Cluizel Plantation Tamarina Sao Tome

Cluizel Plantation Tamarina Sao Tome is last year's single origin bar from Sao Tome by Michel Cluizel. Yes, I probably kept this too long but this is still one of the best dark chocolate bars (67% cacao) bars I've tried. A strong fruity and winey fragrance translates into similar flavour on tasting. Also one of the few bars to include vanilla pod rather than vanillin.

Delhaize Tarte Citron and Santander with Passionfruit

Delhaize Tarte Citron

Another supermarket bar made to resemble a branded counterpart, Lindt's Lemon Mousse bar in this case, this consists of sweet milk chocolate (30% cacao) enclosing a lemon filling (40%). The chunky pieces have a sweet milk chocolate fragrance with a strong lemon component. Tiny bicuit pieces in the filling add a surprising but pleasing crunch. According to the ingredients list there are meringue pieces but I haven't been able to taste them. I have not tasted Lindt's version, so can't compare them, but I really like this bar. While much sweeter than my general preference, the lemon and crunchy bits make this perfect for days when I want a change from dark chocolate. Did I mention that the glossy yellow and white packaging is also very elegant?

Santander with Passionfruit

A Colombian single-origin bar with 70% cacao and tiny crispy(!) passion fruits bits scattered throughout, this is a fairly creamy, smooth-textured bar. Slightly sweetened but not overly so. The chocolate itself has a good flavour, slightly fruity. Not acid, sour or bitter. Wrapped in thick gold foil and packaged in glossy black cardboard, this is certainly more attractive than Santander's plain single-origin bars. Definitely worth trying. I like the chocolate, but am not sure the passionfruit flavour is strong enough.

Santander 70% Dark Chocolate

Santander 70% Dark Chocolate

This single origin Colombian bar is one of my favourite basic dark chocolate bars. Good depth of flavour, not sour or bitter due to some added sugar, but yet not in any way a sweet bar. One of the more economical options too at ~$2/100gm. Also fair trade and non-GMO if that matters to you.

E. Guittard Sur Del Lago Bittersweet + El Rey Apamate

E. Guittard Sur Del Lago Bittersweet

This 65% cacao bar had the most amazing aroma of any of the bars I have purchased, and literally perfumed my luggage with its sweet fragrance. Containing cane sugar, this bar was noticeably sweet, though not overwhelmingly so, it lived up to its fragrance. Contains vanilla beans rather than the more usual vanillin. Very elegant wrapper.

El Rey Apamate

Another bar made with Venezuelan cacao beans, this has a higher cacao content at 73.5% and is a single bean (Carenero Superior) origin bar rather than a blend. This contains sugar as well. Another very pleasant, smooth textured bar. Even my mother who is deeply afraid of dark chocolate (!) found this palatable.

Trader Joe's Sao Tome Reserva 72

Trader Joe's Sao Tome Reserva 72% chocolate comes in a large 200gm bar. Individual pieces are correspondingly chunkier and larger than the usual 100/80gm bars. This shouldn't make a difference, but I had a hard time tasting this originally as I kept wanting to chew it instead of letting it slowly dissolve. Having got over this hurdle, I can say this is a pleasant tasting, fairly smooth chocolate, not too bitter, but not particularly strongly flavoured either.