Chocolate Sourced from the Philippines... And a Giveaway!

After my recent forays into Filipino chocolate tablea, I assumed that the tablea were the only source of Filipino-grown cacao that I could easily get my hands on. And while tablea are wonderful for making hot chocolate, champorado, and tsokolate ice cream, the powdery discs themselves aren't exactly something on which one can nibble for a quick chocolate fix.

Luckily for me, however, the Burnt Lumpia Worldwide Headquarters recently received three chocolate bars from the fine folks at Askinosie Chocolate--a small batch chocolate manufacturer based in Springfield, Missouri.

One of the many things that sets Askinosie apart from other artisan chocolate makers is that Askinosie sources 100% of its cacao beans directly from the farmers. All of their chocolate bars are made from authentic, traceable, single origin beans sourced in Mexico, Ecuador, and yup, the Philippines! In fact, Askinosie is the first chocolate maker to export cocoa beans from the Philippines in almost 25 years. In addition, Askinosie also pays its farmers above Fair Trade prices, as well as profit shares net 10% with its farmers.

"That's all fine and dandy," you might be saying, "but how does the chocolate taste?!!"

Well, the Askinosie chocolate I received was made from cacao beans grown in the Davao region of the Philippines. Among the three different chocolate bars was the 77% Davao Dark Chocolate bar, the Davao Dark Milk Chocolate bar with Fleur de Sel, and the Davao White Chocolate bar. And like all Askinosie chocolate bars, a picture of the local lead farmer is emblazoned on the Davao chocolate bar labels, as well as the bean origin, variety, and date the chocolate bar was made.

Darkness, everyone! Darkness!

77% Davao Dark Chocolate: The dark chocolate bar is composed of 77% Davao cocoa beans, 23% organic cane sugar, and, and, and that's it! Just chocolate and sugar! Askinosie does not add any vanilla or soy lecithin (very common chocolate ingredients) to any of its chocolate at all.

Although I'm not usually a dark chocolate fan, the Davao dark chocolate is incredibly rich and delicious. There's a good snap when biting into the chocolate, and as it slowly melts in the mouth there is a pleasant chocolate-coffee bitterness to it--but it wasn't as bitter as I thought it would be, which was a good thing to me.

Mmm. Sea salt, goat milk, and chocolate, together at last.

Davao Dark Milk Chocolate with Fleur de Sel: This chocolate bar is made up of 62% Davao cocoa beans, organic cane sugar, goat's milk powder, and a touch of sea salt. Although I'm fairly certain the goat's milk powder is from American goats (I'm assuming this), it would be fairly awesome to effing awesome if the goat milk came from some mangy free-roaming kalding from the Filipino countryside.

As far as flavor goes, this chocolate is ridiculously good. To me, there was a definite "funk" (a good tasty funk, at that) to the chocolate that I attributed to the goat's milk powder, but the wife said she detected no funk at all. The salt is barely there, but it is noticeable on the finish as it balances nicely with the bitterness and sweetness of the chocolate. This was my definite favorite of the three.

J-Will

Davao White Chocolate: The white chocolate bar is composed of 34% cocoa butter (made from Davao cocoa beans, but pressed at the Askinosie factory), organic cane sugar, and goat's milk powder.

Of course, the white chocolate was the sweetest of the three chocolate bars. There was also more of a distinct "funk" on the nose, as well as a nice dairy tanginess on the palate--but like I said earlier, it's a good goat-y funk. The Davao white chocolate is incredibly creamy, rich and sweet, and was the wife's hands-down favorite.

*****

Although the 3-ounce bars may seem expensive as they sell for $8.00 apiece, I do think these chocolates are well-worth the price considering the quality and flavor, as well as the small cut the farmers get. And while 3 ounces may seem a paltry amount, it's not like these are the sorts of chocolates you'd eat all in one sitting. I've actually been enjoying my chocolates a square at a time: one night with a fruity zin (ooh lar lar), another night with a good stout (imperial!), and right now with some bourbon, neat (very, very relaxing).

And now dear readers, you can also have a taste of these Askinosie chocolates as I will be giving away TWO (2) Davao chocolate bars (the dark chocolate, and the milk chocolate, no white chocolate) to one lucky reader. For a chance to win the TWO Askinosie chocolate bars, just leave a comment on this blog post telling me how you'd enjoy your Davao Dark Chocolate and Davao Milk Chocolate bars--i.e. with some liquor like me, a glass of milk, melted into something else, etc.

