Impact
Some may question why group Colombia, Panama, & Belize in a section on the Caribbean rather than South and Central America. Well, besides looking at the map & seeing that they all enjoy waterfront on it, these countries share a kindred heritage with chocolate culture & together course along the natural distribution of cacáo (genetic & geographic rather than political boundaries / nation-state borders which, from a botanical perspective, are artificial).
Appearance 3.7 / 5
| Color: | light & opaque |
| Surface: | adequate |
| Temper: | dim shimmer |
| Snap: | solid strength |
Aroma 7.9 / 10
Kolumbien
flat, dry Milk Choc draft -> sits up on a fermented white-fruit spot
Panama
smell as durian tastes: nirvanic… a multiplicity of fragrances (custard, cream, pineapple, banana, rum & even garlic)
perfumes up hibiscus, plumeria & pear blossoms
extraordinary; unlike any Panama before it
Belize 82%
unusual for Belize… quite Earthbound -- mallow & slippery elm
cocoa hangs under
Belize Spezial
a yeast bazaar brewing up caraway / mint / cabbage at strong levels too
Loma Los Pinos
livestock: dogs, horse, cattle, & hogs
flat, dry Milk Choc draft -> sits up on a fermented white-fruit spot
Panama
smell as durian tastes: nirvanic… a multiplicity of fragrances (custard, cream, pineapple, banana, rum & even garlic)
perfumes up hibiscus, plumeria & pear blossoms
extraordinary; unlike any Panama before it
Belize 82%
unusual for Belize… quite Earthbound -- mallow & slippery elm
cocoa hangs under
Belize Spezial
a yeast bazaar brewing up caraway / mint / cabbage at strong levels too
Loma Los Pinos
livestock: dogs, horse, cattle, & hogs
Mouthfeel 12.5 / 15
| Texture: | slightly choppy |
| Melt: | measured from good Temper |
Flavor 43.7 / 50
Kolumbien
yep, cherimoya-chocolate (that white fruit picked up in the scent) -> curuba (banana-passionfruit) -> green tea set on some grasslands -> nut -> cream -> evanescent spice -> back wood lot in the rear -> tamarillo -> black mission fig -> roots + arracacha -> dry port -> walnut fudge-brownie
Panama
racks up early spice (exotic absinthe & wintergreen -- rare) -> soft wood support -> licorice stick (the herb as much as the candy) -> all fuses in a semi-bitters tonic
Belize 82%
cocoa-nut -> minor malt -> twinge of sour, flirts with fruiting but shies away, stays rectilinear -> takes on some bitterness -> reverts back to nuts & ground soil
Belize Spezial
mint edge from the Aroma carries over; ditto caraway -> both yield to moraberry -> golden raisin gelée (sweet)
Loma Los Pinos
caramel -> brown sugar -> milk chocolate -> light gingerbread (gluten-free, naturally) -> butter takes over the works engendering a spiced-rice pudding (ditto the Texture) -> cocoa syrup
yep, cherimoya-chocolate (that white fruit picked up in the scent) -> curuba (banana-passionfruit) -> green tea set on some grasslands -> nut -> cream -> evanescent spice -> back wood lot in the rear -> tamarillo -> black mission fig -> roots + arracacha -> dry port -> walnut fudge-brownie
Panama
racks up early spice (exotic absinthe & wintergreen -- rare) -> soft wood support -> licorice stick (the herb as much as the candy) -> all fuses in a semi-bitters tonic
Belize 82%
cocoa-nut -> minor malt -> twinge of sour, flirts with fruiting but shies away, stays rectilinear -> takes on some bitterness -> reverts back to nuts & ground soil
Belize Spezial
mint edge from the Aroma carries over; ditto caraway -> both yield to moraberry -> golden raisin gelée (sweet)
Loma Los Pinos
caramel -> brown sugar -> milk chocolate -> light gingerbread (gluten-free, naturally) -> butter takes over the works engendering a spiced-rice pudding (ditto the Texture) -> cocoa syrup
Quality 16.9 / 20
Kolumbien
75% cacáo-content
Terrific length for a bar that at one point felt short & limited. Ultimately though a quiet, almost sneaky complexity.
