Friis Holm – Barba, Nicaragua 70% Dark

Description

TASTING NOTES

Barba is one of the rarest cacao varietals in the world. In the whole of Nicaragua (and possibly the world), there are perhaps only 100 trees growing the Barba varietal. This is an exceptional bar. At first bite, it has the same rich, creamy texture and even melt that we have come to expect from Friis Holm chocolate. Then as it melts, a bright, bold flavour bursts forth. This bar is spicy, not bitter, with black pepper emerging toward the middle of the melt, before leaving a rich, buttery finish.

ABOUT THE MAKER

Mikkel Friis-Holm’s craft chocolate journey started with an ever-growing passion for fine chocolate. This eventually led him to Central America, where he immersed himself in a project that aimed to identify and evaluate DNA strands of Nicaraguan cocoa beans. He then pivoted from sourcing to making, and Friis Holm, the Danish craft chocolate maker, was born. Mikkel is still fascinated with genetics, and ensures he chooses the best varieties with the highest flavour potential.

THE BEANS

This dark chocolate bar has been crafted using a single Nicaraguan bean – one of the rarest on the planet.

Mikkel Friis Holm is passionate about the genetics of cacao. He has been committed to isolating the genetics of cacao since he first got involved in Nicaraguan plantations back in 2008. One of the cacaos that Mikkel helped to define was Barba – the bean that he uses in this single bean 70% dark chocolate bar. Many makers make bars that hail from a single region of a country, but with this bar, Mikkel has gone one further – this is one a series of bars that Mikkel has crafted from cacao of a single genetic variety.