The Whiter the Chocolate

There are chocolate snobs who won't eat anything under 85%, aficionados who turn down their noses at milk chocolate and purists who scoff at exotic fillings. So where does that leave white chocolate? I'd say at the bottom of the heap. Many don't even consider white chocolate to be chocolate because it's pure cocoa butter and not one bit of cacao. White chocolate is never a popular option on our chocolate tours. But walk into any Swiss or Belgian chocolate shop, and you will find white chocolate galore - not just at Easter.

But what about the white chocolate bar? If you've traveled to England, you've no doubt tried a Milky Bar, but far better alternatives exist. In fact, small batch artisan chocolate makers, like Askinosie, are tackling white chocolate with the same rigorous attention to ingredients and methods shown in their dark chocolate bars. Last week I assembled a tasting panel of sleep-deprived mothers to sample some of the best. Here are our favorites:

1) Amedei Cioccolato al Latte Bianco, $11.95
If you crave pure, unadorned white chocolate, then the pricey Amedei bar cannot be beat. It is rich, silky and creamy - all things that pure white chocolate should be. I first learned of the sibling pair (Cecilia and Alessio Tessieri) who own Amedei in Mort Rosenblum's excellent book, Chocolate: A Bittersweet Saga Of Dark and Light. Unlike most chocolate companies, they are involved in the entire chocolate making process, from drying and fermenting beans on the plantation to conching and tempering in their Tuscany factory. We preferred Amedei to other plain white chocolate bars like Green & Blacks and Chocovic.


2) Askinosie, $7.50
In June, Shawn Askinosie (whose company is based in Springfield, Missouri) unveiled three artisan white chocolate bars. They are unique in that the cocoa butter used all comes from one particular plantation - meaning that it can actually be called "single origin" white chocolate. Since the taste of cocoa butter really doesn't vary as much as the taste of cacao from region to region, I'm not all that impressed by his single origin concept. But I do like some of the flavor combinations he's developed. And we can all feel good about enjoying Askinosie because they give cacao farmers a "stake in the outcome."

* The White Chocolate bar - Not as sweet, luscious and creamy as the Amedei bar. The pale golden color is unlike any other white chocolate I've tasted. This was not a huge hit.
* The Nibble Bar - This was a big favorite. The crunchiness of the cacao nibs (and of course the chocolate flavor) is a perfect contrast next to the smooth white chocolate.
* The Pistachio Bar - We liked the addition of organic, salted pistachios to white chocolate. The flavor of a pistachio is quite mild so it does not overpower the taste of the white chocolate. But we preferred the crunchier texture of the Nibble Bar.


3) Vosges D'Oliva Exotic Bar, $7.50
Katrina Markoff's contribution to the white chocolate world is this kalamata olive and white chocolate bar. Olives and chocolate - we all expected to hate this! But it was surprisingly good. The salty, subtle taste of olives was a nice counterpart to the creamy white chocolate. We feel very good about eating Vosges chocolate because, in a sea of male-owned chocolate companies, Markoff is one of the only women. And we appreciate Vosges' dedication to being a "green" business.


4) Chocolat Weiss White Chocolate with Red-Fruit Bar, $5.25
One can only eat so much pure white chocolate. That's why we were happiest with the bars that combined white chocolate with another tasty ingredient, in this case raspberries, strawberries and cherries. We thought the tart red fruits were an ideal match with sweet white chocolate. A bit of lemon provides a little more acid. And Weiss takes the award for most elegant packaging; this slim silver and pink bar would make an excellent gift. Weiss is a French company that has been around since 1882. Chocosphere carries a wide selection of Weiss bars.

Starbucks Milk Chocolate: maybe stick to lattes

I love Starbucks. I know I should be supporting those mom and pop neighborhood coffee shops, but there is something about the green siren logo that just draws me in. When I spent a sleepless semester studying theater in London, Starbucks was my savior. Something familiar, a cozy place to juice up before hitting another 4 hour long Shakespearean production. After having my first child, walking to Starbucks for a nonfat latte was the best part of my day (provided he didn't wake up screaming the moment it was served!). And when I taught high school English, the Mill Valley Starbucks shop gave me the courage and energy to get through another day of cajoling freshmen into reading Great Expectations.

And so I was not opposed to Starbucks entering the world of fine chocolate. Would I eat chocolate with my coffee? Most definitely not. But if I'm wandering the Tenderloin before an ACT production, desperate for a sweet treat, Starbucks chocolate could be just the answer.

