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A Dream In Chocolate

Mon, May 19th of 2008

9:50 am

chocs_rs.jpg

Man cannot live on chocolate alone; but woman sure can.

Every time I get my hands on chocolate I’ve never tried before, I’m really not quite myself. Like an addict with his stash, a fiend with new shoes, a hag with a new bag, I’m a closet chocoholic. I run my fingers greedily across the wrappers, reveling in their smoothness. I put the bars up to my nose and inhale deeply: tantalizing little fragrances of chocolate have seeped through the paper fibers and up my nose, setting off alarm bells in the pleasure hotspots of my brain.

Egads.

chocolate binge

My eyes are beads running through the letters swirling in hues of silver, russet, and champagne. Somehow I can make out the names: Funky Monkey (marshmallows and crispies); The Rock (hazelnuts and almonds); Health Nut (sugar free milk chocolate with pistachios and cashews); and B-52 (caramel and Bailey’s). In the radio of my mind, “Roam” by the B-52s starts playing.

I remember reading about chocolate visionary Michael Recchiuti’s advice on how to taste chocolate: “… start [with the chocolate] with the least amount of sugar. Then bite off a piece and let it rest on your tongue to slowly release the flavors … First time, focus on texture. The second time, focus on flavor. And the third time, just enjoy it.” Eh? I say to heck with that. I work backwards: enjoyment, flavor, texture.

chocolate wrapper (2)chocolate wrapper (1)chocolate wrapper (3)chocolate wrapper

I unwrap all four chocolates one after the other, the crinkling of the wrappers a countdown to pleasure. Most people would finish a bar before moving on to the next. Not me. I want to taste them all at the same time one after the other; there’s no middle ground with me. This is chocolate, are you kidding me?

almond in a chocolate bar
almond in a chocolate bar

Four bars: two brown and two a graffiti of white on dark and dark on white. I break them in half on the diagonal; each splits cleanly with a resounding snap!. Ah, a sign of quality tempering. My eyes rove over the chocolates’ naked surfaces — unwrinkled and creamy, their smoothness pocked only by an errant almond or pistachio.

brown, black and white

My heart pounds at the aroma of chocolate enveloping the air I breathe. The smell is a wave crashing on the shores of my tongue, which is watering incessantly. Any time now. Soon, the chocolatey perfume triumphs over my every sense and before I know it, a gentle richness is filling my mouth. Flavors of fruit and caramel tiptoe onto my tongue, pitter-pattering and picking up the pace, transforming into a jaunty two-step of taste. Nuts shatter the serenity with their staccato but not unpleasantly so, then the sweetness comes and disappears.

chocolate pile

So good is this chocolate that my moments merge with the flavor. I’m chewing slowly, mindfully, piece after piece. A sensual overdrive in my very own un paradis de chocolat. Unspoken, but surely there in my subconscious mind is the phrase, “Perhaps the best chocolate available in Manila.”

chocolates and nuts
the debris of a dream

Available at the Edsa Shangri-La’s Bakeshop.
P290/bar.
Also available at selected Candy Corner and Nuts About Candy shops and Santis Deli outlets.

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31 Comments »

I’ve tried one of them and was really not impressed. My all time favorite is still milka – reminds me of childhood.

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Comment by michelle — May 19, 2008 @ 10:02 am


Forget love…I’d rather fall in chocolate!
Author unknown

oh dear lori!

i have been lurking on your site again and decided to stay on lurker mode. until this post came along.

this post will haunt my waking hours til i get my hands on these babies.

argh!

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Comment by kawen — May 19, 2008 @ 12:28 pm


Lori:
Well, you got me again! “flavors tip-toeing onto your tongue – nuts shattering the serenity with their staccatto”. Hooboy, I am in sensory overload. I mean, you had me with the canoodling noodles!

Reading you makes me feel like I feel when I listen to Ella Fitzgerald. But I best refrain and restrain myself lest I incur the wrath of “The Husband”!

Nice writing Lori, and please smile!

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Comment by Silly Lolo — May 19, 2008 @ 2:07 pm


Pure chocolate food porn Lori! The black and white chocolate bar looks lovely, like real marble, only edible (hmmm, methinks this would work for a Hansel/Gretel reprise). By the way, have you tried the belgian truffles by Benoit?

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Comment by Mila — May 19, 2008 @ 2:51 pm


Hi Lori! You sure know how to write….but still, Belgian chocolates are THE B-E-S-T!!!

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Comment by leatheredpraline — May 19, 2008 @ 5:28 pm


Wow! It’s been a long time since I read your site. I used to be a huge fan but there was a time you stopped writing for a long while then I just stopped visiting. I miss your reviews, articles, and yummy food photos. =) I have two questions: How do you afford eating out (in el expensivo places) all the time and How come you don’t have a “continue to next page” feature at the end of each page? The latter is a bit weird though I suppose, but it’s just that I find it easier to click “next, next, next..” than to go through the archives and confuse which I’ve read, skipped through, etc. That’s all.

You’re answers will be very much appreciated.=) Now I have to go back to reading the archives I missed. More power Lori!=)

Mej

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Comment by Mej — May 19, 2008 @ 5:42 pm


leathered praline - Then you’ll love these chocolates! They’re made from Felchlin, a Swiss chocolate brand.

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Comment by Lori — May 19, 2008 @ 7:43 pm


Oooh! I love your pictures of these chocolates! Now I want to rush off and find me some of these. Too bad Edsa Shang is out of the way of where I usually am. I better try Candy Corner. Thanks Lori!!