All comments for this post will be accepted as entry for the giveaway and this contest will end on Sunday May 2, 2010 at 11:59 PM Pacific time. I'll randomly select one winner and announce the winner later that week. Sorry, this contest is open to U.S. residents only.

Full Disclosure: Yes, I received these chocolates for free from Askinosie, but I was under no obligation to write about them, review the products, etc. I chose to feature the chocolates here because I did enjoy them, and because of the connection to Filipino farmers and Filipino products. So there.

Comments

[Denise]

If I had a piece of Askinosie Chocolate, I'd eat it alone first - letting in melt on my tongue (not trying to be fresh). Other ideas: In a s'more, in a raspberry tartlet, melted and drizzled over vanilla ice cream. I can go on and on.

[christiaan]

i would cherish the packaging. Then put on some anime, a fist full of goldfish, a royal orange soda and mix and munch my sunday away.

[fortuitous faery]

wow...i hope it gains popularity worldwide!

i'm not too fussy with chocolate...i like to eat it straight from the wrapper, especially as a picker-upper! :)

[Jane]

The chocolate sounds delicious. I'd eat it all by itself.

[Alicia]

Awesome giveaway!!

I would enjoy it one piece at a time (however my kids might try to eat the entire bar in one sitting).

[Kawa]

I think Filipino chocolate would be great as an ingredient in my fiance's chocolate cake he's getting for his birthday!

[Amor]

I will enjoy them melted over vanilla ice cream... Yum!

[Vanessa]

I'm a chocoholic and a mangoholic so I'd melt some of those Davao Dark Milk Chocolate with Fleur de Sel and dip my sliced mangoes in it! Yeah, that will definitely make my day!

[TAO]

I'd probably just enjoy them all by themselves. I don't really need anything with something like this.

[ShoppaHolique]

I'd iagune the dark chocolate with jalapeño cheese

[ShoppaHolique]

Ooops iPod acting up. I meant I'd imagine the dark chocolate would go well with the jalapeño cheese

[Jocelyn]

I love eating chocolate while watching TV. The more suspenseful the scenes, the more I bite into the chocolate bar!

[Mennolicious]

I enjoy my chocolate by hiding it from my husband and then locking myself in my study to eat it :)

[Sandyfoody]

Loooove good chocolate all by itself. I'd savor the bars one luscious square at a time. Maybe alternating the two kinds to enhance the flavor of each. These little babies would not last long at all in my house. Hmmmm, maybe I'd stash them from the hubby and the kids so there would be more for me. Ha!Ha!

[Ladywild]

Maybe with a nice fruity drink. Mango margaritas...or with a nice glass of wine.

[Charlynne]

I'd enjoy the dark chocolate bar with a glass of red wine!

[Carla Pudwill]

I'd have it by itself... Maybe having popcorn with it while watching a movie. Love the combination of sweet and salty.

[Char]

OOh yum. I love the creative packaging. Id have mine baked in to traditional bibinka, replacing the salted egg. OR in thethe everso classic champorado. OR straight up with a lovely glass of Red wine! NOM!!

[Mila]

(not entering giveaway, just wanted to share)
Marvin, I just made tablea brownies infused with barako coffee, and it was fantastic.
Now if I had chocnuts around I'd toss it in as well.

[Joseph]

I would definitely eat it as is. Some would be melted and drizzled on top of vanilla icecream.

[RLV @ bittensweetblog.com]

I'd probably use the dark chocolate in my mother's champorado recipe, then eat the milk chocolate by itself...or maybe use it in a cupcake recipe! :)

[Julienne]

The packaging looks so cool and the chocolates will most undoubtedly taste awesome so I'd also give them as a small birthday present to other Filipino friends and family to introduce them to this treat.

[Ophelia]

Ooo, those chocolates look great!

I would share them with my boyfriend, who would be delighted that they have a connection to the Phillipines! :) Thank you!

[Bing]

I always enjoy good quality chocolates as is.

[Brian Asis]

How would I enjoy my Asinokie Chocolate, let me count the ways... but too bad I don't live in the U.S. :D Thanks for sharing pictures of the bar, they look awesome and cute.

[Jikuu]

I'd give it the cheese treatment and fix up some nice accompaniments. Some fresh fruit and cheese to nibble with it. Of course, lots of beverages as well. A nice single malt scotch, a red wine, a good ale, and some milk. ^^

[brady doty]

i would eat it WITH MY MOUTH..

