This Chocolate

Delicious? Yes, and divine. Decadent as well. A little indulgent, which is to say (OK) expensive. This is, in fact, a really expensive candy bar. But...

Deeply rich. Aromatic. Primally, savagely, obscenely Chocolate. A satisfying, popping penetration at first bite, then melting. Transparent grains of salt against the tongue, startling yet satisfying in their contrast to sweet. Complete disbursement of texture and flavor upon chewing - sweet but also sharp, assertive, penetrating earthy, creamy, abounding. A Chocolate of complexity and contradiction. Warm in a way. Blanketing the palate, burrowing deep within crevices of each tooth and sliding smoothly under tongue, over taste buds and at last (and sadly, perhaps) a swallow that leaves behind only fond, fading echos of that taste, that precious morsel.

But then, sensation: The essence that is Chocolate radiating out from the core towards limbs and fingers, through the top of the head, then coursing back inward again. On through the body and also triggering in the mind contentment, fulfillment of some previously unidentified need. Fleeting yet substantial joy.

A wholly worthwhile indulgence, this singular gastronomical adventure.

All this and no time to even describe, in sufficient detail, the journey of each bean through many hands under an exotic sun, across a rolling sea and to a city a world away. Roasted, ground, handcrafted, hand wrapped, all with a nod to old ways. Also, organic.

Only time left to mention that I'm keeping the beautiful wrapper. And giving you the link: Mast Brothers Chocolate.