Michel Cluizel New Single Origin Chocolate Bars

Plantation La Laguna Bars, Michel Cluizel

I love when a brand trusts us enough to share their new products with us! Today we are going to look at the new Plantation La Laguna single origin chocolate bars from Michel Cluizel. This new single origin bar is part of their growing artisan chocolate bar collection which includes 38 different flavors and cacao bean regions. Plantation La Laguna is their newest line and right now there are the two flavors we're going to look at below. The cacao farm is located in Alta Verapaz central Guatemala; the birthplace, some believe, of cocoa farming back during Mayan culture. It wasn't until a few years ago that cocoa farming starting booming in the country again spurred by bean-bar and artisan companies looking to connect with local farmers and Guatemalans looking to increase their economic power. I was sent these bars for free in exchange for sharing my experiences with them on this blog; no other form of compensation was received for my honest descriptions of my taste testing.

Plantation La Laguna 47% Bar, Michel Cluizel

The Artisan Milk Chocolate Bar will taste darker to many Americans who enjoy mainstream brands of milk chocolate and candy because it has 47% cacao instead of the normal less than 35%. The ingredients are:  whole milk powder, cocoa solids, cocoa butter, sugar, and bourbon vanilla pod. Yes, the bar looks light brown but a lot of candy sold as chocolate simply is darker for artificial reason so don't let the color fool you. This bar has a strong vanilla and cocoa scent that is very balanced. I bite a square in half and let it set in my mouth. The immediate flavor is the vanilla but then it starts to change. I get a bit of a light creamy coffee, an intense burbonlike touch, but the cocoa flavor, indeed darker than most milk chocolates, builds with each second until it dominates my taste buds. I love this and as you all know by now, I'm more of a dark chocolate lover. Let's move on to that bar.

Below you can see that Artisan Dark Chocolate Bar is much darker than the high cacao milk chocolate bar.

Michel Cluizel Plantation La Laguna Bars Compared

Plantation La Laguna 70% bar, Michel Cluizel

The darker Plantation La Laguna bar not only looks dark but has a stronger cocoa fragrance, not edged by any other scent. The ingredients cocoa solids, sugar, cocoa butter, and bourbon vanilla pod. I bite one square in half and immediately my tongue is coated with an intensely dark chocolate flavor. Interestingly, that bitterness decreased with time, and gains some fruity under current that is very pleasing. If you chew this chocolate the more bitter edge remains so think about how bitter you like your chocolate and consume accordingly. I loved this bar whether or let it melt or chewed it but if I had to pick one way, I'd let it melt so that I can fully experience the changes in flavor.

I liked both of these Plantation La Laguna bars and can recommend both without hesitation as Sacrament Worthy. My caution is that you should like darker chocolate since even this milk chocolate is not as creamy as you might expect.