Ben Tre and Chuao Origins
October 15, 2010
Here are a couple of new limited-edition chocolates for your tasting pleasure.
Ben Tre - 72% Cacao Single Origin Dark Chocolate
Scharffen Berger now offers a 72% Vietnamese single-origin chocolate bar. The bar, named after the growing region of Ben Tre, comes from seven-year old cacao in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. This is the first that I have heard about Vietnamese chocolate available in the U.S.
Cacao was introduced to Vietnam in 1878 by the French but never became a huge exported product. Throughout the decades since, various projects to kick start cacao production were always interrupted or derailed. However, beginning in 1997 the efforts of the Nam Lam University and the World Cocoa Foundation have made progress. Today there are approximately 10,000 hectares of planted cacao in 18 different provinces of Vietnam.
Ben Tre is a limited edition chocolate with only 120 cases made and sold by Scharffen Berger. A 3 oz. bar sells for $6.00. It is described as “spicy, lightly fruity with notes of banana, cinnamon and fig.”
Chuao Limited-Edition Origins Chocolate Bar
Chuao Chocolatier makes a 77% single-origin chocolate from the rare and renowned cacao beans grown in the Chuao region of Venezuela.
The Chuao beans are known for a complex flavor profile featuring red fruit, raisin, fig, and soft malt aromas.
Chuao Chocolatier is located in San Diego, California and operated by two Venezuelan brothers, Michael and Richard Antonorsi. The Chuao Limited-Edition Origins Chocolate Bar is available for a limited time and sells for $14.95.
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