Road Test: Marou chocolate

SINGLE-origin dark chocolate from Vietnam.

WHAT is it?

Single-origin dark chocolate from Vietnam.

I've never heard of chocolate from Vietnam.
Well, the French introduced cacao trees in the late 19th-century, but the crop was largely forgotten in the post-colonial era. Marou is the brainchild of two French expats who are reviving that heritage.

Their chocolate is described as "handcrafted". How so?
The pair hand-pick the beans, and create single-origin chocolate varieties, so that - as with grapes for wine, or coffee beans, or malt whisky - the terroir is allowed to fully express itself.

Can I be honest? That sounds a bit wanky.
You stick to your Dairy Milk Fruit & Nut then. I'm going to let a piece dissolve on my tongue, savouring the knowledge that it was grown in a remote jungle by exotic farmers in black pyjamas and conical hats.

Is it any good?
It's sensational. There are five chocolates in the range; stand-outs are Tien Giang (70%), a full-bodied variety from the Mekong Delta; Lam Dong (74%), made from beans cultivated in micro-batches in the forests of the Central Highlands; and Ba Ria (76%), a "bold and fruity" number made from Trinitario cacao.

Anything else?
The packaging is beautiful - pure Willy Wonka.

Price: $8.95 (100g), marouchocolate.com