Black Butterfly: Valentine's Day Selection

Whatever one's thoughts on Valentine's Day, most any holiday makes for a good excuse for some Black Butterfly chocolate, right? While last year's Valentine's offerings were quite tempting, I didn't get any then because I had just ordered quite a bit for Christmas (and because I wasn't going to be in Prescott in February). But this year I was already going to be in town and I didn't do any Christmas orders this winter. So I went ahead and did a pre-order of three of this year's Valentine's Day offerings. 

If you are going to do special occasion or gift chocolate, this is the way to go. All three are absolutely beautiful. The two smaller hearts (which were $10 each) are about three and a half inches tall, while the large, 3D heart is around five and a half inches (and came in at $25). 

The Diamond Cut Heart is classic in both its look and flavor, which is Peanut Butter Sizzle. The multi-faceted, red surface does indeed resemble a giant gem, smooth and enticing. The shell is neither thick nor thin and houses a familiar peanut butter filling. As Americans, we all think first of Reese's Cups when it comes to peanut butter chocolate. And Reese's Cups are most notable for their saltiness, which is recreated here as well as I have ever seen it done. 

Not to say that this is a recreation of a Reese's Cup, though: I simply mean to say that it acknowledges what our palates automatically expect from a peanut butter chocolate. After that, it's in a completely different range. The roasted peanut flavor is stronger and fresher, and the filling is a dash creamier and less crumbly than with Reese's. So you get some of those familiar notes but in an elevated and therefore completely different way. The effect of this filling is more like a truffle's ganache.

The Pistachio Rose White Chocolate Heart is in a bark style. That is, it's a more flat piece of white chocolate with the pistachios, rose petals, and rose crystals sprinkled on top. The rose aroma spreads in your mouth when you begin biting in, then the creamy white chocolate takes over. The rose sugar creates a delicate and flavorful crunch, and the rose petals leave a floral aftertaste. Pistachios of course add in the nutty element that gives the earthiness to ground all of the sweet and floral flavors.

And third we have the Smashable Heart, which came in four styles. Mine is the Butterfly Love, so it's in Black Butterfly's signature purple. It's a beautiful look, like a celebration of all we love about Black Butterfly chocolate. Perhaps, though, someone choosing to give to their sweetheart might prefer one of the red styles. But I like that there are options besides the standard reds and pinks. 

Yes, you did read that right that this is a Smashable Heart, hence the little wooden mallet that comes in the box. Inside are various chocolate treats. Taking a mallet to a Valentine's Day heart can take on all sorts of levels of meaning, and I'm kind of loving that. You can simply break in to find the buried treasure inside to share with your loved one--you can even make up some sort of game about taking turns to break into it or to choose what to eat from inside. Or you can smash it to smash away painful memories of an ex. Or you can just take charge of the pure delight of opening it up and treating your single self to a chocolate feast inside. 

The chocolate does have to be thick enough to stay stable, but it's thin enough that you only need a medium tapping with the mallet to start it breaking. If it's a shame to eat Black Butterfly chocolates for their prettiness, it felt even more a shame to break this one--that is, until I had the mallet in my hand. It's fun to have free rein for a little harmless violence, eh?

Because I didn't want to make a mess, I tapped one end and then the other and then the middle. Inside I found the delightful treasure: two milk chocolate squares, two dark chocolate squares, two pretzels, two turtles, and crispy pearls. Did I mention fun?

The milk chocolate squares have almonds and cookie pearls along with a good sprinkle of salt; the chocolate is deep/thick, so you get a good bite of sweetness. The dark chocolate squares are shallower/shorter and come with pistachio and cranberry, so you have those classic nutty and tart flavors on the sweet dark chocolate base. The turtles are big and classic in style with a good helping of caramel. You can taste the delicate vanilla notes of the caramel. All of those crispy pearls make the perfect addition to the mix: they visually fill in the empty space and add to the "treasure" feeling. Plus, chocolate pearls are just a great concept, little balls of crisp texture and simple, sweet flavor.

