How to taste chocolate

Don’t you just put in it your mouth and eat it?? Well that’s one approach but next time you need a bit of ‘me time’ why not take a lesson in chocolate tasting (and it’s also a great excuse for buying more chocolate – hooray!!). As you all know (especially those of you who have been to one of our chocolate workshops) chocolate is made from cocoa beans. The beans are grown throughout the world including places like South America and Malaysia, locations with some serious weather. So each year’s crop of cocoa beans is likely to have a slightly different quality from previous years. Also the taste can be affected by the type of soil it’s grown in and the type of cacao (yes, that’s the correct spelling) tree it comes from. These are all great excuses for learning how to taste chocolate.

So rush out, buy yourself lots of different types of chocolate (that doesn’t mean a Kit Kat AND a Snickers) and get tasting…..

When you are buying try to find a selection of cocoa percentages–70% is considered a good dark chocolate, however you can go much higher than this. (A ‘70% chocolate’ means that 70% of the weight of the bar is made up of cocoa solids and cocoa butter). Also look for single-origin chocolates, this is usually labeled by county of origin and tends to be found in the more specialised shops. Valrhona and Lindt are good brands to try.

Snap off a piece of chocolate, it should break cleanly with a real ‘crack’. If it breaks more gently or produces crumbs it has a low cocoa content. This isn’t a problem if you are tasting milk chocolate, but is not a good sign for dark chocolate. Put the piece of chocolate in your mouth, but don’t swallow. Chew it slowly and feel the texture. Cocoa butter melts at body temperature, bars made with a high proportion of cocoa butter should therefore melt easily in your mouth. The texture in your mouth should be smooth, never greasy or grainy. If the chocolate leaves a thick layer on the inside of your mouth the chocolate could contain too much cocoa butter.

Like all experts you need to have the right adjectives to throw around. With dark chocolate look for flavours you could describe as ‘earthy’, ‘bitter’, ‘nutty’, ‘toasty’, ‘spicy’. Milk chocolate tends to be more ‘caramel’, ‘milky’, ‘vanilla’ or ‘floral’.

But bear in mind the words of Chloé Doutre-Roussel, chief chocolate buyer (and taster) at Fortnum and Mason, the London luxury store (apparently she starts work at 5am to ensure her taste buds are perfectly primed). She says, “If you taste more than four to six chocolates your taste buds become saturated”. So don’t go mad!!

The ultimate guide to the mini fountain

As Perth's original chocolate fountain company we have over four years of experience with these machines of joy so there's not much we don't know when it comes to using them.

If you didn't purchase your mini (home-use) chocolate fountain from us it probably didn't come with any useful instructions. We speak to so many people who have bought a mini fountain from some other retailer, tried it once and when it wouldn't work promptly dismissed it to the back of the pantry (where it has stayed ever since). A chocolate fountain in a box is no fun at all.

Although you may not have bought a Chocolate Attraction fountain, we are not a company who holds grudges so we'd still like to share our secrets with you about how to get the best from your fountain. Follow the steps on the new page on our website and you can be confident of perfect results everytime.

And don't forget we are still the best place to buy everything you need (chocolate, cocoa butter, dipping forks, dipping food etc.) to use your fountain.

Special winter deals on fountain hire

With winter just around the corner we all need something to cheer us up. So we are offering two great deals on our fountain hire packages:

Our party fountain DIY hire has now been reduced from $280 to only $220; this package includes fountain hire, chocolate and full instructions on how to set up the fountain and melt the chocolate. You collect the fountain from our Duncraig office before your event and return it the day after your event - and don't worry we do all the cleaning.

Our party fountain full service hire now has a plate of yummy dipping confectionery included in the  price. With this option the fountain is delivered and set up for you with the chocolate running, we also provide a drip guard, 200 dipping forks, 2 packs of napkins and of course the delicious selection of tasty dippers (doughnuts, licorice, fudge, coconut ice, marshmallows, Turkish Delight, yum, yum, yum.....). All this for only $375.

To find out more about these offers visit our online shop.

Loyalty bonus for caterers

We already have a great discount scheme in place for venues and professional caterers who hire from us. To make it an even more attractive proposition we now have a loyalty scheme in place, the more you hire from us, the larger your discount. Call us on 9246 1704 to find out more. 

April's feedback winner

Thanks to all our customers who completed customer service feedback forms, we really appreciate your taking the time to help us continually improve the way we do things. The winner of April's prize draw was Sophie Taylor from Taylored to Suit. Well done, we hope you enjoy the box of goodies on its way to you.

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Treat yourself to some real hot chocolate

The temperature has dropped here in sunny Perth and it looks as though winter is on the way. But it’s not all doom and gloom because it’s HOT CHOCOLATE SEASON!!

