Mast Brothers Papua New Guinea 71% cacao

Rich earthy flavor, with hickory and a touch of maple. Fairly bitter, but the other flavors compensate to keep the focus. 7.9

This is the final ChocoCheck of 2013 — best wishes to all chocolate lovers! Here's to many more tastes in the New Year.

Mast Brothers Belize 70% cacao

When I first tasted this bar I noticed some fruit flavors, cherry predominately. With further tasting that flavor fades to the background with a strongly bitter note dominating. With that comes earthy flavors and walnut. 7.4

The label mentions "notes of raisin, plum and sarsaparilla." The cherry that I noticed could be a blend of raisin and plum I suppose. As for the sarsaparilla, I need to find some to try, as I have not tasted it in a while.

Rogue Chocolatier Bolivia Silvestre 75% cacao

A robust chocolate with an above-average bitterness for this cacao level. Fruit flavors peep through on chewing, but are less prominent when the chocolate melts without chewing. The label mentions "plum, jasmine, banana." I agree with the plum as the fruity component, but I'm not experiencing the other two flavors. 7.8

Castronovo Nicaragua 72% cacao

Another excellently made bar from Castronovo Chocolate. The initial impression is of bright cherry, but this shifts to more earthy flavors. The label mentions "savory notes of walnut." I can see the nutty element, though walnut did not initially come to mind. I tasted this bar with a glass of Port, and enjoyed both immensely. 8.2

Castronovo Peru San Martin 70% cacao

This is an exceptional bar, flavorful and well made. Fruit is the first impression, more cherry than citrus. The bar has a crisp snap and a nice design on the surface. A lot of flavor is packed into a small bar. 9.6

www.castronovochocolate.com

Pascha Peru Organic 70% cacao

This bar has a definite bitter aspect. It is slightly musky, perhaps better called "earthy." These elements linger in the aftertaste. 6.7

This is one of the few single-origin bars that is made and poured at the origin, rather than shipped as beans to another country for manufacture. The challenge to this is that the finished bar is more fragile than the raw beans.

paschachocolate.com

Santander Columbia 53% cacao

Sweet. This bar has more sugar in this bar than the 70% cacao bars I mostly taste, and it does come through. There is also a smoky-maple flavor that adds a bitter-sweet aspect. The aftertaste is more sweet than bitter. 7.7