Fall 2017 Chocolate Tastings

I was sipping my cappuccino at Philter Coffee this fall one day when a lady named Chelsea asked me about my next chocoldunaiate event. Although I had none planned then, I promised her to organize one. After I emptied my cup, I headed straight to the library, where it took all of 30 seconds to book a chocolate tasting workshop with Alex. Gosh, I wish all my meetings were that productive.

I now look forward to meeting Chelsea and her friends at the Kennett Library this Saturday, November 18, 2017. I have a couple more events planned this year to satisfy your chocolate cravings, including a Map Chocolate pop-up sale that same Saturday and a tasting at Grace Winery next month. Here are all the details, I hope to see you at one or all of these events!

November 2017 Library.png

Join me at the Kennett Library this Saturday, November 18 for a FREE chocolate tasting workshop at 2 PM. Spoiler: you’ll touch a cacao pod and taste camel milk chocolate from Dubai. Space is limited so make sure to register here. The event was completely booked last time so don’t wait to save your spot!

Kennett Library
216 East State Street
Kennett Square, PA 19348

Chadds Ford

On Saturday, November 18, I will have Map Chocolate bars for sale at the inaugural Potts Meadow Tree Lighting event, presented by the Chadds Ford Barn Shops and the Brandywine Conservancy & Museum of Art. I’ll be there with several cool artists (Katee Boyle! Bri from Arden + James!). The event will run from 4:30-8:30 PM, you’ll find all the details here.

The history of the Barn Shops goes back 50 years, when some historic buildings (old general store, gas station, etc.) in Chadds Ford, PA, were moved to their current location for preservation purposes. My friend Bri and her father have been fixing up the shops all year and they’re proud to share them with the local community.

Please note you MUST park at the Brandywine Museum down the road and take a shuttle to the event. For safety reasons, including Route 1 traffic backup and children wandering around, you can’t park at the Barn Shops.

Chadds Ford Barn Shops
1609 Baltimore Pike
Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania 19317

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I love with the quiet, romantic setting of Grace Winery in Glen Mills – Prince Albert of Monaco was recently there! – so I am thrilled to host a two-hour chocolate education and tasting workshop on Friday, December 15 at 6 PM – 8 PM. Tickets are $50 and include your first glass of wine. If you’d like to learn more about your favorite food, hold a cacao pod, eat a cacao bean, and taste several chocolates, secure a spot now on EventBrite.

Grace Winery
50 Sweetwater Road
Glen Mills, PA 19342

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Estelle TracyLeave a comment

Chocolate Tasting Guides

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Not that long ago, I used to make fun of tasting notes printed on the back of a wrapper. The mere mention of “graham crackers, fudge, and lime” would make me roll my eyes, wondering what the person coming up with those notes was trying to prove — the superiority of their palate? I promised myself I’d never be “one of those people.” I’d use this as an excuse to gobble down the dark squares, only asking myself one question: would I buy this again?

Fast forward to 2015, when I started the 37 Chocolates project. Once I decided to post my reviews on YouTube, I limited myself to 4 minutes (OK, 5 at the very most) to discuss each bar. That meant paying attention to every detail of the tasting before shooting a video. As I placed every square of chocolate in my mouth, I focused on how the chocolate melted and the flavors developed. To my surprise, I started noticing different flavor notes. The strong cherry finish in a bar by Cocoa Atlanta caught me by surprise, reminding me of the black forest cake I ate growing up. There were also the dark caramel notes of the Sierra Nevada bar by Castronovo Chocolate and the lavender ones of the Dos Rios by Amano.

Sure, I still swallowed the occasional square like candy, but by letting a chocolate square melt slowly and paying attention, I was able to distinguish the nuances of a bar. More importantly, when I took my time to try to identify flavors, I remembered it better.

The point of the exercise, I learned, is not to show off your sophisticated palate but to give the chocolate the attention it deserves so you can truly appreciate it. A word of caution: training your palate takes time and many times in the process you’ll struggle with having the name of that note “on the tip of your tongue.” Thankfully, there are many tools out there that will help you get that tasting note off your tongue and onto your tasting notebook (yeah, I used to make fun of those people too.) Here are three of my favorite tasting tools to guide your next tasting

The Chocolate Tasting Kit by Eagranie Yuh

 

A book about chocolate, 100 tasting sheets, a stash of flashcards, and a keepsake of chocolate wrappers: The Chocolate Tasting Kit by chocolate educator Eagranie Yuh contains everything you need to kick start your chocolate appreciation journey. The kit is designed to educate readers about chocolate and help develop the vocabulary to describe bars during your next tasting party. Sure, “yummy” and “delicious” get the point across but “nutty” and “spicy” are much more precise, especially when discussing the bars with friends.

Taste with Colour: Chocolate Tasting Flavour Map by Hazel Lee

Photo credit: Hazel Lee

A craft chocolate supporter and bean-to-bar instructor, Hazel Lee has developed this colorful flavor map (don’t call it a tasting sheet!) after realizing she associated flavor notes with color — you can hear her talk about it on this episode of the Well Tempered podcast. While the map is beautiful enough to be displayed on a wall, keep a copy handy for the mere pleasure of browsing your finger on the colorful, textured map. Hazel worked hard to come up with the flavor notes — there is a bubble gum note!