And after all of that, you of course will still have all of the plain dark chocolate from the heart's shell to enjoy. It's a 61% cocoa content, so it's on the sweeter side, which goes well with the playful nature of this piece. 

I can't choose a favorite from these three hearts: they're all so different and each offer something unique. Simple, floral sweetness with the Pistachio Rose. Sleek style and indulgent flavor with the Diamond Cut Heart. And a fun experience as well as a chocolate feast from the Smashable Heart. It is well worth it to order from Black Butterfly for future Valentine's Days--or holidays in general. You'll get something truly unique. 

Black Butterfly: Pecan Turtle Bites

Don't you love it when a chocolate maker makes a chocolate just for your palate? That is, these Pecan Turtle Bites from Black Butterfly were not actually made specifically for me--but things sure worked out as if they were. There are always new things on the shelves in addition to the gems of truffles in the glass case, and these piked my interest from the start. 

The clear, vertical box allows an easy look at the chocolates inside while also giving a more upscale look that would be great for gifting. For the time being at least, Black Butterfly has switched their usual purple ribbon with black. I'm rather liking the change. The purple was nice, but the black is sleek, no? The usual price for little bags or things like this on the shelf is $15. While that might at first sound steep for a big handful of chocolate pecans, when you compare that to the price of truffles it is in fact quite reasonable. There were probably around 20 of these in the box. 

I thought this would be one of the cases in which my knife would just make a mess when slicing one of the pecans in half, but surprisingly you get a nice clean cut. Though the chocolate has a light shine to it, there's no thick coat of glaze. The chocolate is soft. As are the pecans. They crunch much softer than I'd expected, as well. Is it because they're given a light toasting? 

Flavor-wise, I couldn't have asked for more. As you can see in the picture, there is no visible (or messy) caramel. But the flavor of caramel is the strongest in comparison to the other flavors of pecan and chocolate. The ingredients list both milk chocolate and dark chocolate. So what I'm guessing is that the caramel is combined with the milk chocolate to make the outer layer (with the inner layer being the dark chocolate). Unless the inner layer is mixed milk and dark chocolate, while the outer layer is simply a sugary caramel concoction similar to "candy coating" that looks like white chocolate but is just sugar? Maybe that's more likely. Whichever way, the effect is great. 

Again, the texture is soft with a light and affectionate crunch. The caramel flavor is sweet and indulgent, while the chocolate adds balance and weight. So the chocolate adds the mature element to the frilly and creamy sweetness. I don't often say this, but I truly have to keep myself from finishing the whole box. I'll be sad when they're gone, but oh, is it difficult to not keep eating them all. They're a wonderful indulgence packaged up in elegant fashion. 

Black Butterfly: Artisan Hot Chocolate

We have come to the fourth and final Christmas chocolate from Black Butterfly. I chose this one as a special gift to myself--not so much for the chocolate but for the, um, keepsakes. There is one pound of 61% Venezuelan hot chocolate--and also a molinillo and an artisan terra-cotta hot chocolate pot. Price tag: $98. But that is a lot of chocolate and I knew such a chocolate pot would enjoy sitting in my home for years to come. 

Everything came wrapped up gift basket style. The chocolate pot, which was bigger than I'd pictured, sat in a bed of shredded purple paper in a big black basket-box along with the two bags of chocolate, the molinillo, and the recipe card. So while it was a gift for myself, the packaging is all set for a gift to someone else, as well. It's a special indulgence for a foodie or chocolate-lover who enjoys handcrafted pieces. 

While we did have a molinillo growing up, I don't have one now. It hasn't been high on my priority list, I suppose, because I'm usually just making single servings of hot chocolate--and a regular-sized molinillo is better suited for a larger amount of liquid. That being said, however, I'm quite happy to have one again. I was admiring anew all the little shapes of the familiar object. There was nostalgia in there for sure. 

