Yearning for milky, creamy imported Swiss chocolate? Teuscher now has some competition in San Francisco - Schoggi. This new boutique is tucked behind the Four Seasons on Yerba Buena Lane. The pedestrian street is on its way to becoming a foodie haven, with Japan's Beard Papa and a new wine bar, The Press Club, scheduled to open in a few months.
The name "Schoggi" comes from the Swiss-German word for chocolate. (Who knew?) When I stopped by on a Wednesday afternoon, the shop was a serene oasis from the bustle of Market Street and Westfield Center. Schoggi's long marble counter ensures each artfully displayed chocolate has plenty of breathing room. Unlike the small, crowded chocolate shops in Union Square, Schoggi offers tables, chairs and even a unisex restroom. It's a great place to enjoy a cup of coffee or hot chocolate in peace. The smooth, blonde wood and tall ceilings create a modern feel not often associated with Swiss chocolates.
At $65 a pound, Schoggi is not inexpensive - but still less than Teuscher's current $78 a pound. Like most international chocolatiers, Schoggi produces their chocolate in Switzerland, "using an old family recipe" according to the manager. But so far San Francisco is their only retail location. I tried a variety of truffles, but my favorite was the Schoggi "ice square." The subtle mint flavor was refreshing, especially after lunch.
I'll return to Schoggi, and may even consider adding them to my chocolate tours. And the next international chocolate shop scheduled to open in SF? Leonidas. Stay tuned...
Friday, January 25, 2008
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Sugar-free Chocolate
I often get inquiries from customers on my Chocolate Tours about sugar-free chocolate. While I tend to stay away from anything labeled "sugar-free," "fat free" or "low carb," I do know that Fog City News offers the best sugar-free selection I've seen in San Francisco. Up until last Wednesday, I hadn't a clue whether the bars even tasted like chocolate. Something about the use of malitol as a sweetener still makes me hesitate.
The Chronicle's weekly "Taster's Choice" was dedicated to sugar free bars. They sampled 11 varieties, most from Fog City News, and came up with two winners: Michael Mischer and Charlemagne. Surprisingly, third place went to Godiva, not a typical favorite of chocolate connoisseurs. If you hit Fog City sometime in the next week or so, you might even get a free sample.
Check out the full report on SF Gate.
The Chronicle's weekly "Taster's Choice" was dedicated to sugar free bars. They sampled 11 varieties, most from Fog City News, and came up with two winners: Michael Mischer and Charlemagne. Surprisingly, third place went to Godiva, not a typical favorite of chocolate connoisseurs. If you hit Fog City sometime in the next week or so, you might even get a free sample.
Check out the full report on SF Gate.
Friday, December 14, 2007
What is it about a British Candy Bar?
Every so often I meet someone on my Chocolate Tours who has no interest in the "fancy stuff." Unimpressed by a Recchiuti burnt caramel truffle, bored by a Scharffen Berger bittersweet nibby bar, appalled by a Richart carrot coulis - he wants something sweet. And most Americans have grown up equating chocolate with sugar. After all, if Hershey's contains less than 10% cacao, it's no mystery what's in the rest of it.
But we aren't the only country addicted to sweet candy bars. A visit to the newly opened Fiona's Sweetshoppe in Union Square reminded me that the British candy bar is in no danger of being steamrolled by the artisan chocolate movement. Curly Wurlys, Milky Bars, Crunchies, Mars Bars, the Cadbury Flake - Fiona carries them all and they are selling. This miniature shop is really dedicated to candy first and foremost. Fiona, a British MD on leave, is surrounded by glass jars of candy with the most beguiling names: "liquorice broomsticks," "coconut mushrooms," "sherbet strawberries," and "toffeed brazils." It is an expat's paradise; in my short visit I witnessed several women pop in for particular tastes they enjoyed from their childhood, but can't find anywhere else in San Francisco.
