Sweet Tanzania Dark Chocolate by Solstice

I was running low on cash. I had already spent hundreds of dollars on chocolate. That's my excuse for not buying more Solstice Chocolate (said with tears in my eyes). But I did purchase one chocolate bar made by Solstice at the Northwest Chocolate Festival in November: The Tanzania 70% Kilombero dark chocolate. And now my curiosity is peaked and I will definitely be tasting more of Solstice Chocolate someday.

Light, sweet honey and fruit. That's the best way to describe this chocolate bar. It has sweet tones, no astringency, whatsoever, and very mild acidity.  It is like honey on toast with a hot cocoa aftertaste. The chocolate is also quite smooth, with a nice balance of cocoa butter added for creaminess. And it is pretty, with simple little suns imprinted into the squares of the bar. If you like a sweet, dark chocolate, this one is for you.

The origin of the organic beans used for this chocolate bar is Tanzania, specifically the Kilombero Valley. According to Dom Ramsey's new book, Chocolate, Tanzania produces about 9,000 tons of cocoa per year, which is just 0.18% of the world production. The country's "star varieties" are Trinitario and Forastero. I have no idea what type of bean is used for this chocolate bar, but I suspect Trinitario. A better reporter would have asked the chocolate makers, but I think it's best to not bother chocolate makers in the weeks leading up to Christmas - it is their busiest time of year after all.  Perhaps we'll hear from them in the Comments below should they read this article :-)

And speaking of the owners, Scott Querry and Deann Wallin are the people behind Solstice Chocolate, one of the several infamous Utah craft chocolate makers (Haven't you heard? Utah is where its at for craft chocolate!). They supply several restaurants in an around Salt Lake City, as well as sell in local stores. You can buy Solstice Chocolate online at a variety of retailers, including Amazon.com, The Meadow, Caputo's, and a few others, including the Solstice website. Learn more at: http://www.solsticechocolate.com/order-online/. There are several different origins of chocolate bars you can choose from.

Here are the package details of the chocolate bar that I tasted today:

70% Kilombero, Tanzania, 65g (2.3 oz)
Solstice Chocolate (Salt Lake City, UT)
www.solsticechocolate.com
Ingredients: Organic cacao bean, organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter.