales & bubbles on the back, transected pod-design on the front recalls a close-up of Coppeneur's mold |
| Temper: | semi-flashy |
| Snap: | could serve as a tuning fork, right on the note |
Aroma 7 / 10
Still potent.
How potent?
2011: so potent it busts open the foil wrapper by itself for the gianduia of Ecuador (with as many peanuts as hazelnuts) -> forest floor tilled into a ground mushroom paté -> herbal essence off to the side -> black cocoa on the fringes
2013: the update bursts forth dog-vomit on dirt... whoa
How potent?
2011: so potent it busts open the foil wrapper by itself for the gianduia of Ecuador (with as many peanuts as hazelnuts) -> forest floor tilled into a ground mushroom paté -> herbal essence off to the side -> black cocoa on the fringes
2013: the update bursts forth dog-vomit on dirt... whoa
Mouthfeel 13.9 / 15
| Texture: | round paste (without the errant Nib bit of bars past) |
| Melt: | slow to go... & even once it hits the release point it's still very patient |
Flavor 46.7 / 50
2011: on cue, picking up straight from the Aromatics -- cocoa & black coffee -> then those nuts -> ash flecks begin to smolder over the bitter truth, verging toward a harsh beatdown -> cereal grains pull the progression back up somewhat -> coffee dregs soiled amidst the forest humus -> pronounced tobacco (leaf, smoke rings, et. al.) -> hazelnut redux
2013: raw edges (cacáo verde) / foliage -> filberts -> beautiful banana butter -> savory unmami straight off the grill, eventually brushed in that banana butter (phenomenal)
2013: raw edges (cacáo verde) / foliage -> filberts -> beautiful banana butter -> savory unmami straight off the grill, eventually brushed in that banana butter (phenomenal)
Quality 18.2 / 20
2011: Cappagianduia... fairly high roast & only mite astringent for, ultimately, good control.
Mid taste almost breaks the whole bar down. That bitter slag comes true though -- none of the usual bloody hemoglobin that can cause even the most cast-iron stomach to convulse -- & regains flavor so by the end a very tolerable 100.
Less aggressive / more tame than those rottweilers that the German company Coppeneur put out a couple years ago with kernels sourced from Ecuador: one under its own label & a second, more recent private label-release for Hotel Chocolat (the latter a little berry-forward thanks to 10% sugaring).
This rolls naked with none of that.
2013: Much greater containment & finesse. About the most disparate stretch ever between Aroma & Flavor -- from dog-vomit to a banana split!
Often 100%s amount to either a strength 'n endurance test (just how much can the palate take it) or a canceling / neutralizing process (the barsmith laboring to mitigate cacáo's unsweetened chemical compounds, usually by larding on tons of cocoa butter). Marco Colzani at C-AMARO reduces the bitter levels by increasing the perceived sweetness in re-making a very good bar even better.
ING: cocoa mass
Reviewed November 14, 2011
Revised September 19, 2013
Mid taste almost breaks the whole bar down. That bitter slag comes true though -- none of the usual bloody hemoglobin that can cause even the most cast-iron stomach to convulse -- & regains flavor so by the end a very tolerable 100.
Less aggressive / more tame than those rottweilers that the German company Coppeneur put out a couple years ago with kernels sourced from Ecuador: one under its own label & a second, more recent private label-release for Hotel Chocolat (the latter a little berry-forward thanks to 10% sugaring).
This rolls naked with none of that.
2013: Much greater containment & finesse. About the most disparate stretch ever between Aroma & Flavor -- from dog-vomit to a banana split!
Often 100%s amount to either a strength 'n endurance test (just how much can the palate take it) or a canceling / neutralizing process (the barsmith laboring to mitigate cacáo's unsweetened chemical compounds, usually by larding on tons of cocoa butter). Marco Colzani at C-AMARO reduces the bitter levels by increasing the perceived sweetness in re-making a very good bar even better.
ING: cocoa mass
Reviewed November 14, 2011
Revised September 19, 2013