I prefer milk chocolate or lighter chocolate. What do you recommend for me?
In terms of chocolate bars, our lowest percentage bar is 73% cacao (from our 2015 harvest). It was made with the intention to be a very gentle dark chocolate. Our 2017 harvest also has a relatively low cacao percentage of 76%. You should also take a look at our cacao powder and drinking chocolate, which you can add milk or additional sweeteners to, if you so desire.
Why is To'ak Chocolate expensive and what makes it unique?
We purchase cacao directly from the cacao growers we work with in Piedra de Plata, and we pay the highest price per pound of freshly-harvested cacao in the country. As far as we know, we also pay the highest price per pound in the entire world. This is just part of our commitment to elevating dark chocolate onto the levels of the finest wines and in doing so having a positive impact on the environment and cacao farming communities in Ecuador.
Do you offer gift wrapping?
Yes! We offer gift wrapping and we can also include a message on a hand written card. You will find the option as a check-box on the product page. You can also leave a note in the special instructions field in your shopping cart.
Does your chocolate have an expiration date?
Officially, the shelf life of dark chocolate is two years. Unofficially, it should last much longer than that - there are documented reports of dark chocolate still being edible after 100 years of storage. As part of our own experiment, we have chocolate bars that have been stored in our office for up to six years, and they are still in excellent condition. But we don’t recommend trying that at home. Why wait?
How should I store my chocolate?
Dark chocolate likes to be stored within the temperature range of 12-22° C (53-72° F). Temperatures as high as 25° C (77° F) are usually fine. The official melting point of dark chocolate is around 30° C (86° F).
What is included with each product?
Click through to see a list of contents for each product range.
What ingredients are in your chocolate?
The complete and accurate ingredient list of each product is available on the product page of our website and on the package of each product. The only ingredients in nearly all of our products are organic cacao beans and organic cane sugar. In the case of our Everyday Organic Cacao Powder, the one and only ingredient is organic cacao.
Does your chocolate contain alcohol?
We do not add alcohol to any of our products. Some of our Aged editions have been aged in empty casks or barrels that previously stored alcohol.
Do you test for heavy metals like Cadmium in your chocolate?
Yes we do, and we’re happy to report that the levels of both cadmium are safe...and by a long margin. In fact, our chocolate has some of the lowest levels in Ecuador.
Which product do you recommend for a gift?
Well, it really depends on who the gift is for and what your price range is. But we do have a few tips.
Once I open a bar of To'ak how long will it keep?
From a health and safety perspective, it will still be viable to eat for several years. From a flavor and aroma perspective, it’s best to eat it within a week or so of opening the bar. If you do want to preserve a bar after opening, store it in a ziplock bag. This can help maintain flavors and aromas for months.
What is the difference between Harvest editions and Aged editions?
Our Harvest editions are harvested from a specific appellation during a specific year (similar to wine), with the objective to highlight the unique flavor and aroma characteristics that are created by the soil and climate conditions of that particular harvest (i.e., “terroir”). Our Aged editions are Harvest editions that have been aged in some kind of aromatic vessel (eg, casks that formerly stored wine or spirits, or Ecuadorian wood vessels) or have been aged in the same container as some other aromatic material (eg, Kampot pepper or Palo Santo wood).
Does your chocolate contain nuts or other allergens?
Our chocolate is produced at a factory that also handles nuts, peanuts, soy, and milk, but we do not intentionally add any of these ingredients to our chocolate.
What does it mean if a chocolate is on pre-order or made to order?
Sometimes we make products available for pre-order before they are launched. Other products can only be made to order.
Can you ship my gift without the price?
For orders within the USA we do not include the price as standard. For orders to all other countries we are required to include a shipping invoice for the purpose of customs import process.