An Arduous Quest Comes To A Dark, Bitter End

A few years ago I realized that I like dark chocolates more than any other kind. Since then I have been searching for the one perfect chocolate to rule over all others.

At first it was not a systematic search. I would just randomly pick up something from the supermarket and see if I liked it. Then, about six months ago, I became more methodical. The turning point was a conversation at a birthday party in which a friend was talking about chocolates with different proportions of cocoa. She explained that the chocolates with more cocoa were more bitter.

So the next chance I got I picked up a bar with 90% cocoa. I reasoned that if bitter is good then bitterer should be betterer. Alas, it was good but fell short of perfect. It was too ... full of cocoa; it didn't entirely seem like chocolate anymore. Surprised and disappointed, I thought perhaps some additional ingredients were needed. So I experimented with fruity chocolates such as rum & raisin, and orange. They were an improvement but still did not quite hit the mark. It was a grim time. I began to lose hope.

Then, almost by accident, I decided to try plain dark chocolate again, but now with less cocoa. I bought one with only 70% cocoa. And it was great! It had robust bitter overtones that were in almost perfect balance with its underlying chocolatey sweetness. The sun was shining again and my quest was nearing its successful conclusion.

And then I found what I had been searching for all this time: Lindt Excellence Madagascar. It's made from beans grown on that island. It's unmistakably dark, with just the right bitterness to send an instant tingle shooting up your tongue. And then it follows up with a mildly sweet aftertaste and just a hint of vanilla to relax your taste buds again. Quite simply it is pure joy made solid and wrapped in foil.

At last, my search is complete.