Little surprise! I bought this chocolate in Quito… yet it is Argentinian, from the Misiones province bordering Paraguay. It appears to be a limited edition, as the Arapegua cooperative—better known for mate production—no longer offers it in their shop.
Of great gentleness, this chocolate slowly reveals its flavors — give it time, let it melt unhurriedly. Then one likes to imagine the dessert it sketches: chestnut cream, pear, and vanilla. This bar was made deep in the Amazon forest, in Yasuní, one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet — now threatened by the oil reserves it hosts.
It’s not written on the box except in the ingredients, but this chocolate bar is enhanced with pieces of cocoa and grains of salt.
Camilo’s is a bean-to-bar chocolaterie from Rosemère. I met them at an artisan market. The cocoa comes from the Reserva Zorzal in the Dominican Republic.
The jaguar on the packaging is representative of this chocolate. Yasuni, a jewel of Amazonian biodiversity threatened by oil, brings a powerful, wild cocoa here. You sense humidity, lush vegetation, the richness and complexity of the rainforest, with woody and smoky notes, butter, and also a citrus-zest bitterness.