Up for tasting today is the Amano Guayas. This dark chocolate bar is made with cocoa from Ecuador's Guayas River basin. The Guayas bar is a deep mahogany color with ruby highlights.

The initial flavor on the palate is a black coffee roasted note. Acidity develops after a few seconds, with a distinctive plantain/green banana note. There is a faint hazelnut flavor along with grassy/woody highlights. Chewing the Guayas opens up flavors of vanilla, gooseberries and blackberries. While the consistency is not noticeably gritty, it isn't quite as smooth as I'd like. The finish has roasted coffee notes along with some bitter hazelnuts.

The Amano Guayas is a complex dark chocolate bar with distinct flavor. The downfall of chocolate with such a distinct flavor is that it won't always work with everyone's palate. In the Guayas's case, there is some bitter note that I just can't place that doesn't quite work for me. Regardless, this is still another quality chocolate from Amano that is well worth checking out.