Oriol Balaguer
Impact
This guy’s got some big swinging pods. Chocolate rarely the hero (just another ingredient in yet 1 more course on the dinner menu) but Oriol’s a rock star out of the box.
Presentation 5 / 5
brown-tie formal; pod-shaped molds in shades spanning the rainbow; hi-temper; impeccably clean impressions & tight Fit-Finish
Aromas 4.3 / 5
jellies, spices, & herbs
Textures/Melt 9.6 / 10
| Shells: | well-tempered snap right up there w/ chocolate-dipped Dairy Queen soft-serve |
| Centers: | satin-fluid to micro-crunch |
Flavor 42.9 / 50
point-loaded & liberally sweet w/ an emphasis above & beyond chocolate into the realms of molecular gastronomy where dumbfounding recombinant flavors momentarily hold sway before flickering off to the next sensation along the imaginarium’s taste-axis that leaves a little vacuous
Quality 26.3 / 30
No, this ain’t flying coach; it’s charter... beyond 1st class. Oriol’s piloting his own craft.
Selections
| Couverture: |
Matcha Tea - green tea evasion under a Dark cream cover shooting off brown sugared plumes into a cocoa stem-winder; stealthy good
Tahitian Vanilla i> - nothing covert here; bold, heavily extracted vanilla, compounded by chocolate tannins create a black-cherry balance; monumental
Mascelta - full-sensory surround-sound from Disney’s Special FXs Dept... Hazelnut rock candy goes off orange crisp, crackle, pop, crunch & loud as a hail storm in the mouth; w/ so much going on, you’ll forget it’s chocolate
Especias - witchy spice praline; chocolate lost in nutmeg & almond... merges into meta-creamed sensation of an extra-blend dimension not naturally found, & beyond deconstructive analysis
Soja - White Chocolate & Soy Sauce go together like rotten cheese & spat wine until the Dark center equalizes the pairing into reflective Zen savor
Yuzu - White-on-White; the taste of virginity as key lime pie
Menta - hot take-off then mint cools its jets on chocolate-cream
Carmelo Sal - soft center, a degree or two from liquid ooze, rips out a butterscotch-toffee, salt seals the deal
Tahitian Vanilla i> - nothing covert here; bold, heavily extracted vanilla, compounded by chocolate tannins create a black-cherry balance; monumental
Mascelta - full-sensory surround-sound from Disney’s Special FXs Dept... Hazelnut rock candy goes off orange crisp, crackle, pop, crunch & loud as a hail storm in the mouth; w/ so much going on, you’ll forget it’s chocolate
Especias - witchy spice praline; chocolate lost in nutmeg & almond... merges into meta-creamed sensation of an extra-blend dimension not naturally found, & beyond deconstructive analysis
Soja - White Chocolate & Soy Sauce go together like rotten cheese & spat wine until the Dark center equalizes the pairing into reflective Zen savor
Yuzu - White-on-White; the taste of virginity as key lime pie
Menta - hot take-off then mint cools its jets on chocolate-cream
Carmelo Sal - soft center, a degree or two from liquid ooze, rips out a butterscotch-toffee, salt seals the deal