Ara Chocolat Agua Viva Criollo 74%

Despite only having two ingredients; cacao and unrefined cane sugar, this single-origin Agua Viva Criollo 74% dark chocolate bar offers nuttiness, floral and caramel notes.

What makes this special is that in each cacao pod there were at least 74% white criollo beans. These white beans were selected exclusively for Ara Chocolat, then used to make this wonderfully flavoursome bar.

If you're a fan of the rich dark notes of criollo cacao, or if you're a dark chocolate lover but new to criollo, then you should try this bar!

Cacao Variety

Criollo

Cacao Origin

Rios de Agua Viva Cooperative, Rancho Grande.

Rancho Grande (big ranch) is a municipality in the Matagalpa (pron. "Matayalpa") region of Nicaragua. A place with extensive forests, rivers, waterfalls and the kind of beautiful geography well suited for ecotourism.

According to Wiki, Rancho Grande is the most agriculturally diversified region of Nicaragua, "producing coffee, cattle, milk products, vegetables, wood, gold, flowers" as well as the incredible cacao that went into this bar.

Maker⁠

Ara Chocolat, founded by Venezuelan couple Andrés and Sabrina, are a Parisian bean to bar chocolate factory and interestingly one of the few chocolate roasters in France.⁠
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Ara Chocolat produce exclusively single-origin dark chocolate. Their cacao beans are chosen and purchased via direct-trade by master chocolatier, Andrés, from small producers and co-operatives in different Latin American countries. This allows them to pay farmers a premium price and ensure exceptional quality is paramount at every step from bean to bar. ⁠
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Ara Chocolat really take you on a journey with their chocolate, showcasing the qualities of each cacao variety and the importance of preserving native and ancestral cacao varieties. Their single-origin fine chocolate possesses complex flavour journeys and lingering notes sure to impress.⁠

Ingredients

Cacao, unrefined cane sugar and cacao butter.