Chocolate heaven since, oh, last Wednesday. (Green & Black's Organic Maya Gold Chocolate)

Member Name: Joker25

Product:	Green & Black's Organic Maya Gold Chocolate
Date:	20/02/06 (262 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very rich and good quality dark chocolate.

Disadvantages: A bit pricey.

I was a sick wee girlie last week and stuck at home with a nasty bout of 'flu I whined to various family members, who, in the traditional manner of my family, laughed and then largely ignored me. However, by Wednesday my mother had either had enough of my whining or had started to feel a little guilty at my plight, and decided to drop round with 'presents'.


Now, having an Irish mother is a lot like having a Jewish mother, only there's more potatoes and swearing involved. Also, it should be borne in mind that my mother is certifiable. Her presents included; a bunch of bananas (I hate bananas, always have), a packet of hoover bags (no idea why. Possibly a hint that I should clean more often), a copy of Prima magazine (I didn't think things could get any worse after Take A Break, but hey, what do you know, I was wrong), a brochure showing different types of coffin (she's currently planning her own funeral and wants me to feel 'involved'. It should be noted that she's only 65 and in tip-top health), an empty saucepan (she had, apparently, meant to bring some soup but had been "distracted by a magpie" at the vital point of actually pouring the soup into the pan and so had consequently meandered off with the empty pan in her hand), and some Green & Black's Maya Gold chocolate.


After an earnest discussion on how many legs ducks have, "Are you sure Fiona? I think it's four. But they look like they should have four. I served dinner for four and everybody got a leg. I'm nearly sure there was only one duck. Well, swans have four legs. I know that FOR DEFINITE" she departed at some speed (no doubt off to the local wildlife pond for a spot of counting, just to be on the safe side). With peace finally descending over my house I dumped everything in the bin bar the chocolate.


According to the packaging Green & Black's Maya Gold chocolate is "Bittersweet Dark Chocolate with Orange and Spices". Apparently, it was the first ever product to be given the Fairtrade Mark by the Fairtrade Foundation, and is produced organically in co-operation with Mayan farmers in Southern Belize. In as far as it's possible with chocolate, this is pretty guilt free stuff, then. My bar was 100g and comes in dark brown paper with a red stripe across the top. The name of the company is displayed in gold writing. This chocolate is suitable for both vegetarians and vegans, and claims to be made in a peanut free site. However, just underneath that in smaller print it says "Manufactured in a factory that handles nut, cereal and dairy ingredients" so if you have serious allergies, you may want to visit the website where they have a section on allergen control (www.greenandblacks.com).


The actual chocolate is contained within a gold foil wrapper, on opening this there isn't a strong chocolate aroma, but you do get a whiff of the orange and spices - it's a mulled wine-y kind of aroma. The colour is a uniform mahogany shade and the bar is handily scored into sections (that's for those of you who wish to nibble daintily at your chocolate, as opposed to wedging the whole bar into your mouth and dribbling contentedly for the next half hour or so. Not that that's what I did, obviously).


The flavour is very rich and intense, and as soon as you start sucking it coats your entire mouth. It melts quickly and easily on the tongue and is both creamy and bitter at the same time. The orange is not a strong or overpowering flavour (i.e., is about as far removed from Terry's Chocolate Orange as it's possible to get), but rather is more of a subtle aftertaste which blends well with and complements the cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla. The flavour lingers pleasingly in your mouth for a good ten minutes or so after eating it. Previously I was never a fan of dark chocolate as I disliked the grainy texture and strong bitter kick that I found many dark chocolates, such as Bournville, to have. This chocolate has none of that. The overall texture is silky and luscious and the flavours manage to mingle extremely well together and be subtle yet rich and long lasting.


Maya Gold is available in Tesco's (and also Asda and Sainsbury's) for £1.19 for 100g bar. This is pretty pricey when you consider that you can get 200g of Bournville for a mere £0.98, but there are quite a few redeeming features. Firstly, it's an awful lot nicer than any other chocolate I've tried. Secondly, it will last quite a long time. Case in point, I've still got half my bar left (it was given to me last Wednesday). I promise it really still is the same bar. Those of you who know me will know that I'm morally opposed to actually paying for my own chocolate anyway. The beauty of this stuff is that it has 55% cocoa solids, which accounts for the richness and longevity of the flavour. It also means that you only need 1 or 2 squares (that's SQUARES. Not whole bars. Although it's an easy mistake to make) to get a good chocolate rush. By way of comparison, Bournville has a mere 39% or 36% cocoa solids (depending on whether you choose to believe the Cadbury website or the government's food archive comparison tables).


As if any further recommendation was needed, this is the chocolate that my deranged mother uses in her infamous Chicken in Chocolate Sauce recipe. And if this chocolate can redeem that, there's no telling what else it can do.


(Also posted on Ciao by me)

Summary: Sumptuous dark chocolate.