Madecasse 80% Cocoa Review

I heard great things about Madecasse, including its fair trade practices and cocoa flavor. I got this at Whole Foods Market but also found it at World Market. 80% is the highest cocoa content they have while offering a lower 70% as well as a few unique flavors, such as citrus and pink pepper.

As you can see, the brand is proud of its fair trade practices which does a bit in enticing me to purchase this bar (not because it's chocolate, not at all). I always check the nutrition facts, mostly the ingredients, since there are certain ingredients that are red flags for me for poor-quality chocolate (e.g. partially hydrogenated oils, fats other than cocoa butter, corn syrup, etc.).

You can see here the ingredients are simple and minimal. I noticed the "Made in a factory that handles nuts" label and it's another brand to cross off the list to use for confections for my niece since she is severely allergic to both peanuts and certain tree nuts... for now. I'm determined to find a way for her to become tolerant of peanuts, so we can have peanut butter cakes and pies for every birthday! It's unfortunate she can't have peanut butter, she's missing out on the very essence of life.

The bar is scored into 24 pieces. I personally like it when the bars are scored into smaller squares, rather than larger ones. Of course, this plays against me when people ask for a share. I have no excuse to say no.

Flavor - I didn't really like this chocolate bar and won't buy it again. I prefer dark chocolate with coconut notes but this one was more on the tangy rustic side with light fruit notes. It almost reminds me of Starbucks Pike Place roast, a little burnt and a little sour. I didn't feel it was as smooth and melt-in-your-mouth as a couple of other brands I've tried. The tang just really threw me off from experiencing what other notes were present in the chocolate.

I will try some of their other flavors though, the citrus and pink pepper (63% cocoa base) sounds unusual and their toasted coconut (70% cocoa base) as well as espresso bean (milk chocolate base).

On another note, I should be having some restaurant reviews coming soon from one of my favorite destinations to stuff my face!