Potomac Uganda Semuliki Forest 75% cacao

This bar has a smooth entrance, quite gentle for 75% cacao.  The flavors are buttery with a creamy taste. The background note echos of plum.  The aftertaste is short and sweet. 9.1

Potomac Peru Ucayali River 70% cacao

This bar has a very robust cacao flavor and is quite bitter for a 70% bar. The front taste is roasted, with a charcoal tinge in the mix. A lesser taste is an earthy, woody note. The aftertaste is lengthy with a tapering echo of bitterness. 7.8

I tasted an earlier Peru bar from a different plantation from Potomac: Potomac San Martin Peru 70% cacao. I noted in that review that the bar tasted more bitter than I have come to expect from a 70% cacao bar, just as I noted for this bar.  From my experience with the Fresco bar I would conclude that this bitter profile comes from a "Light" roasting level which I suspect is being used for these bars. The Fresco description of Light roasting is "just enough to soften the cacao's raw, acidic edge." This lines up with my experience with the bars.

Fresco Guatemala Polochic Valley Recipes 250, 251 and 252

There are three bars in this review, the three Fresco Guatemala bars. Recipe 250 is "Light Roast" and "Long Conche." Recipe 251 is "Medium Roast" and "Long Conche." Recipe 252 is "Dark Roast" and "Long Conche." So the variable for these bars is the roasting.  The label reports that for Long Conche "flavor peaks and valleys soften to a melodic harmony."

The effect of varying roast levels taken from the label is listed in Fresco Dominican Republic Öko Caribe Recipes 212 and 224, except for Dark: "Full bodied, bold, intense, new flavor notes can develop while others may be subdued."

Recipe 250, Light Roast and Long Conche

This bar's flavors have an element of molasses with a baseline of rum raisin. There is little bitter bite, so the aftertaste is gentle. 8.8

Recipe 251, Medium Roast and Long Conche

This bar's flavors baseline tends towards balsamic, with a spice cake dimension in the background. The bitterness is slightly elevated, with a corresponding longer aftertaste. 8.4

Recipe 252, Dark Roast and Long Conche

This bar presents a softer initial flavor which has a buttery toffee taste, and an undertone of leather. The bitterness is low and the aftertaste follows the toffee note. 8.1

Dandelion Madagascar Ambanja 2017 Harvest 70% cacao

This is the third harvest of this cacao from Dandelion that I have tasted.  Previous reviews are:

• Dandelion Madagascar Ambanja 2014 Harvest 70% cacao
  
• Dandelion Madagascar Ambanja  Feb 2012 Harvest 70% cacao

As would be expected, this bar has a similar taste profile as the other harvests. There is a raspberry flavor note with a lemony finish. This bar is consistently at the top of my taste ratings, and I will bump the rating for this edition. 9.5

The label notes vary from prior editions: "For this bar she [Julia, listed on the label as "Roast profile by Julia"] brought out notes of raspberry cheesecake and lemon zest."

Fresco Ghana Recipes 260 and 261

This post  compares two recipes of the Ghana 68% cacao.

Recipe 260, Light Roast and Subtle Conche

This bar had a deep cacao flavor, with a molasses base. There is little bitterness to the taste. 7.7

Recipe 261, Dark Roast and Medium Conche

The cacao note is softer with this bar (than with Recipe 260). The base has moved to a caramel flavor, while the bitterness is still low. 8.3