The recipe card is for hot chocolate with cinnamon. It calls for milk and a smaller amount of cream, as opposed to the suggestion of only using cream that came with the Hot Chocolate Bomb. I had about 1/3 cup of cream left from what I'd used there, so I went ahead and used that up. I also used two cups of almond instead of milk, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, and about 2.2 ounces of chocolate. The recipe card is in grams and milliliters, which I'm not so used to dealing with. So while I think I mainly stayed with the proportions (the recipe is for 6-8 servings, but I quartered it), I'm not positive on that. 

You place the chocolate into the chocolate pot and then pour the hot milk/etc. over it with the cinnamon. Here is where you'll bring in the molinillo. If you've never used one before, it's basically a wooden whisk. All the different shapes agitate the liquid to mix it up and bring up some froth. You use it by rolling the handle between your palms. On its own, it's a household object. But with the terra-cotta chocolate pot, the effect is delightful. I feel like I'm stepping back with my ancestors. Both pieces are from Verve Culture and are handmade in Mexico.

It felt more difficult to tell inside the terra-cotta if all the chocolate was melted or not. But the liquid was nice and hot, so it definitely all melted easily. The best part about having a chocolate pot is pouring it. While it may not have gone with the traditional Mexican look, I had to bring out my best teacup for the occasion. And I'm all about juxtaposition, so I found that the green teacup and the terra-cotta pot looked quite good together. 

In comparison with the Hot Chocolate Bomb, this chocolate almost tasted sweeter--in a sense. With the other, the cream with a major flavor. Here it wasn't. So here I could taste the chocolate itself more, and being that 61% cocoa content, it's a sweeter dark chocolate. I did find, though, that even using just a little cream did still add richness that was pleasant. While cinnamon is pretty neutral to me because I'm used to adding it to hot chocolate, it does add a nice dash of flavor. It's a must in such a chocolate pot, especially if you haven't had any experience with Mexican hot chocolate. 

Buying hot chocolate isn't a frequent thing for me since I just do my cocoa powder and honey (and cinnamon and maybe other spices, too) at home. I would say, though, that there is a little more dimension to this chocolate--that is, to using actual chocolate rather than simply cocoa powder. It has that semisweet chocolate flavor, and the proportions seemed good with the liquids, as well. It came out neither too thick and dark nor too sweet or watered down. So if you prefer to buy hot chocolate and you're around Prescott, this would be a good option--even when you can't get it with the cool chocolate pot. One last note on that: while the tag said the pot should keep the chocolate warm, I found that mine cooled off, so my second teacup wasn't hot. It was steaming when I started. Did I wait too long or not have enough in there? 

Either way, I'm still thrilled with my new chocolate pot. I've decided to keep it on one of my whatnot shelves (I love whatnot shelves, so I have two and wouldn't mind acquiring a third) under my cocoa pod and vintage chocolate mold (there are also turkeys on this shelf because turkeys should be around all the time, not just on Thanksgiving, nod your head even if you don't agree). Happy Christmas. 

Black Butterfly: Chocolate Salami

I like novelty. I do. I also like quality. When the two intersect, that is where there is magic. Black Butterfly's Christmas pre-orders listed a Chocolate Salami, which sounded pretty cute and so I thought it would be worth trying. I just wasn't sure what I would think of its taste--chocolate filled with almonds and currants and biscotti and brandy, what would that be like?

The Chocolate Salami, in its own salami netting, is indeed very cute. Because you'll want to keep it refrigerated until you're ready to eat it, you just get it out for a bit to come to room temperature before serving. So if you were going to bring it over to someone's house, the commute time would serve as the thawing time. The netting comes off easily (I never buy real salami, so this is my only experience with it). Inside the chocolate is in the bottom of a clear bag that's folded/rolled over to fit into the casing. Being that this is just slightly cumbersome, you do have to take the whole chocolate out of the bag to serve--which is fine because you will want it all out for display, anyway.

I do recommend bringing out a cutting board for your display--whether you're having a little get-together or just partaking with your household. The chocolate salami looked quite charming on my mesquite board. The feel on my hands was like powdered sugar and fudge, and the aroma was of chocolate ganache.

