La Praline
Impact
Belgium in the jungle... gives a sense of how chocolate might have been if King Leopold held onto the Congo.
Ludo Gillis, transplanted to Venezuela from Antwerp, enjoys home-field advantage because his adopted country's backyard teems with arguably the most prized cacáo on earth. Add to that its tropical bounty of wild fruits, flowers, & nuts, & he puts you closer to the source deploying those 'IT' factors, utilizing an indigenous approach where one can taste The Force... even from thousands of miles away.
Ludo Gillis, transplanted to Venezuela from Antwerp, enjoys home-field advantage because his adopted country's backyard teems with arguably the most prized cacáo on earth. Add to that its tropical bounty of wild fruits, flowers, & nuts, & he puts you closer to the source deploying those 'IT' factors, utilizing an indigenous approach where one can taste The Force... even from thousands of miles away.
Presentation 4 / 5
Godiva gold box transmuted into silver; stock molded schlubs inside
Aromas 4.4 / 5
dusted buttermilk-chocolate & banana w/ a little potted fertilizer
Textures/Melt 7.1 / 10
| Shells: | varies thru thick 'n thin, from modified French (semi-light) to fortified Belgian (heavy armor) |
| Centers: | mostly coarse & granulated; a few classic Belgian creams |
Flavor 46.2 / 50
raw & unrefined & real; a touch too enamored in sugar, otherwise good equilibrium & flavor evolutions that take a while to congeal but are eventually luci in taste, occasionally even pure
Quality 27.5 / 30
Rough in which the ends (with results that speak for themselves & are too authentic to be fabricated) justify the means (a homage to cacáo's roots)
Selections
| Couverture: | El Rey; Belcolade |
Flor de Parchita - Passionflower Caramel; unruly fruit acids ably escorted by Milk Choc caramel for 1 bumptious sweet-tart
Citron Dark - bright 'n tight lemon sweeps over a Dark-on-White piece until chocolate draws in closer & balms it at the back; good motion & progression
Mariposita - stiffest texture of the set; lavender praline... grit, sand, & dirt to go along w/ herb, all-obstructing flavor... then a back confluence rush of nuts & flowers overtakes the senses
Karoma - Dark-on-Milk / East-meets-West... Asian spice chest lacquered in Belgian-style whipped creamed assembly; soft in every aspect; excellent
Pina - gritty/grainy taut pineapple caramel; epitomizes the raw & unrefined & real
Milk - El Rey's Caoba given the cream treatment, brings out more of the malt
Champagne - pin-prick grape bubbles pair up & oxidize w/ granular cocoa to form plum brandy
Macadamia Marzipan - another grain-filled texture; at 1st blush, one the collection could do w/o, then on 2nd thought, pretty unusual (compared to typical almond or pistachio varieties) & respectable
Citron Dark - bright 'n tight lemon sweeps over a Dark-on-White piece until chocolate draws in closer & balms it at the back; good motion & progression
Mariposita - stiffest texture of the set; lavender praline... grit, sand, & dirt to go along w/ herb, all-obstructing flavor... then a back confluence rush of nuts & flowers overtakes the senses
Karoma - Dark-on-Milk / East-meets-West... Asian spice chest lacquered in Belgian-style whipped creamed assembly; soft in every aspect; excellent
Pina - gritty/grainy taut pineapple caramel; epitomizes the raw & unrefined & real
Milk - El Rey's Caoba given the cream treatment, brings out more of the malt
Champagne - pin-prick grape bubbles pair up & oxidize w/ granular cocoa to form plum brandy
Macadamia Marzipan - another grain-filled texture; at 1st blush, one the collection could do w/o, then on 2nd thought, pretty unusual (compared to typical almond or pistachio varieties) & respectable