+ Where Do These Bars Come From?

The chocolate makers themselves come from all over the world. Gone are the days where the best chocolate only came from Switzerland or Belgium. Today, the best chocolate can come from anywhere you find quality cacao and a skillful chocolate maker.

Many of these makers source cacao from a variety of regions including, but not limited to, South America, Africa, and South East Asia. Many dark chocolate bars will boast where the cacao originated, either country or region within a country. Why? These cacao have different genetic qualities and are fermented by different yeast and bacteria species (microbial terroir), which results in a flavour profile that is unique and passed on to the chocolate.

The dark chocolate bars here are very simple (cacao and sugar) but the flavour profile is anything but simple!

+ Are They Fair Trade?

Yes. Although many may not be certified fair trade, these makers source their cacao from reputable cacao distributors or directly from the farmers or co-ops themselves! Certification requires lots of resources that both the farmers and small business owners can't afford. If you have more questions about a certain maker, contact them directly or check out their website!

There are many chocolates on the market made with poor quality cacao from unsustainable sources, which are certified fair trade.

This website is dedicated to focusing on high quality chocolate which is also fair trade or transparently traded which in the end helps both makers and cacao growers much more.

+ Are They Organic?

Many of the makers use organic cacao and organic ingredients when possible. Many times the cacao is organic, but doesn’t have the costly and inhibiting certification, so they cannot label it as such.

These makers focus on quality sustainable cacao, and use organic ingredients as much as possible, even when they are not labelled as such.

Organic certification does not necessarily mean high quality, more nutritious, or good for the environment, although some are. There are many organic cacao and ingredients on the market that are of poor quality, unsustainable, and detrimental to cacao biodiversity.

If you are ever unsure, check out the maker's website, or contact them directly with questions you may have!

+ Are There plant-based options?

Absolutely! Most are. All the dark chocolate bars are always plant-based and vegan friendly even if not certified vegan. Read the ingredients.

Fine dark chocolate should only contain cacao, some sugar, and sometimes cocoa butter (which comes from the cacao bean). These are all plant-based ingredients.

Cocoa butter is fat from the cocoa seed, and is completely plant-based and vegan friendly. You may see this in the list of ingredients. It has nothing to do with dairy based butter. It can also be called cacao fat or cocoa fat.

No dark chocolate here will include any dairy as some commercial chocolates do.

You may also find plant-based "milk" bars that use non dairy ingredients to give it that creamy taste and texture.

There are some bars in the online shop which may contain dairy (milk chocolate bars), or honey. Check the ingredients to be sure.

+ Do the bars contain nuts/allergens?

Some might. There are a few bars that will contain nuts/dairy. Read the ingredients when in doubt.

I cannot guarantee any product here has not come in contact with, or does not contain traces of any nuts or allergens. You will see some makers list "may contain traces" or "made in a facility that uses nuts" so be aware.

Most bars that contain dairy, nuts, or something that might be considereed an issue will prompt a discliamer before you purchase it.

+ How Do I Choose?

Good question! Decide if you want plain dark chocolate, or flavoured chocolate.

Fine plain dark chocolate is anything but plain in flavour. The suggested flavour notes you see, such as cherry or raisin, are not ingredients added. These are aromas which are contained in the cacao seed and brought out during the process of chocolate making. In this sense, fine chocolate is similar to the idea of fine wine, fine tea, and fine coffee. Afer tall, chocolate started off as a drink!

Read the suggested flavour notes to see if you think you might enjoy them. These are just suggestions, and you may not actually taste all the notes listed due to individual abilities. Some people like the idea of fruit notes in their chocolate, and some prefer nutty or caramel notes.

Flavoured chocolate is essentially dark chocolate with other ingredients added such as milk powder (for milk chocolate), spices, herbs, fruits, and more.

Keep in mind, fine craft chocolate can be very different from commercial chocolate, so be open to surprises! These crazy craft makers like to push the idea of what chocolate should taste like.

+ Cocoa, Cacao, Cocoa Mass? Huh? What Do These Terms Mean?

When reading the ingredients on the bar wrappers, some makers prefer the term "cocoa" bean, while some use "cacao" bean. Then, some use cocoa/cacao mass. Without getting too complicated, here, they all mean the same thing.

Cocoa and cacao mean different things to those within the industry. Cocoa refers to cacao after it has been processed. At what point you ask? Good question! Depends who you ask.

For marketing purposes, cacao and cocoa are used interchangabely on wrappers and packaging. They are referring to the "bean" or seed which is used to make the chocolate.

Don't worry too much about the nomenclature. If it was important, I would tell you so!

+ What About Shipping?

The chocolate can be shipped within Canada, to the United States, and most other countries.

Keep in mind the temperature. If I have reason to believe the temperature is too warm for shipping to your destination, I may ask if you wish to hold the order until temperatures subside. This is up to you.

For more information check out the shipping page.