60 gram bar - Austin, TX This bar may be a deft sleight of hand... It starts bright—almost electric—with a hit of passion fruit that feels like a quick flash of sunlight. Tangy, aromatic, just a little wild. Then the chocolate comes in, steady and grounding: deep cacao from Ecuador’s Cayapas River region, with that balanced, quietly complex dark profile that lets everything else orbit around it. And then the finish lands. Candied Kawachi bankan—rare Japanese citrus—brings a sweet, slightly bitter peel note that lingers longer than you expect. It’s not just citrusy, it’s layered: juicy, zesty, a little marmalade-like, with a gentle chew that pulls you back in for another bite. “Eclipse” is right. The fruit and chocolate take turns leading, crossing over each other, never fully settling into just one thing. Why It’s Special This bar plays with contrast and timing. Passion fruit delivers that immediate tropical brightness, while the candied bankan peel stretches the citrus experience into the finish—adding texture, depth, and a subtle bittersweet edge. The base chocolate—made from cacao grown along Ecuador’s Cayapas River—anchors it all with a smooth, approachable dark profile. Not too intense, not too light. Just enough structure to let the fruit shine without getting lost. It’s a bar that unfolds in stages, which makes it especially hard to rush. (Not that you won’t try.) About Kesshō KESSHŌ—named for the Japanese word for “crystal”—reflects a philosophy of balance, transformation, and precision. Co-founders Liang Wang and Mark Huetsch bring together influences from across cultures and disciplines. Liang’s background in pastry and chocolate began in Beijing and evolved through training in Tokyo, while Mark’s path—from the American Midwest to Stanford to Beijing—adds a complementary perspective rooted in both analysis and exploration. Together, they first built their creative partnership through a Beijing bakery that reimagined Asian ingredients in new forms. Their shift into bean-to-bar chocolate in 2018 opened up a new level of expression—working directly with cacao producers and building flavor from the ground up. Now based in Austin, Texas, Kesshō continues to create chocolates that bridge ingredients, traditions, and techniques—each bar a small, thoughtful intersection of place and flavor. Ingredients: Whole Cacao Beans, Cocoa Butter, Cane Sugar, Passion Fruit Powder, Candied Kawachi Bankan Peel, Sea Salt Made in a facility that also processes tree nuts, wheat, sesame, and eggs
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