This summer Kim Severson at the NY Times reported on the obsessive pride many Brits have for their kind of candy bars. They turn up their noses at Hershey, pointing out a waxy taste that will never match rich, creamy British bars. Both have plenty of vegetable fat, sugar and artificial flavors, but the owner of Tea and Sympathy claims that the British use fewer stabilizers and that's why their bars taste better.
Before I left the store, Fiona offered me a "Fry's Turkish Delight" bar - something I remembered from the British novels I used to curl up with as a child...Ah yes, the Chronicles of Narnia! Edmond is seduced by the White Witch when she offers him as much Turkish Delight as he can eat. (Liesl Schillinger wrote a funny piece for Slate on this titled "The Lion, the Witch and the Really Foul Candy") Now that's a bargain that wouldn't go far with any American child, for whom flowers and chocolate just don't mix. The Turkish Delight bar is simply rose flavored jelly surrounded by milk chocolate. Just one sniff convinced me to repurpose it as a 6th night of Chanukah gift for my husband, who said it tasted like soap. Old chocolate habits die hard.
But we aren't the only country addicted to sweet candy bars. A visit to the newly opened Fiona's Sweetshoppe in Union Square reminded me that the British candy bar is in no danger of being steamrolled by the artisan chocolate movement. Curly Wurlys, Milky Bars, Crunchies, Mars Bars, the Cadbury Flake - Fiona carries them all and they are selling. This miniature shop is really dedicated to candy first and foremost. Fiona, a British MD on leave, is surrounded by glass jars of candy with the most beguiling names: "liquorice broomsticks," "coconut mushrooms," "sherbet strawberries," and "toffeed brazils." It is an expat's paradise; in my short visit I witnessed several women pop in for particular tastes they enjoyed from their childhood, but can't find anywhere else in San Francisco.
This summer Kim Severson at the NY Times reported on the obsessive pride many Brits have for their kind of candy bars. They turn up their noses at Hershey, pointing out a waxy taste that will never match rich, creamy British bars. Both have plenty of vegetable fat, sugar and artificial flavors, but the owner of Tea and Sympathy claims that the British use fewer stabilizers and that's why their bars taste better.
Before I left the store, Fiona offered me a "Fry's Turkish Delight" bar - something I remembered from the British novels I used to curl up with as a child...Ah yes, the Chronicles of Narnia! Edmond is seduced by the White Witch when she offers him as much Turkish Delight as he can eat. (Liesl Schillinger wrote a funny piece for Slate on this titled "The Lion, the Witch and the Really Foul Candy") Now that's a bargain that wouldn't go far with any American child, for whom flowers and chocolate just don't mix. The Turkish Delight bar is simply rose flavored jelly surrounded by milk chocolate. Just one sniff convinced me to repurpose it as a 6th night of Chanukah gift for my husband, who said it tasted like soap. Old chocolate habits die hard.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Produce Aisle Meets Chocolate Box: Richart's Festive Garden
Gingerbread, peppermint, cranberry...Ah, the comforting but predictable flavors of the holiday season. "Mais non!" says Michel Richart. The "Festive Garden" holiday collection that debuted last week at Richart includes potato, celery root, tomato, carrot and corn. Despite its old school origins, Richart prides itself on pushing the envelope with flavor and form. But this time, have they gone too far?
On Friday evening I attended a Tasting Party at Richart's Union Square boutique. Francophiles and chocophiles enjoyed glasses of port and zinfindel while trying to decode the new flavors laid out for sampling. Like the Petit Richart collection, the Festive Garden chocolates are all exactly the same size, but it takes some pattern recognition, color matching and French translation to figure out what exactly you are going to eat.
I must confess that when it comes to chocolate, I am not a swashbuckling adventurer. Chocolate falls into the dessert category, and I like my desserts sweet. Some of the notorious Vosges bars (with bacon, curry and wasabi) are still languishing in my cupboard uneaten. But I did enjoy some of the milder flavor combinations from the Festive Garden:
* Caramelized celery root coulis on a bed of ganache flavored with mild spices
* Pear coulis on a bed of cassis de Dijon ganache (Dijon the town, not the mustard!)
