| A Chocolate Ecstasy Tour of London |
 Now, I'm a big chocolate lover. Such a big fan that I've been known to take nibbles out of my children's easter eggs while they're tucked up in bed dreaming of the next installment of chocolate that awaits them the following day. I am such a big fan that my husband knows that chocolates are much more appreciated than flowers, that hard centres just don't cut it and that the packaging matters almost as much as the contents. I gew up watching a diet of black and white Hollywood movies where the heroine lays back on her chaise longe wearing a beautiful satin nightie and swoops down to pick her favourites from what looks a very pretty (with black and white you can never be sure) and very expensive box of chocs. That, to me, was the epitome of glamour! Anyway, enough about me and my choc habit. I know that I am not alone in this and so have to tell you about the London tour - The Chocolate Ecstasy Tour, found at http://www.chocolateecstasytours.com . We met on a thankfully sunny Saturday morning in St James. But even if it wasn't suny, umbrellas are provided. How cool is that!? Also provided in your goody bag are more chocolates from houses that are not on the tour, plus a fantastic brownie, just in case you get hungry! Out first stop was Fortnum and Mason's food hall where our guide Jennifer Earle gave us a rundown on the different types of chocolate and the emergence of premier cru - single plantation brands. It seems that chocolate can be quite as complicated as wine or tea! We then visited to gorgeous Masion du Chocolat where we were given a tour of the different type of ganache. These varied from ganache with a hint of tea to real mint to raspberry. All were exceeding subtle and yet powerful at the same time - a combination which actually defies description. Our assistant was extremely enthusiastic (and so he should be) and filled us in on 101 things I never knew about chocolate. Next stop was Prestat which is very "chocolate box"! While Maison du Chocolat has an air of the purist about it, the real zen of chocolate, Prestat is very girlie, very pretty and oh so Sex and The City. One could imagine bumping into Carrie here, as she ponders over the choice between a viloet or rose cream. More tasting, and the difference was quite marked. These are my favourites - very sweet, very intense, very more-ish. Charbonnel and Walker was next - more tasting, this time of pink Champagne truffles. Almost everyone went away with a box or two. Again, this was a whole different experience and people's conversation started to turn to differences between the different houses and the experiences they offered. This continued over a delicious hot chocolate at Sketch where we found out a little more about each other. What a mixed bunch we were - myself and my friend, two climbers, some tourists, a business woman - all brought together by chocolate! We picked ourselves up - and headed onto Godiva in St Christphers Place for another gorgeous chocolate elixir drink and more samplings - this time of rich ripe strawberries dipped in chocolate. Yum! As an aside, by now all my friends had predicted dire illness or a complete over-indulgence in chocolate but actually all the pieces we tasted were so fine and so varied that we were all still happily going at full throttle. I'd probably advise anyone doing the tour to take along some nuts though, to balance out the sugar that inevitably hits! Our final stop was Rococo and what a final stop that was - chocolate with sea salt, chocolate with basil, rosemary, cherries - the list goes on. The packaging was divine, the smell pure heaven and you could just feel that the place was owned and staffed by real enthusiasts who loved their work. A fantastic end to the tour - and another goodie bag to boot! The half day tour, which we did, was £50. There is a full day tour for £125 which includes breakfast and a 2 course lunch and chocolate making demonstration. Both the half and full day tour visit different stores. For more details visit http://www.chocolateecstasytours.com.
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| Posted: 10/04/2007 12:36:37 Last Updated: 13/04/2007 09:09:47 |
Chick Lit > Gourmet Chicks :: A Chocolate Ecstasy Tour of London