This Whittaker’s Artisan Collection Hawke’s Bay Black Doris Plum and Roasted Almonds in Dark Chocolate was described as ‘delicious 50% dark chocolate matched with deeply sweet Black Doris plums from the Hawke’s Bay and crunchy flecks of roasted almonds’. It contained plum flavour as well as 1.5% freeze dried plum pieces and 5% roasted almonds.
The chocolate emitted the familiar fruity aroma often associated with fruit-flavored dark chocolate. Upon tasting, the robust cocoa undertones smoothly transitioned to a velvety richness, maintaining their presence amidst intermittent bursts of subtle sweetness from the freeze-dried plum. This interplay gave rise to a nuanced berry-chocolate flavour with hints of alcohol-like notes. The inclusion of almonds contributed a pleasing crunch, followed by a touch of acidity from the plums in the finish, leading to a clean dark chocolate aftertaste.
Despite not typically favoring fruit-flavored chocolate, this particular combination proved surprising. Here, the dark chocolate took center stage, allowing the plum’s presence to emerge gently in the background, resulting in a well-balanced and enjoyable experience.
This Whittaker’s Artisan Collection Hawke’s Bay Black Doris Plum and Roasted Almonds in Dark Chocolate contained 100 g. It was produced in New Zealand and purchased in Sydney, Australia in 2019.