Ecuador “Nacional” – Fair Trade & Organic – 2006

Finally, I have an origin that I have been per se resisting for some time. It is not really that I have not wanted to carry it, but hands down it has simply been bad every time I have tasted the origin. It seems most places that carry organic cocoa carry this origin, and I have never understood why – it is often bitter, astringent, poorly prepped and quite often just bad, but people buy it in droves because it is (trumpet sounding) ORGANIC.

Well, as I have said often enough, I am all for Organic and Fair trade, but what matters to me is taste. That organic certificate just doesn’t make a good chocolate in my most humble opinion – kind of bland and papery. Well this years “Nacional” (a Forastero) from Ecuador is finally meets my standards of flavor (but the certificate still tastes bland). It is the most fermented Nacional I have seen. It still has a touch of purple, but is not waxy in texture like so many I have tasted. Even roasted lightly it has some “dark” flavors to it. There are some hints of roasted peanut, and the complimentary high notes that go with that. The is some astringency, but it is recognizable as a tannic like flavor, not unlike red wine. The preparation is a little rough, a few flat beans, a few overly dried beans (they didn’t stir the piles as often as they could have) but in general it is ok. You may want to pull some of the really dried beans out after roasting, but there are not enough to cause a problem if you don’t.