Les Sirènes – Philippines 75%

Les Sirènes by Chocolat Bonnat, dark and honey-sweet

Les Sirènes by Chocolat Bonnat is a dark chocolate made from single-origin Philippine cacao, ground with cocoa butter and sugar. The opening remains tart and deep, while a warm, honey-sweet trace settles over it at the end, softening the bitterness.

Les Sirènes is a dark chocolate from Chocolat Bonnat in Voiron, France, in which the bean, with a 75 percent cacao content, sets the tone. Sugar and the bean's own butter are its only companions; the 100-gram bar comes from the Collection Particulière, known for its small-batch production.

Tart at the start, honey-sweet toward the end

The beginning is dark and dry, and only after a few seconds does a warm sweetness move forward, reminiscent of honey.

For such a high bean content, the mass remains surprisingly smooth; it stretches out as it melts rather than snapping off sharply. A roasted, slightly nutty note remains at the end, lingering long after the piece has disappeared.

Paired with strong black tea or a glass of rum, the dark side comes to the fore while the sweetness recedes into the background. A dry sherry also stands up well, as its tart nature picks up on that of the bean.

Let a piece melt without chewing, and the transition will be most apparent. A second piece is rarely needed afterward, because the finish lasts long enough.

The mermaids who were divers

The bar owes its name to a legend set off the coast of Japan in 1609.

A ship was caught in a storm there, and women who made their living pearl diving brought the crew and part of the cargo to land, including cacao. The sailors took their rescuers for sirens, for mermaids, and the story continued under that name.

The rescued raw material later reached the Philippines, where it was cultivated and still grows today. Chocolat Bonnat simply prints "Les Sirènes" on the paper without any explanation, as the legend carries itself on.

From this origin, a unique cultivation tradition grew on the islands that few outside the region knew of for a long time. Only in recent years have their beans found their way to European manufacturers, and it is still a matter of only a few sacks per harvest.

Twenty hours of patience in the conche

The beans are roasted gently so that the delicate fruit notes do not burn; only then does the long stirring process begin.

In the conche, the last acidic residues of fermentation evaporate under mild heat, the particles become finer, and the mass achieves that melt characteristic of long-conched chocolate. Chocolat Bonnat grinds each origin separately so that the character of a single harvest is preserved.

As a dark bar without milk content, Les Sirènes is vegan. Store it in a cool, dry place and keep the paper closed to ensure the snap and sheen are preserved for months.

Dark origins from the same house

The lighter Mana comes from the same island group, while the famous Chuao comes from Venezuela. You can find the other origins in the Chocolat Bonnat collection.