It seems a bit strange to some that one be told how to plan and have a party, but if you are looking for guidance on throwing a wine and chocolate tasting party, you will be hard pressed to find instructions more detailed than Conduct Your Own Chocolate Tasting.

We thought we would point this article out, because our plan is quite boring:

1) Get chocolate.
2) Get wine.
3) Optional--Invite friends.
4) Eat, drink and be merry.

Again, for those looking for more detailed instructions, refer to the aforementioned article.

A Trader Joe's employee said the 72% Cacao Dark Chocolate was their best seller. Well, if you like this Belgium chocolate, you don't really like chocolate. Try a comparable SCHARFFEN BERGER and there simply is no comparison.

It is hard to trash chocolate, but this is headed to waste.



Yuck, is the only fitting expression.

Instinctively, we know chocolate is wonderful, which is why we want to eat it all of the time...good chocolate, anyway.

While the cardioprotective effect of dark chocolate seen in several human studies appears to open the possibility that eating lots of chocolate is healthy, "I prefer to focus on cocoa," Dore said. "Cocoa is not like chocolate, which is high in saturated fat and calories. Cocoa can be part of a healthy diet, combined with fruits and vegetables." [Read]

Should we not see labeling before long: "Chocolate, the center of a healthy diet."

What comes first, the chicken or the egg:

People who tested positive for depression consumed about 60 percent more chocolate compared with people who had lower test scores. A depression score suggesting major depression more than doubled chocolate consumption, investigators reported in the April 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine. [Read]

Now, if you were really depressed, would you not eat more chocolate? When things are not well, chocolate it one of those simple selfish pleasures that can bring joy.

When depressed, a bit of chocolate soothes the soul.

It must be said: Root:1 Cabernet is quite good.

Always good news, when it comes to chocolate:

Cocoa-rich dark chocolate could be prescribed for people with liver cirrhosis in future, following the latest research to show potential health benefits of chocolate. [Read]

Let us put this in context: chocolate may be the prescription for liver cirrhosis.

BTW: We know that one of the contributing factors of liver cirrhosis is alcohol, so if you are enjoying wine a bit too much, you need to cut back, and not forget to take your chocolate. Everything in moderation...

Every day, you need chocolate!

A new study suggests that eating a small piece of chocolate every day may reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke. [Read]

Reminders are good. I am going to have a piece now.

There are times when we consider cutting back on chocolate over caloric intake concerns, but then we are reminded that to live a healthy and joyous life, chocolate should be enjoyed:

Yet another health benefit has been linked to eating chocolate: It may decrease your risk of stroke, a new study suggests.

The analysis, which will be presented in April at the American Academy of Neurology's 62nd Annual Meeting, reviewed the results of three previous studies. One study with more than 44,000 participants found that those who ate a weekly serving of chocolate were 22 percent less likely to suffer a stroke than those who ate no chocolate. [Read]

One more bite of that dark chocola....mmmmmmmm...

If you have a lot of time to spend on wine, and the holidays is the season, check out the Top 100 Wine Blogs. As to which is worth the read, it is a matter a fit. You may find a blog at the bottom of the list more suitable to your tastes than one at the top, and you know we feel that you should never deny your true self for the sake of joining the crowd.

Enjoy!

It is a bit old, but it is a decent cocoa test from a cooking mag site:

Cook's Illustrated Cocoa Powder Test

When in Las Vegas, stop by the little Bouchon Bakery in the Venetian. The Bouchon Bakery is a Thomas Keller creation (The French Laundry) and when you have sampled the baked goods you will understand why he has such an incredible reputation--not everyone can afford his restaurants. Since we are about chocolate and wine, and you are not going to have wine at a small bakery, let us tell you to have a Bouchon at the bakery. It looks like a chocolate brownie and tastes like one, only perfect. Perfect is not easy. Also, try the Red Velvet cupcake. Red Velvet cakes are really chocolate, so we feel comfortable in making the suggestion, and it is indescribable.

The internet being the beautiful tool it is, we found a recipe if you are not able to find your way to the bakery: Bouchon Bakery Bouchon recipe

In English, a bouchon is a cork, which explains why this brownie is shaped like a cork.

It is hard to admit, but chocolate can kill:

Authorities say a man died after falling into a vat of melted chocolate in a New Jersey processing plant. [Read]

Imagine the working conditions; did he fall or did the chocolate look so good he became mesmerized and went for it?

Death, inevitable for all, especially chocolate lovers. Stand back...

When you are a lover of chocolate and wine, it is easy for friends and family to bring you gifts when they return from their travels. Recently, a gift numerous chocolates hand-made in various small shoppes throughout Italy was presented as a gorging gift. It took months to masticate and melt away in the mouth, but the flavors were generally wonderful, from burnt to pure, with only a few leaving an unfortunate experience. (None had the non-chocolate taste of a Hershey's bar.)

Wine from around the world is easy to come by, but the pleasures of chocolate are more difficult to find because of the delicate nature of the product. Either is a wonderful gift, as they can both be savored and give a hint of an adventure in a far off land. It should not have been a surprise that a country known for great wine could produce so much fine chocolate.

In other words: Go to Italy!