The chocolate slices easily. You might only get a little stuck for half a second if the knife comes upon one of the almonds. Otherwise it's quite soft. In the slices, you can see that the composition is a soft chocolate like a ganache with slices of nuts (almonds) and fruit (black currants). There is also biscotti but I didn't really see or taste it specifically.

As far as substance, the chocolate is halfway between fudge and ganache. It's softer and smoother and richer than fudge--but also denser and with more of that crumbly-fudge-texture than is ganache. Kind of like with the Hot Chocolate Bomb from yesterday, there seems to be more cream than sugar. So while you do have the flavor of dark chocolate and its richness, the overall effect isn't super dark because there is a good amount of cream involved. 

The almonds give a nice flavor and soft crunch. The currants are little bright spots of flavor in there, too. I'll take this moment to appreciate the superiority of currants to raisins. (I can eat raisins by themselves, but I don't usually like them in anything. Currants, though, I'm always sticking in oatmeal.) They have a more interesting flavor and a chewier, less puffy texture. So while I was, as I mentioned, a little concerned about what picky-eater I would think of all sorts of things thrown into this chocolate, I needn't have worried. Side note: if your gathering has a few people, you should be able to finish it all off in one go. But if you're just a couple people, you can still put the rest of the salami back in the bag, roll it up, and even stick it back in the netting to keep it close and airtight before putting it back in the refrigerator for later. 

There is a foodie aspect to such a piece as this chocolate salami. It has that appeal. But it's also approachable. So you can go with either the silly angle or the serious angle--or both. Serve it up on an appetizer board next to cheese and fruit. Or bring it out for dessert with after-dinner drinks. Whether you're going for an elegant or casual evening, it'll fit in and be a sure palate-pleaser as well as conversation starter. I have found my new favorite kind of salami. 

Black Butterfly: Hot Chocolate Bomb

New to Black Butterfly this Christmas are the Hot Chocolate Bombs. Compared with the Hot Chocolate Ornaments that serve four people, these are single serving treats. They are designed still to be like ornaments, so I put mine on my tree for a picture. A clear case wraps up with a purple ribbon and a small label that also has the instructions for making the hot chocolate. The price is $9, which is reasonable for a beautiful gift of good chocolate.

My ornament was gold: it's a sphere marked with a butterfly seal. Classic vintage for a classic Christmas. This is 61% dark chocolate, and the hollow spheres are filled with chopped chocolate and mini marshmallows. So you can gently rattle the ornament to hear its insides. The assembly is to heat milk or cream (cream is recommended for richer chocolate) and pour it over the ornament. So it's perfectly sized to fit inside a mug. I first brought out one that is just slightly smaller than standard, and while the ornament fit in, I worried that not all of the cream would, so I switched to a slightly larger mug. 

While I normally don't even use milk, I did decide to splurge on some cream for this chocolate. It is Christmas after all, eh? I heated that up in a saucepan and then began to pour it gently over the ornament inside the mug.

This is absolutely the funnest thing to watch. You would really need a video to properly portray it. First the little butterfly seal rotated to the side instead of sticking straight up. Then a spot began to melt in the ornament's surface.

That spot became bigger and then there was a sudden pop--these are called hot chocolate bombs for a reason. They explode delightfully. 

The explosion exposed the marshmallows, which quickly lifted to the top. And there I had it, the sudden appearance of a marshmallow-topped mug of chocolate. Gourmet gift this may be, it also brings out the child inside. If you want something to reawaken your awe and wonder, this'll be it.

Now as perfect as the chocolate looks at this point, you do still need to stir it (as per the instructions); the bottom half of the ornament is still unmelted even after the marshmallows rise up. While the instructions said to use 8-10 ounces of cream, I probably used about 8.5. So perhaps that's why I didn't feel like I got the chocolate to completely melt even with mixing. 

