Taza Chocolate Organic Amaze Bar Deliciously Dark 70%, 10 Count

Years ago, a friend gave me some stone-ground chocolate from Oaxaca. I grew to love the taste and texture of that chocolate and searched for comparable chocolate. I discovered the Taza disks, and then the Taza bars. Since I like to research what I'm eating, I visited the Taza website to learn more about the chocolate. I learned a lot about the process, which is impressive in these days when large conglomerates own many of the chocolate companies. The Deliciously Dark is my favorite Taza chocolate, but I also like others. For a number of years, I ordered my Taza Deliciously Dark chocolate bars from Vitacost, but Vitacost has been purchased by iHerb, which apparently doesn't sell Taza chocolate in the summer. So, I decided to order a box of Deliciously Dark bars from Amazon during Prime Days--a great value, too. After I ordered, I was worried when the weather grew warmer, but my worry was in vain. The box of ten bars arrived directly from Taza in a silver insulated bag that also contained an ice pack. The bars were still cool to the touch. Wow, amazing customer service! If you like delicious stone-ground chocolate made from ethically-sourced organic cacao with low heavy metals, these chocolate bars are for you. If you don't know whether you like stone-ground chocolate, try one. Yes, they're gritty--they're stone ground--but let a small piece melt in your mouth and savor the deep rich taste. If it's not your cup of tea (bad metaphor, I know), move on to something that suits you. Whatever the case, don't write a review about stone-ground chocolate and complain that it is stone-ground chocolate!

Wow! I didn’t know what I was missing until I tried Taza’s unrefined, stone ground, organic chocolate. The flavor, freshness and quality really stand out, like trying fresh, artisan bread for the first time. I had this 10 minutes ago and have a lingering aftertaste where the mild sweetness intermingled with the rich chocolate flavor hints at cinnamon and raspberry, but it isn’t flavored. Those flavor notes are from the chocolate pods themselves. The stone ground texture is very even, like chewing ground hazelnuts (there’s no hazelnut flavor). I bought this after reading the Consumer Reports article on lead and cadmium in chocolate, where the Taza brand was the best rated organic dark chocolate for much lower traces of those metals. I’m hooked.

To be fair, I needed to come back and update this review. I originally rated it a 1. I really disliked this chocolate. However, my partner absolutely loves it. So it's clear that this is a love-it-or-hate-it kind of product. Therefore, I averaged our opinions to a solid 3. If you end up buying this, I truly hope you are in the LOVE IT camp. **ORIGINAL REVIEW*** I never had this brand before, but I got a 10 pack of 70% dark chocolate thinking that chocolate could only come in degrees of good. I was wrong. This stuff is disgusting. Apparently there is a reason for all the refining and processing steps for chocolate; it makes it taste and feel good in your mouth. This is chalky and gritty and even though it's 70%, it tastes way too sweet for me. I usually get 70-80% cacao bars because I like just enough sweet to cut the pure bitterness. This tasted as sweet as milk chocolate to me, and that is not a good thing in my book at all. If you've never had this style of chocolate before, buy 1 bar first. You might like it; there are many positive reviews. Don't buy a case a of 10 unless you're sure, though. I now know that it is possible to hate a chocolate.

I am torn because I'm a huge fan of authentic, organic products and am one of those granola guys who're huge on whole foods, sustainability and wellness. Therefore, based on the Consumer Reports heavy metals report and the product description (no ditching etc), the die-hard dark chocolate fan in me decided to give this product a try. The flavor is interesting (lots of layers), but the texture is essentially like sand. So, in a nutshell, it's really like eating sand mixed with dark chocolate (as we traditionally know it). I would NOT recommend you get this product if you hope to actually enjoy eating it. Take it as medicine for all the great health benefits or for the experience, but there is zero pleasure in this and I will never buy it again. No regrets though. It was my decision. The product description isn't misleading. I, as a consumer, underestimated just how unrefined it would be. That's all. Unless you know what crude cacao feels and tastes like at the start of the production process, do NOT buy this product. You WILL regret it. 🤣

Great tasting chocolate with that rougher, slightly gritty texture that stone ground Taza has, highly rated and recommended.

I bought this chocolate because it was listed by Consumer Reports (and others) as having a relatively low amount of heavy metals (specifically lead and cadmium). So if you buy for this reason, it may be a good product. There's no way for me to test heavy metal levels so I am assuming 3rd party testing is accurate. However, if you are buying for taste, well it may take some getting used to. It has a gritty, sandy texture. It is a different experience than your usual smooth chocolate and it is a little bitter - but that goes with the 70%. The one star deduction is for the taste.

I love dark chocolate and these delivered a new experience. They are course chocolate, so not your typical melt in the mouth type. The taste is a bit different and I think closer to what dark chocolate should taste like. This has become my favorite brand.

Love the pure chocolate flavor! It is a bit grainy because it's stone ground. Love to eat with some nuts as a snack. I have tried it in a vegan chocolate mousse (chocolate + water) and the graininess is still evident in the mousse. I have not tried to bake with it.

People are complaining about the texture but I don’t mind it. If anything it’s something different than the usual.

good quality and tasty

I like it but prefer another brand which is Camino dark chocolate.

This is just the absolute best. If you like cacao nibs... these are the next best thing. Love them in my oatmeal. Great with peanut butter. And the safest of all the dark chocolate. Definitely buying again!

Great chocolate that has less toxins than most other chocolate