The last of the Potomac! Sounds a bit dramatic doesn't it, almost like the last remnants of a fading North American Indian tribe. For me the word, Potomac, certainly conjours up images of large rivers with rugged boulders, salmon leaping and climbing up river with views of snow capped mountains in the background. On investigation I discovered that The Potomac river is the fourth largest river on the Atlantic coast of the USA. The name, Potomac, apparently means "place where people trade". The river actually flows through the Blue Ridge Mountains so my whimsical vision wasn't far off just the Canadian bit. In fact there is so much history surrounding this river that it is often referred to as the "Nation's River". Ok history lesson over.....I'm sure this is not the last bar we will see from Ben Rasmussen but let's see what this last bar has in store for us.
The packaging is exactly the same as with the previous bars and ditto the cocoa which comes from Upala, Costa Rica. However, this bar has a slightly higher cocoa content at 82%. If you've not read my previous reviews you'll need to know that Potomac is essentially a 'one man' operation making his chocolate from bean to bar the hard way. When you consider what actually goes into making a bar from scratch you'll understand why people like Ben Rasmussen are probably not in the chocolate business for the money.
The sun came out whilst I was taking this picture hence why there is something odd going on in the centre of the bar. I think the sunlight slightly melted the chocolate through the cellophane. This bar has a lovely soft fruity aroma with a hint of tobacco in the background. The bar is well made, bright and has a fantastic snap. It is very smooth, dark and sophisticated with 'blackberry' notes. Even after the chocolate has melted away the flavour is still lingering with no bitterness that sets your teeth on edge. I think I've saved the best until last! This is a delicious bar of chocolate and deserves a score of 9/10 for pure flavour. You can purchase this bar from Ben's website for $7 (56g) which makes it slightly expensive but if you like your dark chocolate then this is a must have. Enjoy! To buy this bar visit Chocadores who now sell it for the UK market at £4.95 plus P&P.
If you liked this review you may also be interested in these:
http://chocchick.blogspot.com/2011/03/potomac-chocolate-upala-70-nib.html
http://chocchick.blogspot.com/2011/03/potomac-chocolate-upala-70.html
Before we talk chocolate I wanted to mention the Olympics. Only 499 days to go! Everything seemed to be going so well. Each day the various arenas and shopping centres in Stratford are looking as though they're going to be finished well before the gates open. The strange red climbing frame statue is also emerging from its muddy foundations. It looks a bit odd at the moment but I'm sure it will grow on me. Not wanting to sound pessimistic but have the first tiny cracks started to appear? Firstly the Olympic clock ground to a halt and secondly the Visa card fiasco dented the smooth start to online ticket applications. I was also surprised to hear that the main stadium might not be finished until the very last day. Will we see Boris and Seb running around the track with hoses as we saw in India recently? No, I'm sure the job will be done on time and it will be amazing but something had to slip. They're only human. To find out more visit the official 2012 Olympic website. Has anybody produced an Olympic chocolate bar yet? Ok, enough sport for one day I'm exhausted just thinking about running!
Bar#2 from Potomac Chocolate. As many of you will notice Potomac Chocolate use a 'fish' for their logo which was very intriguing. According to Ben Rasmussen, when Potomac was just starting out, they wanted a logo that didn't take itself too seriously and that avoided the traditional symbols of chocolate like the cocoa bean or pod and dripping chocolate, which were already being used by others. After coming up with the idea of a fish, they discovered that it actually has a history in chocolate: the Mayan glyph for cacao was a fish and more recently, chocolate fish called "Fritures de Pâques" are a part of celebrating Easter in France. So, ironically they ended up using a traditional symbol, after all. Follow this link if you want to find out more about the Mayan glyph click here. Just in case you had forgotten Potomac source their single origin cocoa from Upala, Costa Rica and craft their bars from the bean.
The Chocolate and Nibs - This particular bar is covered on one side with nibs. Nibs are cocoa beans that have been roasted or toasted and cracked. If they were ground up further they would produce the chocolate liquor or cacao liquor from which chocolate is made. I have already tasted this bar and it will be interesting to see what difference this addition makes.
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| 2oz 7$ - Upala 70% Nib |
Essentially this is the same bar of chocolate that I reviewed a few days ago but with nibs and I'm amazed that it is completely different. This bar is missing the 'zing' that I experienced before. Personally I do not appreciate the addition of the nibs. I like the crunch but the nibs bring a sourness to the bar and I preferred the bar naked! It's a bit like having a delicious cup of tea with the tea leaves left floating in the cup. Apart from that there is a good aroma of tobacco and plenty of fruit coming through with this bar but I'm not totally convinced the nibs are necessary.
As usual I have to provide a score and based on flavour and texture this bar only scores 6/10 for me. I think the work that has gone into making a great bar of chocolate has been let down by a topping that doesn't add anything. But this is only my opinion and I'm sure there are people out there that just love them. To read more about this chocolate visit Potomac now!
To buy this bar visit Chocadores who now stock this item for the UK market at £4.95 plus P&P.
This is a great day for the World of Chocolate blog! I'm absolutely delighted to be featuring a selection of bars from Potomac Chocolate, based in Woodbridge, VA, just outside Washington DC. This is our first example of a 'bean to bar' artisan chocolate from across the pond.
Ben Rasmussen is Potomac Chocolate and has been operating since 2010 and is the first b2b chocolate maker in this area. By the sound of it he is the chief chocolate maker, accountant and general bottle washer! Working from a small workshop, Ben makes fine chocolate using traditional artisan methods. Hand-crafting every bar, working to bring out the best flavours from the cacoa bean throughout every step of the process from roasting, cracking and winnowing the cocoa beans, refining and conching, to tempering and moulding the final bars. Interestingly he keeps other ingredients down to the bare minimum with no added vanilla, cocoa butter or emulsifier.
Ben is currently using organic, fair trade beans from Upala, Costa Rica. The chocolate does not carry an ethical label but he is very concerned that the cacao growers receive fair prices and hopes to be able to work more closely and more directly with growers in the not-too-distant future. Continuing on the green theme Ben is currently working on new packaging that will be fully biodegradable and compost-able. Personally I have no problem with the cellophane wrapper that has been used and I like the clean finish of the label. Ben can you explain why you chose a fish logo?
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| Upala 70% |
The Chocolate: This is the first of three bars to be features and the first bar, Upala 70%, was entered into the Good Food Awards. Ben was fairly realistic about its chances, as they'd only just started and didn't expect to get very far. However, call it beginners luck his chocolate was selected to join the final 16! To read more about the Good Food Awards click here.
The chocolate is beautifully presented and has a fantastic shine. The initial aroma is a light tobacco aroma with hints of the forest. There is a great snap as you break off each chunk. The mould they've used makes it a little awkward to break but I do like the originality. There is an instant fruity taste of berry which is strong and long lasting. There is also a quality about this chocolate that I can only describe as 'zingy'. It is almost a sparkling sensation which I can't quite fathom out. The finish is slightly dry with a hint of tobacco in the background.
This is a very, very enjoyable bar of chocolate and it has some interesting surprises in terms of taste and flavour. His hard work and perseverance has produced a delicious piece of chocolate and I'm sure over time this will improve further. For that reason I'm happy to give this bar a score of 8/10. It currently retails at $7.00 for 57g which translates to £4.34, which puts it in the Amedei price range. Maybe we will see it in Selfridges soon?
If you can't wait for Selfridges and you want to buy this bar click here. You can now buy this bar in the UK from our friends at Chocadores, £4.95 plus p&P.
