Vintage Plantations 100% Dark Processed at the plantation in Ecuador

Extremely bitter, with the bitterness dominating any trace of chocolate flavor. 2

100% Dark Chocolate (also known as "unsweetened") is not intended to be directly eaten, rather it should be used for cooking, such as making cakes or brownies or other items requiring chocolate. So including a bar of chocolate whose ingredients consists entirely of cocoa (the label says "Ingredients: pure cocoa mass (roasted and ground cocoa beans)") is not really fair. However, my colleague Alex has gotten into the spirit of dark chocolate tasting, and he brought in this bar with the idea of seeing what extreme chocolate is all about. Now we know: It's about extreme bitterness, not extreme chocolate. We each tried one small square of the bar. Alex took one bite and called it quits after a significant distress reaction to the taste. I had a similar outcome, though I did consume the entire square while noticing that my pulse quickened with each bite.

This will likely be the last of the extremely high cocoa bars that graces this blog, but I have not yet determined what lower percentage of cocoa will remain tasteable. The highest cocoa bar I'ved tried to date is the Hachez 88% Cocoa Premier Cru Superior Dark Chocolate, which I rated a 6. Next highest were the Recchiuti Bittersweet 85% Cacao, which I rated a 9, and the Isis Luxury Belgian Extra Dark Chocolate 85% Cocoa, which I rated a 6. A 6 is a borderline rating -- okay, but not a chocolate I would seek out. Given the very high rating I gave the Recchiuti 85%, I am skeptical that I will meet a chocolate of higher cocoa percentage that I will be able to rate as highly.