All of this time you're smelling chocolate sweet and rich at the same time. And its flavor? You remember the chocolate they drink in The Santa Clause? What you imagine that it might taste like, that is what this chocolate tastes like. The first sip was a dream, so rich and yet not overwhelming. Naturally, there is a greatly creamy texture since I did use cream. So you have the creaminess that is normally associated with milk chocolate but with the dark chocolate flavor. There is more cream than there is sugar, which tones down the darkness without making it too sweet.

And that solves one of the big conundrums of hot chocolate: I and I believe many of us don't like very dark hot chocolate (unless perhaps in small amounts of interestingly-flavored chocolate as from somewhere like Kakawa Chocolate House in Santa Fe), but I also don't want it to taste like nothing but sugar. So this approach of chocolate that is both rich and creamy is the answer, one that should appeal to a wider variety of palates. Granted, this is specifically for making it with cream (maybe I should have bought two and tried the other with my almond standard instead of dairy just for comparison). But I went with this as the intended way of preparation. 

This chocolate is such an indulgence. It isn't so much an everyday chocolate as a special occasion treat. It instantly evokes warm and cherry Christmastime memories. Stir some up before going out to look at lights or before snuggling up under a blanket to watch or read a favorite Christmas story. It's quite a sacred beverage.

While this is one standard serving, I would have preferred to split it. So if you have tastes like mine, you can plan on sharing with a loved one. What I wouldn't recommend (which I often do with hot chocolate) would be to water it down much more than the recommended amount of milk/cream/substitute. A full serving was definitely too much for me to enjoy, but the flavors of that first half serving were flawless so I wouldn't want to mess with those proportions. 

I don't know what I was expecting from this. Something pretty, I guess. It is pretty--but it was also incredibly fun to make and delicious to sip. Score on all three points then. If it's too late this year to get one, perhaps next year place an order of one for yourself and some more for gifts. 

Black Butterfly: Caramel Christmas Ornament Collection

Black Butterfly usually has some beautiful pieces for holidays throughout the year; the more detailed ones are usually put up for pre-order. I put in a Christmas order this year, and thought I might browse the shop to see if anything else caught my eye when I went to pick it up. Though Butterfly's Tracy Taylor was still setting out Christmas products (I was there a little early so I could start getting my reviews out), she brought things out to show me and so I snagged this Caramel Christmas Ornament Collection. Tracy is a genuine artist in the way she paints and decorates her chocolates, but do you see these? Gorgeous hardly seems a fitting enough word. (Though unfortunately I don't know that my camera can really pick up how they look in person.)

Inside the classic black box and purple ribbon is a pull-out tray of five ornament-shaped chocolate caramels. Not only do the ornaments have a fair amount of detail in them for such small sizes with not a single air bubble or dent in sight, but they are also covered in delicate glitter. They sparkle like no chocolates I have seen before. That is certainly a way to bring in the glitz and cheer of the season. 

I've been looking at more truffles and such than usual lately, and so I've also found myself mentioning how I tried to save what I thought would be the strongest flavors for last, starting with the most mild. There was no need for me to start guessing and thinking about that here: if you move left to right in the box (top to bottom on the little flavor list), you will move flawlessly from mildest to strongest. Attention to detail, no?

Blue - Fleur de Sel Caramel - Thank the blue for sacrificing itself to my knife for a picture. As you can see, the caramel is free-flowing. It is an elegant caramel, here tasting of vanilla seasoned with salt. The top of the shells on these chocolates is fairly thin and delicate to bite into; the bottom layers are slightly thicker. So you have the chance to enjoy the soft caramel without being bogged down by a thick shell. The chocolate is on the sweet side for dark chocolate but avoids the awkward middle range (the Black Butterfly standard is around 68%, right?). I don't notice any difference in either flavor or texture from the glittery top. This caramel is the nice and classic start to the set. 

Lavender - Muscovado Caramel - Being that this was the first one I got to bite into whole (as opposed to the knife-sliced blue caramel), here I had the full delight of breaking into the delicate shell. Thin chocolate breaking into liquid caramel--now that's a great bite. Instead of the salt seasoning from the Fleur de Sel, here there is the flavor of Muscovado sugar, thick and dark. Not only is this a great flavor, but it also evokes warm winter baking and gingerbread cookies. Because the flavor is sugar, which is already an element of caramel, the structure is mainly still simple but with boldness from the specific sugar. 

