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May Market Report
New! DLM Chocolate Bars by Ghyslain
I guess there is a scientific reason for my obsession with
it; something along the lines of “releases endorphins, pumps you up with antioxidants”
- that sort of thing. I’m talking about chocolate, of course. Yes, I know
what they say, that chocolate is only to be eaten during colder weather. “They”
can send me theirs, because I eat chocolate almost 365 days a year, including
right now. In fact, it’s my daily ritual to go into my desk drawer for a refreshing
getaway consisting of a single square of good chocolate. I enhance the experience
by leaving the square on my tongue to melt away ever so slowly. Don’t know
about you, but I’ve rarely had chocolate that I didn’t like. There is plenty
of great American chocolate out there, as well as French, Venezuelan, Belgian,
Spanish, and even excellent Scottish chocolate.
Please don’t get the idea that I’m a chocolate snob. If
you need help with that Hershey bar, I’ll oblige. But if you really want to
experience chocolate, rather than just get a fix, it’s worth the price to
nibble on the higher-end product. And now, we want to introduce you to a new
chocolate bar so good that it is destined to become another
DLM Classic. The new bar, available in Dark or Milk, is the DLM Chocolate
Bar by Ghyslain. As the name implies, this new chocolate was elaborated by
none other than our friend Ghyslain, chocolatier extraordinaire! Just one
square of this fine chocolate satiates better than a whole bar of the cheap
stuff. What accounts for the difference? Two big factors are the use of real
vanilla and the type of cocoa. In the case of vanilla, the cheap bars contain
an imitation called vanillan which has a fraction of the complexity and depth
of flavor compared to real vanilla. Why do they use this artificial stuff?
Yep, you guessed it. Price. Real vanilla is more expensive but incomparably
more flavorful. As you may have already guessed, even when real vanilla is
used, there is a tremendous range of quality. Ghyslain uses high-quality,
real Mexican vanilla beans in our bars.
As for the cocoa, a multitude of factors come into play,
such as the type of cocoa used, how it is processed, the percentage of cocoa
in the final product, and much more. Cocoa can be divided into two broad categories:
the ordinary grade Forastero, which makes up the large majority of the world
market, and the higher quality, fine cocoa Criollo, making up the remainder.
Often on chocolates, you will see a percentage listed. One general rule is
that the finer chocolates boast a higher percentage of cocoa. This percentage
refers to the amount of cocoa product in the bar, and the rest of the ingredients
are sugar and/or milk (in the case of milk chocolate). Ghyslain makes our
64% dark chocolate bars from Guayaquil, a Criollo variety from Ecuador known
for its intensity of flavor. Our milk chocolate bar is composed of 38% Maracaïbo,
another Criollo, this time from Venezuela. (The best-selling domestic bar,
by contrast, is made from the ordinary Forastero and is only 11% cocoa, with
the remainder of the ingredients being sugar, and cheap fillers.) As you can
imagine, the variation in the flavor of chocolate is nearly infinite depending
on the factors above, and many more.
To my taste, our new bars are good enough to be mentioned
along with the world’s best, such as Valrhona, Bernard Castelain, and Galler.
Even David Rosengarten, famous wine and food critic and star of The Food Network,
agreed that our chocolate bar was exceptional when he tasted the dark version
on a visit here last month. The flavor of the Dark is intensely fruity, bright,
with an exceptionally velvety texture. The Milk has surprising complexity
and intensity, and is creamy beyond description. It is simply an awesome bar
of chocolate. Please experience it for yourself. As for me, the new DLM Chocolate
Bar by Ghyslain has taken its rightful spot in my desk drawer, but I don’t
know if I’m strong enough to keep myself to one square a day…
Maracaïbo (Milk) 3.4-oz bar $3.59 save up to 40¢
Gauyaquil (Dark) 3.4-oz bar $3.59 save up to 40¢
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