Idilio Origins No. 2 Selección Amiara Meridena

Fittingly enough my second Idilio Origins review is of Bar ‘Number 2’, another 72% Venezuelan Cacao bar from the award winning Swiss chocolate makers. This time the beans have been grown in the Lulia region of Venezuela, to the North of the University town of Merida (so it says on the wrapper).

While it may look more or less identical to Bar 3, with the same cacao content and conching time, the beans tell a different story. The initial taste still has good acidity, but this chocolate has less in the way of citrus fruit flavours and more robust cacao notes. There are mild citrussy highlights (described as ‘orange flower’ on the wrapper) but in the main this is quite a bold chocolate with slightly spicy notes and a long finish with hints of raisins and red fruit. The 48 hour conche means that this is once again classically smooth Swiss chocolate, albeit a darker, less creamy version than you might expect.

It’s darker than the previous bar with much bigger initial flavours and a longer, deeper finish. Like the previous Idilio bar, I found it all too easy to eat. The finish is clean, light and long and leaves you wanting just that one piece more, which has to be the sign of a good chocolate.

As yet there’s still no sign of UK distribution for Idilio, but if you’re in France, Germany (or indeed Switzerland) I’d recommend keeping an eye out for Idilio’s distinctively clinical looking packaging.

If you’re in the area, Idilio Origins are one of the exhibitors at Chocolate Unwrapped this weekend at Vinopolis, Borough Market.

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