Nakamura Chocolates

When we wrote about Nakamura Chocolates in our post about Kobe chocolatiers, we promised ourselves to devote a whole post to Nakamura at some point, since she is from our home town and makes wonderful chocolates. We were delighted to see recently on her Instagram a post about a window showcasing her chocolates in Ginza. It may take some time to eat our way through all that she offers, so we thought we would begin with our favourite, the Australian Selection. It is perhaps somewhat ironic that a Japanese Australian has had such a significant role in re-exploring the potential of our native flora. It was good to see these unique Australian flavours reaching our friends in Japan through Nakamura’s Kobe store. We hope the world can enjoy the unique flavours of Australia. We are eternally grateful to the Indigenous People of Australia who discovered, cultivated and maintained the knowledge of these foods for current and future generations. Without their generosity it is unlikely that we would be able to enjoy these wonderful flavours.

Nakamura Chocolates Australian Selection

Quandong & Blood Peach

The choice of milk chocolate here gives a sweetness and slight caramel overtone to the unique flavour of quandong. The inclusion of peach adds softness and fruity tones. Quandong can have quite a sharp flavour but here is completely mellowed by the blood peach and milk chocolate, leaving only the sweeter aromatic elements of the quandong flavour.

Forest Mint & Mango

Forest mint and mango is a genius combination. The volatile quality of the mint oil allows it to expand to fill your mouth while the fruity tones of the mango provide a unique combination, unlike any other mango bonbon we’ve tried. The tones and nuances of forest mint are quite distinct and unlike the standard peppermints that one might be more familiar with. On this occasion we allowed the chocolates to warm to room temperature which accentuated the mint flavours in a way that we found deeply pleasing.

Roasted Wattleseed & Macadamia Nut

The nuttiness of the wattle seed pairs well with the macadamia, and the choice to place a large piece of macadamia produces a very satisfying experience with the contrast of textures and flavours. The two kinds of nuttiness add depth, balancing the clean light flavours of macadamia with the roasted, earthy tones of the wattleseed. The overall effect is still pleasantly sweet despite the use of a dark chocolate ganache here.

Riberry & Spiced Orange

This is another of Nakamura’s genius combinations. I feel a small (or perhaps large) box of these would be a perfect Christmas treat. The spicy tones are very like the Christmas combinations of clove, ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon but with a uniquely Australian quality and a certain softness. The slight tartness prevents the chocolate from becoming cloying.

The chocolate is an essential aspect of the the flavour but complements rather than overpowers the riberry and spiced orange. This bonbon evoked happy childhood memories of making Christmas pomanders from cloves and oranges.

Coastal Rosemary & Jarrah Honey

The aromatic, almost savoury, flavour of coastal rosemary is the perfect foil for the sweetness and strong distinctive flavour of fresh Jarrah Honey, which is prevented from overpowering the other flavours by confining it into a little well in the middle of the bonbon. This is a quintessentially Western Australian flavour and will have expats looking to book a plane ticket. The little medallion of coastal rosemary paste on the top of this bonbon has a nutmeal-like texture and combines with the milk chocolate and honey to create a warm rich flavour that even our hard core bitter chocolate lover agrees is magnificent. The rosemary comes through clearly, sitting over and blending with the flavours of chocolate and honey.

Strawberry Gum & Aniseed Myrtle

This bonbon has an intriguing texture. The strawberry gum gives a strong first impression that combines herbaceous and darker berry notes. Then the aniseed myrtle comes through with a distinct aniseed flavour that is lighter and more delicate than most aniseed experiences and includes a light air of myrtaceous oils that are more a feeling than a taste but instantly recognisable.

Finger Lime & Coconut

A layer of finger lime gel over a creamy coconut layer covered in dark chocolate is just about perfect heaven for us. Finger lime is a unique Australian citrus (who knew we even had a native citrus?) that is a prince among limes. It’s mild, distinctly limey, and has no bitter element at all. We adore citrus of all kinds and love to explore the distinct qualities of different varieties and finger lime is really a treat. A chocolatier could be forgiven for skimping on the finger lime but we are so glad that Nakamura is generous with the exceptional fruit. It may have been the taste of these bonbons that first inspired us to plant a finger lime in our garden. There are so many ways to use these delicious fruits and a Nakamura bonbon might be a great way to get your first taste of them if you haven’t tried them before.

Murray River Pink Salt Caramel

This caramel has a rich melting texture and avoids the sickly sweetness of so many caramel bonbons. The salt comes through cleanly and the overall effect is melting and satisfying.

Davidson Plum & Chestnut

The chestnut is really here in service to the plum in this bonbon, providing a complement to the sweet sour fruity notes of the plum jelly, which is a perfect match to the bitter chocolate ganache. We noted Nakamura’s use of the Davidson plum and this creative combination long before we saw it popping up in the work of others. Something of a favourite and a real taste of Australian summer.

Lemon Myrtle & Eucalyptus

This unexpected combination pairs the soft lemon tones and distinctive myrtaceous notes of the lemon myrtle and eucalyptus with just the right dark chocolate to balance them.

It allows the eucalyptus and myrtle to be delicious in really unexpected ways as these are usually strong, slightly harsh flavours. Here they are somehow transformed by the chocolatier’s art to bring out only those elements of the flavour which are desirable, leaving all harshness behind. The experience is delightfully like eating a first class ganache whilst sitting under a lemon gum after rain.

Nakamura Nama Choco

The glorious Japanese tradition of little squares (what the French call Pave) of chocolate cream truffles has finally made its way to Perth, thanks to Nakamura. These little ganache squares dusted with cocoa are stabbed with a toothpick to eat so you don’t get cocoa on your fingers. We definitely have to keep them in the fridge here in Perth as room temperatures tend to melt them, but they’re actually rather energising on a hot day. We chose the dark to review, although the milk is also very good with that slightly caramel taste you get with Swiss milk chocolate. Nama choco is smooth, chocolatey and delicious. We fondly recall a long ago visit to Japan when we visited the Ikebukuro Seibu in the lead up to Valentine’s Day. Each chocolatier with a counter there had free tastes of their nama choco on offer. They were so delicious and so numerous that we had to go away for a little while before we could decide which to buy.

These are our impressions from eating Namakura Chocolates. We would love to hear about yours. Hopefully this will be one of several posts as we taste Nakamura’s other selections – for completeness.