Valentine's Day is just around the corner! This is the season when information about delicious chocolates is overflowing all over town. While I was dazzled by the wide variety of chocolates, both visually and with different ingredients, I discovered one that caught my eye.
The name is "TIMELESS CHOCOLATE." It opened in 2014 as Okinawa's first bean-to-bar chocolate specialty store, and I was intrigued by the unexpected idea that chocolate is made in Okinawa, a place with a hot and humid climate.
I wondered why they were making chocolate in Okinawa, and as I looked at the packaging, I saw the two ingredients listed: cacao and sugarcane. I see! Sugarcane. With sugarcane, a specialty of Okinawa, as the raw material, it makes sense that chocolate is made in such a hot and humid environment.
The packaging lists the type of cacao, its content, how it is ground, and the type of sugarcane.
The sugarcane used is selected from several types, such as pure brown sugar from Tarama Island and island granulated sugar, to match the cacao used. What's more, in their pursuit of the best sugarcane, they have even set up designated farms to produce the ideal sugarcane.
Turn the chocolate over and you'll find tiny cacao nibs!
The first thing that surprises you when you put it in your mouth is the texture. The crunchy texture of the coarsely ground cacao nibs is refreshing. The unique flavors of each of the four types of chocolate in the lineup are also intriguing.
The one I particularly liked was the 82% cacao chocolate, which combines Colombian cacao with pure brown sugar from Okinawa. A fresh citrus-like aroma fills your mouth after chewing. The rich sweetness of the pure brown sugar from Okinawa brings out the umami of the cacao. I was shocked to discover that cacao could have such a sweet and sour, fruity aroma.
The refreshing simplicity of the ingredients, cacao and sugarcane, allows you to appreciate the deliciousness of the ingredients themselves. Even the chocolates other than the 82% chocolate, like yogurt and nuts, feature a variety of flavors that combine the cacao and sugarcane, all of which give you a sense of the chocolate's depth.
If you're not sure which of the four varieties to buy, we recommend the assorted box. It contains four mini-sized chocolates, so you can find your favorite one! Or you can compare them and enjoy the differences in the cacao! This box is a great value.
An assorted box where you can enjoy a little bit of each of four different chocolates
The shop is located in Chatan Town in central Okinawa Prefecture, and also has a cafe where you can enjoy chocolate-based sweets. For a limited time until February 5th, the shop will also be on sale on the basement floor of the Isetan Shinjuku store, so if you're interested, be sure to check it out.
The name is "TIMELESS CHOCOLATE." It opened in 2014 as Okinawa's first bean-to-bar chocolate specialty store, and I was intrigued by the unexpected idea that chocolate is made in Okinawa, a place with a hot and humid climate.
I wondered why they were making chocolate in Okinawa, and as I looked at the packaging, I saw the two ingredients listed: cacao and sugarcane. I see! Sugarcane. With sugarcane, a specialty of Okinawa, as the raw material, it makes sense that chocolate is made in such a hot and humid environment.
The packaging lists the type of cacao, its content, how it is ground, and the type of sugarcane.The sugarcane used is selected from several types, such as pure brown sugar from Tarama Island and island granulated sugar, to match the cacao used. What's more, in their pursuit of the best sugarcane, they have even set up designated farms to produce the ideal sugarcane.
Turn the chocolate over and you'll find tiny cacao nibs! The first thing that surprises you when you put it in your mouth is the texture. The crunchy texture of the coarsely ground cacao nibs is refreshing. The unique flavors of each of the four types of chocolate in the lineup are also intriguing.
The one I particularly liked was the 82% cacao chocolate, which combines Colombian cacao with pure brown sugar from Okinawa. A fresh citrus-like aroma fills your mouth after chewing. The rich sweetness of the pure brown sugar from Okinawa brings out the umami of the cacao. I was shocked to discover that cacao could have such a sweet and sour, fruity aroma.
The refreshing simplicity of the ingredients, cacao and sugarcane, allows you to appreciate the deliciousness of the ingredients themselves. Even the chocolates other than the 82% chocolate, like yogurt and nuts, feature a variety of flavors that combine the cacao and sugarcane, all of which give you a sense of the chocolate's depth.
If you're not sure which of the four varieties to buy, we recommend the assorted box. It contains four mini-sized chocolates, so you can find your favorite one! Or you can compare them and enjoy the differences in the cacao! This box is a great value.
An assorted box where you can enjoy a little bit of each of four different chocolatesThe shop is located in Chatan Town in central Okinawa Prefecture, and also has a cafe where you can enjoy chocolate-based sweets. For a limited time until February 5th, the shop will also be on sale on the basement floor of the Isetan Shinjuku store, so if you're interested, be sure to check it out.
