Another Chocolate Post

Have you ever eaten cocoa nibs? These are the seeds from the cacao tree that are used to make chocolate. Until recently I never had. I unexpectedly got some from Tcho a couple weeks ago and had to try them. They were smaller than I thought, about the size of small pebbles. The looked like chocolate, and they really smelled like chocolate. They weren't really meant to be eaten as they were, but in the name of discovery I had to try them. Popping a small handful into my mouth, however, I found that they didn't taste exactly like chocolate. Not in the way peanut butter tastes like peanuts. They were kind of bitter, and my first impression was a taste of hops (as in the hops used to flavor and preserve beer) with an earthy chocolate side taste. I mean, the chocolate taste was there, it just wasn't right up front. They are good for cooking, so I'll find something to add them to in the future. And I think they will be a better addition to brewing a chocolate porter or stout than using unsweetened cocoa powder.

I also tried the Citrus sample that came with the nibs. Another dark chocolate that's right on the mark for a dark chocolate, but I didn't really taste any citrus flavors right away. That flavor, more of an aroma, came out after the residue had been in my mouth after I swallowed the bite. That bar was good in that it didn't have a burnt taste that some dark and bittersweet chocolates have, and it wasn't overly sweet like others. All in all, a good chocolate!