As I’ve referenced before, when I mention that I write about chocolate, about 90% of people say to me (as if I’m about to try to convert them to a religion): ‘My favourite bar is Dairy Milk/Fruit & Nut.’ I think, over the past several months, I’ve provided several great alternatives to the former, but the latter had thus far eluded me.
I understand, if you like sweet milk chocolate, that hurdling the 50% cocoa barrier can be scary, but there’s no need. I’ve found you something.
Nestled at just over 40% cocoa (double the Cadbury version) is Me Chocolate’s Hazelnut and Golden Raisin (£4.20, 100g) made of Ecuadorian chocolate, super creamy, super delicious, chunky and stuffed full of fruit and nuts. Try it.
At the other end of the scale, I also tried a 72% chocolate that tasted much darker, but with no bitterness or meanness. This is a dark chocolate that’s done all the hard work for you, delivering smooth, elegant but complex flavour for a long time after you’ve savoured it.
Metiisto Patovaki 72% (£7.95, 65g) is made by Kenny Patovaki with cocoa grown on a tiny island called Paspaskato (population: two families, and good luck finding it on a map) in the Solomon Islands in the Pacific.
The man behind the Metiisto label is an Australian ex-car repairman called Trevor who, via Sweden, now makes chocolate in Queensland. This is artisan chocolate at its very finest.
