When London Southbank University student, Ellie Vaughan, set out to explore the sensory appeal of pairing coffee with chocolate, we were happy to help. Armed with three of Firetree Chocolate's single-origins, support from a coffee expert from Dark Arts Coffee and a scientific approach to exploring the sensory appeal of both, Ellie set out to understand how people experience the 'classic' coffee and chocolate pairing.
In this blog, Ellie summarises her findings
Coffee and Chocolate: Why Do They Work So Well Together?
Coffee and chocolate are two flavours that are seemingly made for each other. We often find them combined in mochas, tiramisu, and chocolate-dusted cappuccinos. Sometimes even bakers add espresso to chocolate cakes to deepen the flavour!
But why do these two foods taste so good side by side? And is there a “right” way to pair them? That’s exactly what I set out to discover in my dissertation, with Firetree Chocolate at the heart of the study
What is food pairing?
Food pairing is the art (and science) of matching flavours of foods and/or drinks so that they complement each other in order to create a harmonious experience. Researchers generally talk about three main approaches:
· A shared origin: grown in the same place.
· Shared flavour notes: Ingredients that taste or smell similar.
· Complementary flavour notes: contrasting flavours that balance each other out.
Coffee and chocolate often tick all three boxes and have been famously paired together for centuries. Both are grown in tropical ‘belts’ near the equator; are fermented, dried and roasted before reaching us; and share overlapping flavour networks of fruity, nutty, and/or roasted notes.
Why single-origin matters
Traditionally, both coffee and chocolate products were made from blends. The goal was consistency, not character — beans from many farms were mixed so every cup or bar tasted the same.
Single-origin turns that idea on its head, by focusing on growing and using only high-quality beans that come from a single country, region, or even estate. Instead of consistency and volume, the focus is on celebrating unique characteristics through the influence of soil, climate, altitude, and careful farming, also known as ‘terroir’.
But single-origin has become more than just a mark of quality. It’s a statement of traceability, sustainability, and craftsmanship. Farmers are paid more fairly, consumers can discover new flavour experiences, and the sense of place is embodied in every bite.
Firetree Chocolate is a leader here, sourcing beans from remote volcanic islands and letting their origins shine through — from the citrus brightness of the Philippines Mindanao Island to the deep fruitiness of Hispaniola in the Dominican Republic.
Tasting with science: sensory analysis explained
Marketers of single-origin coffee and chocolate initially sold them by telling the stories of the farmers, their communities and families. Today, there’s growing emphasis on taste. But taste is subjective, so how do we measure it?
That’s where the study of sensory analysis comes in. It’s a structured way to understand how people experience flavour and other senses. Sensory analysis is often used by specialists in coffee through a process called “cupping”, and flavour lexicons are used in chocolate tasting assessments. But I wanted to look at the average consumer, as after all, no food is worth producing is people don’t actually enjoy it.
In order to do so, I designed a taste test using Firetree’s single-origin chocolates. The aim was simple: to discover which pairing principle consumers preferred when chocolate was paired with coffee.
The taste test
For my sensory analysis study, I made three chocolate ganache samples, all infused with the same single-origin Papua New Guinea coffee. Ganache is a silky blend of hot cream and chocolate — a great base for testing these flavour pairings.
The chocolates I used were
Papua New Guinea (72%) – same origin as the coffee
Philippines, Mindanao Island (73%) – similar flavour notes
Hispaniola, Dominican Republic (72%) – contrasting/ complementary notes
Forty participants took part to taste all three ganaches. They described each sample using 13 pre-set flavour attributes, such as bitter, sour, fruity, roasted, and balanced. They then ranked the samples in order of preference.
What I discovered
The results were clear: complementary flavours and balance win.
The Dominican Republic chocolate and Papua New Guinea coffee was most preferred overall, with tasters describing it as “balanced” most frequently, and consistently rated it highest.
The Papua New Guinea chocolate and coffee pairing (based on the same origin) came second overall.
The Philippines pairing (with similar tasting notes) came last and was least preferred. It was most often described as sour and bitter, which were identified as least liked attributes.
So, despite the food pairing theory that ‘similar flavours pair well together’, in certain contexts, similarity can actually emphasise undesirable tastes. Sourness and bitterness particularly drove rejection, while balance was a key driver of preference.
Why it matters
The findings of my study challenge some long-held assumptions in food pairing research, and suggests that for everyday coffee and chocolate lovers, harmony matters more than similarity. Contrast can help to bring out the best in both ingredients, such as the richness of the chocolate, or the depth of the coffee.
For producers and consumers alike, the takeaway is simple: when pairing coffee and chocolate together, aim for balance. A chocolate bar with fruity brightness may pair beautifully with a nutty, mellow coffee. Whereas, a bold, roasted coffee may pair harmoniously with a chocolate with red fruits or citrusy notes.
Firetree pairings to try at home!
If you’d like to explore these findings yourself, here are a few Firetree pairings inspired by the study:
Papua New Guinea coffee + Dominican Republic 72% chocolate: a complementary match that balances richness with fruit.
A light, floral coffee + Philippines 73% chocolate: for bright acidity and florality.
A nutty espresso + Solomon Islands 69% chocolate: for a warm, rounded pairing.
The joy of single-origin is that no two bars taste the same — so there’s always a new combination to discover!
Final thoughts
Coffee and chocolate may share lots of similar characteristics and attributes but it’s balance, not similarity, that make them work well together. My research showed that consumers prefer complementary pairings, where sourness and bitterness are kept to a minimum.
The next time you brew a cup of coffee or eat a square of chocolate, think about pairing them like you would wine and cheese. Look for flavours that contrast and complement each other in ways that make each one better. Firetree’s single-origin volcanic island chocolates are the perfect place to begin.
About The Author
Ellie Vaughan is a recent First-Class BSc graduate in Baking Science and Technology from London South Bank University. She is a hospitality all-rounder with a passion for great food and drink and with interests in sensory science and product development. On choosing Firetree's products for her dissertation she said "Their products align perfectly with my focus on traceability, sustainability and ethicality - as well as having a glowing recommendation from my chocolate lecturer."
Visit Ellie's LinkedIn profile or follow her on Instagram.
