This flavor journey is surprising, singular, satisfying & sublime! Our deep, rich, earthy El Carmen cacao and bright, lemony and spicy sun dried Zanzibar Black Peppercorns from Burlap and Barrel prove that opposites do, in fact, attract.
We work closely with our friends at Burlap & Barrel to find the perfect spices to mix with our fine flavor chocolate, and once we tasted the lemony spice of these peppercorns we had to try it with our chocolate. We found the perfect complement of flavors in our El Carmen cacao, and spent a lot of time figuring out just the right balance between the zesty flavors of the peppercorns and the earthy tones of our El Carmen. The result is chocolate that combines the sweet, caramel notes of the El Carmen with the sharp, lemony flavors of the pepper slowly building and ending with a long, spicy finish.
About the Zanzibar Pepper
Burlap & Barrel sources these pepper from small farms on the island of Zanzibar, where they're hand-picked and sun-dried. According to their website these peppercorns are unlike anything else on the planet, and we're inclined to agree.
About our El Carmen Cacao
El Carmen was the very first fine flavor cacao we fell in love with on our sourcing trips, and the love affair continues. The flavors are intense, deep and rich, and the farmers around Matagalpa consistently deliver high quality beans. The post-harvest fermentation and drying is expertly done by farmer Giff Laube, and he uses a custom protocol exclusively for us.
Tasting Notes: Lemon, pepper, caramel, cocoa.
