BLOG 4/30/2008 Jeff Shepherd and Fritz Knipschildt are coming to Phoenix  (0 Comments - Read Comments) Jeff and Fritz are coming to town. Ok, if it sounds a little like x-mas, it should. I’m so excited that Jeff Shepherd of Lillie Belle Farms and Fritz Knipschildt of Knipschildt Chocolatier are coming to Phoenix to do a wine and chocolate tasting. Details: When: Saturday, May 10th Time: 6:30pm to 8:00pm Location: 114 West Camelback Road First Course: Wine: Brut Rose Sparkling Chocolates: Knipschildt - Karel & Lillie Belle Farms - Lemon Coconut Second Course: Wine: Pinot Noir Chocolates: Knipschildt - Keiko & Lillie Belle Farms - Smokey Blue Third Course: Wine: Syrah Chocolates: Knipschildt - Stacy & Lillie Belle Farms - Strawberry Balsamic Pate de Fruit Fourth Course: Wine: Merlot Chocolates: Knipschildt - Patricia & Lillie Belle Farms - Dark Star The Tasting Menu with Chatham’s flair! I like to start a wine and chocolate tasting with bubbly. Jeff’s Lemon Coconut is divine! It’s has a tart Meyer lemon buttercream that is hand rolled in white chocolate and toasted coconut. Karel was the perfect choice for many reasons. Her brilliance is in her style; a dark chocolate violet ganache enrobed in dark chocolate and covered with candied violets. Pinot Noirs are ideal for the second course when having a four course tasting. It’s a nice transition from sparkling and they usually have a lot of character to them. I love chocolate with Pinot. Fritz’s Keiko has classic style with a twist. A raspberry ganache enrobed in dark chocolates and sprinkled with ground pink peppercorn on top. I have had many great raspberry chocolates. But there will always been something special about Keiko. The pink peppercorn is brilliant. It adds a dynamic twist without overpowering the raspberry. Jeff’s Smokey Blue has to be one of the most unique chocolates we carry at Chatham’s. Organic blue cheese and milk chocolate ganache mixed together and rolled in toasted almonds. Yes, blue cheese and chocolate - not too overpowering – a true award winning piece. It pairs nicely with the Pinot. And, it will become a favorite. For our third course we chose a Syrah. For a vibrant wine we went with another two big pieces. Knipschildt’s Stacy is a further example of Fritz’s bold use of flavor. She has white chocolate and Scandinavian cardamom in a dark chocolate shell and dusted with copper. The molds used for these pieces are all from a deck of cards; elegant and classy. Jeff’s Strawberry Balsamic Pate de Fruit is proof that the sum is greater than the parts. I don’t know what inspired Jeff to create this masterpiece, but I’m glad he did. It has a layer of strawberry pate de fruit with balsamic vinegar that sits on a layer of milk chocolate with black pepper and all of this is enrobed in dark chocolate. Double wow! And, paired with a Syrah – unbelievable. The fourth (and final) course is a Merlot. I love Merlot wine and these two chocolates are perfect with it. Dark Star and Patricia. Again, two very different pieces from each other, and each is splendid with Merlot. Dark Star is a blend of two different single origin cocoas to make the ganache and then a third single origin cacao powder is used to dust the piece. The classic truffle with Jeff’s flare! Patricia, I would love to meet the woman who inspired this chocolate. The cone mold points to something intriguing – the tangerine and red chili buttercream. Starts out smooth and tantalizing and then hits you with the chili. What a phenomenal finish to a superb event. We hope you can join us at the event. It will surely be a memory to last forever!

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BLOG 4/28/2008 Christopher Elbow and CFC Chocolatier join the Chatham's Fine Chocolates Family.  (0 Comments - Read Comments) I love adding new chocolatiers to our "Great Wall of Chocolates." And we've just placed our first orders with these two great chocolatiers. I've heard of Christopher Elbow and his chocolates for some time. Customers and colleagues alike have mentioned him. He's based out of Kansas City and has an impressive culinary background. I'm glad he has focused his efforts on chocolate. He found our website and sent me an email. I do what I always do, asked a few specific questions and requested some samples. Now what broke my heart is that he sent me some pieces that he doesn't wholesale. But nothing eases heartbreak like eating GREAT chocolate. Usually, when we get new chocolates to "evaluate" for our store, after dinner my wife, 5 year old son and I share five or six pieces and see what we think. Well the family was sick, so we took 4 or 5 days to finish a box. They were amazing; two that stand out are the Rosemary Caramel and the Lime Ganache. Rosemary is a wonderful herb and it's great in chocolate. Wen Chocolates makes a great Rosemary ganache piece and I was looking forward to Christopher's use of Rosemary, especially with caramel. WOW!!! This is one spectacular chocolate! And then there is the Lime Ganache. Lime, lemon other citrus are great in chocolate, whether in caramel or a ganache. This was heavenly; thin layer of couverture, silky smooth ganache - ummm makes me smile just thinking about it! These pieces stick out in my mind because they were two that I got to eat surrounded by peace and quiet. I specifically wanted to try these chocolates without having my thoughts and experiences interrupted. CFC Chocolates is a whole other story. I've been talking with Patrick and have wanted to bring in his chocolates for a long time. He's uses several different styles. We're adding 15 pieces from his collection. He makes a great PBJ chocolate, roasted peanuts and peanut butter with a wild strawberry jam - in a milk chocolate shell. CFC does a lot with fruit. We'll have his Forest Fruit Compote, Tropical Fruit Cocktail, Melon Mint and a whole bunch more. CFC makes fun chocolate; the type of chocolate that always gives you that warm, cozy feeling inside. I'm excited to have both of these guys as part of our family. They are part of the exiting world of the artisan chocolatier.

