24 July 2026

How to Actually Taste Chocolate

Most people eat chocolate. Almost nobody tastes it — and craft chocolate rewards the difference more than any other food we sell.

Start with the snap

A good bar snaps cleanly, not a dull crumble. That’s the tempering talking — it tells you the maker knew what they were doing before the flavour even hits your tongue.

Smell it before you eat it

Break a square off and hold it near your nose for a few seconds. Craft bars carry aromas — fruit, earth, smoke, spice — that a supermarket bar simply doesn’t have the cacao content to produce.

Let it melt, don’t chew it

Place the square on your tongue and let your body heat do the work. Chewing releases flavour too fast and blows past the finish, which is often where the best craft bars do something interesting.

Notice the finish

The finish is where percentage and origin show up — a lingering fruitiness, a dry tannic edge, a slow-building warmth. It’s the part most people miss because they’ve already reached for the next square.

Next time you open a bar, give it thirty seconds before you decide what you think.