Chocolate review: Twenty Squares dark chocolate mint crisp flake 55% cocoa

Chocolate review: Twenty Squares dark chocolate mint crisp flake 55% cocoa

Here's something like a flashback. I was in Australia last year in July and bought a few bars of chocolates from the store near my hotel. One of those bars turned out to be with mint. I probably overlooked the mint as it was a dark chocolate and also had crisp flakes. I generally don't like mint with my chocolates. I find the taste overpowering that of chocolate. That's been true for both the inexpensive and relatively pricey ones I've had.

This chocolate claims to be all natural and gluten free

Details at the back of the package

Here's a close-up describing the making of the chocolate including the source of the cacao.

Ingredients and nutrition information

This chocolate was a bit surprising in that there is only a hint of mint in the taste. For me, that is good because the mint does not overwhelm the chocolate. There also was no lasting aftertaste from this chocolate so again, for me, that was also okay. Will I get this chocolate again? Maybe not as I am still not a fan of chocolates with mint. However, I do recommend this for people who like mint in their chocolates. :)
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Chocolate review: Twenty Squares Simply Dark 65% Cocoa

Chocolate review: Twenty Squares Simply Dark 65% Cocoa

I had forgotten about a few chocolate bars that I purchased during my trip in Australia last year. I found these as I was arranging our stock with the addition of a few bars I got from my recent trip to the Netherlands.

65% dark chocolate from Twenty Squares

Details on the chocolate at the back of the box

Information on the sourcing of cocoa is at the back. There's also a warning on the box about the bar containing milk, soy and tree nuts.

Nutrition information including the bar being gluten free is shown.

This is a smooth chocolate you can probably purchase at any supermarket, grocery or convenience store in Australia. Definitely a good buy and, as I recall, good value for money for a 100g bar.

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Chocolate review: Cicada Artisan Chocolate Almond & Sea Salt

Chocolate review: Cicada Artisan Chocolate Almond & Sea Salt

I continue with the recent series of posts on chocolates. It may seem as if we are having too much chocolate but these are ones we tasted weeks or days ago and we do try to manage our "cache" so that we have good chocolates to enjoy whenever we want to. Among the good one we got to enjoy is this artisan chocolate from Sydney.

Cicada Almond & Sea Salt packaging looked quite quaint

Details on the chocolate at the back

Close-up showing the ingredients, info on the maker and nutrition information

This is really good chocolate and my only regret is not being able to buy more of these when I was in Sydney. The taste and texture were just right and not raw as you might expect from an artisan chocolate. I have written before about the chocolate and sea salt and the saltiness here is just right and does well to enhance the chocolate.

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Chocolate review: Twenty squares 55% cocoa dark chocolate blood orange

Chocolate review: Twenty squares 55% cocoa dark chocolate blood orange

The haul of chocolates from Australia in July included a bar of Twenty Squares chocolate. As we have already found that dark chocolates and oranges go quite well together, this was a no-brainer purchase for me. It did not disappoint. I bought this one from the convenience store at the ground floor of my hotel in Melbourne and as I wasn't able to open it while there, I decided to get another bar in case it was good and we wanted to have another.

Twenty Squares 55% dark chocolate with blood orange

Details on the chocolate at the back

I like a good story about the chocolate I am eating and there is one for this chocolate, which claims to be gluten free with no artificial ingredients.

Nutrition information

Needless to say, we enjoyed this chocolate, which was smooth at 55%. It was as expected for dark chocolate with orange. Its a good thing we have another bar in our cache. This series on chocolates I bought from my trip to Australia will be overtaken by posts of chocolates I brought from my more recent trip to Vietnam. Then there is also the haul of Italian chocolates from the earlier European trip the Clairvoyant had in May. I will try to post about each of these chocolates as we eat them from time to time.

