The Slitti 100% is remarkably palatable and is probably produced mainly for straight eating. It’s flavor is so subtle and mild I wouldn’t recommend it for cooking because other ingredients would simply overpower the chocolate. It’s extremely pasty and clumpy. Slitti’s format (the big bulky squares) isn’t the best for eating because the chocolate clumps in the mouth which makes it hard to distribute the chocolate evenly. Asparagus huh? I have a recipe that calls for asparagus spears wrapped in bacon strips; maybe Slitti’s chocolate could be a suitable replacement [;)]

I didn’t find Domori’s Puro sour or bitter at all. It has pleasant flavors of bananas and mangos and has the characteristic waxiness that I really love. Does anyone else find their chocolate a bit waxy?

Perhaps you overdid it on the unsweetened.

Me too, alex. The other day, I popped 50g of Castelain 85% in my mouth right after eating two brownies.

I slept fine that night; I also had a piece of key lime pie that day. Needless to say, when I arrived at the gym that day, I was wired, and after eating what I did that morning, I had plenty of energy. I felt like I could lift a house.

Castelain is a French brand that makes decent chocolate. The Macaibo 70% bar is pretty good though rather mild, especially compared to the 71% house blend. The 85% is really good; I posted my thoughts about it recently in one of these threads, so if you’re interested just do a “Castelain” search.

Well, I presume the increase of energy that day was a result of my 1700+ calorie “meal” before noon hehe. I was ravenous that day, mind you, and I don’t normally eat like that. I ate, waited, ate more, waited, and ate some more, etc. hehe. I don’t think it was the chocolate because I can eat more than a mere 50g and feel fine. I also had about three or four cups of coffee, but just like you, LoneLy, coffee doesn’t effect me much. I can drink a couple cups before bed and sleep fine. I think my body wasn’t accustomed to such a large dose of calories, and as a result, it wanted me to expend them immediately.

As for the Castelain, I got my bars from a local store. There are some food distributors that stock Castelain, so if a retailer wants to sell the chocolate, all they have to do is place an order. These distributors will also carry other brands, such as El Rey or Valrhona, so it’s fairly easy and relatively inexpensive to place a decent order without turning to serveral sources. Several kitchen stores here also sell Castelain, but I don’t think this brand does too well, simply because of lack of exposure and familiarity. His 85% is his best bar (and an excellent 85% all around), along with the Macaibo 70%, while the others are merely okay. There were some major US web sites that sold his chocolate, but they have stopped carrying it. I don’t know where to get it in Europe, but you should perhaps find it in an online store.

I haven’t tried yet, but search for “Bernard Castelain.” Also, include in your search “Macaibo,” “Noir Extreme,” or “Noir Tradition.”

Haha, that’s funny. He used to have a web site, but apparently it’s been removed; I can;t find it anymore. All I find are online stores and articles referring to the brand.