Cocova January Sample Day

Weekends in DC are packed with events, most of which I skip in favor of swimming, biking, and running. But when my favorite chocolate store has a chocolate tasting event, I’m definitely there.

Especially when they are featuring their brand new sign, with their new name, Cocova, prominently featured.

I dragged along the peanut butter-loving significantother, along with Marsea, which gave us a nice, small group to discuss the chocolates with. First up, the white and milk chocolates.

We sampled the Askinosie white chocolate with pistachios in hopes of finding a nice mix of creamy, salty, and nutty, but instead found a grainy melt and an off-putting sour milk flavor. My companions were skeptical of what I’d taken them to, but fortunately, my beloved Eclat milk chocolate Pennsylvania Dutch pretzel bar appealed to them, and they trusted me when we then moved on to the Patric signature milk chocolate, which I found to have a smooth melt with a pleasing flowery flavor. The others with me, however, were less impressed.

Then, despite their general distaste for dark chocolate, I conned both of them into trying the Pralus Caracas, and they found it delightful and not bitter.

Score.

We wandered into the shop itself, and I was delighted to find a few new additions to the shelves. Notably, Potomac Chocolate’s new bars: a nib bar, a sea salt and nib bar, and the Bahia bar, featuring cacao from an entirely new origin for their operation.

And another fine addition, Madre Chocolate, which make me recall the trip to Hawaii last summer.

I, of course, grabbed several of the popped amaranth bar.

A nice way to top of a nice afternoon of group chocolate tasting.