You can order The Chocolate Tasting Flavour Map on Hazel’s website.

Full disclosure: Hazel gifted me a copy of this map.

Chocolate Tasting Sheets by Projet Chocolat

Photo credit: Projet Chocolat

Elevating the culture of chocolate: so is the mission of Projet Chocolat, a Nashville-based company started by Sophia Contreras Rea. As such, the website features a carefully curated selection of antiques, as well as several products developed in-house with local makers and designers. This set of 25 tasting sheets is perfect to guide tastings in intimate gatherings, think a wedding shower or birthday party with a few close friends. Each sheet, which can hold up to four chocolate samples, will guide you through a detailed sampling of each bar, from color and texture to tasting notes.

Order the Chocolate Tasting Papers on Projet Chocolat’s website.

Estelle TracyLeave a comment

Three Chocolate Podcasts You Should Listen To Now + My Favorite Local Food Podcast

Updated on September 16, 2019

You know what I like the best about being part of a new movement? Watching so many projects come to life. As the American craft chocolate scene has been booming over the past couple of years, I’ve been thrilled to witness the creation of several chocolate podcasts to help us all make sense of that world. These shows have informed, entertained, moved, and inspired me and I hope that they will do the same to you too. Happy listening!

Well Tempered, by Lauren Heineck

img_2180Hosted by Lauren Heineck of WKND Chocolate, Well Tempered is a podcast about the “smart and crafty women of the chocolate industry.” Each episode features an intimate conversation with an inspiring woman. Guests range from bloggers and brand strategists to makers and educators (I was the guest of Episode 2!).

This podcast’s for you if you have In The Company of Women* on your bedside table and could use some female inspiration to get to your next chapter. Lauren is a gifted listener and each episode makes me take action, whether that’s contributing to a crowdfunding campaign or book a visit to a chocolate factory. In short, I am a fan.

Chocolate on the Road, by Max Gandy of Dame Cacao

Added September 16, 2019

Chocolate on the RoadKnown as Dame Cacao, Max Gandy has traveled Asia extensively both for work and pleasure. Between air flights and car rides, she shares chocolate stories on the Chocolate on the Road podcast.

Twice a month, she covers topics as varied as South Korean chocolate or social media in the chocolate industry (and yes, it’s my French accent you’ll recognize on that episode).

Tune in if you’re a true chocolate enthusiast, as some of the episodes will require some familiarity with the big names of the craft chocolate industry.

The Slow Melt, a Podcast about Chocolate, by Simran Sethi

IMG_6660Written by the author of Bread, Wine, Chocolate: The Slow Loss of Foods We Love*, this podcast’s mission to educate listeners about the complexity and sometimes harsh realities of the chocolate world. After a first season focused on the basics of chocolate (from the origins of chocolate to how to savor chocolate), the new season is dedicated to chocolate-makers. 

This podcast is best for anyone who already cares about the issues of sustainability and biodiversity in food and would like to expand their knowledge to the lesser-known world of cacao and chocolate. The episodes are short (30 minutes) and professionally edited. If you only listen to one episode, may it be this interview of Shawn Askinosie, founder of Askinosie Chocolate. A pioneer of the American craft chocolate movement, Askinosie left a job as a criminal defense attorney to become a chocolate-maker. You’ll relate with his struggle to transition careers and finding work that matters.

September 2019: this podcast hasn’t been updated in a year.

Unwrapped, a Conversation about Chocolate, by Sunita de Toureil and Brian Beyke

UnwrappedWhen two friends who “love to talk about chocolate” want to share their passion, guess what they do? They record their weekly chats and make them available to everyone (yay!). Hosted by Sunita de Toureil, founder of The Chocolate Garage in Palo Alto, California, and Brian Beyke, co-host of the I Brew My Own Coffee podcast, the show covers a variety of topics, from consumer expectations to subscription box business models, all while keeping it very real. The podcast stands out by it very laid-back tone (Brian will occasionally eat a bar during a recording!), making it the perfect road trip companion.

Unwrapped will appeal to chocolate-lovers who already have a good knowledge of the US craft chocolate movement. If you’ve already heard of Areté Fine Chocolate, Stephen DeVries, or Patric Chocolate, then this podcast’s for you.

September 2019: this podcast hasn’t been updated in a year.

Local Mouthful, by Joy Manning and Marisa McClellan

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Finally, I have to give a shout-out to Local Mouthful, a show about “living the food life in Philadelphia and beyond.” Each of the 30-minute weekly show has been helping me go through the Wednesday lunchbox packing duty for well over a year (will I find two snacks by 8:30 AM? Does dark chocolate count as one?). Listening to two food lovers dish about foods of all kinds is a good reminder that there’s a whole other world outside of cacao and chocolate. Local Mouthful keeps me up-to-date with food news, helps me discover new cookbooks,  and even inspires me to make pierogis from scratch.  Now, if Joy and Marisa would devote a whole show to chocolate, that would make my Wednesdays extra sweet.

* Affiliate links.

Estelle TracyLeave a comment