* Pumpkin coulis on a bed of chamomile flower ganache
My least favorite was the "tomato on a bed of basil ganache." Even though I stopped by the party before dinner, I still wasn't quite ready for an appetizer! After trying the "kalamanzi in soy milk ganache on a bed of carrot coulis," one of my companions noted "it was like someone hid the baby food in my truffle." Yet my French friend could not get enough of these chocolates, dashing back for just one more sample when the saleswoman disappeared momentarily. Although these flavors have not scored highly for clients on my San Francisco Gourmet Chocolate Tour, the manager of the San Francisco boutique assures me that overall customer response has been quite good.
The Festive Garden collection costs $74.50 for the large 37 piece box and $33 for the small 16 piece collection. At an average of $120/pound, Richart is likely the most expensive chocolate in San Francisco. But where else can you find a little kalamanzi in your chocolate?
On Friday evening I attended a Tasting Party at Richart's Union Square boutique. Francophiles and chocophiles enjoyed glasses of port and zinfindel while trying to decode the new flavors laid out for sampling. Like the Petit Richart collection, the Festive Garden chocolates are all exactly the same size, but it takes some pattern recognition, color matching and French translation to figure out what exactly you are going to eat.
I must confess that when it comes to chocolate, I am not a swashbuckling adventurer. Chocolate falls into the dessert category, and I like my desserts sweet. Some of the notorious Vosges bars (with bacon, curry and wasabi) are still languishing in my cupboard uneaten. But I did enjoy some of the milder flavor combinations from the Festive Garden:
* Caramelized celery root coulis on a bed of ganache flavored with mild spices
* Pear coulis on a bed of cassis de Dijon ganache (Dijon the town, not the mustard!)
* Pumpkin coulis on a bed of chamomile flower ganache
My least favorite was the "tomato on a bed of basil ganache." Even though I stopped by the party before dinner, I still wasn't quite ready for an appetizer! After trying the "kalamanzi in soy milk ganache on a bed of carrot coulis," one of my companions noted "it was like someone hid the baby food in my truffle." Yet my French friend could not get enough of these chocolates, dashing back for just one more sample when the saleswoman disappeared momentarily. Although these flavors have not scored highly for clients on my San Francisco Gourmet Chocolate Tour, the manager of the San Francisco boutique assures me that overall customer response has been quite good.
The Festive Garden collection costs $74.50 for the large 37 piece box and $33 for the small 16 piece collection. At an average of $120/pound, Richart is likely the most expensive chocolate in San Francisco. But where else can you find a little kalamanzi in your chocolate?
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
A Chocolatey Walk down Chestnut
On a sunny weekday morning when parking is plentiful, try taking a walk down Chestnut Street and sampling the Marina's best chocolate boutiques. Last week I began with a cup of the "Venetian hot chocolate" at the Emporio Rulli Gran Caffe, at Chestnut and Scott. This stuff is thick and rich, though the brand of chocolate used is reportedly "top secret." The Rulli empire (with locations now in Union Square, Larkspur and SFO) offers some tempting pastries too, but I suggest holding off because there are many more chocolate delights to be sampled.
Walk a couple blocks down Chestnut and pop into Moonstruck Chocolate Cafe. Moonstruck is based in Portland, Oregon and has been around since 1993. With another location in Walnut Creek, the cafes feature Moonstruck's full line of scrumptious looking truffles and a wide range of hot and cold chocolate beverages as well. I sampled Moonstruck's most famous item, the "cream cone." The mini cone is dark chocolate and the ice cream is a French silk cream decorated with pastel icing. These chocolates are decidedly American; in fact Moonstruck is quite proud of having been the official chocolatier for both the 78th and 77th Academy Awards. (And what number are we on now, anyway?)
