Report: Choqoa Tasting Event 10.1

The first Choqoa Tasting Event this year was again very different from the previous editions, and not only for the reason that people came from across the country to attend our Antwerp session!

Among the attending chocolate explorers we had Gunther, one of the founders of a chocolate brand (Baru, Diepenbeek), eager to learn about making his own chocolate in some future; Geert, a dedicated chocolatier & patissier who passionately cares about his base Valrhona couverture (Patisserie Vercruysse, Kortijk); and Mo, who runs an inspiring lunch bar and is a former winner of the Best Sandwich competition!

I found it pretty intriguing given their background they often did heard of several of the top chocolate brands we tasted, but hadn’t take the effort or had the chance to taste every variety that they could get their hands on? On the other side also some US brands like Taza and TCHO were not unknown and I was happy to have a TCHO ‘Fruity’ bar on the tasting table (thanks to @ActiveLife). And with brands like Zotter and Pacari, I had something new to offer even for these professionals

It was utmost pleasant and charming to see how participants discovered variations in freshness, color, melting patterns and lingering aftertastes by themselves. Even to the detail where they felt one bar more coming up in front or gathering in the back of their tongues and palates. All added their views and knowledge on chocolate and food so we got some lenghty talks along the tasting session as well.

Eventually, again this gourmet chocolate tasting event was full of fun, sharing tasting impressions and notes, discovering the immersive world of real fine chocolate, and brainstorming on future possibilities!

Continue reading for details on the tasted bars…

List of tasted bars:

• Michel Cluizel “Plantation Mangaro”
  as always a fresh citric opener
• Valrhona “Guanaja” 70%
  the bar that basically initiated the whole origin movement two decades ago, named after the place where Columbus first encountered cacao beans
• François Pralus “République Dominicaine”
  a great bar giving a whole different tasting sensation than the nutty Valrhona and citric Mangaro. A fresh ‘cooling’ experience on the palate
• Domori “Apurimac”
  Domori is like a brand you like or dislike, there is hardly a neutral zone! The oh so typical creamy conched aromas that aggressively escape from the bar are only tamed in their flavors by Domori.
• TCHO ‘Fruity’
  Enter USA, a whole new chocolate experience, with a full bodied tasting curve that is like none of the above
• Bonnat “Puerto Cabello”
  To my surprise Bonnat didn’t make the top appreciated this time! Maybe it was put in the wrong place and time, but most were less impressed by this Bonnat bar, although it’s one of his icon bars
• François Pralus “Cuba”
  A bar full of subtle flavours and the typical bolder character that comes with every Pralus
• Zotter “Labooka Peru 80%”
  I did not reveal the percentage beforehand, and even if the taste may not be about bitterness (rather smoke tobacco) , all of us guessed by the deep intensity of the overall flavour that this is a high percentage bar.
• Pacari “Los Rios” 72%
  Now here a very different chocolate sensation from Ecuador that really stood the 80% we had before. Pacari‘s organic process delivers really interesting freshness that surpasses the classic chocolate flavours
• Michel Cluizel “Los Ancones”
  From subtle flavours to more expressive complex aromas with this one. An expressive bar that show how complex a bar can be in containing a variety of aroma’s. Our professional jury evaluated and detected super tiny nibs that would help achieving this result. Something to research…
• François Pralus “Chuao”
  No need to tell a lot about the mythical Chuao to this crowd, but they were all eagerly exploring the enormous complexity of flavours every bite of this bean releases
• François Pralus “Le 100%”
  My favourite chocolate experience still, not for its taste only, but Pralus’ mastering the Criollo bean in its purity delivering an experience and sensation that goes beyond chocolate.

Related Stories:

1. Report: Choqoa Tasting Event 10.2
2. Report: The 2nd Choqoa Tasting Event
3. Report: The First Choqoa Tasting Event
4. Choqoa introduces the finest origins to Barry-Callebaut
5. Report: Choqoa Tasting with Carlos Eichenberger, Danta Chocolate, Guatemala.