Sulpice Chocolat - Sweet and Spicy bar - Nov. 5, 2014

Chocolate of the Day: 

Sulpice Chocolat
Sweet and Spicy Dark Chocolate bar
Good
Weight: 1.15 oz. (32.5 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 152 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $4.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Draegers, San Mateo, CA

Today was Day #5 of Chocolate and Holiday Spice Theme Week.

This Sweet and Spicy bar from Sulpice Chocolat (Barrington, IL) was splashed with warm-colored orange and yellow cocoa butter "paint," across the top; and the ingredients list promised a warming spice mix of cayenne, cinnamon and vanilla.

The first bite yielded a smooth, dark chocolate taste and texture, but no spices. However, the cayenne kicked in after about 4-5 seconds with the cinnamon playing second fiddle to this fiery pepper heat. After peaking, the heat diminished a bit and left only a warm, cozy memory.

This bar was made from "All Natural, Non-GMO and Gluten-Free" ingredients.

Moonstruck - Gingerbread Hazelnuts - Nov. 4, 2014

Chocolate of the Day:

Moonstruck Chocolate Co.
Gingerbread Hazelnuts
Good - Good +
Weight: 4 oz. (113.4 g.) in 1 package
Calories: 680 calories (estimate) in 1 package
Cost: $4.95 for 1 package
Purchased from: Draegers, San Mateo, CA

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate and Holiday Spice Theme Week.

These crunchy, milk chocolate drenched roasted hazelnuts were suffused with a pleasant blend of gingerbread spices.

Patric Chocolate - Triple Ginger bar - Nov. 3, 2014

Chocolate of the Day: 

Patric Chocolate
Triple Ginger bar
Very Good+
Weight: 1.51 oz. (42.9 g.) / 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 227 calories (estimate) in 2/3 bar
Cost: $12.00 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate and Holiday Spices Theme Week.

Ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves are all great holiday spices and together make a great blend for gingerbread, confections and drinking chocolate.

However, today's smooth and flavorful Limited Edition Triple Ginger bar, from bean-to-bar maker Patric Chocolate (Columbia, MO), focused on ginger alone.

This deep milk chocolate bar incorporated candied ginger chips, ginger sugar and ginger essential oil. A tiny hint of sea salt and lemongrass oil gave the ginger flavors a touch of complexity and depth.

Lake Champlain - Apple Cider Caramels - Nov. 2, 2014

Chocolate of the Day: 

Lake Champlain Chocolates
Milk Chocolate Apple Cider Caramels
Good ++
Weight: 2.4 oz. (68 g.)
Calories: 245 calories (estimate) in 1 package
Cost: $15.25 for 1 box of 7 caramels
Purchased from: Draegers Market, San Mateo, CA

Colorful leaves, crisp fall weather and apples marked this week's progression into autumn -- as did today's Milk Chocolate Apple Cider Caramels "grown, fermented, and crafted in Vermont" by Lake Champlain Chocolates (Burlington, VT).

Coated with 34% milk chocolate, the flavors in these rectangular-shaped treats sprang from a blend of tart Citizen Cider apple cider and Happy Valley Orchard apple pressings -- in a soft caramel with hints of brown sugar, butter and organic cinnamon.

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate and Holiday Spices Theme Week.

The Oakland Choc. Co. - Pumpkin truffle - Nov. 1, 2014

Chocolate of the Day: 

The Oakland Chocolate Company
Pimento Pumpkin Truffle
Good ++
Weight: .49 oz. (13.8 g.) (estimate) in 1 piece
Calories: 72 calories (estimate) for 1 piece
Cost: $N/A - sample (Thank you Nancy)
Purchased from: N/A - sample, The Oakland Chocolate Company, Oakland, CA

Today was Day #1 of Holiday Spice Theme Week.

I had the good fortune to visit Nancy Nadel, the creative force behind The Oakland Chocolate Company (Oakland, CA) today. When I arrived at her relatively new facility and tasting room, I donned a hairnet and interviewed her while she was roasting beans, pouring liquid chocolate into containers, and making caramels.

Nancy is a bean-to-bar-to-bonbon chocolate maker and chocolatier (one of the few women to make chocolate from scratch in the San Francisco Bay Area). She has a relationship with the farmers in and buys her beans from St. Mary Parish in Jamaica.

Toward the end of my visit with Nancy, I sampled a few holiday-relevant* offerings, including today's Pimento Pumpkin Truffle. The dark (Jamaican) glossy, pumpkin-shaped chocolate shell enclosed a spiced pumpkin (white chocolate) filling.

The "Pimento" in this Pimento Pumpkin Truffle didn't refer to a pimento as we know it in the U.S., but rather to an allspice berry blend. The filling was infused with a subtle hint of Berry Hill pimento allspice liqueur from Wray and Nephew (Kingston, Jamaica).

The pumpkin and spice flavors were well balanced, and not overpowering, and stood up nicely to the rich, dark chocolate couverature.

*I also sampled a juniper berry truffle (think a tall, cylindrical flavored truffle, like a gin and tonic glass) that I hope to feature in the future.

Charles Chocolate, Atelier d' Isabelle - Oct. 31, 2014

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Charles Chocolate
Candied Valencia and Almond bar
Good
Weight: 1.34 oz. (38 g.) in 1 small bar
Calories: 200 calories (estimate) in 1 small bar
Cost: N/A - gift from a friend
Purchased from: N/A - gift from friend

Happy Halloween to all! One of the big chocolate holidays of the year in the U.S. Today was also Day #7 of Chocolate and Orange Theme Week.

I'd like to think I would have appreciated finding a small bar like today's Candied Valencia and Almond bar from Charles Chocolates (San Francisco, CA) in my trick-or-treat bag when I was a child. I've always liked nuts, and this bar contained not only almonds, but also pistachios, sultanas (raisins) and pine nuts, giving it a fine crunchy nut and fruit taste and texture. Bits of candied Valencia orange peel gave this 41% milk chocolate bar a subtle citrus flavor.

Atelier d' Isabelle, LLC
Peru 64% Single Origin bar
Good +
Weight: 1.3 oz. (38 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 240 calories in 3 squares (1.3 oz.) of bar
Cost: $7.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Piazza Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

My second Halloween treat today: part of a Peru 64% single origin dark chocolate bar from Atelier d' Isabelle, LLC (Burlingame, CA). This smooth dark chocolate bar was made in Belgium (by KC Chocolatier) but the design and lovely, vintage Halloween wrapper (featuring a young witch with pumpkins and a whisp of glitter) was provided by Atelier d' Isabelle.

Truffettes de France - Orange Mallows - Oct. 30, 2014

Chocolate of the Day: 

Chocmod USA
Trufettes de France
Orange Mallows Dipped in Dark Chocolate
Good
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 7 oz. (200 g.) in total package
Calories: 120 calories in 3-piece serving
Cost: $4.99 for 1 package/box
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #6 of Chocolate and Orange Theme Week.

Truffettes de France brand products come from Chocmod Chocolatier Confiseur (Roncq, France).


These Orange Mallows Dipped in Dark Chocolate had a very sweet filling comprised of a fluffy marshmallow layer topped with an "orange jam" layer. (The company also makes Cherry Mallows and Pear Mallows.)

Tomorrow is Halloween in the U.S., a holiday known for chocolates and candy for trick-or-treaters and spooky things. In keeping with these traditions, I tried something a little scary. I toned down the sweetness a bit by giving these mallows a sprinkle of black pepper and salt -- and it wasn't bad.