Sucré 65% cocoa

Simple and clean chocolate. Low bitterness and even aftertaste. Some butterscotch notes in the flavor profile. 7.9

www.shopsucre.com

Benoit Nihant Bali 72% cocoa

This bar opens with a sharp jolt of cherry, with an undertone of liquorice. Low bitterness and a nice, smooth aftertaste.Well balanced. 8.5

Benoit Nihant Madagascar 72% cacao

Very fruity, with some floral notes. Sweet, but slightly bitter. This is a very interesting combination, engaging taste dimensions from start to finish. Special. 8.3

benoitnihant.be

Guido Gobino Extra Bitter Blend 75% cocoa

Chewing this bar produces a better experience than the "melt in your mouth" approach. Chewing bursts the bar into finer parts and these then mix into a sweet/cacao blend that has a nice flavor punch and pleasant aftertaste. Taking the melt approach, the bar takes quite a while to dissolve, and while it does the bitterness stands prominently until the bar is reduced.

Either way, flavors are mostly earthy cacao, some metallic elements come through with the melt-in-mouth. 6.8

www.guidogobino.it

Madécasse Madagascar 80% cocoa

Quite bitter, so very few side flavors get through this barrier. Earthy, with wood and musk elements. Faint citrus can be gleamed when the winds are right. 7.1

I first reviewed this bar in 2010: Madécasse Madagascar strong & complex 80% cocoa At the time I noted that the bar I was tasting had been kicking around in my bag for a couple months. That is not a concern for the bar I tasted now. In addition to the 3 and a half years that have passed since that posting, the bar has a new label design. However the taste is in line with my original notes, though I may be able to appreciate the "strong & complex" nature of this bar more now. The new label has dropped this "strong & complex" description and now states: "bold flavor with a smooth finish."

Fresco Peru 225 and 226 70% cacao

These Fresco Chocolates are from Peru, and share a medium conche and 70% cacao content.  225 is a Light roast, while 226 is a Dark roast.

My first impression of 225 is "tangy" -- a citrus pop followed by cherry sweetness.  As with many 70% bars, the bitterness is low, and the aftertaste tapers smoothly. 8.1

With 226, the tangy note is less while the sweetness is increased. Rather than cherry, it comes out with a orange citrus effect. The label refers to flavors of roasted nuts and berries. I can see the latter, but I am not tasting nuts. 8.3

For these bars, the roasting level does indeed bring out different flavors, but the experience with both remains excellent. The basics of cacao sourcing and other processing steps produce a consistently high-quality product.