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Comment by ApplesH — May 19, 2008 @ 10:35 pm


Note to self: read Dessert Comes First after breakfast, not before. :D

Argharghargh. Hungry.

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Comment by Eric — May 20, 2008 @ 7:04 am


Oooooh! Chocolates! Awesome writing Lori! Really awesome! I agree with Mila, this is chocolate porn!

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Comment by the husband — May 20, 2008 @ 8:53 am


This post is total torture!!! I live in a land that does not understand the beauty of chocolate. This is definitely on top of my must-buy items the moment I get home! Great post, Lori.

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Comment by Elai S — May 20, 2008 @ 12:29 pm


I worked at t Edsa Shangri-la and the girls at the chocolate kitchen are my absolute best friends! They’re great and they’re so good with what they do.

You have no idea how much chocolate (good chocolate at that!) they throw out before our executive chef approves their work! You can only be assured of top quality!

Great post, Lori :)

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Comment by Naz — May 20, 2008 @ 1:41 pm


Wow. I worked at EDSA Shang as well- years ago, 10 to be exact. Back then, they already had a dedicated chocolate room that was colder than the rest of the pastry kitchen and bakery. They must have a chocolate department now! Although it seems a little weird that it’s labeled “The Bakeshop.” How about a new department called “The Confiserie?” But that’s nitpicking… The chocolate bars look delicious.

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Comment by Chip — May 20, 2008 @ 3:37 pm


Lori remember to keep your dogs away from all these chocolates. There such a thing as chocolate poisoning in canines. Just give it to their vets.

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Comment by wyatt — May 20, 2008 @ 4:11 pm


Man cannot live on chocolate alone; but woman sure can.
-amen :)

thanks for posting this. the photos are amazing!

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Comment by kc — May 20, 2008 @ 5:07 pm


Ooohhh, I HAVE TO try that!!! Must head to Santi’s soon. How was the sugar-free variant, would it fool an incorrigible sugarholic diabetic? ;-) No, not for me…I’ve been searching for a sugar-free sweet that my dad wouldn’t turn his nose up at, but have so far been unsuccessful. (Yes, I tried Sugar Not, and no, it wouldn’t fool him at all.)

Chocolate really brings out the best in your writing, Lori. This was a pleasure to read. :-)

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Comment by Katrina — May 20, 2008 @ 6:01 pm


I´m in heaven, chocolate heaven. I love chocolate, and to see this photos, is just a temptation. Lovely.

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Comment by Mónica — May 20, 2008 @ 10:03 pm


Hi Lori,

I’m not really a dessert person, but your website is one those I regularly visit for art’s sake. I admire your work, and hope you could organize a food writing class. I’ll be the first to sign up!

A sinfully great article on chocolates!

Chun

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Comment by Chun Valencia — May 21, 2008 @ 2:37 pm


now that’s what i call passionate writing! whew!

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Comment by cj — May 21, 2008 @ 6:10 pm


Mej - To answer your questions:

1. I think that price — places that are “el expensivo” as you call it, is relative. Having said that however, food is perhaps the greatest passion of my life and I would rather spend my money on food than anything else.

2. I don’t utilize the “continue to next page…” link on my website because frankly, I think it’s a pain to have to click and wait for the page to load when reading an article. Unlike other websites, I only have 2 artcles on my home page at any given time, so there’s more than enough space for me to deliver the article in full.

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Comment by Lori — May 22, 2008 @ 11:26 am


i read about a chili infused chocolate bar somewhere some time ago. and i think Antonio’s uses it in a dessert. would you know what the brand and where to get them?

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Comment by anonymous paul — May 22, 2008 @ 12:39 pm


whoa! those look really amazing!

anonymous paul — i once had a chili-chocolate drink at xocolat in greenhills.

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Comment by caryn — May 23, 2008 @ 12:48 pm


Totally drool-worthy post! I think I gained 10 lbs just reading it and looking at the pictures! I feel your love! ;)

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Comment by Christine — May 23, 2008 @ 4:41 pm


“Man cannot live on chocolate alone; but woman sure can.” – wise words

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Comment by witsandnuts — May 25, 2008 @ 5:36 pm


“Man cannot live on chocolate alone; but woman sure can”

hmmmmmm… that depends what/who the chocolate is served on ;p

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Comment by oh so tasty — May 27, 2008 @ 10:42 am


After reading this post, I felt less guilty about eating breakfast consisting of Ghirardelli Mint Chocolate…. I now feel deprived… cant wait to get some B-52′s…

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Comment by carla — June 2, 2008 @ 9:12 am


“Perhaps the best chocolate available in Manila.”

I totally agree with you. We had our first taste of this somewhere in October last year and it has been a hit. I don’t know if they’re still making the Singapore Sling and the Dark Choco/Mint varieties (forgot the name) but these two are also definitely worth trying.

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Comment by fudge — August 17, 2008 @ 4:59 pm


….i love looking at this photos.I admit it even myself alone cant resist the delightful taste of chocolates…i can live without man if chocolates are always there….its funny thinking that we rather choose these chocolates but,it shows…heheh

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Comment by kay comaingking — August 23, 2008 @ 12:34 pm


Oh!!!! I love your chocolates.. this is my addiction! Oh GOD! I am totally insane.. hahha.. nice shots

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Comment by mia :] — June 11, 2009 @ 1:13 pm


Good point, although that new parfum Chanel wants to bring out makes me wonder who to advertise it to…

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Comment by petra — February 6, 2011 @ 2:37 am


Good point, although that new parfum Chanel wants to bring out makes me wonder who to advertise it to…

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Comment by petra — February 6, 2011 @ 2:37 am



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