Impact
As HCP (Heirloom Cacao Preservation) grapples with the definition of 'heirloom', one area left unaddressed remains that of the perennial nature of cacáo.
Recent modern-day heirlooms have yet to stand the test of time. More ancient types however prove their mettle & their worth, indeed are enhanced by their ability to withstand the vagaries year-in / year-out, time after time after...
Both of these latest entrants rise amongst the dependable &, as such, merit the designation apart from any representations herein.
Due to personal involvement with HCP, these bars are unrated
Recent modern-day heirlooms have yet to stand the test of time. More ancient types however prove their mettle & their worth, indeed are enhanced by their ability to withstand the vagaries year-in / year-out, time after time after...
Both of these latest entrants rise amongst the dependable &, as such, merit the designation apart from any representations herein.
Appearance -- / 5
| Color: |
Heirloom X: Apovinces: pewtered purple Heirloom IX: Piedra de Plata: muddy oxide |
| Surface: | styled tableau molding |
| Temper: | semi-dull |
| Snap: | taut for such a thin pour |
Aroma -- / 10
Heirloom IX: Piedra de Plata
fruit-bombing the nare hairs, then goes strangely radio-silent before long
Heirloom X: Apovinces
malted candy corn breaks apart into bletted fruits -> sugary gumdrops -> some must, dust & rust -> blows out browned sugar
fruit-bombing the nare hairs, then goes strangely radio-silent before long
Heirloom X: Apovinces
malted candy corn breaks apart into bletted fruits -> sugary gumdrops -> some must, dust & rust -> blows out browned sugar
Mouthfeel -- / 15
| Texture: | textbook |
| Melt: | well clocked |
Flavor -- / 50
Heirloom IX: Piedra de Plata
biscuit preamble -> fusty cocoa -> sorghum -> stringent streak
Heirloom X: Apovinces
caramel cocoa with a Bosco® tone -> fruits into moraberry amongst a graham cracker patch
biscuit preamble -> fusty cocoa -> sorghum -> stringent streak
Heirloom X: Apovinces
caramel cocoa with a Bosco® tone -> fruits into moraberry amongst a graham cracker patch
Quality -- / 20
Heirloom IX: Piedra de Plata
Distinct in several ways:
1. A sub-selection of this forest's wider cacáo variety;
2. The most sugared & buttered Piedra to date;
3. Flat-lined flavor-wise (tastes overly oxidized beyond the underpowered formulation).
A chocolate out of alignment with this area's character. By comparison, refer to TO'aK's 2016 calibrated at 73%.
Heirloom X: Apovinces
The good growers / Bromans of APOV (Organic Vinces Producers Association) were featured in the Red-Bathing episode on this site back in 2010. They still tend to the time-honored ways, husbanding old trees, a cross between Nacional x Venezolano (RE: no CCN-51; though clear identification appears inspecific insofar as it relates to Venezolano, described by Preuss in 1901 as a Carúpano variety which by now would rank at least an F3 for 3rd generation later). All carted off to a central fermentary where they give it the traditional treatment: slow & easy.
This particular chocolate here is short-length by contrast but well-lived in congruity with the Bromans themselves.
INGREDIENTS: cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter
Reviewed December 8, 2016
Distinct in several ways:
1. A sub-selection of this forest's wider cacáo variety;
2. The most sugared & buttered Piedra to date;
3. Flat-lined flavor-wise (tastes overly oxidized beyond the underpowered formulation).
A chocolate out of alignment with this area's character. By comparison, refer to TO'aK's 2016 calibrated at 73%.
Heirloom X: Apovinces
The good growers / Bromans of APOV (Organic Vinces Producers Association) were featured in the Red-Bathing episode on this site back in 2010. They still tend to the time-honored ways, husbanding old trees, a cross between Nacional x Venezolano (RE: no CCN-51; though clear identification appears inspecific insofar as it relates to Venezolano, described by Preuss in 1901 as a Carúpano variety which by now would rank at least an F3 for 3rd generation later). All carted off to a central fermentary where they give it the traditional treatment: slow & easy.
This particular chocolate here is short-length by contrast but well-lived in congruity with the Bromans themselves.
INGREDIENTS: cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter
Reviewed December 8, 2016