[Reez]

For me, really good chocolate deserves their own spotlight. They are divas like that.

[Lorena]

I've been known to love some dark chocolate in my day. Since it's strawberry season here in San Diego, I'd probably go the chocolate-covered berry route. Simple and delicious!

[Kelley]

Sounds delicious and unique.

I would eat them with a glass of red wine. Yum!

[Fe]

Yay to chocolate. I'd eat it by itself, one square at a time, to savor the chocolaty goodness. Thanks for the chance at your giveaway. :)

[Tracey@TangledNoodle]

There are some marvelous local fruit wines made here in Minnesota. I would pair perhaps a nice cherry wine with the Davao Dark Chocolate - fusing Far East and Midwest flavors! 8-)

[Darren]

A fresh cup of black coffee would go great with the Davao chocolate bars

[LIMER35]

Just ordered the Davao kilo bar. Can't wait to taste it with some Madeira. I also want to pair it with some flavored salts I recently acquired. Thanks for sharing this info.

[Sara]

because i can't be trusted to control myself when chocolate is involved, i'd melt the dark chocolate into texas chili (no beans! no tomatoes!) so it goes farther and can feed more people. not strictly traditional, but it would definitely give an awesome and mysterious depth of flavor to the whole thing.

the milk chocolate one's getting straight up eaten, probably right after some funky cheese with some adventurous friends.

- sara

[Tara de Guzman]

i think it's important to support the local farmer's from back home. i was lucky to taste a small block of it, and unfortunately can't find it anymore. i believe one of the chocolates was made from a province near my dad's home. i mentioned it to him, and he would love to taste some!

i'd use the dark chocolate to melt into my homemade graham crackers and marshmallows to make my own "Filipino" smores. with the white chocolate, i'd brake those into pieces to bake into my white chocolate, toffee macadamia, coconut cookies!! mmm, i'm drooling over my keyboard just thinking about it. :)

~tara

:)

[SG]

With a good bourbon or Speyside single-malt.

[Espressabeth]

Askinosie chocolate is the most magical chocolate evah! Each piece has a letter on it that spells out Askinosie. I eat each bar piece by piece and imagine that I'm somewhere exotic that corresponds to the letter. Like I said, magic!

[John]

I would most likely end up eating them with a nice bourbon, but a small amount crumbled into a cooking pot of chili might make for a nice added flavor.

[pam]

i'd use them in chocolate chip cookies.

[Joy]

I would probably use one kind for a cake like a chocolate chiffon and the other some chocolate covered strawberries.

[Jamina]

with wine or coffee :)

[John]

i will eat them. like a voracious child.

[Leah Bloom]

I would host a sustainable/fair trade chocolate tasting for friends, and compare it to other gourmet chocolates like Taza's Somerville-made discs.

[Rose H]

Me, me!! Love dark chocolate, never had any from the Philippines though :(.

They won't make it inside the house unless the postman brings it to my door!

[Nolita Morgan]

Oh boy, I would enjoy that dark chocolate with a cup of coffee, possibly (probably) swirled in with some coconut cream...I would probably share a bit with the kiddo s'more style too...

[Sheila]

Mmm, dark chocolate and red wine.

[Marc]

I'll be dipping an ensaymada(Philippine brioche)from a vendor at the Salcedo Village Farmer's Market in Makati after I've made the thickest chocolate eh from those bars. The dark one, of course.

[Carmel]

i would enjoy both by itself or with a glass of steamed milk =)

[NJ Julie]

I would enjoy the Davao Dark Chocolate bar with a glass of red wine, and the Davao Milk Chocolate bar with a glass of ice cold milk! :)

[the diligent diletante]

like a criminal...at my desk at work...furtively looking left to right to make sure no one tries to sneak up on me and i wont have to hurt em! =)

[Karempot]

I'm gonna each chunks of the dark choc in between swigs of Guinness and hand the milk choc for my hubby and my toddler to enjoy. I wont share the dark choc with anyone hehehe

[Nicole D]

I'd share them with my family. :)

[Leela]

I've heard of the brand, but never tried it. Would be great to find out what chocolate from the Philippines tastes like. I recently go into a habit of sprinkle some really good salt on slightly warmed chocolate, so that's how I'd eat the dark chocolate. For the milk chocolate, I'd break it up into little pieces and mix them into my homemade trail mix. No plan to have either one with booze. I'm so ashamed ...

