Brasstown Ecuador 75% cacao

Earthy and fruity at the same time. Sweet aroma, clean aftertaste. Nice crisp snap when broken. Well made, with an interesting mold. 9.0

www.brasstownchocolate.com

Atlanta Chocolate Peru Chulucanas 75% cacao

Very flavorful bar. Cherry is the prominent flavor, with blueberry in the background. Very clean finish, with little bitterness. 9.3

www.cacaoatlanta.com

Lotte Ghana Black Chocolate

Fairly standard type mass-market bar. There is a strong vanilla flavor present. The ingredients for this bar mentions "artificial flavors," so I would conclude that was added. 6.8

www.lotte.co.jp

This bar is made in Japan, so the label in nearly entirely in Japanese. The most prominent work on the label is "Ghana," which would lead me to conclude that the cocoa's origin is Ghana, however I have not yet determined whether this is indeed the case.

Bahen Brazil 70% cacao

Cherry flavor is out front, but the bar does have some bitterness and rough texture, bordering on chalkiness. The aftertaste is also somewhat chalky. 7.8

I noticed that the surface of the bar I tasted was worn, possibly through bar handling prior to packaging, or the condition in which the bar was kept after manufacturing. The Best By date is December 2016, so there was still a good deal of runway for "best" tasting.

Vintage Plantations Peru St. Martin Valley 75% cacao

The texture of this bar is coarse and somewhat chalky. The surface of the bar is discolored with a grainy pattern, and event the bar's interior looks grainy -- as though the conching process was not done well. As a result, the flavor is fairly bitter, mostly cocoa. Subtle flavors cannot get through the flavor noise of the coarse bar. 6.6

I should note that this bar is well within the posted "Best By" date, which is September 2017.  The bar condition could be a result of improper storage at some point along the delivery pipeline.

Bellagio Dark 54% cacao

Simple, basic chocolate. This bar is made with vanilla, which is prominent in the profile. Cocoa is front and center in the taste. Aftertaste is slightly astringent, with persists the taste. 6.9

I purchased this bar during my recent visit to Las Vegas. The Bellagio is one of the hotel/casinos that creates an "experience" throughout the property of elegance based on an Italian palette. I purchased this bar at their convenience store. It is produced for Bellagio by Astor Chocolate.

Nathan Miller Ghana 70% cacao

Creamy texture, with a caramel flavor base. Easy aftertaste, with low bitterness. Smooth. 9.4