Maison du Cacao - 70% - Bois d'Inde
The history of chocolate has many fascinating detours. One of them was told to me by a good friend who visited Guadeloupe, a small French island in the Antilles. There, apparently, cocoa was once cultivated for the pleasure of the King’s Court of France.
Given the abrupt interruption of that royal succession and fierce competition in the region, Guadeloupe’s cocoa cultivation was abandoned for a few centuries… until a passionate person rediscovered some specimens, descendants of the first plants, thriving quietly in the island’s welcoming climate. The opportunity was too good: an eco-museum was opened that produces chocolate.
It seems that, with the King’s refined palate in mind, several rare cocoa varieties were recovered, enabling the revival of high-quality chocolate making.
This is the bar my friend brought me (many thanks to them if they read this!). It is flavored with bois d’Inde — a local mild pepper species whose ambiguous name may refer to allspice or pimento.
The spice is flamboyant and sweet, reminiscent of a crimson flamenco. The cocoa is more reserved and harder to pin down. One senses a woody, slightly rough edge at first, which quickly softens. It makes for a beautiful marriage: intense, colorful, and never bitter.
A lovely discovery that makes me eager to visit Guadeloupe to explore its other chocolates.
Evaluation
Originality: 4.5
Fineness: 4.5
Comforting: 4.5
Intensity: 4.5
Overall impression: 4.5
Final evaluation: 22.5/25