Reviews
George Gensler: 18-May-2012
| SCORES | Score/10 | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Aroma: | 8 | 10% |
| Look/snap: | 9.5 | 5% |
| Taste: | 8 | 35% |
| Melt: | 6.5 | 5% |
| Length: | 4.5 | 15% |
| Opinion: | 8 | 30% |
| Total/100: | 74.75 | 100% |
| INFO | |
|---|---|
| Best before: | |
| Batch num: | unknown |
| Source: | Sample direct from maker |
| Supplied by: | Andre V. of L'Amourette Chocolatier |
Before the taste: L’Amourette’s packaging is gorgeously romantic, reminiscent of a Valentine’s box (hearts, flowers and swirls). The colors and lettering set each other off beautifully, with the interior wrapping enhancing the box design. The 100g bar is wrapped in colored foil, matching the lettering on box. The only issue I had was the L’Amourette sticker holding the foil closed. Instead of peeling back, the foil around the edges tore, making it difficult to close the foil.  The information on the box includes the standard origin, weight, ingredients, etc. The bar itself is segmented into 10 embossed tablets and it appears the mold could also be used to form filled bars (the tablets are each about 1cm thick at the center). The bar is a rich chestnut brown, glossy and nicely poured, very clean. The aroma is pleasant with maybe a hint of vanilla.
Getting to the heart of it: I didn’t expect much snap with such a thick bite, but there is some toothiness to it, even at the center of the tablet. Because of the thickness, it’s tempting to chew it, rather than let it melt. The melt is chunky and slightly powdery. There is a slight astringency (and a tingling, which is unusual to me) to the bar that lingers long after the chocolate is gone, finishing with a slight burn. There is a lot of fat in this bar, which inhibits the flavor and experience. It tastes a bit like brownie, but not particularly fudgy and not overly sweet. Though there is vanilla, in the form of Bourbon vanilla beans, in the bar, there is no strong vanilla flavor.
Overall: This bar is not complex at all. There is chocolate and astringency and the flavor is muted by fat. Going back to the package, the nutrition information indicates that 10g of the 40g serving are from sugar (to be expected in a 75% bar) and also that 18g are from fat. I think this bar shows some promise and that it would benefit from less fat, to showcase the natural flavors of the cacao. As it is, it would make a great transition bar, for people interested in moving to single origin chocolates.
About the Author
I’ve had L’Amourette Carenero Sup 75%. I found it to be average at best. To it’s credit it had a decent snap, an interesting mold and not real off flavor to speak of. However, there were noticeable bubbles in the surface of the chocolate. The melt was thick and slow, yet chalky. Flavor profile did not highlight the origin, producing only a mild chocolatey flavor with any real character probably coming from the added vanilla, which is not want you want from fine chocolate. Biggest problem seems to be too much added cocoa butter, resulting in a muted profile and a slightly fatty mouthfeel. Overall, the bar was quite bland and only a mild improvement over mass market chocolate.