Hi
First, here's some other web sites where I've purchased chocolate in
bulk and have found their prices to often be better than Chocosphere

www.gourmail.com (limited selection but very good pricing)
www.chocolatesource.com (good pricing and very reliable)

Also, while I've not used the site, I've seen some good prices on
www.chocolateman.net

I'm a low-volume chocolatier (20-50 lbs per year), and while I've been
at this for about 5 years, there are tons of brands/varieties I have
not tasted. You've had some really good suggestions from others and
I'm looking forward to trying them myself!

Chocolate is so personal, it's hard to know what to recommend. For
example, lots of people like El Rey's smoky, earthy qualities, I don't.
Some people find Scharfen Berger is too harsh and acidy, I like it a
lot.

In some cases, I find the higher priced chocolate is worth it, in other
cases, I find that I can make people happy with some very good quality
but not over-the-top chocolate.

My 'go-to' brand is Callebaut. The 835 variety has a nice balanced
flavor that may be a bit bland for some, but the people who want my
chocolate like it. It's easy to temper, and is good for molding, hand
dipping, and panning. My only complaint is that the cocoa butter
content of 35% is a little below my prefered level of 38%, because I
like a very thin mold. But I can always add cocoa butter to produce a
thinner chocolate. If you buy a 5kg block, I've been able to find
prices in the $4.50-$5.25 per pound vacinity.

I really like Scharffen Berger, although it's generally twice as
expensive. Their semi-sweet is very intense, very smooth, and tempers
beautifully, making incredibly crisp shells that are thin yet sturdy.
Their bittersweet is actually too bitter for many people. If I were to
start with one, I'd start with the semi-sweet and see if you like it.
(Sold in 5lb blocks, about $9-$10 per pound, similar price range to
Valrhona)

I'll stop because you have had great suggestions from others. Best of
luck.

Bruce