Right out of the box the bar looks glossed and molded to perfection, and shows a bright magenta and medium brown color. Aroma is also impressive if a bit strange, emitting olives primarily and then tobacco and cherries underneath with suggestions of a mild acidity in the flavor. Overall, it might seem unusual and bizarre but it works beautifully and interestingly enough to keep your nose attached for a good while.

But move on to the flavor because here is where this chocolate truly excels. It’s chocolaty and deep, bolder than one might expect from the Caribbean, and definitely unusual with olives in the fore. It’s also slightly acidic, perhaps even tangy, but then berries and cherries take over and fizzle into cherry cordial, which in turn turns into apricot and nuts in the finish, but not once does the incredible chocolatiness ever subside.

Texture is also perfect, melting smoothly with some thickness as well which complements the full-bodied feel of the chocolate. Overall, then, Los Ancones is nothing short of excellent, a remarkable achievement and definitely one of the world’s greatest chocolates. If words could describe just how awesome this chocolate really is, then I would gladly put them here. But since they remain elusive, you’ll just have to take my word for it.

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This is a chocolate that builds excitement from the moment you lay eyes upon it. The finish is immaculate - mirror-smooth, with no detectable faults. Colour is gorgeous - a mix of dark red and soft tan, like looking at a fine Italian leather sofa. It's a look that speaks both of indulgence and sophistication.

It's hard, however, to focus on appearance, for the mighty aroma sweeps you up as soon as you unwrap it. It's the smell of prunes and of fresh cherry wood, penetrating and deep, rich yet exciting. You feel like you could lose yourself simply in the smell. Indeed, it's worth several minutes just to take in the fine aroma before even taking a bite. The flavour itself just keeps on developing, initially a most unusual mix of strawberries and cocoa, next turning to cherry cordial and cream, ending in that pruny depth which was the hallmark of its aroma. What's most remarkable is how Cluizel has managed to retain a fruitiness throughout the length and a more earthy, grounded note.

With both aroma and flavour so elegant and deep, anything but a perfect texture would inevitably distract, but fortunately this is Cluizel: texture is impeccable, both beautifully smooth and ideally creamy. It's the only way one could do justice to the bar and is the final seal of a bar perfected. Bravo Michel! You have given us a 1er Cru that justifies the appellation.

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I love to love Michel Cluizel's 'Los Anconès'. This single-plantation Caribbean origin bar truly epitomizes the idea of a complex and sophisticated chocolate. While I think it’s the sort of bar that would appeal to connoisseurs of other intriguing and multifaceted foods – Tête de Moine cheese, a perfectly ripe mango, or something Fat Duck like smoked bacon and egg ice cream – its lack of bitterness one associates with a fine chocolate makes it the ideal bar for chocolate novices and those who think they don’t like dark chocolate. This is perhaps in part because of the cocoa butter content slightly below 70%, but that just the tip of the cocoa nib. There's much more to this story.

First there's the disjunction between appearance and "mouthfeel": a sandier coloring belies this bar’s smooth texture and thick melt. Next, comes the surprising tastes and smells. Scents of hay and artichoke anticipate the delightful green olive taste the manufacturer describes on the package - but a delightfully fresh Picholine, not a hackneyed cocktail Manzanilla. Rather than seeking other flavors in place of the olive, I simply reveled in it. Even on my fifth go-round with this bar, the initial scent was so wonderfully different from other chocolate bars that I found myself exclaiming aloud about it.

This bar is really one of my favorites for the complexity of taste and the smoothness of the texture. To appropriate the language of wine, this bar is a refreshing Viognier to the usual run of 70% Zins and Cabs. And in the whisky world it is the Island malt in a sea of Highlanders. Which is to say, if you love a challenging crisp white wine or 10-year-old Talisker, this is also the chocolate for you. I can't say enough good things about it.

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This chocolate comes from one plantation ‘to the north east of the island of Santa Domingo’

Everything about the packaging signifies exclusivity, exotic origins. The deep red squares of chocolate, each bearing Michel Cluizel’s signature, have a rich sheen. There is an immediate aroma of liquorice, leather and a warm spicy note.

The taste is amazingly complex – as well as the play between the fruity tastes of cherries, currants and almonds, there is an oily, savoury taste that cuts through the density of the tastes. It is a very ‘plant-like’ taste, which the packaging describes as ‘green olives’ but don’t be alarmed; it is not nearly as strong as that suggests. There is a beautiful burnt toffee base note to this chocolate, and the aftertaste is sweet, satisfying and very long lasting.

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This is slightly more sandy in colour than the usual Cluizel Brown/Red, and a little less translucent than their other unique origin offerings. The grain looks pleasing on breaking - slightly fudge-like but not too coarse, though perhaps a few too many air bubbles appeared in the sample we tried.

Aroma is quite fine with a balanced three-note chord of light liquorice, refreshing and spicy high fruit notes (lime and berries) and dark earth undertones, which are not at all 'off'. There is a certain 'cleanness' about the aroma of this chocolate, while still being thick and interesting, that makes it one of the best we've tried.

Soon after the melt begins sweet liquorice flavours emerge followed by a burst of hazelnuts then spicy hints, which Michel Cluizel calls green olive, but we felt was closer to ginger, with an effect on the tongue reminiscent of a slight chilli burn. Towards the end a pleasant fruitiness emerges, with lime and mango carrying on into the length.

After eating the flavour is long and steady and just keeps on going, though there is a slight sour stage and it gets a little waxy, but none-the-less you can still taste chocolate-lime loveliness after many minutes.

This is a great chocolate to explore, with many flavours to be found - almost every bite turns up some new nuance and we've struggled to fit them all into this review. But don't be put off, despite it's pedigree this is still a great chocolate for the novice and connoisseur alike.

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