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BLOG 4/27/2008 Amano joins our Family.  (0 Comments - Read Comments) Amano. What can I say; passion and artistry are very common themes among the chocolatiers I like to work with. These folks live and breath chocolate, my type of people! "Plantation Bars” are truly special. They embrace the roots and soul of the cacao. They go to the source of the beans and gets his hands dirty. I love the story behind his “Limited Edition” Cuyagua bar. The cocoa beans come from a small, secluded valley known as Cuyagua. This valley is home to cocoa plantations dating to the early 1700's and happen to be some of Venezuela's finest cocoa. The fortunate opportunity for all of us is the fact that the production is so small, large companies can use such a small amount of great cocoa. But they can! The Amano Cuyagua is truly special and it’s a limited edition bar. So get yours before they are all gone! Then they are off to Madagascar to seek out more great cocoa beans. Nice gig if you can get it! Like Venezuela and many other parts of the world, Madagascar has great cocoa beans. I personally have a true fondness for Madagascar beans and this bar is a fantastic. But back to Venezuela. On the central coast of Venezuela is a remote valley known as Ocumare de la Costa. The Ocumare region has been known for its superior criollo cacao since at least the early 1700's. The folks at Amano hand selected these beans for their fruity and floral notes. They then carefully roasted them in their antique cacao roaster to enhance their optimal flavor. These are some of the finest cocoa beans and from which they have made a chocolate bar you are sure to enjoy. I do have a bit of envy. They get to travel to all of these great places

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BLOG 1/1/2008 Fancy Food Show - Winter 2008  (0 Comments - Read Comments) The Winter Fancy Food Show: January 2008 Chatham & Fritz Knipschildt Fancy Food Show. My wife and I went to the Fancy Food Show in San Diego and had a truly fantastic time! There were so many exciting things. But the best part was getting together with my chocolatiers. They are all truly great people and spectacular culinary artisans. What we share in common is a burning passion for chocolate. They love when I stop by their booths because I am so passionate about their chocolates; I get to sell their products and they get to lean back and smile. Chatham & B.T. McElrath Our Friends. We have developed some very personal and great friendships working in the chocolate business. We represent some of America’s best artisan chocolatiers. I love and respect them and consider it an honor to pack their chocolates in our blue boxes. Chatham & Jeff Shepard (Lillie Belle Farms) Brian McElrath of B.T. McElrath was one of the chocolatiers I met at my very first Fancy Food Show. I remember tasting his Passion Fruit Truffle and saying to him, “You are the reason I am opening my shop!” Our tagline says it all, “A Celebration of Great Chocolatiers.” I often tell people that first bite was like my first real kiss: the one you never forget. I immediately liked Brian from that moment. And, his wife is sooo nice, and she always puts a smile on my face. We went out to dinner with Brian’s family, including his 18 month old son, who is such a great kid – but I love all kids! We had a great time. Talking business, talking family, watching his son run around; it was wonderful. It’s the moments like this that you never forget. And the ones I’m thankful for. And then the party got started!!! After dinner, we planned on meeting Jeff and Belle of Lille Belle Farms (wow – amazing chocolates – Jeff Rocks!) and Fritz Knipschildt of Knipschildt Chocolatiers (who had a little competition with Bobby Flay and WON!). Like I said, I love my chocolatiers and I’m very proud of them. We were also joined by Clark Guittard. Someone I had never met before, but like I said, the world of chocolate isn’t that big. The Guittard family has been in the chocolate business for five generations -- they are global players. For me, it was like having a US Senator sit down and join us for drinks. I immediately liked Clark and we had a great time. We also talked about the trials and tribulations of passionate artists in the world of business. What we share in common, and why I have bonded so well with my chocolatiers, is the artist’s mindset; the vision to dream of greatness and the unyielding determination to achieve it. For my chocolatiers, their chocolates are expressions of who they are. For me, my shop is an expression of who I am; an obsessive chocoholic determined to have the greatest chocolate shop in the world. Fritz gives all of his chocolates a woman’s name. That sparked one heck of a conversation, but you will have to come into my shop to hear it personally. It was great to laugh and joke and drink and enjoy each other’s company. The New Chocolates. It wasn't all partying at the Fancy Food Show. But with a few shows under our belt, we can spend more time treasure hunting. And we found some great treasures at the show. We have three or four new chocolatiers we plan on adding to our “Great Wall of Chocolate.” And there is a whole group of artisan chocolatiers focusing their craft on chocolate bars. The world of gourmet chocolate is attracting a growing group of talented and exciting chocolatiers with unique and interesting styles. Our quest is to seek them out and share them with you. Watch for more blogs and newsletters from us. We have a lot of new friends we just started to meet and great new chocolates we’ve just started to eat. This was a great show for us. The camaraderie, cutting loose, getting closer to really good people, and talking about the things we love – like chocolate – a perfect weekend.

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BLOG 7/5/2007 My First Blog!  (1 Comments - Read Comments)

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