Soma Cacao Fruit Chocolate

Description

We had been eagerly anticipating this bar. Soma creates some wonderful products—we can certainly count ourselves among their fans—and their fruit-infused chocolates are definitely a highlight.

This time, they’ve crafted a chocolate featuring… cocoa fruit! That is, the pulp of the cocoa pod.

While the beans are typically used for chocolate, the pulp itself boasts a fantastic fruity flavor. Although local cocoa farmers have long enjoyed eating it, its use elsewhere has only really taken off in recent years. Nowadays, you can buy cocoa fruit drinks, and the pulp is also used to make chocolate—we stock a few examples, such as those from Chocolate Tree and Zotter. In those instances, it often serves as a sugar substitute, whereas in this Soma bar, the cocoa fruit takes center stage.

So, what’s inside? Cocoa butter, cane sugar, and cocoa fruit pulp.

That’s it—no milk or other additives. This means it isn’t a standard white chocolate; we prefer to call it a fruit chocolate.

Fruit chocolate—made with cocoa fruit.
With the range Soma produces (featuring mango, raspberry, and banana), the makers have essentially created their own unique category of chocolate. Yet, since they aren’t a massive corporation looking to patent concepts or exploit them commercially, it remains a delightful secret for enthusiasts. Many of our customers have certainly had the pleasure of discovering it. Quite different from ordinary dark chocolate, it leans more towards white chocolate because it contains only cocoa butter—yet, thanks to the high fruit content, the intense fruit flavor takes center stage in a truly delightful way. Soma executes this ‘secret’ recipe using the ultimate fruit for chocolate lovers: the cacao fruit itself.

Origin: Hacienda Costa Esmeraldas (Ecuador)
Cacao fruit—and naturally, not just any cacao fruit, but produce from a specific farm. The cacao used here comes from the Salazar family and their Hacienda Costa Esmeraldas in Ecuador; they personally delivered it to Soma. It is truly special when the people behind the cacao and the chocolate come together—knowing each other well and sharing a friendship—so that the beautiful journey from cacao tree to chocolate bar is mirrored by the human connection involved.

What does cacao fruit (and this bar) taste like?
Just as every apple is slightly different, every cacao fruit has its own unique flavor profile. One variety differs from the next—a logical point, yet one often overlooked when it comes to cacao and chocolate. Generally speaking, however, the cacao fruit—at least as experienced in this bar—offers an intensely fruity, tropical taste. Soma describes it as a blend of pineapple, lychee, soursop, and floral notes.

Ingredients: cocoa butter, cane sugar, cacao fruit pulp.

Allergy note: may contain traces of milk, wheat flour, peanuts, and nuts.

Net weight: 33 grams. A small bar, but packed with flavor!