I was not surprised to find that most of the Starbucks chocolate sold at my local Safeway (and not my Starbucks!) contains coffee. There is a mocha bar and packages of truffles with flavors like milk chocolate mocha, dark chocolate espresso, and milk chocolate chai. I decided to taste the milk chocolate bar first, while comparing it to some other milk chocolate bars I had in my chocolate stash. The objects of comparison? Green and Black milk chocolate and Scharffen Berger milk chocolate. Since Artisan Confections (Hershey's high end line, which includes Scharffen Berger) actually makes Starbucks chocolate, I had somewhat high expectations. I had also heard rumors that the Starbucks milk tastes exactly like the Scharffen Berger milk.

That rumor couldn't be further from the truth. We found the Starbucks chocolate surprisingly flat, with a sickly sweet aftertaste reminiscent of a candy bar. It was nothing like the mellow tones of caramel and honey I enjoy in the Scharffen Berger milk. I even preferred the sweet Green and Blacks milk to Starbucks. And of course, there are other milk bars out there (like the Michel Cluizel Mangaro ) with a much richer flavor, with fruity notes and high cacao percentages that even appeal to dark chocolate lovers. Starbucks does not publish information on cacao percentage or bean origin on the labels of their chocolate bars. Clearly, they're not focusing on a high end market.

When I'm in the mood for some sweet filled chocolate and need an energy boost, maybe I'll pick up some of the Starbucks truffles. (Too bad they don't sell them by the piece in their coffee shops.) But when it comes to bars, I'll stick to my old favorites and stick to lattes at Starbucks.

Chocolate for Mother's Day: Think Pink!

Just as newborn girls are given mounds of pink dresses and onesies, on Mother's Day we moms are treated to pink cards, pink flowers and yes, even pink chocolate. I've spent the last couple days searching online for the best Mother's Day chocolate gifts (aside from the SF Gourmet Chocolate Tour, of course!). For the past two weeks, I've been getting emails from local and national chocolate companies touting new products or special offers or just simply reminding me why chocolate is the perfect gift for Mom. When I visited most of these web sites, I was a little disappointed by the lack of creativity. After all, this is Chocolate's last big holiday before a long, long summer of quiet sales.

For example, visit a See's right now and you'll be assaulted by Pink. Their Mother's Day Keepsake Box ($14.95) is shiny pink, wrapped in pink ribbon and topped with a giant pink and purple flower. The chocolate assortment includes 4 pink foil covered milk chocolates. Perfect for grandma maybe, but not for the modern Mom.

Here are my three favorite chocolate Mother's Day gifts, followed by a couple honorable mentions.
1) The Chuao ChocoPod Purse
I love this gift because it involves a fashion accessory no woman can get enough of and chocolate. Did I mention the purse is not even pink? Chuao says the mini purse is inspired by the Louis Vuitton Multicolore Murakami design, and indeed it looks stylish enough for a Gossip Girl episode. The purse is filled with 3 "ChocoPods" in banana, passion fruit and strawberry. I've never tried Chuao "ChocoPods" and as an adamant non-dieter, am wary of their description: "slim, 60 calorie, 11-gram bars." But it's very clever marketing that I'm guessing would be successful in Southern California. At $4.75 the ChocoPod Purse is a bargain, and deserves to be combined with something else, like their "ChocolateSmarts" cards or their "Elegancia Jewelry Box."
Chuao (pronounced chew-WOW) is a chocolate company founded in 2002 by two Venezuelan brothers in San Diego. The name comes from the renowned cacao-producing region in central Venezuela. Here in the Bay Area you can find their chocolates at Cost Plus, Whole Foods, Bristol Foods and even Safeway.

2) Vosges Mother's Day Hat Box
Given Katrina Markoff's penchant for purple, I can't expect her Mother's Day offerings to take leave entirely of the pastel world. With a fun nod to an old fashioned ideal of motherhood, Vosges takes a beautiful hat box and fills it with sweet chocolates whose names are meant to appeal to women. (No wasabi or bacon in this one!) For $95, Mom will enjoy Caramel Toffee and an Exotic Caramel box, plus Bianca Couture Cocoa (white chocolate with lemon myrtle and lavender). The hatbox also includes the new Les Fleurs du Chocolat Collection, which will save you money on flowers too. Each truffle is topped with an organic flower petal: marigold, nasturtium, rose and orchid.

