I've been recently enjoying 86% Cacao bars and drops made by Meiji in Japan.

Link

Is this widely available in Japan?
Outside of Japan?

I Love Reading About Chocolate And The Suggestions On This Subject Here Have Got Me Working All My Girls Overtime, To Emulate Some Of The Fine Products That Are Available In The North American Arena. I Own A Series Of Chocolate Shops, And In Our Opinion Source Our Chocolates From The Finest Chocolatiers In Australia. The Reason For The Post Is To Relate Another Story:
I Also Need To Visit Bkk On A Regular Pattern And Often Stay At 5* Hotel, Better I Not Mention It. This Trip I Took A Large Gb Of Our Chocolates Over For The Chef, As He Has Been Nice To Me, Making Up Certain Muesli For Me And Bringing In The Right Prunes, Little Things.
Well It Was As If I Had Given Him The Crown Jewells, Being European I Was Kissed And Kissed, And Every Morning He Came Down From His Office To Check On My Well Being, And Introduced Me To All And Sundry.
It's Funny, To Me It's Become A Commodity, I Love Reading About It, But Nowadays I Can't Smell It Or Taste It. It Not Till I Read A Site Like This Or Give A Present Of Our Product That I Remember The Passion I Once Had, And The Joy I Got From The Cracking Of The Chocolate Skin. Thank You For Posts, Thanks For Rekindling That Fire.

In Japan, yes at most stores stocking Meiji Chocolate......outside of Japan I wouldn't know, sorry!

That is a superb endorsment of this site. Randy shoul know about it.

I was browsing in Big Lots last week and saw some boxes of Lindt's Excellence 85% Cocoa DARK Extra Fine Thins (just typing what's on the box). It had a sticker that they had some cosmetic imperfections, but I couldn't tell. It was the best dark chocolate I've ever had... not sweet, nice and bold. I've been melting some in espresso in the mornings and it's been heavenly. At only $2 per box (6.35 oz), too. What would be the regular price on this?

I went back and got two more boxes yesterday... and may have to go back and get more before they run out... then again, I don't think the native West Virginians have such a palate as I. ;)

tonight I'm enjoying a 72% Scharffen Berger bar (from TJs)...man, this is good!!!

Mmmm ... Scharffen Berger. Costco in Danville just had a fantastic deal (there yesterday). Folks were there sampling all the Endangered Species chocolate bars. I bought the 88 percent dark ($9.99 for 8 bars) and the 72 (I think) percent w/tangerine and w/cherry 16 for $12.99.

Didn’t you have to “suffer” through taste-testing a Scharffen Berger dessert recently at a restaurant in San Francisco called Absinthe?

It was delicious, I must say. It was flavorful with a good “mouth-feel”, yet not too rich and not too sweet.

Yes. It was truly torturous, but I will do most anything for the benefit of my fellow FlyerTalkers. ;)

(Scharffen Berger has their cafe not too far from my house ... true torture is driving by and not stopping.)

Torte-urous?!?

Letiole, you are a true mensch ^
The chocolate dessert at Absinthe was amazing. Thanks so much for your selfless research.

I ran into John Scharffen Berger a few years back over in San Francisco, shortly before he was to head down to a Western Hemisphere cacao-growing region to buy beans for the chocolate (I don't remember where, other than not Brazil). I remember thinking that was good attention to detail.

-Hayden

Now that he's sold out to Hershey's we'll see how things change. Or not.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...UGM6DTAOM1.DTL

My current fave is New Tree Belgian Chocolate bars.

The Kansas City BBQ Do introduced us to Christopher Elbow. THOSE are chocolates!

Meiji in Japan is terrific. They have one with 99% cocoa.

The factory is next to railroad betwen Osaka and Kyoto. Anyone knows if they have factory tours and tastings?