VRAE 90% Dark Chocolate bar - Junín, Ayacucho, Cusco -Peru

Provenance: Junín, Ayacucho, Cusco, Perú

This 90% dark chocolate offers a more intense flavor profile compared to the 80% dark version. While the 80% was known for its rich, deep dark chocolate balanced with some sweetness, the 90% version, which contains even less sugar, will delight your senses with hints of dreamy chai. 

Thanks to extra conching, this chocolate bar has an incredibly smooth texture and a long-lasting flavor. Our tasting notes reveal fruity and citrusy notes with low acidity, complemented by exquisite hints of cinnamon and cardamom.

Ingredients: Native VRAEs, Native Chunchos, with Criollos and Trinitarios beans, and cacao butter.

About this bean: 

(From our bean supplier)

The VRAE bean origin comprises a variety of exceptional Native aromatic cacaos, including VRAE-15, VRAE-99, and Native Chunchos, as well as Criollos and Trinitarios. It's harvested at altitudes of 400–1300 m and exhibits a fruity flavor profile (soursop, mandarin, custard apple), with herbal-to-floral notes.

The fermentation is conducted in Tornillo hardwood boxes—an exceptional type of wood for fermenting that does not impart flavors to the cacao—and lasts six to seven days, with a daily rotation of the beans after the first two days. After a very well-controlled box fermentation, the VRAE beans are then transferred to mounds to dry, with stirring for 2 to 4 days, depending on the level of sun exposure. From there, the mounds are spread out over covered tarps or mesh shelves, where they finish drying in the shade. The total drying process typically takes around seven days, but can vary due to cloud cover and weather conditions. 

So, what does VRAE stand for, and where is this region located?

It's an acronym for Valley of the Rivers: Apurímac, Ene, Mantaro. Technically, it should be VRAEM, but the norm has been VRAE (sorry, Mantaro River). This valley resides at the intersection of these three rivers on the border of the departments of Junín, Ayacucho, and Cusco. A humid and fertile tropical region with >1500mm yearly rainfall that's perfect for growing exceptional cacao, among other things. 

What adds even more intrigue to this bean is its role in reshaping the VRAE region. Historically, this has been an area with considerable coca leaf production—a crop with various medicinal functions that's inextricably linked to the Indigenous way of life, which, unfortunately, also happens to be the main ingredient in cocaine. As a way of freeing people from the oppressive farming conditions and to disrupt the illicit cocaine supply chain, the Peruvian government, alongside other international governments, has been incentivizing alternative crop growing, like coffee and cacao.

For over 15 years, this international collaboration has assisted farmers with networking, infrastructure, management, security, and certifications (organic), helping the people of this region achieve more dependable income, more environmentally sustainable farming practices, and a better way of life.

Some of the beneficiaries of these efforts have been the farmers of the El Quinacho co-op. A co-op we've had the pleasure of working with for several years, which has grown to include 255 producers (of whom 89 are women), managing an average of 1.35 hectares each.