Amano Artisan Chocolate Guide: Orem Bars From Old Machines
Filed under Chocolate Bars Amano Dominican Republic
Art Pollard co-founded Amano Artisan Chocolate, which makes its chocolate in Orem, Utah, and BYU Magazine dates its first sales to 2006. Pollard and his co-founder, Clark Goble, first worked together in software, building search engine technology, before they turned to chocolate. They found antique machinery, some of it decades old, and restored it themselves. The bean-to-bar process guide explains the machines, among them the kind of 1920s melangeur, with granite rollers weighing about 1,300 pounds, that Amano restored for its own factory.
The founders
Goble told Physics Today in 2010 that the founders wanted to make chocolate in the traditional European way. Amano says it roasts in small batches and conches slowly. Goble told the magazine that conching can run for hours or even days, and that the gap between good and great chocolate in the conche can come down to 30 seconds. He said the chocolate is ground to about 15 microns, just below the roughly 20 microns the tongue can detect.
The name is Italian for "by hand," with a second meaning given as "beloved" by Physics Today and "they love" by BYU Magazine.
The origins
Amano's origin bars carry a place name alongside the country, such as Ocumare Village, Venezuela.
Ocumare Village, Venezuela, 70% (shop Amano Ocumare Village). Ocumare de la Costa is a remote Venezuelan village, and Amano notes that its cocoa has been famous since the 1600s. Pollard traveled to the Ocumare Valley for beans, according to BYU Magazine. The cacao fermentation guide covers what happens to cacao between the pod and the factory. Amano describes its Ocumare as a rich and complex chocolate with notes of red fruit and spice, made from cocoa beans, pure cane sugar, cocoa butter and whole vanilla bean. It is the one to open first.
Dos Rios, Dominican Republic, 70% (shop Amano Dos Rios). Chocablog's reviewer tasted bergamot first, then orange, with floral notes of jasmine and rose. None of it is added, and the flavor comes from the beans. Amano has said the beans were among the most difficult it had worked with and that the flavor shifted wildly during making, so the company had to develop new techniques to make the bar. Tasted beside the Ocumare, it shows how far two origins at the same percentage can sit from one another. The single-origin chocolate tasting guide is built for exactly that comparison.
The flavored bars
Amano's flavored bars blend fruits and spices into its chocolate, and black pepper, one of those additions, is among the spices the spice harvest guide describes at its source.
Citrus Melange à Trois (shop Amano Citrus Melange à Trois). Amano describes it as a blend of chocolate and citrus. The bar for a summer table or a no-bake dessert plate beside strawberries.
Cardamom Black Pepper (shop Amano Cardamom Black Pepper). Chocolate with cardamom and black pepper, as the name says. The bar to serve after an Indian or Middle Eastern dinner, with a strong coffee.
Raspberry Rose (shop Amano Raspberry Rose). Chocolate with raspberry and rose, the pair in its name. The gift bar, and the floral close to a tasting.
How to taste them
The two origins first, Ocumare then Dos Rios, with water between, to taste the difference between a Venezuelan village and a Dominican origin at the same percentage. Then the flavored bars in the order above, Citrus Melange à Trois, Cardamom Black Pepper, Raspberry Rose, moving from citrus through spice to floral. Break for the snap and let a piece melt before chewing. At the end, go back to the Ocumare to see how much the flavored bars have reset the palate.
Keep them cool and dry, away from the refrigerator and strong smells.
Two more American makers
Amano, Dandelion and Dick Taylor are three American bean-to-bar makers worth tasting side by side. The Dandelion Chocolate producer guide and the Dick Taylor producer guide cover the other two.
The shop is at 263 Josephine Street in Cherry Creek, Denver, and products ship across the continental U.S. from theambrosianpantry.com.
