Noka Chocolate
Chocolates are the delight of our life. With one bite,it can create a sense of happiness and put a smile on our face. There are so many varieties of chocolates for every connoisseur, from Hershey's to Godiva and to luxurious chocolates that are considered a delicacy. What is it about chocolate that when we have this delight melt in our mouth, it can make you feel so good; even if your home is burning down sometimes a piece of heaven is all you need. Scientifically, when you eat chocolate it produces endorphins which are the same hormones produced during sex. In that case, give me a little piece of heaven any day.
So, with all these chocolates waiting around to be devoured, I came up with a question which I wanted to put to the test. If there are so many varieties of chocolate in this world then, there must be a chocolate that is considered the Michael Jordan of them all. Are luxurious chocolates better in taste, quality, consistency, and most importantly, in that oh so important feeling of endorphins?
Cacao Nuts
Luxury is something that brings up the idea of richness, comfort, and fineness. Noka chocolate is considered to be a very rich and expensive chocolate company. They harvest their cacao from the most exotic places in the world; starting from Venezuela to the Ivory Coast and then back down to Trinidad. And have produced them with the utmost care and concentration in order to heighten the sensation of that first wonderful bite. I was lucky enough to have samples from Noka and the samples were made from cacao from four different countries, from Africa to South America.
The first bite I took of the truffle made from a single cacao tree from Ecuador, I noticed immediately the slight bitter taste and then a very smooth flavor of chocolate. It was a very interesting sensation that I wouldn't call unpleasant. Noka Chocolate is very different from what I was expecting; growing up I was used to eating Hershey's and Nestle chocolate milk so, my taste bud automatically are programmed to perceive chocolate as sweet, creamy, and rich. Noka Chocolate has an amazing consistency but, it is not sweet at all. The bitterness is the flavor of the cacao nut bursting through the chocolate.
Euphoric First Bite
At first, I couldn't appreciate the different flavors in my mouth. It was like my brain was rejecting the idea that this was chocolate in front of me. On the second bite, I sort of understood what the instruction packet meant (yes, it comes with an instruction packet) of breathing in deeply three times to enjoy the fragrance of the chocolate. The truffle is not very sweet; you can really taste the flavor of the cocoa, it's very potent and the bitterness brings out what little sweetness there is in the truffle. This truffle is light, there is immense flavor but, not to the point of being to rich that you get sick from the sweetness. Each truffle has a unique taste, some were sweeter, and others not as bitter. Each a little different so, you can appreciate the variety that has come from all over the world into this one small but, very pricey stainless steel box.
Noka's "philosophy" is that a chocolate should come from a single cacao source, so that one can appreciate the qualities inherent in that region's or plantation's output. They use organic cream in the ganache for truffles, no preservatives, and no extraneous flavoring elements. In the hands of many that might seem unappealing because vanilla is one of the main ingredients used by many chocolatiers.
Noka Truffle
I can't call myself a chocolate connoisseur but, after a very long and delightful time of testing these wonderful chocolates, I can say they are delicious with some port. I don't know if the price tag is worth the truffles but, if you like chocolate and money is not really an issue. I recommend these sweets to the nearest Bill Gates. If you truly enjoy chocolates and want to experiment with a delicious truffle that will go great with port or you enjoy luxury in any form. Noka Chocolate is a luxury worth indulging in.
