Description
80% cocoa from Finca Villa Angela, a cocoa farm in central Colombia in Castilla la Nueva, Meta region.
Made into chocolate by Casa Cacao, a bean-to-bar chocolate maker based in Girona. Not just any company, but the chocolate project of El Celler de Can Roca. The Roca brothers, led in this case by Jordi Roca, have a deep passion for high-quality and ethically sourced ingredients, and it is particularly compelling to see how this philosophy carries through into their chocolate.
Jordi Roca has visited several cocoa plantations, and these journeys led to the creation of a book titled Casa Cacao. Eventually, they began producing their own chocolate—from bean to bar—not only for use in the restaurant, but also as a full range of chocolate bars, alongside creative bonbons and seasonal creations. A notable recommendation is their Advent calendar (available only directly from them), and they also produce distinctive Easter creations—this year, for example, chocolate figures inspired by Easter Island, rather than standard Easter bunnies.
This chocolate is another refined creation. A noteworthy detail: the wrapper is made from cocoa pod husks. These are typically discarded or used as fertilizer, but Casa Cacao repurposes them as packaging material. Interestingly, each wrapper is made from the husks of the specific cocoa used in the bar itself, resulting in visible variation in color between different chocolates—an elegant and thoughtful execution.
As for the taste: Casa Cacao is known for complex, expressive profiles. These are generally not subtle chocolates where you need to search for flavor; instead, they present fairly pronounced and layered notes. In this case: distinctly fruity, with nutty elements, and only very subtle dark/roasted tones. There is a lot happening on the palate. It does not taste “dark” in the way one might expect from an 80% chocolate—quite the opposite—but rather vibrant and fruit-forward. A bar worth revisiting at different moments to uncover new nuances. Not recommended if you prefer chocolate without any acidic notes.
The makers describe it as:
“Finca Villa Angela, Colombia 80% cocoa.
Colombian cocoa from the San Vicente (FSV41) and Arauquita (FEAR5) varieties, grown at 350 m altitude in Castilla La Nueva (Meta) and produced by Diego Maná at Villa Ángela farm, with experimental fermentations that provide notes of passion fruit, grapefruit and pastry-like sweetness.
In Casa Cacao’s workshop, we select it by hand, roast it, winnow it, add sugar and then refine it for a minimum of 48 hours.”
Flavor notes (according to the makers): yuzu peel, apricot, white flowers, butter biscuit, and almond.
Ingredients: cocoa, cane sugar, cocoa butter.
Allergen note: may contain traces of milk and nuts.
Net weight: 80 grams.
