Chocolates

What Are Chocolates?

Chocolates begin with cacao beans, which are fermented, roasted and ground into cocoa mass and cocoa butter, then blended with sugar, sometimes milk, and shaped into anything from a plain bar to a filled treat. The variety is the fun part: milk chocolate is sweeter and creamier, dark chocolate carries more cocoa and less sugar, artisanal chocolates are made in small batches with the beans in mind, baking chocolate is built to melt into recipes, and chocolate-coated products wrap nuts, berries or coffee beans in a crisp shell. This collection leans firmly towards dark chocolate — from gentle 55% bars to intense 85% and beyond — with a few coated and filled favourites from Urban Platter's own range.

Types of Chocolates Available at Urban Platter

Most bars here come from Indian craft chocolate makers such as Mason & Co., Darkins, Anuttama, Pascati, Bon Fiction and La Folie, alongside Urban Platter's own chocolate-coated range. Here's how it breaks down.

Dark Chocolate Bars by Cocoa Percentage

Dark chocolate here spans a wide cocoa range — 55%, 62%, 63% and 65% for milder bars, 70%, 72% and 75% for a balance of intensity and sweetness, and 80%, 85% (even 91%) for committed dark chocolate lovers. Broadly, a lower percentage tastes sweeter and rounder, while a higher one turns deeper, more bitter and more complex.

Artisanal and Organic Dark Chocolates

Several bars are described on their product pages as artisanal, organic or craft chocolate — Mason & Co.'s and Pascati's organic bars and Darkins' artisanal range, for instance. Since these terms can mean different things, check each product description for ingredients, cocoa percentage and preparation details before choosing.

Single-Origin Dark Chocolate

Single-origin chocolate is made with cocoa from one region, which can give it distinct flavour notes linked to where the beans were grown. Darkins' Karnataka 80% Single Origin bar is one example, alongside bars from Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, while Pascati's single-origin bars from Kerala and Malabar Hills add more to explore.

Flavoured Dark Chocolates

Dark chocolate meets orange, Coorg coffee, chilli and cinnamon, paan, blueberries, black sesame and black currant, roasted almonds, cranberry with bhut jholokia chilli, and even smoked pink Himalayan salt. For a mellow sweetness, there's also a 55% bar sweetened with coconut sugar.

Dark Chocolate with Nuts, Fruits, and Other Inclusions

Inclusions change texture as much as taste: almonds and macadamia add crunch, cacao chips give a rustic bite, coffee beans and candied orange peel bring aroma, and berries and spices add brightness or heat. Urban Platter's Pistachio Kunafa Bar and Almond Kunafa Bar go further — Middle Eastern-inspired bars filled with nut butter and crisp kataifi, wrapped in 58% Belgian chocolate.

Chocolate for Baking and Cooking

Snacking chocolate is balanced to be eaten as it is; baking chocolate is built to melt, blend and hold up in a recipe. Mason & Co.'s 75% Couverture Dark Baking Chocolate suits cakes, brownies, cookies, ganache and other desserts, and our Cocoa & Baking Chocolate collection has more to choose from.

Chocolate-Coated Nuts and Coffee Beans

Urban Platter's coated range pairs dark chocolate with coffee beans, almonds, macadamia and pecans — crunch first, chocolate second — plus blueberries and cranberries for something fruitier. The coffee beans, almonds, blueberries and cranberries use 58% Belgian dark chocolate and are listed as plant-based; check each pack for details.

Why Choose Quality Chocolates?

Good chocolate tells you what it is. Look for a clearly stated cocoa percentage (most bars here carry it right in the name), honest ingredient information, a smooth texture and clean appearance, and a balanced flavour where sweetness, bitterness and aroma each get their say. Proper packaging and clear storage instructions matter as much as the chocolate itself. The range helps too: plain, flavoured, artisanal or baking chocolate, in everything from single 50g bars to larger and multi-packs, so you can buy exactly what you need.

Understanding Cocoa Percentage in Dark Chocolate

Cocoa percentage tells you how much of a bar comes from cocoa ingredients, and it shapes the taste. Lower percentages tend to be milder and sweeter. Medium ones offer a balance between cocoa intensity and sweetness. Higher percentages are generally stronger, more intense and less sweet. It isn't the whole story, though — beans, processing, sweeteners such as jaggery or coconut sugar, and added flavours all shape a bar, so cocoa percentage alone doesn't decide quality.

How to Enjoy Dark Chocolates

• On its own — let a square melt slowly and notice how the flavour changes
• With coffee or tea — dark chocolate and a hot cup are an easy match
• With fruits and nuts — a few berries or almonds alongside
• On dessert platters — mix flavours and cocoa percentages for variety
• In baking — for cakes, brownies and cookies
• Ganache and sauces — melt into cream for a glaze or dessert sauce
• Chopped into cookies or brownies — for pockets of melted chocolate
• As a topping — shaved or crumbled over ice cream, puddings or fruit
• At gatherings and celebrations — on a board or in a small gift box

How to Choose the Right Chocolate

Start with the flavour you like. If you prefer mild, choose a lower cocoa percentage; if you enjoy intensity, go higher. Decide between plain bars and flavoured ones, and whether fruit, nut, spice or coffee inclusions appeal. For snacking, pick a ready-to-eat bar; for baking, choose couverture baking chocolate. Individual bars suit trying something new, while larger packs suit regular use. For everyday treats, a simple bar does the job; for gifting, chocolate-coated nuts or a kunafa bar feel more special.

How to Store Chocolates Properly

Follow the storage instructions on the pack, since they can differ between products. In general, keep chocolates away from direct sunlight, heat, moisture and strong odours, which chocolate absorbs easily. Changes in temperature can affect appearance or texture — a whitish film on the surface, for example — without necessarily changing the flavour much, and there's no single storage rule that suits every bar.