WHAT EXACTLY ARE TASTE NOTES?
A taste note can be defined as a description of a food or drink's aroma and flavour. Taste notes help you to identify and appreciate unique characteristics of a food or drink.
Taking the example of fine wine, where flavour is attributed to what's known as 'terroir', the same can be applied to single-estate chocolate, where the farming techniques, soil and climate helps to nurture distinct taste notes and flavour profiles in the cocoa beans that make up our chocolate.
From taste notes of rich honey and soft citrus in our Philippines 73% cocoa Thins, to the vibrant red fruit and raspberry in our Madagascar 84% cocoa bar, it is quite amazing to know that these are not added flavourings, but 100% natural inherent flavour notes.
THE BEST WAY TO EXPERIENCE TASTE NOTES
To truly taste chocolate, we need to engage all of our senses. From the superior shine of the chocolate and the clean 'snap' it makes when it breaks, to the first breathing in of the deeply satisfying aroma, our journey begins before the first bite.
Now place a piece on your tongue, allowing the chocolate to melt gently and meet each layer, top note and resonating tone as it appears and lingers.
The best part is that to build up your sensory 'muscles' the more practise the better, so it's time to take a moment for yourself and truly savour your moment of chocolate heaven.
Scroll down to test out your sensory skills on the 4 main flavour groups you will experience with Firetree Chocolate
CITRUSY TASTE NOTES
When it comes to describing flavour, golden conjures taste notes of caramel, honey, dates and ripe banana. In this collection, these golden notes yield a sweeter tone that mellows the chocolate and creates a long, lingering finish. It's hard to believe that the humble cocoa bean can produce such a mosaic of flavour and it takes skill and craft to tease out their hidden taste notes and allow them to truly shine.
From deep plums to ripe raspberry, these chocolates sing with fruity notes - perfect for those who like a bright and brisk tone. We have picked the cocoa bean origins we have because of their unique flavour characteristics - due to the environment and soil they are grown in. When transformed with care and mastery from cocoa beans to chocolate, these taste notes should be allowed to shine.
You might wonder why cocoa is identified as a specific taste profile in our chocolate since cocoa is the core ingredient in all chocolate! When describing flavour notes, those in the cocoa taste notes collection have distinctly earthy, nutty or deeply chocolatey tones humming like a deep base note in the background. This is no more evident than in 100% cocoa where the careful fermenting and drying of the bean and its skilful roasting, low and slow, is vital to ensuring these deep resonating flavours are released without hint of bitterness.