Far from the most enticing collection of flavors, especially the 2nd half when they pull at each other in a decisively downward bent, but an acquired taste for a grown id in need of more than happy sugars & fruit.
A very unique & accomplished take on this origin.
Panama
72% cacáo-content
Phenomenal air; grounded tongue. If Flavor approximated the Aroma, this might approach the perfect chocolate.
As is, pretty special for Panama, an origin of very ordinary output.
Presents a revealing counterpoint to Zotter's 70% Panama from 2010. As with Kolumbien (above), not an easy chocolate; in fact, a bit of a challenger. And worth it.
Belize 82%
Neutered for a Belize & too high a percentage, at least for this particular crop. Taste of residuals left over from Hershey's failed Hummingbird experiment in the country which litter the Toledo district with vapid hybrids.
Belize Spezial
72% cacáo-content
Special indeed… or at least damn unusual. And appetizing too.
Zotter, known for his zaned-flavor combos in 'hand-scooped chocolate bars' with additives, accomplishes practically the same here without any here.
Plenty of bars exude spice notes but caraway?
Belize cacáo customarily galvanizes raisin inflections yet only rarely golden ones.
Then that beautiful moraberry in the center of it all.
A bar full of intrigue.
Loma Los Pinos
Zotter likes to test high percentages. Witness his Belize 82% (above) or his Peruvian 96% and 100%. He dips down into lower percentages for a reason. In this case, an allotment that points to an indistinct origin-free zone; less bulk, more generic in confecting a really easy mainstream comfort chocolate for the masses.
No denying -- it succeeds.
Capsule Summary
Curious collection. No stellar gems as Zotter's wont. Instead a middling bunch of good if underwhelming chocolate. A combination of generally secondary seed selection & the utilization of raw cane sugar which color the bars toward spice & pulls their profiles in.
INGREDIENTS: cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, salt
Reviewed July 15, 2015
75% cacáo-content
Terrific length for a bar that at one point felt short & limited. Ultimately though a quiet, almost sneaky complexity.
Far from the most enticing collection of flavors, especially the 2nd half when they pull at each other in a decisively downward bent, but an acquired taste for a grown id in need of more than happy sugars & fruit.
A very unique & accomplished take on this origin.
Panama
72% cacáo-content
Phenomenal air; grounded tongue. If Flavor approximated the Aroma, this might approach the perfect chocolate.
As is, pretty special for Panama, an origin of very ordinary output.
Presents a revealing counterpoint to Zotter's 70% Panama from 2010. As with Kolumbien (above), not an easy chocolate; in fact, a bit of a challenger. And worth it.
Belize 82%
Neutered for a Belize & too high a percentage, at least for this particular crop. Taste of residuals left over from Hershey's failed Hummingbird experiment in the country which litter the Toledo district with vapid hybrids.
Belize Spezial
72% cacáo-content
Special indeed… or at least damn unusual. And appetizing too.
Zotter, known for his zaned-flavor combos in 'hand-scooped chocolate bars' with additives, accomplishes practically the same here without any here.
Plenty of bars exude spice notes but caraway?
Belize cacáo customarily galvanizes raisin inflections yet only rarely golden ones.
Then that beautiful moraberry in the center of it all.
A bar full of intrigue.
Loma Los Pinos
Zotter likes to test high percentages. Witness his Belize 82% (above) or his Peruvian 96% and 100%. He dips down into lower percentages for a reason. In this case, an allotment that points to an indistinct origin-free zone; less bulk, more generic in confecting a really easy mainstream comfort chocolate for the masses.
No denying -- it succeeds.
Capsule Summary
Curious collection. No stellar gems as Zotter's wont. Instead a middling bunch of good if underwhelming chocolate. A combination of generally secondary seed selection & the utilization of raw cane sugar which color the bars toward spice & pulls their profiles in.
INGREDIENTS: cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, salt
Reviewed July 15, 2015