The Good: Wonderful ingredients, Embodies the cinnamon flavor well.
The Bad: Comparatively expensive, No real dark chocolate flavor
The Basics: A harder sell for dark chocolate lovers, Taza Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano is vastly weighted toward the flavor of the cinnamon.
I like intriguingly flavored candies. Despite loving a wide variety of flavors for confections, when it comes to chocolates, I have one basic rule: I have to be able to taste the chocolate and whatever flavor the chocolate is supposed to be enhanced with. When that does not happen, the chocolate gets a lower rating - I want a sense of balance in my flavored chocolates. Such is the case with the Taza Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano; the cinnamon flavor is present and prevalent, but there is virtually no dark chocolate flavor in these candies!
Basics
Taza is a Massachussetts-based premium chocolatier that is makes Mexican-style stone ground chocolate north of the border. The Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano is a high-quality chocolate that I was lucky enough to find inexpensively at my local discount store.
The Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano comes as two discs (2.7 oz. total) that are paper-wrapped together and packaged inside a cardboard wrapper. The whole disc is presented as a 3” in diameter by 5/16” thick slightly segmented chocolate disc. The segments do not snap apart evenly. Despite that, the Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano are generally easy to portion out to have less than a full serving, which is nice for those who might be watching their waistline!
Ease Of Preparation
Eating Taza Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano is not hard. After removing the chocolate from the cardboard and the paper wrapper, simply pull out the disc or break a segment off and stick it in your mouth. There is no particularly complicated method to eating these chocolates. This is an entirely ready-to-eat food . . . unless one wants to make it into a hot cocoa!
The hot chocolate version of the Taza Cinnamon Dark Chocolate requires milk and uses both discs in a package. One needs to grind up both discs of the chocolate and stir it into the simmering milk. Honestly, I've yet to make up some of this flavor as a cocoa.
Taste
Unwrapping the paper around the Cinnamon dark chocolate disc, the aroma of cinnamon explodes outward. The scent of cinnamon is strong and distinct, which is nice for anyone who loves cinnamon. There is no real aroma of chocolate in the bouquet.
The Cinnamon Dark Chocolate tastes sweet and dry, but not overly chocolate flavored. In fact, the cinnamon somehow manages to overwhelm any real flavor from the dark chocolate in these Taza discs. The cinnamon flavor is dry, but cut with a pleasant sweetness like one might expect of a fine chocolate. The cacao flavor of the dark chocolate only seems to come out as a finishing flavor as the last of the disc is masticated.
The Taza Cinnamon Dark Chocolate leaves a strong, dry aftertaste in the mouth that lasts for about five minutes after the last of the chocolate is consumed.
Nutrition
Taza chocolates are intended as a dessert product, not a health food! Each 38 gram disc of Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano represent a single serving of the chocolate. Made primarily of organic cacao beans, organic cane sugar and organic cinnamon, there are no unpronounceable ingredients in this chocolate. They were produced on equipment that forces them to add a disclaimer about almonds, coconuts, and hazelnuts. The Taza Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano are marked as both gluten free and Vegan-compliant, as well as Soy Free.
Taza's Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano have 210 calories in a one-disc serving, 110 of which are from fat. A full serving represents 35% of one's RDA of saturated fat, but they are cholesterol-free. There is a minimal amount of sodium in these Dark Chocolate Mexicano Cinnamon chocolates and there are 3 grams of protein. These are not a significant source of any vitamins or minerals, though they do have 1% of one’s daily calcium and 4% of the RDA of Iron.
Storage/Cleanup
As a chocolate, Taza Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano are fine as long as they are stored below 65 degrees Fahrenheit. The package I picked up two weeks ago had an expiration date of March 27, 2018. Given that mine are gone already, I cannot comment on how well they endure as they come closer to the expiration date.
If, however, they melt, they will stain. Consult your fabric guide if they melt as dark chocolate can be a bear to clean up when melted into light fabrics. Otherwise, cleanup is simply throwing the paper wrapper away when you are done with the chocolate disc.
Overall
Taza Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Mexicano is now bad, but it is not quite enough to satisfy consumers hoping for the flavors of both cinnamon and dark chocolate.
For other reviews of other chocolates, please check out:
Brookside Chocolate Mango Coconut Crisp Dark Chocolate Bar
Lindt Holiday Spice Lindor Truffles
Ghirardelli Milk & Pumpkin Spice Caramel chocolate squares
4.5/10
For other food and drink reviews, please visit my Food And Drink Review Index Page for an organized listing!
© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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