Destination Cocoa

"With a 68 percent cocoa-content chocolate and a good chocolate-to-acid balance, it's definitely going to appeal to lots of consumers and pastry chefs," says Pierre Tabarie, chief representative and area manager for Valrhona Asia Pacific.

Jean-Marc Gaucher, the executive pastry chef at The Mira Hong Kong, is also impressed - he makes it a point of principle to use quality local products such as organic honey from Hong Kong, and uses Cuvee Bali in a number of the desserts served at the hotel's Cafe Gourmand afternoon coffee hour. "I'm not going to say it's got this or it's got that, or that I can sense the sea breeze when I bite into it - that's not it," he says. "But it really has a character and a sophistication that I like."

With these developments, Bali can expect to raise its standing in the world market for quality cocoa. The outlook is positive: KSS fermented 100 tonnes of beans in 2017, doubling its annual production levels. Consumers will have to wait for Cuvee Bali to join the Valrhona Grands Crus collection in retail stores - but according to the company, this will happen soon. How sweet it is!

Read more: cdlifestylepremium.com