Criollo

One of the three primary varietals of cacao bean and the finest of the beans in terms of the flavour and aroma of the processed cacao. The fresh beans are thick and have pink or white cotyledons, low bitterness and low acid levels. Once processed, they produce a high quality, highly flavoured, intensely aromatic, smooth chocolate that is very low in acidity, with delicate and deep undertones of varying degrees.

The Criollo bean originated in Mexico, Central America and Venezuela, and at the time of Spanish exploration of the New World, it was the predominant type of cacao. However, it now accounts for no more than 5% of the world cacao crop, and is used for the world's finest chocolate. Due to their low productivity yields, soft thin skin, fragility and susceptibility to disease Criollo's existence is now in drastic decline and many varietals are threatened with extinction. The rarest of the Criollo beans is Porcelana.