E. Guittard Chocolate

E. Guittard is a local chocolate maker that supplies the chocolate for many local chocolatiers.  A lot of pastry chefs use their couverture as well.  As such, I encounter their products regularly, but rarely just their pure chocolate.  They were at the SF Chocolate Salon with a bunch of the base chocolates, so I got to taste it on its own finally.  This is good stuff, and clearly, there is a reason everyone sources from them!

• 31% white chocolate: “This French-style white chocolate has a sweet, fresh cream flavor with nutty undertones and lingering hints of citrus and vanilla. It adds a balanced dairy flavor to any recipe, and stands alone as an extraordinarily smooth white chocolate with rich cocoa butter taste.”  Tasting notes: Very smooth and creamy, not at all what I normally think of as white chocolate … not “fake” tasting, not just sweet. Probably the best white chocolate I’ve had.
• 38% milk chocolate: “Bold, rich, milk chocolate flavors with caramel accents, fresh dairy notes and a signature hint of cinnamon set this milk chocolate apart from all the others. It’s an extremely versatile blend that can be used in recipes ranging from crème brulée to ganache.” Tasting notes: Insanely creamy!  [ Creamy, luxurious milk chocolate.  Very nice.  Soooo smooth and creamy. ] [ Very creamy, smooth milk chocolate. ]
• 61% semisweet chocolate: “Super-rich chocolate flavors last and last, with a refreshing chocolate finish. This chocolate is extremely popular with pastry chefs, and makes a great eating chocolate as well.” Tasting notes: Somewhat chalky.  Decent chocolatey flavor. [ Nice ]
• 72% bittersweet chocolate: “This super-dark chocolate has a smooth mouthfeel and provides intense chocolate flavor. While versatile, it’s the perfect choice when a dessert is unequivocally about chocolate – flourless cakes, molten chocolate mini-cakes or an unforgettable chocolate fondue.” Tasting notes: Very bitter, not good snap.
• 91% extra dark: "Nocturne is a uniquely complex blend of about seven different beans from each of the 3 major cacao growing regions - Central and South America, Africa and Asia."  Tasting notes: very bitter!