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Chocolate review: Los Lacayos Nougat

Chocolate review: Los Lacayos Nougat

One of the highlights of my trip to Australia was going around a Saturday outdoor bazaar in Sydney. There, I spotted a stall where they were selling artisan chocolates. This attracted me and I struck up some small talk with the vendor, who explained their chocolates were all handmade and not the mass produced kind. I forgot to ask about the exact source(s) of the cacao but she did say it was fair trade beans. I got a few bars for 4 dollars each, just making sure I got only the dark chocolates instead of the milk chocolates. It didn't hurt that the packaging are quite attractive, too, as evidenced from this dark chocolate with nougat

The details are at the back of the package

The chocolate is produced by Cicada Artisan Chocolate and proudly made in Australia. They have a website that you can easily google for more information about their chocolates. This one claimed 70% single origin chocolate from Papua New Guinea. The chocolate itself was enjoyable and the nougat sandwiched by the chocolate gave you something to chew on especially if you stored the chocolate in the refrigerator for quite some time and ate it immediately after taking it out of the ref. My only regret is getting one bar to take back home. I probably should have bought at least two. :)

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Bondi Beach

Bondi Beach

I thought it would be nice to post about the beach as it has been raining hard the past few days. Well, the sun finally came out last Saturday and yesterday was quite warm. Today looks like another bright, sunny day. 

While going around in Sydney, my friend suddenly had an idea to go to the beach to admire the sights there. Bondi Beach is famous for its waves and is lose enough and very accessible from the city. I have read about Bondi Beach and it being very crowded during the summers. When we got there, it turned out it also attracted quite a crowd during winters! None of the bikini-clad women that we joked we probably would see in the summer but mostly people out on picnic, a walk or...surfing! Aussies seem a hardy folk and most came with their wet suits so they could brave the chilly waters. Some didnt even bother to wear wet suits and just donned their trunks or bathing suits before wading into the cold waters with surf boards in hand.

Bondi Beach as seen from our bus

Many people were just seated, walking or picnicking at the park facing the beach

The waves were inviting to a lot of people and a lot brought their cars and surf gear to the beach

Here's an idea of the parking situation that afternoon at the beach.

There was quite a crowd at the beach itself

The scene is not what you'd expect during the winter. But how can you blame people for enjoying the sun when the temperature was 21 degrees C?

The boulevard was line with shops, cafes and restaurants.

Someone even proposed via a aerial message and that added to the sights that afternoon. We stayed there for a couple of hours before going back to Sydney to continue our "walking tour" of the city.

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Saturday Bazaar at The Rocks, Sydney

Saturday Bazaar at The Rocks, Sydney

It's Saturday and a month ago, I had a great one going around Sydney with a good friend. One of the highlights of that trip to Australia was the opportunity to walk around a great city. It helped that the weather was also quite splendid that July 29 and it wasn't difficult to go around to enjoy the outdoors. After our trip to Cockatoo Island, we walked around The Rocks and chanced upon the outdoor bazaar in the area. We decided to check out the shops at the bazaar and I ended up getting a few items here and there including some artwork from a local artist, which I will post about soon. Here are a few photos I took of the bazaar.

People were enjoying the good weather

These sausages were really good!

There were also buskers around and their music was a welcome background to our walk around

We had our lunch under the bridge near some of the tents selling really good food. We had sausages and some soda though we were tempted to also try out the pasta offered by another tent.

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ANZAC Memorial, Sydney

ANZAC Memorial, Sydney

One of my uncles from my father's side of the family was a Korean War veteran. He used to tell us a lot of stories about his stint in Korea from 1950-51. Among those were his experiences fighting with and against soldiers from other countries. Among those he fought with were Australians and New Zealanders (Kiwis?). They were collectively called ANZAC, short for Australia and New Zealand Army Corps. I recall his tales about their fighting together to hold the line against wave upon wave of North Koreans and Chinese and their success in doing so despite the high price they paid for their gallantry.

The ANZAC memorial is devoted to the memories of fighting men from Australia and New Zealand who sacrificed themselves in many theaters of war including those in Europe, North Africa and the Pacific.

