The Good & Evil Bar Review

It arrived! The Good Evil bar landed on my doorstep early in the week, and the true chocoholic in me emerged. Like any typical junkie, I had to make excuses and skirt the issue when the Man confronted me after he discovered that there were only two squares of chocolate left for the review. Someone had to sample it beforehand, no? Hey, he's lucky he got a square. 

This chocolate will haunt you in a good way. It will linger on your mind long after your last bite. The Man and I took the time to sample it like any good chocolate should be sampled. First I smelled it. Then we listened to the perfect snap as I broke a piece of it in two. Of course, I made sure it was at room temperature before I popped it in my mouth, let it melt very slightly and then chewed it slowly. Mmmm

It's not what you might expect. This is actually a good thing. Part of what makes this chocolate so extraordinary is the fact that the cocoa beans come from a small grouping of trees in a remote area of Peru. Each season, only several thousand bars of chocolate are made using the beans that come from these trees. Usually, when I taste a chocolate bar, I pick up on familiar flavors that tap something in my brain that tell me I know this taste. It's like some chocolate center in my brain is stimulated. There was a delayed response with this chocolate. The subtlety of the chocolate fascinates and intrigues me. Perhaps the unfamiliarity of this cocoa bean is, in part, why the Good Evil Bar is so addicting, but it's allure is also because the chocolate is just really fucking good. Read anyone's description of this confection, and you will probably discover that an outstanding rating is unanimous. There's no doubt that the chocolate is top notch, better than most on the market, and, some will claim, the best that ever was. I won't go that far, but I rank it in the top five most memorable bars I have ever eaten.

The best way I can describe this bar is to equate it to that moment right before an orgasm. You know wonderful things are about to happen. You may not quite reach a climax, but it's a great place to be, anticipating, yearning, expecting and imagining what might come to pass. This is a chocolate that's on the verge of many things. It's on the verge of being bitter, but it's not. It's on the verge of being sweet, but it's not overly so. It's actually the perfect balance of bitter and sweet. Even though it's a 72% single-origin dark chocolate, I believe milk chocolate lovers will like the Good Evil bar, as it has qualities that are reminiscent of great milk chocolate, like Frigor.

The Good Evil bar is not at all typical of dark chocolate in that its flavor is subtle, very slightly fruity and spicy, but make note that the spicy bouquet doesn't interfere or compete with the chocolate taste. Something I found very sexy was that the smooth, smooth chocolate contrasts beautifully with the wonderfully lightly crunchy nibs that enhance the dark chocolate flavor as you eat the bar. Though the chocolate itself is not intense, those chocolate nibs give off a robust burst of earthy chocolate flavor. The dark chocolate notes then linger on the palate. That's partly what makes the Good Evil bar so addicting. Its flavors are complex and build without ever really coming to a climax. The desire is to keep eating more in order to explore and experience the full complexities of this chocolate. It's memorable without obnoxiously hammering your taste buds. The beauty of this bar is that it is truly distinctive, but it's also difficult to describe. It seems to change and evolve with each bite. The textures and flavors make you want to dive in with reckless abandon, but the price reminds you that it's supposed to be savored... in theory. It's definitely hard to resist. 

For me, sampling the Good Evil bar was like sipping a good liquor in front of a fire on a cold, rainy night. It brings comfort to the soul. So many people end their reviews with the comment that, with the expensive price, they probably wouldn't buy it again, but I can't claim the same. IF I found I had an extra $18 (pus shipping) lying around, I most definitely would splurge and buy it again.