Original Beans - Piura Porcelana cocoa nibs

The tasting notes reflect my personal opinion.

Name

Piura Porcelana cocoa nibs (Peru)
Main ingredients are cocoa beans.
Cocoa content: minimum 100% cocoa solids.

Manufacturer

Original Beans, Keizergracht 452, 1016 GD Amsterdam, Netherlands
But the packaging indicates that the product was actually made in Switzerland.

Packaging

The 150g cocoa nibs are wrapped in a paper bag with an inner lining from transparent plastic.

Look

The cocoa nibs are dark brown from the outside. The edges are very light brown and almost appear white-ish.

Sound

The nibs break with clear crackly sounds.

Smell

The cocoa nibs have an intense cocoa smell with aromas of nuts, roast, wood and light floral notes.

Mouthfeel

The nibs have an even surface feeling that initially feels cold. The nibs are brittle and crunchy.

Taste

The nibs have a nutty cocoa flavour with roast, dry wood and hints of roasted walnuts. A little astringency and bitterness unfold over time.

Aftertaste

The aftertaste is dominated by the cocoa's darker flavours of roast, dry wood and a little bitterness.

Summary

These cocoa nibs have an intense cocoa smell. The flavour is mainly cocoa, wood and roasted nuts. Their astringency and bitterness are very mild. Their flavour is not heavy and dark. It comes with finer and lighter flavours.

Verdict

The cocoa nibs have an intense smell of cocoa with dry wood and nuts that is lifted with floral notes. Their flavours are dominated by cocoa, dry wood and roasted. The nibs have no acidity and very mild bitterness and astringency. Thus, finer flavours can shine through and make the nibs lighter and more subtle than other products. 5 Stars.

Dates

Best before 11/11/2018, tasted 25/05&03&13/06/2017

Davert cocoa nibs

The tasting notes reflect my personal opinion.

Name

Cocoa nibs (Kakao Nibs)
Main ingredients are cocoa beans.
Cocoa content: minimum 100% cocoa solids, no vanilla

Manufacturer

Davert GmbH, Zur Davert 7, 59387 Ascheberg, GERMANY

Packaging

The 180g cocoa nibs are sealed in transparent plastic wrap and boxed in turquoise card board.

Look

The cocoa nibs are dark brown with some hints of black. The inside edges of broken nibs are lighter in colour with red and rosé hints.

Sound

The nibs break with a clear snap and some crackling noise.

Smell

There is a deep and dark-ish cocoa and chocolate aroma. The nibs also have some notes of roast and hints of earth or wet wood.

Mouthfeel

At first contact, the nibs feels a little bit cold. The nibs's surface is perceived as even but it has some texture. Once chewed, the nibs are slightly brittle and crackle in the mouth similar to roasted piece of chopped hazelnut.

Taste

The initial flavour is a mild bitterness with notes of roast and some hints of nuts. As the flavour unfolds, the bitterness remains very mild and the cocoa and nut flavours dominate. There are notes of wood and bark.

Aftertaste

The aftertaste is dominated by a dark cocoa flavour, a lingering bitterness and flavours of roasted wood.

Summary

The flavour of the cocoa nibs unfolds slowly and has a mild, dark-ish bitterness. It has long lasting notes of wood, nuts and roast. Their mouthfeel is similar to roasted hazelnut.

Verdict

These cocoa nibs have a clear dark cocoa flavour. They have nuts, roast and wood aroma with little to none acidity but an intense bitterness and a little astringency. They are little, very flavour-intensive nibbles. 3 Stars.

Dates

Best before 14/03/2017, tasted 30/10, 01&06/11/1016

Wohlfahrt - Roasted cocoa nibs

The tasting notes reflect my personal opinion.

Name

Roasted cocoa nibs.
Ingredients are just cocoa nibs.
Cocoa content: minimum 100% cocoa solids, no vanilla

Manufacturer

Wohlfarth Schokolade, Choriner Straße 37, 10435 Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin, Germany

Packaging

The cocoa nibs are wrapped in a transparent plastic bag of 50g (other sizes available).