[Nic]

Waaah! I want some! Wouldn't it be sweet if they also made tablea?

[Chi]

White chocolate I'd probably eat - I likes me white chocolate.

Dark Chocolate just screams churros con chocolate!!!!!

[Pamela]

Assuming that it's the chocolate with the fleur de sel, I'll enjoy it by itself. The slow melt of chocolate and salt is so addicting.

[Mia]

I love dark chocolate and the sweet-salty combination of fleur de sel and chocolate. I would eat this straight up, one square a day.

[Veronica]

Those bars are gorgeous. I bet they'd all pair well with a nice single malt scotch. mmmm-mmm, smoky peat + chocolate!

[eatingclubTS]

No, no, no! Canadians are excluded once again! =P

Gluttony and I are tight! So, I am one of those people who can eat a whole bar in one sitting.

[caninecologne]

i would eat the dark chocolate in one sitting while watching "true blood - season1 episode 9".

[Cynthia]

hello! i would eat the chocolate bar on a rainy san francisco day while cozied under layers of kumots in my pambahay. i'd rub the chocolate with a thumb to melt some of it and get the smell alive. then i'd let a square warm up in my mouth until it half melted and i couldn't stand it anymore and chewed it up. then i'd sip some hot black coffee to give my mouth a clean bitter finish and to make it warmed up to melt the next bite. thanks!

[Edda]

i love chocolate by themselves or a cup of hot coffee~ ^_^

[faith]

Oh, wow. Look at all the comments. I didn't have enough patience to go through all the preferences of those who left comments. ;p

Too bad I'm not eligible for the giveaway (I'm in the Philippines), but a bar (or more hahaha) of the Davao Dark Milk Chocolate with Fleur de Sel would be such a prize! I've just recently experienced for myself the combination of chocolate and salt that greatly accentuates flavor, and it floored me. Why haven't I heard of or tried it before??!!!

Good luck to those vying for the giveaway! :)

[Manggy]

Aw man, I won't be eligible for a while, but hypothetically I'd enjoy them straight out of hand, of course, with eyes closed ;) Can't wait to see them on the shelves!

[Diane]

Straight up, baby! I'd eat them plain...

Boy would I love to get those to taste.

[chrisgunn]

i would eat some out of the wrapper as soon as i got them, then i would mix my pinoy self with my american self, get graham crackers and mallows and make a SMORE!

[linz]

I would TOTALLY pair it with a glass of Banfi Rosa Regale - it improves all chocolate (as if chocolate needed improving).

[Tuty @ Scentofspice]

It's about time to enjoy the chocolate from the countries where the cocoa beans are actually grown.

I'd enjoy it both straight from the wrapper and mixed into a brownie batter.

[Dee]

I'd like to say I'd share the chocolate with loved ones, but in reality I'd hide them at my work desk and sneak bites straight from the bar. I get a huge sense of satisfaction of biting straight into a chocolate bar when I should be more ladylike about it. I just can't be a lady when there's chocolate.

[Vicky A]

I'd use the Dark Milk Chocolate to make a frosting for chocolate cupcakes ... hoping to detect a funky taste ... and call it Cupcake with Kalding chocolate frosting and remember fond memories of my dad who loved kalding and cooked like a bad-ass Ilocano.

[Leslie]

I would melt the dark and milk chocolate together and dip some fried ripe plantains in it. Yum! :)

[Sharon]

I would eat them one small square at a time, savoring the unique flavor you described so well. :)

[Alessa]

I would make a mean hot chocolate with it. MmMMMMMmmmmmmm.

[Ashleigh M.]

Id enjoy mine plain. I prefer to savor my chocolate and enjoy every last bit. I might also pair it with some tea and the original Alice in Wonderland movie. Or, I would attempt to make some Chocolate Banana Lumpia. None of this chocolate would be wasted.

[Aimee]

Well, I too have been tinkering with/re-exploring the tastes of my native tongue.

I Love to add dark chocolate to meat dishes, like my pasta meat sauces.

So, to Filipinize it, as you say, I'd definitely add it to my pork guisantes. I've made it once & have been thinking about what I could add to "kick it up a notch."

As for the milk chocolate, maybe a filipino version of tsokolate affogato.

