I do multiple tastings of the same bar prior to writing this blog. Per my usual, I did my first tasting, then the second tasting days later. I can’t lie, I was thrown. After subsequent tastings, I found a lot more complexity in this bar than expected. Let me introduce you to Spinnaker Chocolate. I was re-introduced to Spinnaker at the Northwest Chocolate Festival in October, where I saw a chocolate making demo with Melissa, one their chocolate minion. I loved talking to her! Her enthusiasm for chocolate stood out even among the chocolate festival crowd.
The founders of Spinnaker Chocolate are brothers, Chris and Kelly Van Arsdale, and it’s based out of Seattle, WA. The brothers are self-taught chocolate makers with a love of all things chocolate and sailing, hence their company name. They started the business in 2021, and a portion of each purchase goes toward ocean conservation. They also strive to reduce waste. “From our tape, labels, and boxes to our shipping insulation and bar wrapper, our packaging is compostable, biodegradable, or recyclable.” They make their chocolate a little differently too–they only roast cacao nibs not the whole beans. The more consistent size of the nibs allows for more consistent roasting results. And it has produced chocolate with at least 22 total awards from both the International Chocolate Awards and the Academy of Chocolate Awards since their start in 2021.
Now let me introduce you to Spinnaker’s 70% Puerto Rico chocolate bar. This cacao is single origin from the Hacienda Jeanmarie area in western Puerto Rico. The area is known for producing beans that have flavor combos of tropical fruit and chocolate mousse.
Sight: rich brown, beautifully molded (tricky to see with my amateur photography but I tried)
Sound: good snap during break
Smell: moderate intensity; rich chocolate
Mouth Feel: mild waxiness to start but then proceeded with a quick melt, mild texture noted
Taste: it’s initially fudgy chocolate and earthy flavors are then joined with moderate bright notes (that I can’t name), and the brightness lasts throughout aftermelt
Astringency: mild
Summary: This bar is complex. My first tasting had flavor notes more on the chocolately/earthy side, but later tastings picked up on the brightness. It’s very tasty and I look forward to tasting multiple bars of this, for research…