And this Sunday is Easter, which means family, friends, church, cooking, and most importantly..... Chocolate. Lots of chocolate. Chocolate Easter bunnies, cream eggs, robin egg malt balls.... it's a chocolate lover's dream.
Inspired by this, I did something for you guys, a favor for my devout, loyal readers. Tired of the chocolate sold only by large corporations and influenced by the Local Produce spirit of this blog, I tried lots and lots of small chocolatier's spring choices. ALL FOR YOU. You are welcome, yes.
Now don't get all judgmental, I didn't eat 30 bars of chocolate (though don't dare me, I could probably pull that off). I merely sampled. Delicious yummy samples.
First, I want to point out how important it is to buy chocolate that is Fair Trade labeled or from a chocolatier who sources from small co-ops or local farmers for their cacao beans. Cocoa beans are grown in Central and South America and Africa, most harvested by slaves, including children, who work all day in the hot sun. They breathe in the intense pesticides, are paid virtually nothing, and have been reportedly beaten if not working fast enough. Fair Trade certification ensures that farmers receive a fair price, allows farmers to invest in techniques that bring out the flavors of the region, and strictly prohibits slave and child labor.
Alternatively, organic chocolate is a safe bet as organic farms are inspected regularly to ensure the farm maintains it's 'organic' certification, which makes it difficult to exploit workers. Also, organic chocolate is typically shade grown under the canopy of the rainforest, which helps with deforestation prevention- another problem for the growing cacao fields. Whole Foods and Trader Joe's are two larger grocery store chains that have excellent Fair Trade chocolate options, both as their own store brand and also as a distributor for other artisans.
But back to local producers. Here are some suggestions should you choose to indulge...
Mast Brothers
Craft chocolatiers out of Brooklyn, NY, they make chocolate in small batches with incredibly unique flavors: Dark Chocolate with Stumptown Coffee(local coffee brewer Portland/NY), Vanilla & Smoke, Black Truffle, Serrano Pepper, Maple; all their additions (fruits, herbs, maple, etc.) are sourced locally as well.
First, the packaging is gorgeous. Unique prints for each variety of chocolate on the outside and inside the chocolate is wrapped in gold, which gives you that quick Willy Wonka flashback as you rush to find your Golden Ticket. But the prize, in this case, is the chocolate itself.
I tasted the Fleur de Sel bar first: I love salt and dark chocolate so this was a major win for me. It is heavy on the salt, you can see the sea salt on the bottom of the bar, but it melts away quickly and blends into this delicious masterpiece. I loved this.
Next up was the Vanilla & Smoke. The cacao beans are apparently smoked then stone ground with vanilla and sugar over the next couple of days. Neither the vanilla or the smoke are a heavy flavor (you taste the smoke toward the end) but it all blends nicely together. I can't wait to try the Belize 70% and the Serrano pepper. 'One bar at a time' = my mantra I must repeat. Repeatedly.
The Mast Brother website has great videos about the company and where they source their cocoa beans. If you have a sec, have a look.
Made in one of my favorite cities in the world, Asheville, North Carolina. Not only do they source their cacao beans straight from the farmer (Costa Rica and Peru) they also locally source their milk, honey, fruit, spices, and coffee.
First up: the Palo Blanco Chulucanas. The beans are harvested from special cacao trees in the coastal desert of Piura, Peru and then blended with unrefined, dark brown sugar that they import directly from a cooperative also in Peru. The sugar gives the chocolate a molasses, earthy flavor that is unexpected and delicious.
Next: the Riverbend Malted Milk Chocolate. Dark chocolate with malted barley from Riverbend Malt House in Asheville and milk powder from the National Dairy Coop in Pennsylvania. I like malts so I love this chocolate. It also has hints of cinnamon and nutmeg, which works beautifully with the malt flavoring. But you do need to like malt.
They have a great tasting room if you ever find yourself in Asheville. Craft chocolate, craft coffee, craft beer.... is that the best place in the world? Maybe so.
Nashville's own bean-to-bar chocolate. It begins with handpicking the best fair-trade cacao beans delivered from Ghana, Dominican Republic and Panama.
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| Photo courtesy of Eat-Drink-Smile |
The packaging is beautifully retro in spirit and design, taking you back to the days of general stores with ice cream counters and swivel stools. You're already smiling and haven't yet tried the chocolate! My favorite, that I've tasted, was the Mexican Style Cinn-Chili. It's smoky, it's warming, it's the best Mexican chocolate I've had since I lived in Texas. You also can put it in a pot of hot milk and make yourself some freaking amazing Mexican hot chocolate.
I also loooooooove the Bourbon Nib Brittle which, I know, isn't a chocolate bar, but the word bourbon is in the title and that's all it really takes for me to be interested and quickly fall in love.
Based in Springfield, Missouri, Askinosie's founder and chocolatier was a criminal defense attorney for 20 years before he discovered his love of creating chocolate, what a bizarre career change.
Askinosie works one-on-one with cacao farmers in Ecuador, the Philippines, Honduras, and Tanzania where they source their beans, paying even higher than Fair Trade requires and additionally, sharing company profits with the farmers. They've created relationships and work with the farmers to cultivate the best flavor from the beans, resulting in some delicious chocolate.
I love me some white chocolate so required tasting was the White Chocolate + Pistachio. I could have shoved the entire bar in my mouth in one go. It wouldn't have been pretty, but it could have easily happened. Pistachios are kind of my favorite food.
They also sell baking chocolate, which is great for the cake, cupcake or cookie creations you know you love to attempt.
sweeteeth chocolate
Made in Charleston, South Carolina with fair trade beans from Columbia. Their most popular bar is their Sea is for Caramel and rightfully so, it is addictively good. Slightly burnt caramel and vanilla bean inside a 65% dark chocolate shell. Yeah, you could eat that.
Next up was Call of the Wild, a dark chocolate bar filled with a port wine caramel. It is decadent and has massive flavor. I actually could not eat this in one go, but I could keep it in my purse and nibble.
Their packaging is whimsical and the illustrations unique to each bar, reflecting perfectly the product inside.
If you have any questions about Fair Trade chocolate go to the Fair Trade website. They have a great FAQ section and lists of places to buy Fair Trade.
Happy Easter everyone! Enjoy some chocolate. And wish me luck (and my Easter dinner guests) as I will be attempting these:
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| Photo courtesy of Martha Stewart |
Gah! Chocolate!!!!!!
Thanks for this posting. I'd love to try these brands soon. They all have such pretty packaging. :)
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