What is the most expensive chocolate in the world? Here are some details about To’ak that makes this really valuable.
MOST EXPENSIVE CHOCOLATE – One of them is To’ak and here are some details that tell the reason why this is worth your money’s worth.
A single bar of To’ak weighing 1.76 ounces is worth $450. Let’s explore the reason behind this.
First and foremost, craft chocolate way different from those which are mass produced. Just like craft coffee and craft wine, craft chocolate doesn’t have additives. What makes a craft chocolate more expensive is that it has more chocolate in the final product and the cacao beans need to be naturally flavorful.
About To’ak
It all started from a rainforest conservation and now, it is one of the world’s most expensive chocolate brands.
The cacao to make this chocolate is grown in in Manabi, Ecuador. This place has the ideal soil and climate for this. There’s a limited production to this. Only 14 farms harvest this cacao and the beans are being sifted manually in six phases to find the most desirable forms of them. It also undergoes a complicated aging process which adds up to the reason why it comes with a hefty price.
This rare Ecuadorian cacao is called Nacional and its origin can be traced back at least 5,300 years ago. This was believed to have gone extinct during the 21st century after the Witches’ Broom disease outbreak destroyed them in 1916.
To’ak’s 77% Guayasamín is worth $450 per bar and this price is taken in 2022. Expect that prices have already gone up exponentially after a couple of years.
They produce limited numbers of chocolates. Origin Bars are usually 150 bars per edition while the Signature Bars have 1,000 per edition. The most popular is their 18 Mini Bar selection (Harvest & Aged). This is made of cacao beans and cane sugar.
Before tasting the chocolate, let your five senses do the work in looking closely at the details of it. See the sheen color of the bar. If it has white splotches, it sure has suffered temperature but this does not make it not edible. It still is.
When you break it off, you will hear a loud snap from it indicating that the bar is not too warm for a taste and the moment you bring it to your nose, explore how it smells like. The primary things you can smell are fruity, floral, earthy, nutty, spicy, or “chocolatey”. Lastly, the best way to taste it is not to chew. Allow your teeth to break it off into pieces and let it melt. Make sure to bring it completely inside your mouth and enjoy the burst of flavor. Take note of the texture. Is it smooth and silky or a bit granular? Did it melt quickly or slowly? How about the consistency?
To’ak co-founder Jerry Toth expressed that would rather want the chocolate to be called the “most valuable chocolate” rather than the “most expensive”.
According to him, “Price is just a means to an end. At the end of the day, what we’re really trying to do is create for the world something utterly unique and beautiful, something that transcends merely being an expensive chocolate bar and enters into the realm of experience.”
What can you say about this? Let us know in the comments!