For the next two weeks we are going to reflect on the importance of TIME in craft chocolate. For consumers it’s about ‘taking your time’ to savour (and we’ll focus here this week). For makers, time is – in the words of Jenny Linford – the “missing ingredient” (and again, we wholeheartedly recommend her book […]

There are lots of important dates and calendar related events this week and weekend: This Sunday, the clocks go forward in the UK, Daytime is now officially longer than night time (we’ve passed the March equinox), Easter is ALMOST here (and Passover starts Saturday night), Lockdown restrictions continue to ease (e.g. the Hampstead ponds for […]

‘Easter’ and ‘chocolate’ evoke contrasting associations. On the one hand are Easter eggs, chocolate bunnies, chicks and other chocolate concoctions. …On the other hand is the idea of giving up, fasting, and abstaining from the likes of chocolate, wine, and other indulgences. The two are obviously tied together with the idea of ‘breaking your fast’ […]

Easter Weekend is now less than three weeks away, and the UK is (hopefully) now starting to emerge from what seems like a VERY long third lockdown. So we’d like to invite you to join us in celebrating with two great new tastings with firstly WINE and secondly GIN (and tiramisu) (see below for more […]

Easter is rapidly approaching: We are delighted to launch our Easter offerings – along with a quick recap of the history of chocolate and Easter below. And we are also very excited about a pair of Fine Wine and Craft Chocolate Tastings that we are launching with Corney and Barrow on Thursday 25th March and […]

One of the questions we most commonly get asked at the end of our virtual tastings is, “Is our chocolate Fairtrade?” That’s a fantastic question – and it’s a great sign that so many people are thinking about ethical consumption. But for chocolate, Fairtrade is a complex issue, and it’s worth exploring some of the […]

Amongst warm-blooded mammals, humans have a number of unique traits, including: We communicate with extensive vocabularies and a wide range of sound We run on two legs holding our heads high (birds aren’t mammals and lizards are cold-blooded) We can detect flavour via both our mouths and our noses (through our sense of smell) All […]

See how the addition of milk changes a chocolate bar! These pairs of bars are all made by the same maker using the same beans – the only difference is the cocoa content and addition of milk. Notice the differences in texture and mouthfeel, and see how the sweetness of the milk changes the beans’ […]

Wait a moment! Before you scoff all your new craft chocolate at once, take a moment to read our thoughts on how best to taste and savour your chocolate. Slowing down and savouring will allow you to discover amazing flavours and textures you’ve never experienced before. Did you know that chocolate has over 400 distinct […]

February is always a tricky month. And this February looks as if it will be a tough one.  Christmas is long gone. Lockdown is still with us.  The weather is (most likely to be) grey.  But on the plus side, we have Valentine’s Day coming up (see here for some gift ideas).  The days are […]