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. Unlike the Carenero Superior bar, this one did not have the sticker, so it was much easier to open. 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 reddish brown, slightly dull, with a couple of small holes (flawed pour?). The aroma is slightly unpleasant, most likely a fault in the beans.
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 sticky. There is a lot of fat in this bar, which inhibits the flavor and experience. It is not overly sweet, but there isn’t a strong cacao flavor, either, again, probably due to the high fat content. There’s a hint of green in the flavor and a slight nuttiness. Towards the middle of the bite, the astringency kicks in hard, burning the back of my throat, but it’s a short burn – interesting more than unpleasant. There is vanilla, in the form of Bourbon vanilla beans, in the bar, but, as with the Carenero Superior bar, there is no strong vanilla flavor.
Overall: The chocolate flavor in this bar is interesting, more so than L’Amourette’s Carenero Superior. There is a distinct flavor arc, from fat to raw cacao beans to nuts, with some astringency, but, again, the flavors are muted by fat. From 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. The blurb on the back of the box also states that the beans are “hand selected” Rio CaribeSuperior; I’m not sure why that is not stated on the front of the box.
