Parlibel in Clonmel

On Sunday the ‘girls’ (NannyB, Mommie and HoneyB) went to the new Showgrounds Shopping Centre in Clonmel. There was M&S for NannyB, a fab kids clothes shop called NameIt where HoneyB got her ‘christmas dress’. And for me … a chocolate shop which stocks Parlibel exclusively.

The shop is sleek white, with the brown Parlibel logo and dashes of orange. Who forgot their camera??? Arghhh!! The owners offered copious samples and were very enthusiastic. I was expecting Leonidas type experience and certainly you can pack your own selection from an array of flavours. But owners tell me that Paribel is a few steps up from Leonidas and they are the only Irish importer. I spy a 4ft chocolate santa in the cabinet … apparently one will be raffled for charity before Christmas.

My favourite was the dark lemon truffle and this was not dark chocolate filled with some moussey lemony cream … this was dark lemon ganache. The truffles were big … big enough to share and coated in lots of chocolate. This is kinda the opposite to my favourite truffle which is small, delicate and coated in a thin layer of chocolate. But it’s good to share!

I am so disappointed that I have no photos which show off their visual appeal. Just wait until next time! There were really groovy ones (think white chocolate but spray painted with green dots) which went to my babysitter-bro.

Aine Chocolates

Did I mention that I bought 3 bars of Aine dark chocolate at the Chocolate Sundae? Anyway I did. I had already tasted the 70% bar so it was time to taste the flavours range. I am not too keen on the 70% but I think it would be a winner with lots of folk. Actually it would be a nice addition to a 70% tasting plate, offering it as the first sample.

Honeycomb

Lovely crispy random sizes of crunchiness. The presentation is a treat too, neatly wrapped bars with greaseproof lined foil as opposed to just foil. I tend to make a big mess when I get foil … I try to re-wrap the bar for later and it never goes back neatly. Maybe I should take the hint and eat the lot!

Lemon Zest

Yes indeed lemony, like grains of lemon sugar, but an aftertaste of honeycomb … and that would be because there is honeycomb in the bar. It adds a chewy feel against the crispness of the zest.

Butterscotch

This one suffered chocolate bloom :-( I’ve had Cluizel bars, truffles, Galaxy bars with the same thing. It’s unfortunate but bring on the see-thru wrappers!!

People say that it is ok to eat – I disagree – it’s rotten, the mouthfeel, the grainy texture, no melt away sensation, the flavour is definitely impaired.

People say you could cook with it – I disagree but no one refuses brownies – anyone for a blooming brownie :-o Maybe during the cooking process, the structure breaks down anyway so the bloom damage does not matter?

I do not know what type of bloom this was (am guessing sugar) but Wikipedia have suggested test that can help tell … must try them in future.

The Venue: Gallery of Photography

Start booking … ticket lines open … here is the lineup for the Temple Bar Chocolate Festival.

I just checked out the venue for my upcoming truffle making class and wow it is sleek – white walls, light filled, sur’ tis no wonder it’s called the Light Room. It is upstairs in the Gallery of Photography in the heart of Temple Bar. I am excited and nervous about giving the class. After all I am an amateur with a love for chocolate … there are lots of expert truffle makers in the country (I will be heading to Lorge’s demo!) but thanks to this blog I have the opportunity to get involved in the festival and to share a bit of what I know.

I have not finalised the flavours for the class yet … anyone coming to the class (or not) is more than welcome to give their ideas! My thinking at the moment is White Chocolate & Lemon, Milk Chocolate & Rose, Dark Chocolate and Ginger. I’ll have lots of ingredients to roll the truffles in.  Now I must source some nice chocolate boxes. I really want people to leave the class with a box of truffles rolled and coated by themselves.

The Great Irish Bake

On my way to work this week I noticed a poster in a butchers shop window advertising The Great Irish Bake. Before I could read anymore the traffic lights changed so I missed the rest. What it is is a fund-raising event for Temple St Children’s Hospital.

There are loads of ideas, posters, stickers and even a recipe book to download for the event. It ‘whisked’ off in May but lasts for all 2009.  I am sure I can ‘poison’ a few work colleagues at work for a good cause!

Anyone else baking?

The Candy Store

The Candy Store, Ottawa has to be the prettiest sweet shop I have ever seen. I rarely see the big tubs of hard boiled sweets (sucking sweets is what we called them) that we could buy by the quarter in shops anymore.  Anyone for a bag of apple sours?

Taste Of Dublin 2009

We had a dry and sunny day at Taste of Dublin which was surprising given the rain that fell this morning. HoneyB was a little under the weather so what was billed as a half day of strolling and grazing became 2 hours of walking and eating. How bad, eh?

Arriving at the entrance reminded us of arriving at a concert. We were ‘greeted’ by a big guy who warned us to ‘Have our tickets ready’. Good god, I wondered was my bag going to be searched next and my water bottle confiscated! Bad start but it was up hill from there on when Donnybrook Fair greeted us with truffles.

The Green & Black’s stand was beautiful with oodles of squares to sample, but the one bar Himself wanted, Dark Cherry, was not for sale only sample :-( It will be available in July but IMHO Wilde Irish Chocolate Cherry gives it a run for its money.

Lindt stall was matching the SuperValu promotion: any 3 bars for €5. There was no new and exciting flavors to see, just lots to taste and the Lindt cook book to flick thru.

I think HoneyB would have wow’ed at ChocAllure’s chocolate fountain. It was such a feast for the eyes; but I’m not a huge fan of the milky stuff so I passed by.

Most of the restaurants seemed busy enough and there were lots of well known faces inc Gino, Darina and the guy from Hell’s Kitchen. All smiling and soaking in the foodie atmosphere. I have to say that the menu for L’Ecrivain sounded a whole lot better than the real thing. I got a tiny burger hidden in a huge bun … himself got a ‘cuisine de france’ crispy roll with a sausage ;-(

But the highlight of the day was a tasting session at Beer Naturally Academy where we tasted 4 beers paired with food. It was very interesting and showed me Carlsberg in a new light! After that we tasted a mini Guinness (we got to keep the glass!) and a Guinness & chocolate tart. Nice one.

Artisan du Chocolate had a nice but small selection from which we chose 2 bars and then went back for a third just to be really greedy! They reckon they are going to open an outlet in Dublin but are searching for the right premises (they said that last year so now I’m skeptical).

We covered a lot of ground and food in two hours and ticked off our must dos: Beer Naturally Academy and Artisan du Chocolat. Then off to collect HoneyB who was soooo impressed that Mommie and Daddie were there early for her.

The first of many tastings

OK so I’ve tasted lots of chocolate, but this was the first time I really concentrated on what I was tasting. Kinda like wine tasting, but definitely without any spitting! Himself organised 4 samples of chocolates from different countries, but in or around the same cocoa %.

It was a lovely evening of controlled tasting rather than scoffing down bars. We each tasted the same piece and commented on the melt, taste, length and texture. But I have to admit that I found it difficult to describe the tastes and to guess the chocolate maker. But practice makes perfect!

Sample A Green and Blacks 70% :fruity, maybe lemons, creamy, smooth, long lasting

Sample B Tesco Finest 85% Santo Domingo: roasted coffee, bitter, waxy, very strong cocoa

Sample C L’Artisan du Chocolat Dominican Republic 70%: fruity, dried fruit, sweet, creamy, very smooth melt

Sample D L’Artisan du Chocolat Madagascar 80%: smoked spices, smells like rubber, smooth