Various Bars
by Cacao de Origen
Impact
THIS CHOCOLATE BLAST -- 5 REVIEWS IN 1 -- PERTAINS TO A STARTUP BARSMITH. IN KEEPING WITH the C-spot's® 2 KEWL 4 SKOOL POLICY, IT IS UNRATED.
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A very ambitious venture led by María Fernanda Di Giacobbe & Co. (the esteemed doyenne of the premium chocolate scene Chloé Doutre-Roussel among them).
A working lab & social meeting place for the research, creation & showcasing of the stunning diversity in aromas & flavors within each of Venezula’s cacáo regions & genotypes. Many already world renowned, some yet relatively unknown: Perijá, Maracaibo, Sur del Lago, Puerto Cabello, Trincheras, Cata, Ocumare, Cumboto, Cuyagua, Chuao, Caracas, Carúpano, Río Caribe, Yaguaraparo.
A living network cutting across communities -- linking producers, breeders, geneticists, barsmiths, techies, entrepreneurs, exporters & end consumers in the long value chain to create chocolate of the highest order. Initially a chocolatier (bombones, truffles, assortments, etc.), today Cacao de Origen (CdO) works directly with cacaoteros / Bromans et.al. in building that alliance.
A lecture / demonstration hall for tastings & social confabs in which passionate debate ensues… like whether the Empress of Cacáo (Porcelana) reigns supreme over the God-King (Chuao). Oh, such can be the heated but always convivial exchanges, in the spirit of achieving chocolate.
A feedback mechanism for discussing & developing seeds, genetics, soil, best post-harvest practices & cultivated taste.
A work in progress for sure (Q: is / will / can it ever be finished?) to preserve Venezuela's genetic treasures & cultural heritage (A: no, because cacáo / cocoa / chocolate, like all life, continually evolves).
A job never done, the cacáo gods bless CdO with a Vulcan salute (thank you, Leonard Nimoy) for toiling to safeguard this, their legacy, gifted to humankind. Live long & prosper.
A very ambitious venture led by María Fernanda Di Giacobbe & Co. (the esteemed doyenne of the premium chocolate scene Chloé Doutre-Roussel among them).
A working lab & social meeting place for the research, creation & showcasing of the stunning diversity in aromas & flavors within each of Venezula’s cacáo regions & genotypes. Many already world renowned, some yet relatively unknown: Perijá, Maracaibo, Sur del Lago, Puerto Cabello, Trincheras, Cata, Ocumare, Cumboto, Cuyagua, Chuao, Caracas, Carúpano, Río Caribe, Yaguaraparo.
A living network cutting across communities -- linking producers, breeders, geneticists, barsmiths, techies, entrepreneurs, exporters & end consumers in the long value chain to create chocolate of the highest order. Initially a chocolatier (bombones, truffles, assortments, etc.), today Cacao de Origen (CdO) works directly with cacaoteros / Bromans et.al. in building that alliance.
A lecture / demonstration hall for tastings & social confabs in which passionate debate ensues… like whether the Empress of Cacáo (Porcelana) reigns supreme over the God-King (Chuao). Oh, such can be the heated but always convivial exchanges, in the spirit of achieving chocolate.
A feedback mechanism for discussing & developing seeds, genetics, soil, best post-harvest practices & cultivated taste.
A work in progress for sure (Q: is / will / can it ever be finished?) to preserve Venezuela's genetic treasures & cultural heritage (A: no, because cacáo / cocoa / chocolate, like all life, continually evolves).
A job never done, the cacáo gods bless CdO with a Vulcan salute (thank you, Leonard Nimoy) for toiling to safeguard this, their legacy, gifted to humankind. Live long & prosper.