Cross the street and you'll find a relative newcomer to the Chestnut chocolate scene - Luvbox. This shop is a bit mysterious. They say they don't make their chocolates here, but that they use several different Belgian "suppliers." Yet doing a Google search on the company name led me nowhere. In any case, they offer a range of fresh chocolates and truffles, plus pre-packaged bars and gifts. Their bars mimic the Michael Mischer packaging - a clear plastic box with whole nuts on top of the chocolate This tiny store, decorated in gold and crimson, makes you feel like you are inside a precious jewel box. I especially enjoyed the lemon ganache and the orange chocolate truffle from Luvbox.
And finally, if you've still got a taste for chocolate, I recommend circling back to Scott Street and lining up for Kara's Cupcakes. This adorable shop (perfect for little girls who adore pink) offers at least a couple chocolate cupcakes every day, including the "chocolate velvet," the "Ghirardelli chocolate" and the "vanilla chocolate." At $3 a piece, each cupcake is moist and beautiful. Kara, a Tante Marie cooking school graduate, is especially proud of the local ingredients used in her cupcakes. In fact, I've never seen a place go so far as provide a color coded map outlining exactly where each ingredient was sourced, from the "diamond crystal salt" in Newark to the Clover dairy products in Petaluma. The chocolate she uses includes Ghirardelli, Scharffen Berger and (sometimes!) Callebaut.
Our San Francisco Gourmet Chocolate Tour covers downtown San Francisco right now, but it's possible we'll add a Marina tour in the future. We may even combine it with a wine tasting at Bin 38 or Nectar. Email me with your thoughts!
Walk a couple blocks down Chestnut and pop into Moonstruck Chocolate Cafe. Moonstruck is based in Portland, Oregon and has been around since 1993. With another location in Walnut Creek, the cafes feature Moonstruck's full line of scrumptious looking truffles and a wide range of hot and cold chocolate beverages as well. I sampled Moonstruck's most famous item, the "cream cone." The mini cone is dark chocolate and the ice cream is a French silk cream decorated with pastel icing. These chocolates are decidedly American; in fact Moonstruck is quite proud of having been the official chocolatier for both the 78th and 77th Academy Awards. (And what number are we on now, anyway?)
Cross the street and you'll find a relative newcomer to the Chestnut chocolate scene - Luvbox. This shop is a bit mysterious. They say they don't make their chocolates here, but that they use several different Belgian "suppliers." Yet doing a Google search on the company name led me nowhere. In any case, they offer a range of fresh chocolates and truffles, plus pre-packaged bars and gifts. Their bars mimic the Michael Mischer packaging - a clear plastic box with whole nuts on top of the chocolate This tiny store, decorated in gold and crimson, makes you feel like you are inside a precious jewel box. I especially enjoyed the lemon ganache and the orange chocolate truffle from Luvbox.
And finally, if you've still got a taste for chocolate, I recommend circling back to Scott Street and lining up for Kara's Cupcakes. This adorable shop (perfect for little girls who adore pink) offers at least a couple chocolate cupcakes every day, including the "chocolate velvet," the "Ghirardelli chocolate" and the "vanilla chocolate." At $3 a piece, each cupcake is moist and beautiful. Kara, a Tante Marie cooking school graduate, is especially proud of the local ingredients used in her cupcakes. In fact, I've never seen a place go so far as provide a color coded map outlining exactly where each ingredient was sourced, from the "diamond crystal salt" in Newark to the Clover dairy products in Petaluma. The chocolate she uses includes Ghirardelli, Scharffen Berger and (sometimes!) Callebaut.
Our San Francisco Gourmet Chocolate Tour covers downtown San Francisco right now, but it's possible we'll add a Marina tour in the future. We may even combine it with a wine tasting at Bin 38 or Nectar. Email me with your thoughts!