[Skip to Malou]

i would like to enjoy mine plain... bite after bite... til it melts in my mouth...savoring the taste as long as i could

[Nanna]

I'm so happy with this post! Thanks! My parents own a small cacao farm in Davao, and their cooperative supply the cacao to direct importers such as Askinosie and another confectioner from Eu :-) So glad that you've found the Askinosie brand. I'm sooo proud of our Davao Cacao! :-)

[CarolynT]

I would try the chocolate first to isolate the flavors, the wonderful deep, dark chocolate flavors. Then, I'd pair it with a rose champagne, because that's what a web site suggested and I'm no wine sommelier, nor can I spell it, according to the spellchecker, but I'd give it a try! Love the blog!

[Voltaire G]

Where can I order these chocolate bars? Thanks.

[mailyn]

i would make chocolate wontons with my daughter...mmmmm....

[Glenn]

Wow! Brah, learn something everyday, didn't even know about single source Pinoy chocolate...

Well being from Hawaii and a "Poi dog": Pinoy/Hawaiian/Portagee/Insik/Sinkit/Dutch/Spanish..
Did I forget someone???
and having lived in SF a number of years..but now on Oahu,HI for over 20yrs, I've been following our fledgling vanilla bean and Chocolate Industries here..Single source of course!

I think it would be great Homage to my life to make a Triple layer chocolate Mousse cake with each layer being just one single source bar. with a chocolate cake based with Scharfenberger(SF)chocolate in honor of my time living in the City and finish it off with a Haupia/Coconut cream custard mousee layer topped with Whipped cream sprinkled with Davao cocoa powder and topped with Cacao nibs for visual...Maybe make a trial run with my Hawaii chocolate for now! Thanks for your ever captivating food blogs.

Mahalo//Salamat Po!

[Glenn]

My bad, BTW I'd finish this with some primo Kona Joe's Peaberry 100% Kona Coffee!!! Braddah can't wait, Broke da mouth, ONO!!!!

[mang ando]

a small bite of chocolate...followed by a spoonful of rice. that's my deconstructed champorado.

[jean]

With my eyes closed and my head thrown back...

[joey]

Ooh! I'd make a chocolate soy ice cream to cheer up my lactose intolerant self. Then I'd crumble some peanut brittle in it! Oh yesss...that's what I'd do.

[Catherine]

So glad to hear we are getting Filipina chocolate out!

[piper]

I would probably just gobble them right up!

nettysgirl at gmail.com

[Raelena]

with milk!
throuthehaze at gmail dot com

[catherine]

Love it! Can't wait to try this :) Great packaging design too. Wow.

[Darlene]

If I don't win, I will definitely be ordering some for myself.

[shane]

love your blog! what a coincidence as I have recently discovered Askinosie chocolates...i'd like to make a batch of chocolate macarons with this....

[Lori]

Glad I found your blog. I did a search for pandan on Tastespotting and then found you. I will be saving your site.

Lucky for me I get to enter.

I would use it to make some chocolate cake or brownies. I know kind of boring.

[Patricia]

I will enjoy these chocolates by running. Running as fast as I can. Away from my husband, away from my nieces, away from my parents, siblings, friends, neighbors and any creature that possesses a mouth and grabby extremities.

When I've ran far enough, I will wait until the dust settles, hide furtively in a place where my heavy breathing and gasps for air won't be heard (preferably behind the bushes in some remote jungle), then with tears of sheer joy running down my cheeks, I will take my first bite of my first Askinosie Chocolate. I can only hope each square of this magnificent piece of heaven will squelch the sobs of happiness that are threatening to escape from my throat. Maybe the bottle of Pinot Noir I'll be chugging as I munch will do the trick.

[Rochelle P]

I would eat it one piece at a time. In between tastes, I'd have to hide it from my husband and kids... well, maybe they could have one square each :P

[sarah g]

super-masarap!

if i got to try these chocolates, i would probably eat them faster than i'd like, sharing with too many friends, over whiskey drinks.

happy summer! and hooray for more-than-fair-trade wages for the farmers!

[Flora]

I would most definitely eat one bar square-by-square with maybe a desert wine. The other bar I would make champorado, I haven't had that since I was little when I mom would make it when I was sick. Champorado and arroz caldo cures what ails ya!

[Martin]

if i had the chocolate- i would eat it with bits of tuyo - like i was eating champorado without the carbs.
and a total sweet and salty experience

[Breanne]

I would eat one square every morning when I first wake up and have really bad breath. That's when everything tastes the best because you don't have anything to cloud the flavors!