Theo Chocolate

I've probably mentioned this before, but most mornings, a few co-workers and I take a mid-morning break to sample some chocolate.  We each take turns bringing in different chocolates.  One of my co-workers recently went to Seattle, and came back with some chocolate from Theo, a Seattle based chocolatier.  Another co-worker once visited from Seattle and also brought some along.  However, I was first introduced to them locally at the Good Food Awards.

I've tried a variety of their bars, all of which were decent, but no real standouts.

• Theo and Jane Goodall 70% Dark Chocolate.  Blend of beans, contains cocoa butter and vanilla.  Tasting notes: This was a nice smooth dark chocolate filled with fruity flavors.  I think this was the cheapest and most commercial bar at the Good Food Awards, but I found it pretty complex and nice.
• Coconut Curry: Milk chocolate with toasted coconut and savory curry spices.  Tasting Notes: Decent quality milk chocolate with very strong curry flavors.  I’m not exactly sure when I’d want this bar, but the curry and chocolate did work together surprisingly well and the level of spicing was very intense.  There was no doubt what this flavor was!  I have the Vosges Naga bar in my collection I received at Christmas, it will be interesting to compare the two, as it is also curry, coconut, and milk chocolate.
• Bread & Chocolate: 70% Dark Chocolate, “with buttery, toasted artisan breadcrumbs and the perfect amount of salt."  Tasting notes: This had little tiny crispy bits of bread in it.  Dark chocolate was good quality.  Bread and chocolate go together fine, but this was pretty subtle due to the size of the chunks.  Interesting concept, but I would have preferred bigger chunks.  But then, I guess there probably would be issues with freshness?
• Coffee: 70% Dark Chocolate: “Dark chocolate and a robust locally-roasted organic, Fair-Trade-Certified™ coffee from Caffé Vita”.  Tasting notes: I didn’t get much coffee flavor at all in this bar.  Decent dark chocolate.
• Hazelnut Crunch: “A generous combination of hazelnut brittle and milk chocolate with just the right touch of salt.” 45% milk chocolate.  Tasting notes: bits of hazelnut and bits of crunchy candy bits throughout.  Give lots of crunch but not a lot of flavor. Kinda standard milk chocolate.  Very nice salt on finish.
• Fleur de Sel Dark Chocolate Limited Edition: “Rich 70% dark chocolate is punctuated with crunchy bits of "salt flowers,” Tasting notes: fairly smooth, but nothing extraordinary.  Kinda generic medium-end dark chocolate.  Nice salt bits.
• Salted Almond Milk: Tasting notes: Creamy, soft milk chocolate, but not particularly memorable. Slight salt on finish, but not as much as you’d want.  Almond slivers add a nice crunch, but not much.  Pretty unremarkable, but better than Hershey.
• 91% Dark Chocolate, Costa Rica: Tasting notes: Again, serious snap.  Deep chocolate flavor, very rich, brownie like.
• 84% Dark Chocolate, Ghana: Tasting notes: Serious snap to it.  Almost chalky.  Not greatest mouth feel.  Deep chocolate flavor.