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
No Secrets at Charles Chocolate
I've read about those chocolate factories (usually French) where secrecy is paramount. If you're lucky enough to attain a visit, chances are the machines will be covered in sheets and you'll be wearing a blindfold. But not so with Chuck Siegel's factory tours of Charles Chocolates. The 8700 square foot Emeryville factory opened for tours in August of '07 and also features a Chocolate Bar and retail store. Siegel's thinking, which sounds great to me, is to "demystify the art of being a chocolatier" by exposing his work to the general public. This is akin to restaurant open kitchens that became all the rage over a decade ago. Right now, there is nowhere else you can go in the Bay Area to see chocolate confections being made by hand.
Unlike Scharffen Berger, Charles does not let participants don hair nets, touch the chocolate machinery and inhale that peculiar smell of chocolate liquor. That's understandable, since creating confections is less automated than making bars and the chefs are all very focused on their individual tasks. Instead, you'll stand behind tall windows and watch the process unfold as your guide explains each step. Since Charles considers itself an artisanal chocolatier, they make their confections by hand depending on what has been ordered. So your visit to the factory could be different every time.
On my tour (Wednesday at 11:30), the chefs were busy creating gourmet rice krispie treats, peanut butter butterflies and caramel logs coated in peanuts. (Unlike the Swiss, somebody loves peanut over there!) I saw ganache cooling and solidifying before being enrobed in chocolate. I saw the praline being piped into butterfly molds - somewhat tedious when you have an order of over 1000. And I saw vast quantities of caramel logs entering the enrobing machine and exiting coated in chocolate and peanuts. A nice feature of the tour is that your guide can pop in and get you a sample hot off the conveyor belt. You can also inspect the cooking area where chefs whip up everything from fresh lemon meyer marmalade to mint ganache as well as the tempering machines, which allow Charles to process up to 700 pounds of chocolate at a time.
The tour lasts about 20 - 30 minutes and is free. There are two optional tasting packages as well. I sampled the $10 tasting, which gets you 5 pieces of chocolate and a cup of thick drinking chocolate. High rollers can experience the $75 deluxe tour, and you'll go home with an extravagant take-home gift set. I loved the design of the store and appreciated its emphasis on chocolate, unlike Scharffen Berger's endless supply of baby t-shirts and Curious George books. But when I visited the store was empty. I don't know whether Charles can attract enough interest to their Chocolate Bar and tours given the somewhat out-of-the way location, but I hope they do. For the true chocophile, it's certainly worth a visit.
Unlike Scharffen Berger, Charles does not let participants don hair nets, touch the chocolate machinery and inhale that peculiar smell of chocolate liquor. That's understandable, since creating confections is less automated than making bars and the chefs are all very focused on their individual tasks. Instead, you'll stand behind tall windows and watch the process unfold as your guide explains each step. Since Charles considers itself an artisanal chocolatier, they make their confections by hand depending on what has been ordered. So your visit to the factory could be different every time.
On my tour (Wednesday at 11:30), the chefs were busy creating gourmet rice krispie treats, peanut butter butterflies and caramel logs coated in peanuts. (Unlike the Swiss, somebody loves peanut over there!) I saw ganache cooling and solidifying before being enrobed in chocolate. I saw the praline being piped into butterfly molds - somewhat tedious when you have an order of over 1000. And I saw vast quantities of caramel logs entering the enrobing machine and exiting coated in chocolate and peanuts. A nice feature of the tour is that your guide can pop in and get you a sample hot off the conveyor belt. You can also inspect the cooking area where chefs whip up everything from fresh lemon meyer marmalade to mint ganache as well as the tempering machines, which allow Charles to process up to 700 pounds of chocolate at a time.