Pale Turquoise - Vanilla Caramel - This one came in quite intoxicating in flavor. The vanilla is very much that confection type that's sweet and airy--like the wafts of aroma in Main St. at Disneyland. That nostalgic vanilla. It comes as a sudden hit that ends only too soon since the caramel melts away quickly. (Which is also worth noting for all of these; there is only a small amount of time to develop flavor as compared with a slow-melting truffle. So you have to get the flavor right instantly.) It's lovely. 

Red - Cinnamon Caramel - There is a fraction of a second, and then the cinnamon comes in as a warm and baked spice as opposed to the spicy/peppery style. It's reminiscent of baked apple pie, especially paired with the caramel. There is a nice and gentle cinnamon flavor as an aftertaste. Perhaps because I've been having more experience lately with spicy cinnamon, I'm really enjoying having just a gentle and sweet cinnamon. Kind of like with the salt, only a dash of cinnamon adds flavor; it doesn't need to be super strong.

Green - Espresso Caramel - I kept waiting to get to the green ornament and trying to reach for it instead of the next in line. While all of the colors are beautiful, green is my special color. In keeping with the general style so far, the espresso here is not very strong. That is, the coffee flavor itself has strength, but it's light in proportion to the total flavors so that you can still taste the caramel and the chocolate. Once more, the whole set is designed not to overpower the palate but to provide simple-yet-still-stunning flavors. In fact, it's a nice change to have an example of a delicate coffee chocolate. 

This is a lovely box of chocolates. They are absolutely beautiful as well as unique in their look, and so lovely and balanced in flavor. Especially with my picky palate, it's rare to come across a box in which I enjoy every flavor; in the case of these, I don't even know how I would go about picking a favorite. On the one hand, you might say that there isn't necessarily anything new about these flavors, and yet on the other hand they are such a fresh and wonderful look at staples like caramel, sugar, vanilla, and salt. If these caramels were a person, they would be someone sweet and demure yet still steadfast. So if you're at Black Butterfly in the next couple of weeks, I would highly recommend the Caramel Christmas Ornaments. 

Black Butterfly: KaBoom

Let's finish Black Butterfly week with a boom, shall we? Or a pop, I should say. Or many little pops. 

That's right, this red, white, and blue chocolate comes equipped with pop rocks, fitting it right into July/Independence month. I've had chocolate-covered pop rocks before (that was back when I was at Chocablog), but that was nine years ago and I'm not certain if I ever did have any within a chocolate bar. I couldn't be scared away, though, because this bar looks so fun that it makes the idea of pop rocks sound like a party.

Red, white, and blue splashes decorate the pale surface on one side to create a colorful confetti. That's all I saw when it was in the package, so that was all I was expecting. Flipping it over, though, I found an equally energetic look with generously-sized, freeze-dried strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries. Wondering about the KaBoom? If you look closely, you can see little green crystals--those are the ones that go kaboom. 

While I realize why white chocolate generally gets relegated to low-end, sugary candy and confections, I do greatly enjoy a good white chocolate. So the idea of white chocolate here was quite welcome, though the packaging doesn't specifically label it as white chocolate--or as anything. The ingredients show something interesting: 34% cacao is the first ingredient (which is subdivided into more ingredients, the first of which is cacao liquor) and additional cacao butter comes in as the last ingredient. To clarify if you're unfamiliar with all the terms, white chocolate does not contain cocoa solids, only cocoa butter. And chocolate liquor contains both cocoa solids and cocoa butter. So technically speaking then, this does not seem to be white chocolate. But the amount of cocoa solids is so low that it looks and tastes like white chocolate. So that's what I'll consider it.

Now, for my first bite, I thought I had gotten out free without any popping, but they came in for the party once the chocolate was mostly melted away. Being white chocolate, it of course melts quickly. And the berries also encourage you to chew rather than let the chocolate sit in your mouth, and that also speeds things up. So generally by the time the chocolate and berries are fading, that's when the popping begins. 

