Gourmet Single-Origin Dark Chocolate Bars by Goodnow Farms

"I'm a true chocoholic. Every year, I will buy all the dark chocolate bars that have received accolades at the various international chocolate competitions. These single-origin bars from Goodnow farms are the darlings of the fine chocolate industry, sweeping all major awards over the last few years, and are my true loves. They are the creamiest and most nuanced bars I've tasted to date and will transform your understanding of chocolate." - Jiying

------

Goodnow Farms Chocolate Bars | Ucayali or Esmeraldas or Asochivite

• Single-origin: Each bar uses cacao beans from different farms in Central and South America, has a distinct character and flavor profile
• No alkalization: many chocolates are alkalized to increase water solubility and lower acidity, which substantially reduces the flavanols/ antioxidants in cacao
• Handcrafted end to end from bean to packaging in small-batches on their New England farm. Most chocolatiers, including “craft/gourmet” brands, buy bulk processed chocolate from large companies and then just add their own flavorings
• Freshly pressed single origin cocoa butter using the same single-origin cacao beans as the rest of the bar. Most brands, even the “craft” brands usually buy bulk deodorized cocoa butter from larger manufacturers

------

Tasting notes: 

• Ucayali, Peru: floral, lemon verbena, fig
• Esmeradas, Ecuador: berry jam, cabernet grapes
• Asochivite, Guatemala: green banana, mango
• Almendra Blanca with Almonds: nutty, smoky, almonds
  

Ingredients: Single origin cacao beans, organic cane sugar, single origin cocoa butter, *organic almonds (*Almendra only)

Origin: Ucayali, Peru; Esmeradas, Ecuador; Asochivite, Guatemala, Mexico

Suggested use: snack, dessert

------

About Goodnow Farms Chocolate

We first discovered craft chocolate in, of all places, a vintage furniture shop in Los Angeles.  The incredible flavors we tasted in those bars completely changed how we thought about chocolate, and started us on our journey to become single origin chocolate makers.

We’re often asked “why single origin?” and the answer is simple – much like coffee, different cacao beans have different flavors.  By using beans sourced from only one farm or region we’re able to highlight the distinct flavor characteristics of that particular bean.  Discovering those flavors is one of the joys of making (and eating!) single origin chocolate.

We’ve spent a lot of time on farms throughout Latin America searching for the most flavorful beans, and have developed direct relationships with the farmers who grow and harvest them.  By dealing directly with farmers we’re able to ensure that they’re fairly compensated for their cacao, and also that the farming practices they’re using are sustainable.

All of our bars are made here at our 225 year old farm in Sudbury, Massachusetts.   We start with cacao beans and sugar, and perform every step of the chocolate making process in-house, including carefully hand wrapping each bar.

We believe that great chocolate is “true to the bean,” in that the flavors apparent in the bar reflect the flavors hidden in the bean.  The process of making this happen is extremely time consuming and labor intensive, but we believe the experience of eating our chocolate makes it all worthwhile.

We’re very proud of our chocolate and we hope you enjoy eating it as much as we do making it.  Please check back frequently as we’ll be adding exciting new origins and flavors on a regular basis!

About Fine Cacao

Chocolate comes from a fruit! You read that right—the deep, dark, chocolaty goodness that you love so much starts with a pod that looks a lot like a melon and grows on a tree. The process by which that very fruity melon-like pod becomes chocolate makes all the difference when it comes to flavor.

We make single origin chocolate, which means we use beans from only one farm or region when making each batch of chocolate.  Why do we do this?  Because different cacao beans have different flavors, much like wine grapes or coffee beans.  By carefully sourcing our beans and crafting our chocolate we’re able to highlight the incredible, distinct and unique flavors within the cacao beans.

Why is our chocolate so different from mass market chocolate which dominates store shelves?  One of the many reasons is because of our commitment to personally sourcing the best cacao beans.  Another is because mass market bars are made using lots of different beans from different areas, without regard for their individual flavors.  We travel to origin to find fine flavor beans, ensure the farmers we work with can deliver quality beans on a consistent basis, and carefully craft our chocolate to highlight their unique flavors.

The cacao beans that are turned into chocolate are the seeds from the fruit of the tree Theobroma Cacao, which grows only within ten degrees north and south of the equator. Cacao pods come in many different shapes, sizes and colors, and these variations are due to the many genetic differences in the trees. These differences also have a big impact on flavor.  So, let’s get right to it – cacao sourcing 101!