“Dedicated taste receptors in the tongue detect sweet or bitter and so on, but it’s the brain that affords meaning to these chemicals.” (Credit: Columbia University Medical Center)

• It’s suggested one begin with single origin roasts and single origin chocolates to get a feel for the specific aroma and flavors of each specific bean region (as opposed to a blended roast which combines beans from different regions) or a chocolate bar that combines beans or adds another flavor element, such as salt, caramel, or red chili.

• The cacao percentage expressed on a chocolate bar is the ingredient content from the cacao plant which includes the cocoa butter and chocolate solids; the remaining percentage is the sugar content. So, for an 80% bar, 20% is sugar. (Take a look at the ingredients on a Hershey bar—what you’re eating is not real chocolate).

"Trust us." Sincerely, coffee and chocolate

Literally named after Cookie Monster's amusing, "Om Nom Nom" while gorging himself on cookies, Omnom Chocolate, an award-winning chocolate company in the capital city of Iceland, has been slowly building up a massive following all over the world since its inception in 2013.

It is co-owned by Kjartan Gislason, a former chef-turned-chocolatier and a handful of friends, who now transform cacao beans from all over the world, into small batch, bean-to-bar chocolate. Gislason's small team hand-sorts, roasts, cracks, winnows, and grinds their own beans at their factory location which now resides near the city center in Reykjavik. 

Omnom moved to this current location in mid 2016, after moving on from their previous factory location that rested on a former gas/petrol station lot. 

The beans are roasted in an on-site convection oven where the team builds up their roasting expertise by experimenting with roasting times, in order to ensure optimum flavor, and bring out certain aromas and flavors based upon specific bean regions and climate.  

Omnom sources beans from the Caribbean, South America, Asia, and Africa. Their bars include just cacao beans, raw cane sugar, and cacao butter. A description on their product page for Omnom's 70% cacao Tanzania bar, states they source beans from a women's convent that operates a thirty-acre farm; the funds obtained from the beans then goes to support charitable works they handle in their village. Cool!

They also offer seasonal bars such as dark cherries and almonds in a Madagascar 66% bar, as well as chocolate covered malt balls, and their website indicates more options are always on the way. 

[Omnom Product Page]

The packaging is a visual wonder, created by a South African digital designer, and friend of Gislason's, who had been enchanted by the Icelandic scenery. The wolf icon logo is prominently displayed on each bar, while a different sketched animal "guards" specific bean origins, layered over pretty, pastel-colored paper. ( Each are wrapped by hand!) They are incredibly visually appealing, and what my friend in Norway describes as "one handsome Icelandic chocolate." 

Omnom's current in-house designer, Veronica Filippin, has been with the team since fall of 2016, and has continued the same iconic design style, but with her own artistic skills. Check out her design for Omnom's Spiced White + Caramel.

[Omnom's Spiced White + Caramel]

In mid-2015, Omnom partnered with one of Iceland's premier coffee roasters, Reykjavik Roasters, and created a white chocolate bar, the Coffee & Milk bar, which is over 20% coffee beans! Omnom replaced the cacao beans with coffee beans, and includes milk powder from grass-fed Icelandic cows. These cows are smaller in size than American cows, have very colorful coats, and provide a rich and creamy milk. 

If you happen to be in Iceland anytime soon, head over to their factory in Reykjavik, where they offer daily tours of their chocolate hideout which includes tastings of all of their bars, tour of the factory, and demo of their chocolate crafting process. Omnom products are also sold in select stores in the United States and around the world. Keep an eye out, as that lovely packaging is hard to miss. www.omnomchocolate.com

-Sip & Melt