Look

The nibs are dark brown. Some parts are darker, others are lighter with shades of red. The edges are much lighter coloured and almost white and appear to be almost powder.

Sound

When breaking the nibs, they emit a clear crackling sound.

Smell

The nibs smell of a mild cocoa and hints of roast aroma. They also have chocolatey aroma to them that is similar to milk chocolate.

Mouthfeel

Initially, the nibs feel cold when they touch the lips and tongue. Their surface feels surprisingly smooth and even. Chewing them feels similar to chopped almonds.

Taste

The taste unfolds slowly. It starts with a mild bitterness and roast flavours. This combines with an intense cocoa flavour that resembles very dark chocolate. The bitterness is very light, resembling that of lavender or roses. There are also hints of bark and roasted nuts.

Aftertaste

The aftertaste lingers for quite a while. It is mainly cocoa and the mild bitterness and an impression of very smooth chocolate.

Summary

These cocoa nibs taste very intensively of cocoa with a mild bitterness and hints of roast, nuts and petals.

Verdict

These cocoa nibs offer an intense experience. Given the size and amount, they are very rich in flavour. Their bitterness is immediately detectable but not overly hitting. They are not sour and leave an intense aftertaste of dark chocolate. 4 Stars.

Dates

Tasted 30/10&01/11/2016

Wohlfahrt - Raw dried cocoa pulps

The tasting notes reflect my personal opinion.

Name

Raw cocoa pulps (dried cocoa beans with flesh)
Ingredient is dried cocoa beans.
Cocoa content: minimum 100% cocoa, no vanilla

Manufacturer

Wohlfarth Schokolade, Choriner Straße 37, 10435 Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin, Germany

Packaging

The dried cocoa pulps are wrapped in transparent plastic bag. Depicted is a 100g bag.

Look

The dried fruit flesh is pale yellow. Some areas are more pink in colour others are more brown-ish. The cocoa nibs inside are dark brown, some are light brown. But the colour variety ranges from pink or blue-ish, white to brown and dark brown.

Sound

The flesh is tough and dry such that it does not really 'break'. The flesh crumbles to some degree. The cocoa nibs are very crumbly. In sum, the sound is similar to crisps.

Smell

After opening the bag, the cocoa flesh smells lemony with a distinct sharp fruity sourness. There are aromas of roasted nuts. There is also a flowery note.

Mouthfeel

The fruit flesh is very dry. It becomes a bit softer in the mouth and feels slightly sticky but it remains quite chewy. The cocoa nibs are crumbly and crisp.

Taste

The initial taste is of fruity sourness and a fruity sweetness. Chewing a little releases nut and roast flavours. This is accompanied by more or less intense cocoa flavours. The variance between the pulps is huge. It ranges from fruity, strongly flowery notes to earthy, bitter flavours. Some also taste of freshly cut wood with roast aroma. The larger ones have a more intense cocoa and chocolate flavour.

Aftertaste

The aftertaste varies heavily. In most cases, it is a nutty roast aroma with hint of earth and a mild bitterness. But the pulps can also have a flowery flavour, some can be quite bitter. The odd one can be also be a bit like soap.

Summary

The dried cocoa pulps have a huge variety in flavours and vary in shape and colour. The commonality seems to be an initial fruity sour flavour, fruity sweetness and nuts and roast flavours of the nibs. Most of the pulps are comparably small. The larger ones have more nibs compared to flesh and a more intense chocolate flavour.
The flavour appears to be perceived very differently between people, too.

Verdict

This is really an interesting product. It probably illustrates how difficult it is to select a good and consistent quality of cocoa. Some people really like its flavours while others really do not. Nevertheless, it's an unusual product that can be very satisfying as a little snack and comes with a variety of flavours. No rating at this point.

Dates

Tasted: 22&23&24/07&03&04&05%30&31/08/2016