Drinking chocolate is the original way chocolate was enjoyed. It was the Maya Indians in South America who first discovered the joy of the cocoa bean more than 2000 years ago. By roasting and grinding the beans then adding herbs, chillies and other spices they created a very popular drink which was said to make you strong and also apparently worked as an aphrodisiac. No milk or sugar was added as we have but it was a much thicker drink as cornmeal was added. Even today if you go to Spain or South America be sure to sample their delicious, thick hot chocolate - perfect for dipping your doughnut.

Even when chocolate was first brought to Europe in the early 17th century it was still consumed as a drink, but only for the wealthy. They were also partial to (and could afford) sugar, so they started to add this to their cocoa to make a much less bitter drink. Gradually as mass production was introduced and the chocolate bar was invented, increasing amounts of milk were added to hot chocolate. In some cases 'hot chocolate' is now little more than sweetened milk.

So get back to real hot chocolate by creating your own. Simply stir some of your favourite chocolate buttons (our Belgian buttons are perfect for this) into a mug of hot (but not boiling - it ruins the flavour) milk. Give it a whisk and add a bit of sugar to taste along with some cinnamon and chilli if you are feeling adventurous. If you want a quick and easy way to make fab hot chocolate visit our online store and treat yourself to a tin of delicious Dagoba hot chocolate mix - available in standard or South American chilli varieties.

Don't forget your Mum

Here in Australia we celebrate Mother’s Day on the second Sunday in May (11 May this year, before you all have to check your diaries). People in Belgium, China, Japan, America and Zimbabwe (amongst many other countries) will all be doing the same. But what if you live in Australia and your mum lives in the UK (where it’s celebrated on the 4th Sunday in Lent) or Poland (26 May) or Indonesia (22 December)? How did it all get so confusing?

Different countries celebrate Mother's Day on various days of the year because the day has a number of different origins. Some say it emerged from a custom of worshipping mothers in the festival of Cybele in ancient Greece. While the ancient Romans had the holiday of Matronalia when mothers were given gifts.

Mothers' Day (also called Mothering Sunday) started in the UK and Ireland in the 1600’s when young apprentices and young female servants were allowed a holiday to visit their ‘mother (or home) church’ and would therefore also see their mothers. They would often take a small gift of flowers or simnel cake with them. In the north of England and Scotland, mothers would receive pancakes (called ‘carlings’) made of pease pudding fried in butter, with pepper and salt (I’d rather have chocolate myself).

Although many countries have traditionally had a day to celebrate mothers, ‘Mother’s Day’ as we know mainly started in America where social activist Ann Jarvis oganised women throughout the Civil War to work for better sanitary conditions. Her work was later taken up by her daughter Anna who wrote hundreds of letters to legislators and prominent businessmen asking them to create a special day to celebrate mothers. The first day was held on 10 May,1908 when a church service was held and Anna handed out her mother’s favourite flower, a white carnation. Within 9 years the commercialisation of the day was so rampant (especially with florists selling 100's of white carnations!) that Anna herself became a major opponent of what the day had become. One of the busiest days of the year for restaurants, both in America and Australia, is Mother’s Day.

If you are looking for something to treat your mother and don’t want to sit in a packed restaurant (or make carlings), why not buy mum a home-use chocolate fountain with some fudge, Turkish Delight or licorice for dipping? If you are very good she may even let you share some too!

Sad news for chocolate lovers

There's not usually much sad news associated with chocolate, but unfortunately it's just been announced that after more than 50 years the Cadbury factory in Hobart had ended its very popular factory tours. In line with new global health and safety regulations adopted by Cadbury their Tasmania tours can no longer continue. Chocolate fans will now have to make do with a talk in the visitors centre and chocolate purchases from the discounted shop. Makes you want to weep into your chocolate fountain………

A holiday for true chocolate lovers

For those of you thinking about a holiday why not check out the Etruscan Chocohotel in Italy which claims to be the first hotel in the world dedicated to chocolate (apparently). The thing I like best are the big bowls of chocolates next to each bed! Have a look at their website (also in English for those of us without fluent Italian).

March's feedback winner

Thanks to all our past customers who completed customer service feedback forms, we really appreciate your taking the time to help us continually improve the way we do things. The winner of March's prize draw was Emma Panier from the Etro Cafe. Well done, we hope you enjoy the box of goodies on its way to you.

American Express

In response to customer requests we now accept American Express for both our online and phone in orders. There is no extra charge for using this card.

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Where you can see us in action this Easter

Thursday 20 March we'll be at Westfield Innaloo Shopping Centre, from 5.00 pm to 8.00 pm and at Cockburn Shopping Centre from 6.00 pm to 8.00 pm.

