Details are in on the Good & Evil chocolate bar, which will be released by Anthony Bourdain, Eric Ripert and chocolatier Christopher Curtin at this weekend's New York Chocolate Show. "Inspired by the dynamic friendship of [the] renowned culinary figures," the Good & Evil bar will be 72% cacao and made from Pure Nacional cacao from Peru, which was thought to be extinct.
It's not extinct, though, just really rare. The chocolate bar will be comprised of both chocolate (for Ripert's "Good") and cocoa nibs ( for Bourdain who "embraces the 'evil' of the dark cocoa nibs"). Oh, and also it will cost $18. The Good & Evil bar will be available online from Curtin's Éclat Chocolate on Friday. Here's a press release:
This November, Christopher Curtin, European-trained Master Chocolatier and owner of Eclat Chocolate, a Pennsylvania-based gourmet chocolate manufacturer known for its singular truffles and confections, will debut Good & Evil, a 72% cacao chocolate bar inspired by the dynamic friendship of renowned culinary figures Eric Ripert and Anthony Bourdain. The bar will be introduced at the 15th annual New York Chocolate Show following a journey that began in Eclat's West Chester chocolate shop and made its way through the tropical jungles of Northern Peru.
Good & Evil captures the essence of the two iconic chefs' personalities while telling the story of one of the rarest cacao trees on earth: a prized variety called Pure Nacional that was thought to be extinct for nearly a century before being rediscovered growing on small isolated farms within Peru, the only place in the world where it is found.
When Ripert, chef and owner of the Michelin-starred Le Bernardin, first met Curtin, he fell in love with the deep, bold flavors of the Master Chocolatier's creations, developed after years of working side by side with the world's top chocolate makers. The pair quickly became friends and, along with Bourdain, decided to collaborate on a chocolate bar that would showcase the powerful flavor and aroma of this particular bean.
In April 2012 Ripert and Curtin traveled to Marañón Canyon, a remote area surrounded by 6,000-foot canyon walls in the Peruvian Andes Mountains and home to Pure Nacional. Here Curtin hand-selected only the Premier Cru Superieur—superior first harvest of the year—that would lay the foundation for Good & Evil. The resulting bar marries the controlled purity and smoothness of the chocolate, developed from the centuries-old process of conching, or blending, with the raw appeal of deliciously bitter cocoa nibs taken from the original beans.
This duality mirrors the connection between Ripert, who only sees the "good" in food, and Bourdain, who embraces the "evil" of the dark cocoa nibs. Together with Curtin, they hope Good & Evil will give everyone who tries it a sublime taste experience of the world's rarest cacao beans.
The 2.6 oz. Good & Evil bar is $18 and available online at eclatchocolate.com and other select retail outlets.
· Eclat Chocolate [Official Site]
· All Eric Ripert Coverage on Eater [-E-]
· All Anthony Bourdain Coverage on Eater [-E-]
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