Dark Chocolate

There's really only one reason I run and exercise: Dark Chocolate.

I love the stuff. I wish I could eat it all the time and never suffer the caloric consequences. Twenty years ago, that worked, but now I have to work for my food - or run because of my food. So I gladly submit myself to the tortures, ah, joys of exercise in order to pay the price for my sinful lust for dark chocolate.

I'm always in the market to try new darks, so I recently picked up a Scharffen Berger 82% and a Newman's Own 70%. I must admit some hesitation in picking up both. I had heard mixed reviews of the Scharffen Berger and I have a hard time picturing Paul Newman as anything but a capitalist swine-celebrity-food snob. Don't ask where that idea came from, it's just one of my quirks. Sorry, Paul.

Now, I'm not the best at describing chocolates and why I do or don't like them. If you want to hear some more professional opinions on the matter, you should check out One Golden Ticket. These guys know chocolate!

I do know, though, what I like when I taste it. And the Scharffen Berger isn't it. I like bitter chocolate, but the Scharffen Berger just had no subtlety to it at all. It wasn't . . . unique. If I want a really dark bar, I'll go with a Cachet Uganda 80% bar, which has some interesting undertones.

The Newman's Own Super Dark was a pleasant surprise. Funny thing is, it doesn't look all that dark at all. In fact it looks more like milk chocolate (icky!). But the taste was pretty amazing. Nice long flavor, smoky, earthy, definitely recommended. Nothing overpowering, but with enough bite to keep your attention. Not my absolute favorite pure chocolate bar (that would be the Santander Columbian Single Origin 65% bar), but I'd buy it again. For the price, it's tough to beat.
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ADDEMDUM: If you're ever in Madison and you call yourself a chocolate fan, you must stop at Gail Ambrosius Chocolatier and try their nibs bar. It is to die for. Or to kill for, if you prefer. Or you can just buy several and eat them. But they won't last very long. They're like heroin for the chocolate lover. Seriously addicting and some of the best chocolate you will ever, EVER eat!

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