On Saturday 22 March we'll be at the same venues from 11.00 am to 2.00 pm at Innaloo and 1.00 pm to 3.00 pm at Cockburn.

Where you can see us in action on the web

If you are planning on making some of your own chocolate delights this Easter visit the Sunday Times' own Perth Now website to see a video of Chocolate Attraction (well me - the newsletter editor) giving a few hints and tips on the best way to make chocolates. For a more detailed approach to chocolate making, book one of our fun filled workshops - even better than watching a video because it's a hands-on event.

Why is chocolate so important at Easter?

The celebration of Easter dates back to pagan times. It was later adopted by the Christian church which used it to celebrate the Resurrection, the idea of rebirth and fertility being linked with eggs and chicks. The first Easter eggs appeared in mediaeval times when painted and decorated hen, duck or goose eggs were given as gifts. By the end of the 17th century artificial eggs were being made from paper and card. The 19th century saw the idea of Easter gifts taken to a whole new level with French jeweller Carl Faberge's fantastic jewel encrusted eggs he made for the czars of Russia. The first chocolate egg appeared in the 1800s and by the early 1900s mass production meant chocolate eggs became a firm favourite for Easter gifts. By the 1960s the trend was established worldwide.

But did you know...........??

• That the idea of the Easter bunny comes from the hare which was a pagan symbol of fertility associated with spring.
• Australia has its own ‘bunny’ in the Easter bilby. Why would you want to celebrate the rabbit, a pest that has destroyed so much Australian vegetation?
• Australians give more chocolate Easter eggs (per head) than anyone else in the world.

Feedback prize draw winners

Thanks to all our past customers who completed customer service feedback forms, we really appreciate your taking the time to help us continually improve the way we do things. The winner of January's prize draw was Michelle Ricciardo and February's winner was Margo Darbyshire of St George's College. Well done, we hope you both enjoyed your box of chocolate goodies.

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Chocolate themed aprons

Our new apron is made from hard-wearing commercial grade polycotton in chocolate brown (of course) with a witty little chocolate slogan on the front; "Of all the bars in all the world.... you had to bite mine”, with a handy pocket on the front and an adjustable neck strap it is designed to fit all sizes.

Costing $25, it would make a great Easter gift for a friend who doesn’t want to indulge in too much of the real thing.

Chocolate making kits

HereOur chocolate making kits include a standard beginner’s kit, perfect if you are new to the art of chocolate making, a kit to make St. Valentine’s chocolate hearts and a kit to make your very own Easter eggs - yum! All the kits include a chocolate mould, plenty of chocolate for melting and some great tried and tested recipes to get you started.

Please visit the shop to find out more about these and other chocolate related products. If you’d prefer not to pay online we are of course still happy to accept orders by phone or email.

Why your special valentine really needs chocolate

The idea of love being associated with St Valentine originally started back in the Middle Ages, with Geoffrey Chaucer and his ideas of‘courtly love’. The celebration developed into the format we know it today in 1840’s when Leigh Eric Schmidt in America produced the first mass produced valentine’s cards made of paper lace. His idea gradually grew into the practice of exchanging gifts, especially flowers and chocolates.

From the Aztec warriors who believed chocolate acted as an aphrodisiac to today’s lovers exchanging chocolate gifts, chocolate has always been associated with love, and there’s a good reason for that. When people are in love (especially women) they produce large quantities of PEA (phenyl ethylamine) in their brain. This same chemical is found in chocolate and is an endorphin which has a very positive effect on the body, producing feelings of happiness and euphoria—no wonder we love it!

While chocolate is always popular, don’t forget to send a valentine’s card. It is estimated that approximately one billion valentines are sent each year worldwide, making it the second largest card-sending day of the year after Christmas. Also, interestingly (but perhaps not surprisingly) it is estimated that women purchase about 85% of all valentines cards (bear that in mind and give your bloke a nudge!).

Eat chocolate and be carbon-neutral

Apparently chocolate factories produce quite a lot of waste, equivalent to 5-10% of their total output. This usually goes into producing animal feed, but now a bio-diesel company has come up with a way to turn it into fuel. Biofuels from purpose-grown crops are looking like they could pose more problems than solutions but biofuels made from waste products are a much better option. A little chocolate goes a long way too; it will take only a miniscule percentage of the UK’s annual chocolate waste to drive a truck all the way across the Sahara. Go chocolate!

Feedback prize draw winners

Thanks to all our past customers who completed customer service feedback forms, we really appreciate your taking the time to help us continually improve the way we do things. The winner of December's prize draw was Greg Wenham of Mercy Care. Well done, we hope you enjoy your box of chocolate goodies.

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