Katrina's description of her inspiration is worth repeating simply for her colorful adjectives:
"I had conjured up an image of a free-spirited lady who traveled the globe seeking out the avant-garde, obscure, traditional and elegant. She would embody a classy-yet-edgy style all of her own, a little quirky yet polished at the same time. Then I saw a pile of vintage hatboxes at the Broadway Antique Mart and thought: ah, perfect. The Vosges Haut-Chocolat boîte à chapeau is meant to evoke this lovely lady, her luxury, her travels, her individuality."


3) Recchiuti Burnt Caramels
The product itself is nothing new. Michael Recchiuti has been making his signature burnt caramels for a long time, and they get re-packaged nearly every holiday season with new designs. But this is one design I love! The colors are stylish yet understated - pale green, white and brown. There is a modern silhouette of a flower on one, but no curlicues or ruffles, thank you. The 8 piece collection sells for $19.00.

If you're still not satisfied, I'd also recommend the Charles Chocolate Mother's Day Collection. This $60 edible chocolate box is filled with peanut butterflies, fleur de sels and Poire Williams caramel - many topped with a tasteful pink flower motif. Each Mother's Day gift comes with a free letterpress greeting card. For a more traditional chocolate gift, Joseph Schmidt offers the Floral Vase Box for $35. It's shaped like a bouquet and has some flavors that would make the French faint: peanut butter & jelly, orange sherbert and double latte.

The San Francisco International Chocolate Salon

The words "Chocolate Salon" conjure up images of quiet sophistication to me - French men in suits and women in little black dresses taking measured bites of chocolate and making careful notes while the chocolatiers squirm, hoping for a fine review. Maybe somewhere this European fantasy of mine exists, but it wasn't to be last Sunday at the 2nd Annual San Francisco International Chocolate Salon.

I love that Taste TV has brought the concept of a Chocolate Salon to San Francisco. Judging by the lines that snaked around the Fort Mason buildings all the way to the parking entrance, there is real interest among local chocolate lovers. On such an unusually warm day, hopeful attendees read books and socialized while waiting to be let into the two stuffy meeting rooms that were crammed almost shoulder to shoulder with people. No doubt the price was right - $20 for as much chocolate as you could snatch from over 40 fine local chocolatiers.

As a member of the tasting panel (not to mention 8 months pregnant!), I was grateful to skip the line and bring my Gourmet Walks tour guides with me. There were some unusual diversions - chocolate hair styling, chocolate body art - scheduled for Sunday morning, but I headed straight for the chocolate so I could somehow fulfill my duty of choosing winners for at least 15 different categories before my palate was hopelessly confused.

I met up with some old favorites, including several chocolatiers who were present at the Singles Chocolate Salon this fall: XOX, Sacred, the Xocolate Bar. But there were also many new participants, including big names like Scharffen Berger, Ghirardelli and Guittard. My favorite part was getting the chance to chat with many of the actual chocolatiers. I met the talented Christopher Elbow, whose Hayes Street shop is his first retail location to open outside of Kansas City. Art Pollard was there, of the much acclaimed Amano Chocolate, who won the "Best Dark" award both last year and this year. I enjoyed talking with Charles Siegel of Charles Chocolates, whose delicious chocolate covered matzoh I'll be sampling for tomorrow's seder. And finally, the founder of Choco-Luxe shared with me her plans to open a shop in the Haight this summer.

I sampled as much as I could, and made note of one smart strategy - two women brought tupperware containers to fully stock up on chocolate from just about every booth. Wise, but it just doesn't seem fair! In the midst of all the freebies, some of the chocolatiers were making sales, including Cosmic Chocolates and their sleeper hit: the Obama truffle. There is Obama's smiling face in blue cocoa butter, surrounding a creamy espresso and cognac ganache center. Very masculine - and no plans yet for a Hillary. Apparently Cosmic sees a big spike in orders every time a new primary hits. I was intrigued by a new company, Jade Chocolates, whose spectacular packaging is all organic and recyclable. They specialize in flavored chocolates using fine ingredients from Asia and the Pacific Islands. I tried the "Dragon's Breath" bar, composed of 65% cacao, roasted sesame seeds, lapang souchong and ground red chili. Too spicy for me, but fans of Katrina Markoff's Vosges bars may find these exotic bars appealing.

And the winners? It looks like Taste TV wisely wittled down the long list of categories to what is listed below. I found we agreed on everything except "Most Luxurious Chocolate" - a confusing category for the average chocolate enthusiast.

