Theo Chocolate is the first organic and certified ethically source chocolate company in the United States. I first tried them when they launched in 2006 and have been pleased with the diversity of confections. They make solid chocolate bars, smaller “candy bars” with inclusions and flavors as well as a line of bonbons and caramels. It’s a great fusion of classic chocolate making with new flavors and social responsibility.
One of their new bars is Theo Chocolate Salted Almond Dark Chocolate (with 70% Cacao). It’s a simple blend of dark chocolate beans and almonds with a touch of sea salt.
Note that the bar packaging has changed in the past few weeks, so the new ones won’t be bright pink, look for these. The bar is organic, vegan, soy and gluten free though it’s manufactured on shared equipment with products containing milk, eggs, wheat, peanuts & other nuts. The cacao and sugar is sourced through Fair for Life (which assures the social responsibility of the sourcing).
The bar is simple, just a series of long segments, there’s no splashy custom molded design here. From flipping the bar over, I can see that the almonds in pieces, not whole (which is fine with me).
The scent of the chocolate is deep and woodsy with notes of coffee. The snap is good and the molding is excellent without any bubbles or voids (which can be an issue with inclusions).
The flavor of the chocolate is strong, it’s a little acidic and has strong coffee notes along with some smoke. The sugars are forward (along with a little of the salt note) and the chocolate has a slightly dry and olive finish. The almond bits are well distributed, fresh and crunchy with a nicely roasted flavor.
Overall, an extremely satisfying bar. The cocoa profile was a little dryer than I like, not quite as buttery as I prefer my texture, but the nuts and just the right hint of salt make this exceptionally easy to eat for a 70% bar.
Related Candies
- Starbucks Salted Almond Chocolate Bites
- Gardini Bitter Chocolate and Gianduia with Sea Salt
- Toblerone Crunchy Salted Almond
- Trader Joe’s Almondictive Bits
- Trader Joe’s 70% Dark with Caramel and Black Sea Salt
- 3400 Phinney: Fig, Fennel & Almond and Hazelnut Crunch
- Theo 3400 Phinney Bars
- Theo Confections
I don’t understand the new packaging. It looks nice, but is terrible on a store shelf. Several brands in the store have done the same white and then intricately colored logo thing. It really makes finding stuff extraordinarily difficult, they all look the same from across the aisle.
My daughters and I just took a tour of the Theo Chocolate factory here in Seattle. Very informative and fun. I’m a fan more of the milk chocolate salted almond bar though.
I totally agree, Crissa… rather than being distinctive, the new labels look ultra-generic. Everyone must be hiring the same company to re-brand their product!
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