Creo Chocolate

When I was younger, I was a milk chocolate guy.  In fact, I was a crappy milk chocolate guy.  Yes, I didn't know any better and in fact, I was dabbled a bit in generic candy bars and even Allen chocolates (*GASP*).  After I became aware (like Skynet), I began to dislike crappy chocolate and gained an appreciation for artisan hand-crafted chocolates, especially those of the dark variety.  So this brings me to Creo Chocolate.  This Portland favorite not only offers up the classic options, they dare to go out-of-the-box (sorry for the pun) and come up with some pretty unique flavors.

If you are apprehensive or not very adventurous, they do offer chocolate tastings so that you can make a proper decision when selecting your box of Chocolates.  I nearly sampled them all and my favorites included the spicy Ghost Pepper (the white one).  I didn't even notice the white chocolate as it was only sweet enough and besides, the heat from the ghost pepper was the dominant flavor.  Something that with less heat was the Spicy Passion also made with white chocolate.  It hit more subtly and was also purposefully sweet.   Really enjoyed the Raspberry Dark as it had appealing bitter notes and of course the tangy sweetness of raspberries.  The chocolate had a beautiful sheen and melted with a smooth creaminess.

In addition to their chocolates, they also have an array of Chocolate Bars in classic and creative flavors.  I particularly enjoyed the dark chocolate especially the Dark Raspberry.  This was mildly bitter and sweet with the tangy hit from the dried raspberries.  Also enjoyed the Spicy Mango as it had a kick like those Mexican dried fruits while having a balancing sweetness.  Strangely, the Purely Dark 100% was something that I didn't mind either.  It can be very strong-tasting and almost ashy, but I really enjoyed it.  Even the white chocolate Meyer Lemon was appealing as they didn't make it crazy sweet and let the lemon come through.

Beyond the chocolates and bars, I also tried some of their S'mores Bites as well as their Hot Chocolate.  If you aren't into digging into big pieces of chocolate, the bite-sized bags are perfect for you.  I loved snacking on the s'mores bites as they were purposefully sweet and perfect for sharing.  As for the hot chocolate, I tried the 73% Ecuador Cacao with mint.  This was slightly bitter with a refreshing mint finish.  Not sweet and plenty chocolatey.  Right up my alley.  In fact, all of the items from Creo were great and definitely worthy of their many awards.  I will be sure to hit them up again when in PDX again!

*All chocolate was complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:

- Straight-up quality chocolate

- Unique flavors

- A little something for everyone

The Bad:

- Well you do have to pay for this chocolate but well worth it