Artisan du Chocolat Mole Poblano

Posted by in Chocolate Reviews on October 12 2009 | Leave A Comment
Artisan du Chocolat Mole Poblano

This is my first Artisan du Chocolat bar, one of a range producd under the name ”Fusion’. As you might imagine from both the theme of the packaging and the name, this chocolate is based on the famous Mexican sauce Mole.

The back of the box has some tasting notes from Gerard Coleman (Mr. A du C).

“It is believed that Mole was created by the nuns of the Order of Santa Clara in the 17th century Mexico. Mole Poblano is now a popular sauce prepared with dried chiles (mulato, ancho, pasilla and chipotle), ground nuts, ground tortilla, cocoa beans and a long list of spices such as aniseed, coriander, allspice, clove and rosemary- all ground into a thick, rich and chocolate color paste. It traditionally accompanies poultry. This bar made by conching and refining South American cocoa beans with Mole plays on the tastebuds. It has depth, body and a mild pungency culminating in a pleasant heat. It is the balance of the multitude of ingredients in Mole that gives richness and sophistication to this bar.”

Multitude indeed – there are at least eleven ingredients in the ‘Mole’ part of this bar, including ground tortilla, thyme, numerous chillis and hoja santa, otherwise known as the Mexican pepperleaf. With so many ingredients and yet a promise of subtle flavours, I was intrigued.

The underlying spiciness is evident as soon as you sniff the chocolate. It has a warm, almost cake-like aroma sitting in there with the smell of the cocoa. If you’ve ever had Lebküchen (German gingerbread biscuits often sold around Xmas) then if I say that some of the underlying spice notes are very similar you’d probably understand.

The surprise was that as I began tasting I wasn’t assailed by a multitude of spicy flavours, and certainly no gingerbread/cake. There is a gentle warmth, that’s for sure, but the blend of spices never becomes overpowering, and certainly not enough to cause anxiety. The heat does build gently but it’s never a fight between chocolate and spice. One can always pick out the woody, deep cocoa tones from within the overall taste. Unusually for me I demolished most of the bar during the tasting process. Okay, so it’s only a baby at 45g, but still it’s unusual for me to eat so much in a sitting. I found myself enjoying the warmth and loving the mouthfeel and cocoa flavours.

When I visited the Artisan website I couldn’t help but notice that they’ve opened a cocktail bar in west London. I can feel a Chocablog Christmas party coming on!

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Comments On This Post

  1. Maggie

    I love Artisan’s Fusion bars. Mole is good, but my personal favourites are Lumi and Black Cardamom. And the new shop is brilliant. If you haven’t tried their salted caramel ice cream, head there and enjoy 🙂

  2. zozo

    I discovered Artisan du Chocolat in Selfridges for the first time this weekend. Was absolutely blown away! The Fusion bars are stunning (the Mole especially), but the Origin bars are also incredible and oh my god, the Darjeeling bar!!! Staff were also fabulous and let us sample all sorts including the liquid salted caramels, and I do finally see what all the fuss is about. Am I gushing? I actually stood at the till with my 6 or so bars feeling quite light headed and began to see why my fiance thinks I have a “problem” with chocolate.

  3. Jayne

    I made a trip to Selfridges in Manchester today and was thrilled to see the Artisan du Chocolate stand. Unfortunately, being so far from London, I have had to make a 4 hour journey to satisfy my deepest darkest cravings before. I am totally in love with their liquid salted caramels. I also got a good selection of their couture chocolates and oh my, the coriander praline was amazing. I know what my boyfriend can buy me for Christmas.

    Just waiting for Paul A Young’s to venture North now.

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