The tour lasts about 20 - 30 minutes and is free. There are two optional tasting packages as well. I sampled the $10 tasting, which gets you 5 pieces of chocolate and a cup of thick drinking chocolate. High rollers can experience the $75 deluxe tour, and you'll go home with an extravagant take-home gift set. I loved the design of the store and appreciated its emphasis on chocolate, unlike Scharffen Berger's endless supply of baby t-shirts and Curious George books. But when I visited the store was empty. I don't know whether Charles can attract enough interest to their Chocolate Bar and tours given the somewhat out-of-the way location, but I hope they do. For the true chocophile, it's certainly worth a visit.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Two Great Tastes: Gourmet Chocolate and Peanut Butter
Every Halloween my Mom set out a bowl of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups by the front door. We waited and, invariably, no kids came a knocking. Who could blame them? "Hurricane Hill" was almost thirty minutes away from Falmouth's top Halloween destination, the Foreside, where Moms dressed up as witches and you could fill your candy bag in a single block. But no matter, the day after Halloween meant plenty of leftovers. I ate quickly, knowing it would be another year until I could savor the taste of chocolate and peanut butter again.
I've always thought Reese's Peanut Butter Cups were a part of the Hershey empire, but not so at first. In the 1920s, H.B. Reese quit the dairy farm business and moved to Hershey, Pennsylvania to produce peanut butter cups. In the 1930s they sold for just a penny a piece! It wasn't until 1963, when the popularity of the peanut butter cup was well established, that Hershey purchased the H.B. Reese Candy Company for $23.5 million.
Now that I've entered the world of slow, artisan produced, local, organic foods (i.e.,Food Snobbery), a peanut butter cup is a guilty pleasure. And while I still love the taste of peanut butter and chocolate, I don't like to think of all the sugar and additives in each Reese's Cup. So this Halloween I scouted out my favorite SF chocolate shops for the gourmet take on chocolate and peanut butter. While doing so, I learned that this combination is a decidedly American taste. Richart, my favorite French brand, does not dabble in peanut butter. And my gianduja loving friends at Teuscher almost laughed at the idea. "The Swiss consider the peanut an inferior nut, but Americans are always asking for it." And just what makes a nut superior?
My husband and I sampled filled chocolate from 6 different companies, and here are our finds:
#1 - Our Favorite
Joseph Schmidt Peanut Butter Chocolate Prailine
Schmidt's signature egg-shaped truffles are hard to resist. We liked this one the best because it didn't try to do too much with a classic flavor combination. Under the milk chocolate couverture, the dark chocolate forms a thin shell around the creamy peanut butter center. Yum!
#2 - Second Best
See's Peanut Butter Cup
I'm not a huge See's fan, but I knew they would succeed with an American favorite. See's offers, not one, but three chocolate peanut butter combinations. The saleswoman said "this one tastes like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, this one tastes like a Snickers and this one tastes like a Butterfinger." In that case, why don't I save my money and go by some candy bars? We liked the round peanut butter cup best, and actually didn't mind the 50 cents price - a bargain in the gourmet chocolate world!
#3
Vosges Organic Peanut Butter Bonbons
I am a sucker for marketing, and am always drawn to Vosges and their seductive packaging. Their copywriting is over the top but fun to read: "The Outcome: unparalleled, rich peanut butter-goodness, enhanced and intensified on your palate by mineral salt. Old fashioned tradition meets slight obsession." If only they had held back on some of those mineral salts. We felt Vosges went a little crazy with the pink Himalayan salt and the Fleur de Sel salt - too much, too jarring a taste next to the peanut butter and chocolate. Available at Fog City News.
#4
Recchiutti Peanut Butter Puck
I was prepared to love the Peanut Butter Puck, which Recchiutti tells me is always a best-seller in the fall. This enormous truffle is meant to resemble a hockey puck, a perfect shape for an American pleasure. But there was a peculiar taste to the filling, maybe it was simply the Fleur de Sel, that led us to leave much of it in its wrapper.