Best Dark Chocolate: Amano Artisan Chocolate
Best Milk Chocolate: Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker
Best Truffle: XOX Truffles
Most Luxurious Chocolate Experience: XOX Truffles
Best Dark Chocolate Bar: Amano Artisan Chocolate
Best Organic or Fair Trade Products: Sacred Chocolate
Most Gifted Chocolatier: Christopher Elbow Artisanal Chocolate
Complimentary Mention: Trader Joe's Bottled Water
Not an Award but Needs to be Mentioned: Obama Chocolates by Cosmic Chocolates

I was glad to hear that Taste TV plans on another SF Chocolate Salon next year, but with a few improvements - including a bigger space, and maybe raising the entrance fee. In the meantime, how can I get myself and 3 kids to the Salon Du Chocolat in Paris this fall?

Review: In Search of the Heart of Chocolate

Can you be a chocolate addict? Can chocolate enhance your love life? Are the regulars who shop at Chocolate Covered more than just a little bizarre? These are the questions Sarah Feinbloom begins to explore in her "chocumentary," In Search of the Heart of Chocolate. The film was perfectly timed to be released on Valentine's Day, with chocolate tastings and discussions at the San Francisco premiere. And although I was out of the country that week, Feinbloom was kind enough to send me a copy.

The film's luxurious subject and humorous tone is far removed from the subjects Feinbloom usually tackles in her documentaries (e.g., child trafficking, youth violence, religion). While she could have focused on plantation slave labor or the rise of organic chocolate, she sticks to a more complicated topic - what is it about chocolate that provokes such passion, such intensity, such love? And the results are a lot of fun to watch.

After making the acquaintance of Jack Epstein, the owner of Noe Valley's Chocolate Covered, Feinbloom is introduced to a number of San Francisco chocolate aficionados whose interviews appear in the film. She intersperses clips of these interviews with slices of her own chocolate past and a bit of information on chocolate history and production. Feinbloom confesses that she is a chocoholic (and why we would trust this kind of film made by anyone else!) and dramatizes one pivotal event from her chocolate-laden childhood; her mother wakes her late at night and they sit at the kitchen table surreptitiously eating chocolate sauce with a spoon right out of the jar.

But rather than lecture us on her own chocolate preferences and habits, Feinbloom keeps us laughing by showcasing the quirky Chocolate Covered customers who seem to live for chocolate. Epstein, who admits he prefers greasy and salty foods like potato chips to chocolate, actually offers his own kind of "therapy" for customers who can't deal with the guilt or have no understanding of moderation when it comes to consuming chocolate. And although he encounters plenty of SF locals who can't go a day without chocolate, he is opposed to using the word "addict." I've read the studies too that show chocolate cannot be addictive, but Feinbloom's interviews do make me think twice.

Feinbloom introduces us to the "100 percenter," otherwise known as Richard, an ex-hippie turned serious chocolate connoisseur who approaches tasting chocolate with an almost scary intensity. As he suckles his 100% Domori (an acquired taste, he admits), Richard clues Feinbloom into the psychoanalytic qualities of this chocolate. He insists that the colors in his garden become brighter and more intense, as Feinbloom zooms in to capture this effect. Much like an interview on The Daily Show, Feinbloom need do very little but let her subjects talk. What we get is pure entertainment.

And then there is Suzanne, whose chocolate routine consists of eating chocolate in the morning, in the afternoon and at night. She begins by asking Feinbloom to sample one of her favorite dark bars, but it doesn't take long before she is pointing out the chocolate colored paints she favors and a new chocolate colored sweater - both testament to her obsession. She fingers the delicate brown beading on the sweater with as much care as the chocolate bars she buys nearly every day from Chocolate Covered. At the end of the interview, she says "I could stop though," but we all know the truth.

I encounter a wide range of chocolate lovers and fanatics on my Chocolate Tours, but never anyone quite as interesting as Suzanne and Richard. This is the gritty, authentic (and foggy) world of chocolate - a long way from the slick downtown boutiques we visit on my tours. Chocolate Covered is actually on the basement level, lacking artfully designed window displays or tables for late-night drinking chocolate parties. I thank Sarah Feinbloom for bringing us this nugget of San Francisco chocolate life.

If you're interested in watching the film for yourself, it's available for purchase on her web site for $19.99, plus shipping and handling. The film is 25 minutes long.
It will also be screened at the San Francisco International Chocolate Salon on April 13th. Feinbloom and I will both be members of the "Tasting Panel," and I'm looking forward to meeting her.