I have tried to bite in slower, but that's hard to do with the big berries and also makes for generally less enjoyment of the white chocolate. So just go ahead and eat it like normal and allow the bubbling, kaboom effect to come as the afterparty. Pop rocks are one of the strangest things that we choose to eat. Yet I wouldn't say that these were as distracting to the experience of the berry chocolate as I'd feared they might be. (Has anyone been to the dentist in the last couple months? Part of the precautions at my dentist included swishing hydrogen peroxide in your mouth when you arrive. The pop rocks here reminded me of the bubbling hydrogen peroxide between my teeth. Fun times, fun times.)

Going back to those berries, though, like I said, they are generously-sized and plentiful. Being so full of flavor, they go well with the white chocolate and create that berries and cream effect. If this chocolate weren't so full of pop rocks, I'd be tempted to devour it in one go. 

So no, I wouldn't want pop rocks in chocolate to become a normal thing. Just every once in a while. This was a fun chocolate to try out. The red, white, and blue in July brought up Independence Day and fireworks. And the pop rocks brought a little excitement into my life. KaBoom!

Black Butterfly: Patagonian Super Berry Tea

Today's chocolate bar from Black Butterfly includes more tea from Nectar Apothecary. Nectar is still open, by the way, you just have to order by phone now instead of going into the store. So you can place your order, stop into Black Butterfly for some chocolate, and then by that point your order should be ready to pick up at Nectar. Snazzy, eh?

This tea is the Patagonian Super Berry Tea, sprinkled once more on the 61% dark chocolate. I have to choose the bars whose flavors appeal to me, not just the ones with the colors I like best. But this one definitely drew my eye, as well. The even, red scatters remind me of a Victorian, poplin fabric in a pretty floral. In fact, the floral allusion means that this bar would go particularly well with a bouquet of flowers if anyone is in the gifting mode. (Let me here note that the chocolate's color appears much lighter in the pictures than in person.)

Opening up the black sleeve reveals that familiar sweet dark chocolate aroma. While the lower cocoa content generally goes well with the style of these bars, I also wouldn't mind sometimes going a little darker. Hmmm. I now find myself uncertain whether or not there often tend to be milk chocolate bars in this style. I did also pick up a white chocolate bar this time, but that isn't common. I guess all this is to say that while this dark chocolate is fine, I do welcome some variation, too. 

I immediately tasted the zing of the berries on biting in--especially because I bit right into the middle instead of going for a corner. I wanted to dig in to the tea right from the start. What's interesting is that while the tea layer did at first seem much more even than in the Patagonian Wild Guava Tea bar, the layer is also much thinner. So while you're more likely to get tea in each bite, you're also getting less than with that thick snake swirl in the other bar. I don't say this as either criticism or even praise; it's just different. And I do like that. 

Each of these bars looks different, whether because it has tea or chunks of ginger or because it's red or blue or because it has an even sprinkling or a patterned one. So then each one is a different experience, a different layering of visual, texture, and flavor elements. 

The exact components of the Patagonian Super Berry Tea are maqui berries, blueberries, raspberries, red wine grape skins, Hawthorne leaves, currants, and natural flavorings. While I can't necessarily distinguish each from the other, I do notice that some bites have more of a zing than others. Being that this is a tea that all of these berries come from, the experience of eating them is a tad different from the usual appearance of raspberries in chocolate bars. They have the feeling of being smaller, whether or not that is in fact true.

I do notice that sometimes I find a very hard and crunchy texture. On examining what was causing this crunch, I found what appeared to be a small, round seed, something like a smooth peppercorn. I'm not familiar with maqui berries, so perhaps this is what their seeds look like? These crunches are a little distracting, but not too much.

And I guess even that is part of the fun. These teas seem to add the advantage of common ingredients (like raspberries) with less common ones. So it gives an exploratory feel, a sense of trying something new while still getting a comforting bar of sweet dark chocolate.