Appearance -- / 5
Zotter-level 2-bar pack in completely re-sealable zip-lock wrap
Sidebar: a combo of crisscross scoring in the mold + a thin pour creates an explosive, instant breakaway sensation on the melt (of nearly pop-rock proportions) but probably too fragile – despite the double-stacked, back-to-back bars to reinforce one another inside the packaging -- for a local trip to retail outlets let alone survive int’l shipping, most of which arrive in shards… just something practical to consider
Zotter-level 2-bar pack in completely re-sealable zip-lock wrap
Sidebar: a combo of crisscross scoring in the mold + a thin pour creates an explosive, instant breakaway sensation on the melt (of nearly pop-rock proportions) but probably too fragile – despite the double-stacked, back-to-back bars to reinforce one another inside the packaging -- for a local trip to retail outlets let alone survive int’l shipping, most of which arrive in shards… just something practical to consider
| Color: | clear |
| Surface: | bubbling; craters; + brushed ghosting of the front design on the back |
| Temper: | proud gloss |
| Snap: | dissonance due to crenullated scoring |
Aroma -- / 10
Río Caribe
the burning llanos…. smolders out from the humus of the undergrowth
Macuare
a bit green as well, escorted however by spices -- cinnamon; dried ginger – the latter triggers sharply pronounced pineapple for a tropic chocolate
Agua Fria
feathery light as a flake of pastry puff on a strawberry cloud
Patanemo
ineffably light & clean as lye
drops just the blowpop of grape BubbleYum® a millimeter deep into diatomaceous earth
sparks up some cocoa dust flints to a fine chocolate head which, up close, conjures green tea
Chuao
the unChuao: another decidedly green affair with wet earth / damp dog FXs -- way off base for the longest…. 'til that identifiable blueberry rise (albeit meek here)
the burning llanos…. smolders out from the humus of the undergrowth
Macuare
a bit green as well, escorted however by spices -- cinnamon; dried ginger – the latter triggers sharply pronounced pineapple for a tropic chocolate
Agua Fria
feathery light as a flake of pastry puff on a strawberry cloud
Patanemo
ineffably light & clean as lye
drops just the blowpop of grape BubbleYum® a millimeter deep into diatomaceous earth
sparks up some cocoa dust flints to a fine chocolate head which, up close, conjures green tea
Chuao
the unChuao: another decidedly green affair with wet earth / damp dog FXs -- way off base for the longest…. 'til that identifiable blueberry rise (albeit meek here)
Mouthfeel -- / 15
| Texture: | shatter-bursts |
| Melt: | slower than its thin dimension lets on |
Flavor -- / 50
Río Caribe
bottom base note cocoa -> grass from the Aromatics oxidized by sea breezes, breaded backing -> minor wood bark with its attendant bitter -> black walnut shell in black coffee
Macuare
straight chocolate brownie -> fleeting citrus -> gradual / subtle spice cake apparition -> kind vine (very light, almost diaphanous) -> evanescent quince -> white sweet spot in a cross between (green) banana (semi-astringent) x (pale) honey (sugar)…
returns to chocolate -> blacks out for good on, unexpectedly, raisin -> lastly a bluestone veneer
Agua Fria
Flavor confirms Aroma & then some… like a tingling allspice at the tongue's tip -> trace sandstone at the very rear -> macadamia-caramel rolls toward a Milk Chocolate almond-toffee for the after-life…
Patanemo
cocoa butter the first impression intermingled with breadfruit & powdered cranberry blossom (hmmm) -> latex (in keeping with Texture) -> no getting around that floral… now a musty gardenia -> small wood chips & char -> bitter stringent exit
Chuao
chomps down on ambiguous cocoa, undecided whether to go in the direction of chocolate or the soiled Earth -- & picks the latter…. but a good bitter Earth, nothing too harsh as thick butter shields the tongue from the elements -> a fruited notion struggles valiantly but vainly to pierce thru the works
bottom base note cocoa -> grass from the Aromatics oxidized by sea breezes, breaded backing -> minor wood bark with its attendant bitter -> black walnut shell in black coffee
Macuare
straight chocolate brownie -> fleeting citrus -> gradual / subtle spice cake apparition -> kind vine (very light, almost diaphanous) -> evanescent quince -> white sweet spot in a cross between (green) banana (semi-astringent) x (pale) honey (sugar)…
returns to chocolate -> blacks out for good on, unexpectedly, raisin -> lastly a bluestone veneer
Agua Fria
Flavor confirms Aroma & then some… like a tingling allspice at the tongue's tip -> trace sandstone at the very rear -> macadamia-caramel rolls toward a Milk Chocolate almond-toffee for the after-life…
Patanemo
cocoa butter the first impression intermingled with breadfruit & powdered cranberry blossom (hmmm) -> latex (in keeping with Texture) -> no getting around that floral… now a musty gardenia -> small wood chips & char -> bitter stringent exit
Chuao
chomps down on ambiguous cocoa, undecided whether to go in the direction of chocolate or the soiled Earth -- & picks the latter…. but a good bitter Earth, nothing too harsh as thick butter shields the tongue from the elements -> a fruited notion struggles valiantly but vainly to pierce thru the works
Quality -- / 20
Río Caribe
Sucre State, Venezuela;
Productores de Paria;
Post-harvested by Hacienda San José;
Vintage 2014
A 'no nonsense' bar yet very agreeable for 85% & true to the Caribe varietal given the high percentage, rarely experienced at this strength (all inhabit the 70% range save for Willie's and Domori that go to the upper extreme -- 100%).
Very dense / claustrophobic, the only leavening that white bread backdrop, the probable offshoot of residual lactic acid from a shortish ferment.
Cacao de Origen (CdO) simultaneously curbs this cacáo's more assertive traits while leaving well enough alone.
Macuare
From Miranda State, Venezuela in the environs of the Parque Nacional Laguna de Tacarigua;
2013 Vintage harvested by Arturo Somana;
74%; a generalized Carenero cultivar.
A chocolate that largely defies expectations of what sets up in the Aroma as somewhat a first from Venezuela -- a citrus-laden chocolate -- only to recline back into a more traditional repose so characteristic for the country.
At alternating moments quite sublime, always supple. Too much so for most cocoa gurus who'll dismiss it as a timid underachiever for the area.