#5
Godiva Peanut Butter Cup
Godiva's "fresh" peanut butter cups were the real losers in our tasting. And at $4 a piece, they were also the most expensive. Godiva lays these treasures out by the window next to the chocolate covered strawberries and the pot of melted chocolate. Each is a large dark (or milk) chocolate oval filled with peanut butter and decorated with thin stripes of chocolate on top. It tastes simply like gooey natural peanut butter on a piece of chocolate, and it is very messy.
Next time the chocolate peanut butter urge hits, I hope you'll try some of the gourmet options I've suggested. And leave the Reese's for the Harry Potters and the Princesses with simpler tastes!
I've always thought Reese's Peanut Butter Cups were a part of the Hershey empire, but not so at first. In the 1920s, H.B. Reese quit the dairy farm business and moved to Hershey, Pennsylvania to produce peanut butter cups. In the 1930s they sold for just a penny a piece! It wasn't until 1963, when the popularity of the peanut butter cup was well established, that Hershey purchased the H.B. Reese Candy Company for $23.5 million.
Now that I've entered the world of slow, artisan produced, local, organic foods (i.e.,Food Snobbery), a peanut butter cup is a guilty pleasure. And while I still love the taste of peanut butter and chocolate, I don't like to think of all the sugar and additives in each Reese's Cup. So this Halloween I scouted out my favorite SF chocolate shops for the gourmet take on chocolate and peanut butter. While doing so, I learned that this combination is a decidedly American taste. Richart, my favorite French brand, does not dabble in peanut butter. And my gianduja loving friends at Teuscher almost laughed at the idea. "The Swiss consider the peanut an inferior nut, but Americans are always asking for it." And just what makes a nut superior?
My husband and I sampled filled chocolate from 6 different companies, and here are our finds:
#1 - Our Favorite
Joseph Schmidt Peanut Butter Chocolate Prailine
Schmidt's signature egg-shaped truffles are hard to resist. We liked this one the best because it didn't try to do too much with a classic flavor combination. Under the milk chocolate couverture, the dark chocolate forms a thin shell around the creamy peanut butter center. Yum!
#2 - Second Best
See's Peanut Butter Cup
I'm not a huge See's fan, but I knew they would succeed with an American favorite. See's offers, not one, but three chocolate peanut butter combinations. The saleswoman said "this one tastes like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, this one tastes like a Snickers and this one tastes like a Butterfinger." In that case, why don't I save my money and go by some candy bars? We liked the round peanut butter cup best, and actually didn't mind the 50 cents price - a bargain in the gourmet chocolate world!
#3
Vosges Organic Peanut Butter Bonbons
I am a sucker for marketing, and am always drawn to Vosges and their seductive packaging. Their copywriting is over the top but fun to read: "The Outcome: unparalleled, rich peanut butter-goodness, enhanced and intensified on your palate by mineral salt. Old fashioned tradition meets slight obsession." If only they had held back on some of those mineral salts. We felt Vosges went a little crazy with the pink Himalayan salt and the Fleur de Sel salt - too much, too jarring a taste next to the peanut butter and chocolate. Available at Fog City News.
#4
Recchiutti Peanut Butter Puck
I was prepared to love the Peanut Butter Puck, which Recchiutti tells me is always a best-seller in the fall. This enormous truffle is meant to resemble a hockey puck, a perfect shape for an American pleasure. But there was a peculiar taste to the filling, maybe it was simply the Fleur de Sel, that led us to leave much of it in its wrapper.
#5
Godiva Peanut Butter Cup
Godiva's "fresh" peanut butter cups were the real losers in our tasting. And at $4 a piece, they were also the most expensive. Godiva lays these treasures out by the window next to the chocolate covered strawberries and the pot of melted chocolate. Each is a large dark (or milk) chocolate oval filled with peanut butter and decorated with thin stripes of chocolate on top. It tastes simply like gooey natural peanut butter on a piece of chocolate, and it is very messy.
Next time the chocolate peanut butter urge hits, I hope you'll try some of the gourmet options I've suggested. And leave the Reese's for the Harry Potters and the Princesses with simpler tastes!
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