While I love autumn, I’m not good at change. I thought about this as I idly dunked four gingernuts into my hot chocolate (Hotel Chocolat Chili and Cinnamon – I’ll be testing various hot chocolates over the coming months), while watching the leaves on my maple tree turn crinkle-brown. Then I started thinking about crumbles and deliberating the relative merits of cream or custard as bowl-fellows.
I had studiously surrounded myself with high-cocoa-content chocolate, rather foolishly given I now wanted the creamy delights of milk, but I also had some more indulgent bars which I burrowed for, in my pile, like a squirrel in the depths of a winter nut frenzy.
First up are Firetree’s two new offerings involving coffee. Both are good and strong, but with subtle differences. The Cappuccino bar uses oat milk. It’s terrifically good and right up there with the best chocolate/coffee pairings. Firetree’s PNG has Papua New Guinea cocoa and coffee beans. Firetree told me that usually coffee and cocoa from the same origin ‘don’t pair well’, but these really do. It’s stronger, darker (68%) and delicious, but for me the Cappuccino has the edge. At the mo, these are only available in £14 multi packs (3 x 25g of each).
Zotter’s Labooko Peru 70%, £3.95, is a high-cocoa-content milk which is perfect for when you want something a bit softer, but don’t want a massive sugar punch.
Talking of oat milk, the surprise this week was Willie’s Surabaya 42% Oat Milk chocolate, £2.99. It’s extraordinary. I kept thinking there was flavouring added, but the beauty is all in the beans.
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