What’s the best brand of cocoa powder?
I hesitate to give personal recommendations, since my taste may not be exactly the same as yours. Plus, depending on where you live, certain cocoa powders that I use may not be available where you are. It’s best to find one with a flavor profile that you prefer, according to your personal tastes, and that fits your budget. Color, brand, country of origin, and price, are not necessarily barometers of quality. Most European brands (Dutch-process) are quite good and the richest one is Valrhona (see Note, below), which I do single out as a recommended brand, which i find gives desserts and baked goods more flavor and color than other cocoa powders. The best way to figure out which cocoa powder is good is to take a deep sniff; good cocoa powder will have a naturally sweet, but slightly acidic, smell of rough chocolate. You may also wish to try a few cocoa powder-based desserts (see Links, below), to determine which cocoa powder you like.