The ANZAC memorial across a reflection pool

A sculpture that represented the sacrifices made by the men and women of ANZAC

View of the reflection pool and Hyde Park from the memorial building

I wanted to take more photos inside the memorial but I thought and to me it would have been disrespectful to the people to whom this landmark was built for. Inside the building are several memorials to ANZAC troops for the major engagements they fought in. For details, one can check out their website here. War is never a good thing but then these have to be fought in order for good to confront and ultimately triumph against evil. And this requires much sacrifice. Memorials such as this reminds us of how much sacrifices fighting men have had to make so we could live in peace.

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The Sydney Opera House at night

The Sydney Opera House at night

I just could not travel to Australia and not have the chance to see one of the architectural wonders of the world. I am referring to the Sydney Opera House. I think this is The Highlight of my travels this year despite 5 months remaining in 2017. And this is right there beside the Clairvoyant's highlights from her trip to Barcelona (Sagrada Familia) and Rome (Colloseum, Sistine Chapel, etc.). Following are 'up close and personal' photos I took of the Sydney Opera House the Friday night I was in Sydney.

More photos of my trip to Melbourne and Sydney soon.
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Chocolate review: Madecasse Sea Salt & Nibs

Chocolate review: Madecasse Sea Salt & Nibs

The first chocolate bar I bought in Melbourne was this one that was made in Madagascar. I spotted it on a shelf that featured locally made chocolates among the mass produced ones. I got one and another bar of chocolate made in Australia to satisfy my chocolate cravings on the cold nights there.

This bar was proudly made in Africa, Madagascar to be precise

The back of the label contains much details about this chocolate.

The label explains that the makers wanted to change the world by making a better bar of chocolate. They did this by making a bean-to-bar chocolate in Madagascar.

Nutrition information including this chocolate having at least 63% cacao content

Another view of the back of the label with the flap up to show some nice information on the cacao used in the production of this chocolate. They used heirloom cacao, which is said to guarantee the highest quality of cacao.

This retailed for 5.25 AUD or about 208 PHP, which is a relatively inexpensive price to pay for high quality chocolate. There are other mass production chocolates that are priced higher than this but are inferior in taste and texture. I thought this chocolate was an excellent product out of Madagascar/Africa and regret having only bought I more to take home. I am sure the Clairvoyant would also enjoy this crunchy chocolate, particularly the fine blend of sea salt and cacao nibs for one to munch on.

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Chocolates in Australia

Chocolates in Australia

The convenience grocery near the service apartment where I stayed at in Melbourne had a good variety of chocolates for me to enjoy. I bought a couple of bars to tide me over what turned out to be very cold nights in this southern Australian city. One bar was a "bean-to-bar" chocolate from Madagascar (proudly made in Africa) and another was made in Australia from local and imported cacao.

Chocolates for my Australian winter in Melbourne

I was only able to finish the Madagascar chocolate and it was wonderful. I will be writing about this and each of these chocolates that I bought (I bought many other bars) as I taste them. My only regret for now is that I was not able to get 2 bars of each. But then I already look forward to the next trip to Australia and that next time I hope will be with my family.

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Hello Australia!

Hello Australia!

I'm traveling again and this time it is to a place I or the Clairvoyant have never been to before - Australia. I am now at Melbourne to participate at a symposium at one of the major universities here. Afterwards, I will have a couple of nights in Sydney en route to Manila. I have many friends and former students in both cities but will likely only have time to meet up with a few. I have a niece and grandnephew in Melbourne whom I haven't seen in 17 years so that's a meeting I look forward to.

We landed at Sydney Airport at 6:30 AM - just about daybreak

This is the first time I am staying at a serviced apartment instead of at a hotel. I found that it's less expensive, the location is great and the apartment allows me to cook (okay heat) and launder my clothes as it comes fully furnished with a kitchen and washer & dryer. I will definitely take note of these conveniences for our future trips, especially those with our daughter.

The view from my apartment

Obviously, I will be writing a lot about my trip to Australia in my future posts and these would likely include places, food and other interesting stuff about the land down under. Abangan!

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