While in Seattle for Thanksgiving, I came across a shop in Pikes Place Market that sold a wide range of chocolate brands that I hadn’t seen before – just as one might find new craft beers when traveling to a different part of the country. I picked up two bars by Cacao Prieto: their Vanilla & Cassia (cinnamon ) and Mandarin & Bergamot flavors. I’ll admit that the vanilla and cassia was particularly interesting to me; while I love both flavors in general, cinnamon chocolate has often seemed to me to be a harsher flavor, not the subtle, light flavoring it can be in other foods.
Packaging
As the artisanal chocolate movement has grown in the US, brands are having to work hard to distinguish themselves (and to validate their pricing, which can often be $8-$9, 2-3 times as much as one might pay for a traditional gourmet chocolate bar by Lindt or Ghiradelli. Part of making that case to the customer is quality packaging that showcases the brand’s message. So I’m going to obsess a little over the packaging here, because it really did make a difference in which brand I chose to buy.
Cacao Prieto does a great job of creating beautiful wrappers for its chocolate. While the patterns don’t specifically indicate the flavors – they are intricate and floral for both bars – they’re elegant and just plain beautiful to look at. The paper feels heavy and slightly rough, with a slightly raised band for the product information – again indicating that care was taken in the packaging and leading to the follow-up assumption that similar care was taken with the chocolate.
I also liked how the “Certified Organic” sticker was positioned over one of the seams of the wrapper –s o you’d have to notice that brand message when slitting or tearing it open.
The Chocolate Bar
These bars are visually striking as well, particularly the Vanilla & Cassia. When I opened it up, I thought for a moment that something had gone wrong with it in transit; it was a swirl of white and brown shades. However, this was clearly an intentional visual effect, and it was quite impressive.
The Orange & Bergamot, however, had a line of little white dots. Possibly these were the flavoring inclusions? This came across as a little odder – more like a quirk than a design decision.
Both broke easily and were tempered well to not melt in one’s hands.
Tasting
The Vanilla & Cassia was a very subtle flavor – just as I was hoping. It started soft with a hint of vanilla, than followed that with a swirl of cinnamon.
Orange & Bergamot was certainly serviceable. A clear, clean orange and citrus flavor, with maybe a hint of almost lime-like tartness from the bergamot.
Both had a clean finish, with minimal aftertaste. Very enjoyable, and a brand I’d pick up again if I found myself in the right store.