In its 11th year, sister show to the famed Salon du Chocolat, this New York event continues to draw both Chocolatiers and enthusiasts, despite Wall Street’s troubled times. This year the venue at Pier 94 was much more spacious and allowed crowds to move around with more freedom. The hall had a bit of a warehouse feel to it, but in New York that can be trendy.
Many of the commercial brands such as Guittard, Lindt and Valrhona were present, as were some of the more well known artisan brands such as Chuao, Charles Chocolates, Oliver Kita, and Amedei.
I was relieved to find Knipschildt Chocolatier was in attendance, as I needed to replenish my stash of his Chocopologie bar… Dark Chocolate Caramel with Hawaiian Sea Salt bars…simply divine!
Another favorite I was glad to see return was Berkshire Bark. Their Jumpin’ Java-Dark is a buzz-inducing mix of roasted almonds, espresso toffee, caramelized cacao nibs and crushed coffee beans…not for bedtime snacking!
Most of the chocolatiers had plenty of samples for the swarming public to enjoy. It is amusing to see some attendees making their way past all of the booths with a Tupperware, stashing the samples they collect. Once lady had a large partitioned box, like for beading, numbered I presume corresponding to the stall numbers of the exhibitors. I prefer to be on chocolate overload and taste it all right there.
International attendees included some return exhibitors such a Mary Chocolate (Tokyo), Domori (Italy), Guido Gobino (Italy), Lilly O’Briens (Ireland) and Virginie Duroc-Danner Artiste Chocolatiere (France). Many of these cannot be found in the US easily and this was a special treat to get to sample some of their more exotic creations.
One of the most interesting booths I came across was for Cotton Tree Lodge in Belize. They offer a vacation that includes a visit to a cacao farm where you see the harvested pods being brought in to begin fermentation, a trip to a cacao market where beans are bought and sold, and a day of hands-on chocolate making from roasting to conching. I have not taken this tour yet, so this is not a personal recommendation, but it is certainly on my list of places to go before I die! If you want to check this out you can see more information at www.cottontreelodge.com
Similar to last year, there was a chocolate fashion show, with this year’s theme being super heroes. Some of my favorites are pictured here.
There was also a full schedule of demonstrations including Michael Antonorsi (Chuao), Francois Payard (Payard Patisserie & Bistro) and Michael Howard (Brasserie 8 ½). Every fabulous and even some not so fabulous chocolate book was on sale and some authors were available to sign their books. Michael Recchiuti, all the way from San Francisco, did not have a booth, but participated in book signing and demonstrations with Valrhona.
As I strolled the aisles, there were of course some exhibitors offering chocolate related items like Peanut Butter & Co, offering interesting blends of chocolate and peanut butter treats, Quady Winery giving samples of dessert wines and wines good for chocolate pairings. If you haven’t tried Sweetriot’s little tins of chocolate coated cacao nibs, you are definitely missing out. These little tins are the size of a box of Tic-Tacs, but oh how different the contents! They come in three cacao percentages, and are great to keep in your purse for that afternoon “gotta have some chocolate” craving that hits…since they are so small, how many calories could the whole tin be, anyway?
With a very full stomach and a bit of a chocolate buzz, I wandered towards the exit, loaded down with a few of my favorites that will have to last me until next year. A better show than last year – all in one cool room instead of two warm ones, and much more space to move around. If you’re planning to come to the East Coast to see some fall color, don’t miss the chance to attend this one of a kind gathering of chocoholics. As you can see below, there is something for everyone's taste!