Christopher Elbow on Hayes

It's 9 pm on a Friday night and you're due to meet a friend for a drink in Hayes Valley. Maybe you're pregnant, or your friend is 12, or maybe you're just looking for something a little different and non-alcoholic - that's where the new Christopher Elbow Chocolate Bar makes perfect sense.

Located on the corner of Hayes and Gough, the Christopher Elbow boutique opened in February with a chocolate counter and a separate bar area that is open until 10 pm. The decor is minimalist and sleek, with the rich reds and browns that make their packaging so distinct. The bar looks like a "chill-out" lounge area in a club, and makes me wonder if chocolate martinis are on the horizon. But for now, they offer a drinking chocolate menu with a wide variety of flavors, including "chinese 5 spice," "coconut curry," and "peanut butter." Purists can simply order hot chocolate American or European style, a mocha, or an extra dark. All drinks are priced at $4.50.

According to Elbow, his chocolate powder is made from pure ground El Rey chocolate. Good choice!

I've always enjoyed pointing out Christopher Elbow chocolate on my Tours because guests are so impressed by their beautiful, artistic appearance. Nowhere else in San Francisco can you find such vivid colors and glossy sheens on filled chocolates. I know many classic French or Swiss chocolatiers would scoff at the designs and flavor combinations, but Christopher Elbow appeals to plenty of Americans who want more than a simple "palet d'or."

I sampled a 9 piece box of chocolates from Elbow's Fall/Winter Collection for $20. I like the fact that instead of weighing chocolates and charging by the pound, Christopher Elbow chocolates are simply $2 a piece. Of course, you'll save by purchasing the larger boxes (42 for $75) and I always recommend choosing the chocolates yourself to ensure that your box is as fresh as it can be. Some of the chocolates were too goopy and syrupy for my taste, such as the "fleur de sel," the "lavender" and the "cabernet." (I much prefer the Rechiutti version of a fleur de sel with a more solid ganache.) The "bananas foster" made me forget I was even in a chocolate shop. My favorites were the "vanilla bean," the "fresh lime" and any of the 70% cacao ganaches, such as the "Venezuelan dark" and the "Madagascar."

So will the concept of a chocolate bar take off? Time will tell. And while not everything Christopher Elbow sells suits me, I'm very happy that San Francisco is the first retail location Elbow decided to open after his Kansas City flagship store. Elbow is young and not afraid to experiment. I look forward to sampling his Spring/Summer collection!

Get Your Belgian Chocolate Fix at Leonidas SF

Why buy your secretary another box of Godiva chocolates when there is a new Leonidas in the city? If you love Belgian chocolate, visit Leonidas in their spacious new shop on the ground level of the Crocker Galleria. Your dollar will also go much further at Leonidas, whose $30/pound price is so incredibly reasonable in the world of imported international chocolates. If you don't know what makes Belgian chocolate different from any other kind of chocolate, read on...

Belgians love rich, sweet and creamy filled chocolates. In fact, it was the Belgians (Jean Neuhaus) who first invented the filled chocolate in 1912 and named it a "praline." (Not the same as praliné, which is a mixture of hazelnut and chocolate.) Jean's wife invented the chocolate box (or ballotin) a few years later. Can you imagine the world of high and low end chocolate today without the beautiful packaging and exotic flavors? If you're still not convinced of Belgian's chocolate heritage, just take a look at the amazing number of chocolate museums, demonstrations, events and tours this country offers.

The Leonidas shop offers a wide selection of truffles, butter creams, pralines and liquor-filled chocolates. Unlike the other chocolate shops we visit on our tours, they have creative names for each piece. For example, the "Desiree" is white chocolate with butter cream and pineapple. Yes, the Belgians and the Swiss do not turn their noses up at white chocolate! Or the "Mystere," a dark chocolate butter cream with pistachio. (Wasn't that a Cirque du Soleil hit?) I like the Carré Croquant, a milk chocolate praliné with crisp rice (as in chocolate rice krispie treat!) It's also worth trying their "Pearls," or round chocolate balls that resemble the classic French truffle. Some are dipped in cocoa powder, others in coconut or powder sugar.

Like most of the new chocolate shops, Leonidas also offers a drink menu. What I love is that each drink comes with a free piece of filled chocolate! They say the hot chocolate is made from melted chocolate with steamed milk. It is good, but definitely not the best I've had in the city. It would be great if Leonidas, like Schoggi and Christopher Elbow, had tables and chairs to sit and sip. The modern, clean interior is welcoming and never very crowded. But with the Crocker Galleria tables and heat lamps just outside the shop, there are plenty of spots to linger and enjoy your Belgian treats.