Agua Fria
Sucre State, Venezuela;
Vintage 2013;
Broman Calixto López;
75%
Chocolate etherealized; Catongo-like / Porcelana-lite (however impossible that might be to imagine). The opposite of the brassy / tannic / frontal cacáo that grabs tongues by the balls, replaced by finesse / elegance / refinement.
The unsung revelation of the collection.
Patanemo
Carabobo. Venezuela;
Local association of growers brokered via Tisano;
Vintage 2013-14
Notwithstanding the florescence, a disappointment. Flowers often result from insufficient fermentation & this certainly tastes / feels the case as the profile cuts loose aimlessly. Then again, no one of late makes much at all out of this cultivar, the last being Mast Bros back in 2010 before that label became strictly business.
As is, a flower nailed to a wood plank.
Chuao
75%;
Aragua. Venezuela;
Asociación Campesina de Chuao brokered by Tisano;
Vintage 2013
This as well as Rio Caribe (above) serve as benchmarks since both are widely replicated by several barsmiths. Taken together they render a split decision: one displays the potential of CdO while the other exposes challenges facing it… including, despite being in situ, sourcing (not all Chuaos are alike; not all are even Chuao).
An underwhelming Chuao & even problematic, beginning presumably with the seed lot & ostensibly with the processing parameters. Just a shell of Chuao's higher power; literally tastes of the cacáo hulls rather than the cacáo seeds. A miss & a whiff.
Capsule Summary: Generally austere but a developing situation (e.g., more can be attained from fuller fermentations) that holds great promise to merit support. Currently the vision exceeds the implementation (to be expected from a young organization). Its success, in conjunction with other efforts in the country, project far-ranging impact for the conservation of the fabled cacáos of Venezuela, several of which languish in a listless, wayward or dormant state undergoing neglect, sometimes abandonment &, worse, outright ruin – the bitter fruit of often contentious & myopic land reform policies as well as the pressures of commodity market pricing.
INGREDIENTS: cocoa mass, sugar
Reviewed March 3, 2015
Sucre State, Venezuela;
Productores de Paria;
Post-harvested by Hacienda San José;
Vintage 2014
A 'no nonsense' bar yet very agreeable for 85% & true to the Caribe varietal given the high percentage, rarely experienced at this strength (all inhabit the 70% range save for Willie's and Domori that go to the upper extreme -- 100%).
Very dense / claustrophobic, the only leavening that white bread backdrop, the probable offshoot of residual lactic acid from a shortish ferment.
Cacao de Origen (CdO) simultaneously curbs this cacáo's more assertive traits while leaving well enough alone.
Macuare
From Miranda State, Venezuela in the environs of the Parque Nacional Laguna de Tacarigua;
2013 Vintage harvested by Arturo Somana;
74%; a generalized Carenero cultivar.
A chocolate that largely defies expectations of what sets up in the Aroma as somewhat a first from Venezuela -- a citrus-laden chocolate -- only to recline back into a more traditional repose so characteristic for the country.
At alternating moments quite sublime, always supple. Too much so for most cocoa gurus who'll dismiss it as a timid underachiever for the area.
Agua Fria
Sucre State, Venezuela;
Vintage 2013;
Broman Calixto López;
75%
Chocolate etherealized; Catongo-like / Porcelana-lite (however impossible that might be to imagine). The opposite of the brassy / tannic / frontal cacáo that grabs tongues by the balls, replaced by finesse / elegance / refinement.
The unsung revelation of the collection.
Patanemo
Carabobo. Venezuela;
Local association of growers brokered via Tisano;
Vintage 2013-14
Notwithstanding the florescence, a disappointment. Flowers often result from insufficient fermentation & this certainly tastes / feels the case as the profile cuts loose aimlessly. Then again, no one of late makes much at all out of this cultivar, the last being Mast Bros back in 2010 before that label became strictly business.
As is, a flower nailed to a wood plank.
Chuao
75%;
Aragua. Venezuela;
Asociación Campesina de Chuao brokered by Tisano;
Vintage 2013
This as well as Rio Caribe (above) serve as benchmarks since both are widely replicated by several barsmiths. Taken together they render a split decision: one displays the potential of CdO while the other exposes challenges facing it… including, despite being in situ, sourcing (not all Chuaos are alike; not all are even Chuao).
An underwhelming Chuao & even problematic, beginning presumably with the seed lot & ostensibly with the processing parameters. Just a shell of Chuao's higher power; literally tastes of the cacáo hulls rather than the cacáo seeds. A miss & a whiff.
Capsule Summary: Generally austere but a developing situation (e.g., more can be attained from fuller fermentations) that holds great promise to merit support. Currently the vision exceeds the implementation (to be expected from a young organization). Its success, in conjunction with other efforts in the country, project far-ranging impact for the conservation of the fabled cacáos of Venezuela, several of which languish in a listless, wayward or dormant state undergoing neglect, sometimes abandonment &, worse, outright ruin – the bitter fruit of often contentious & myopic land reform policies as well as the pressures of commodity market pricing.
INGREDIENTS: cocoa mass, sugar
Reviewed March 3, 2015