Patric Madagascar Sambirano Valley

Almost disheartened by the chill November winds, it was with great enthusiasm that I found a box of chocolate waiting for me at the post office, compliments of Alan McClure of Patric Chocolate. The company is fairly new, having just formed in January of 2007. These two bars are the only ones on their current product line.

The enclosed chocolate-tasting guide recommends the stronger chocolate first, so I began with the 70% before the 67%, even though I normally go the opposite way. Both 50 gram packages have the same design of bold purple and gold contrasting against more rustic colors. I love that effect. The chocolabe bars, which somehow remind me of bills of money, have a reddish tint, with the 70% being ever so slightly darker.

The 70% begins with a taste like spices, then softens into a deep berry taste that has a very red feeling before gaining more of a chocolate taste, which is accompanied by just a touch of bitter. It becomes rather sweet, but a natural, not sugar sweetness. It feels much like a fragment of silk in your mouth as it ends in a deep and soft sensation. Its warmth almost reminded me of hot chocolate. Very perfect for a cloudy day.

Before I went on, I had to look back on something. E. Guittard’s Ambanja Bittersweet. There was an undeniable connection. Sure enough, that was a Madagascar bar like these, though of a less deep variety. The 67% has a clearer or lighter taste than the 70%. The berry flavor comes back in with a sweetness like a strawberry. It’s a very comfortable chocolate, with any bitterness translating to the delightful warmth. Both of them leave your mouth with a sort of moistness not completely unlike after eating a soft piece of caramel.

After having just these two pieces, I’m very satisfied. This is one of those chocolates that takes you so far, you don’t even feel like eating more. It stays working in your mind long after it melts away. Not surprising when these go for $5.75 each. I’m glad to find another bean to bar U.S. company willing to take the time and care necessary for fine chocolate.

I look forward to whatever they come up with next.

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