Casa Cacao – Piura Peru Dark 70%

Description

Pure origin chocolate made with 70% cocoa from the Norandino cooperative, based in Piura, Peru.

For those who haven’t read it elsewhere: Casa Cacao is the chocolate workshop of El Celler de Can Roca—universally praised and awarded as one of the best in the world. The Roca brothers are said to cook there masterfully. Jordi Roca creates the stunning desserts and, several years ago, traveled to South America to visit the cocoa plantations, to explore the source of chocolate—the cacao itself. This trip resulted in a book (also called Casa Cacao, highly recommended in our opinion) and the idea to showcase—from bean to bar—what chocolate is and why it is so special, right near their restaurant in Girona, including tasting it. And yes, this includes care for and respect of the cacao’s origin. In our view, that’s exactly how it should be. It’s remarkable that taste authorities like the Roca brothers want to share their love for chocolate. Hopefully, you can taste that in this and their other chocolates.

As you would expect from a three-Michelin-star restaurant, the price is on the higher side. But in our opinion, paying a bit more for quality chocolate is justified. In fact, it’s almost a shame that the vast majority of supermarket chocolate bars are solely about being as cheap as possible, often without even indicating the origin. But that’s another story—let’s focus on the taste now:

Flavor profile: Tart, passion fruit, orange, melon, and grapefruit

We must say that the tartness is quite moderate (we wouldn’t call it “very tart”)—but the fruity acidity is definitely noticeable and, in our view, flavorful.

The makers further note: “Cacao from the most prestigious cocoa-producing region in Peru, where the so-called ‘white cacao’ predominates, harvested by small producers in the area. In the Casa Cacao workshop, we hand-select the cacao, roast it, crack and winnow the beans, add organic cane sugar, and conche it for a minimum of 48 hours.”

Ingredients: Cocoa, sugar

Allergy notice from the makers: May contain traces of nuts, milk, gluten, and soy.