Back in 1000 AD there was a place where cocoa was in demand, and toasts were made to the goodness of the gorgeous bean...a place now referred to as New Mexico, USA. As strange as it might seem, New Mexico was at the epicenter of the glorious bean:

People in AD 1000 may have made drinks from cacao, which researchers thought had arrived in what is now the U.S. in the 15th century. [Read]

It is more of a financial benchmark, but all who love chocolate have always known how valuable the cocoa bean is:

Investors in cocoa will be having a sweet Christmas as cocoa hits a 23-year high, making it the most lucrative commodity of 2008. [Read]

For a more in-depth article:

Cocoa prices on Tuesday surged to a 23-year high as speculative investors poured into the market amid concerns about dwindling supplies from Ivory Coast, by far the world’s largest producer.

Prices for cocoa have risen 70 per cent in the past year, bucking the weakness in overall commodities prices. [Read]

Again, not news to anyone who understands the true value of the beautiful bean (and the worthlessness of the dollar these days).

All right, so we kid about a chocolate and wine diet, but to some it is not a joke:

It’s a new eating plan that advocates drinking wine and eating chocolate every day to help you lose weight. Not only will you shed pounds but you will also live longer and decrease your risk of heart disease, dementia and diabetes. [Read]

Sure, he is serious, apparently, because he is trying to sell a book.

Here is a formula that is free: Eat, drink & be merry! And it goes without saying that chocolate and wine are a part of that formula...

Under these economic conditions, it is good to know that drinking wine is a good thing. (I know that if I drink enough, things are not so bad...)

A new insight into the reason for aging has been gained by scientists trying to understand how resveratrol, a minor ingredient of red wine, improves the health and lifespan of laboratory mice. They believe that the integrity of chromosomes is compromised as people age, and that resveratrol works by activating proteins known as sirtuins that restore the chromosomes to health. [Read]

Not sure you want to be eating any Cadbury chocolate for a while. The company said they have concerns about product safety:

A Cadbury spokesman says preliminary results show its Chinese-made chocolates contain the industrial chemical melamine. [Read]

Some people apparently have not yet received the message:

A key compound in red wine known as resveratrol appears to protect against many of the health ravages associated with growing old, new animal research reveals. [Read]

Red wine. Get it? You drink your red wine and you will live forever. Well, actually they say life will just be better:

Daily consumption of the compound -- also found in the skin of grapes and the crust of peanuts and walnuts -- broadly improved the long-term quality of life of middle-aged mice, although most mice did not end up living longer.

Yes, a pinot gris or riesling is a safe call with crab, though a chardonnay is the safest. But what about those prefer red wines? Yes, that means ignoring the rules, but if a red wine is preferred then a pinot noir would be a nice bet.

Rules are made for those that want to follow. You know what kind of wine goes with the crab you like, and if you do not then experiment. Let your taste buds rule!

Who would have thought counterfeiters would have moved to counterfeiting wine? Just like those fancy labels that verify authenticity on clothes, label technology is being developed to enhance wine security.

According to Wine Spectator magazine, 5% of rare wines sold on the secondary market are counterfeit. That is a lot of fraud.

At $500,000 for some wine, this fraud had to hurt:

In 1988, William Koch bought a number of rare bottles of wine alleged to be Thomas Jefferson's, found in walled-up wine cellars in Paris. Koch paid $500,000 for the bottles, which he bought from German wine merchant Hardy Rodenstock through an auction at Christie's.

After lending his collection for an exhibit at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts in 2005, Koch learned that the supposed Jefferson bottles were fakes. The engraved "T.H.J." initials on the bottles were way ahead of their alleged time, done with tools not even introduced until after Jefferson had died. [Read]

Seeing a bag of HERSHEY'S ALL NATURAL EXTRA DARK PURE MINT DARK CHOCOLATE on a close-out shelf was a red flag of temptation. Mint. Dark chocolate. Sure it was Hershey's, but why not.

It was pretty good, but what was most fascinating was the packaging. On the front of the package was a small logo touting "COCOA IS A NATURAL SOURCE OF FLAVANOL ANTIOXIDANTS". If you looked at the back of the package it was being marketed for its health benefits. Under the heading "Total Antioxidant Capacity of Selected Foods" was a bar graph. In descending order, the items graphed were HERSHEY'S Cocoa, Blueberries, Hershey's Extra Dark dark chocolate, Red wine, Green tea and Almonds. The marketing text on the back of the package was a discussion of the health benefits of cocoa beans. According to their graph, HERSHEY'S Cocoa is the healthiest thing you can eat!

Yeah, it was pretty good. Really good if you take into account it came from generally bad chocolatier Hershey. But after reading the package, I realize I have greatly improved my health by eating HERSHEY'S chocolate. Sure, you thought the health benefits were from cocoa, but according to Hershey, they are cocoa!

Have fun. Enjoy. And give something new a try.

It was a really small piece of dark chocolate. Orange Intense is what the packaging read. It was labeled appropriately.

As one who finds Lindt chocolates to be so-so at times, I was surprised by this perfect little piece of chocolate orange delight. This was the best orange flavored chocolate I have ever encountered. Yes, my experience with orange infused dark chocolate is limited, but this tiny piece of perfection hit the spot.

Surprises are not always welcome, but the wonderful ones that caress the taste buds are a gift.

Not about chocolate. Not about wine. But if you are interested in the health benefits of chocolate and/or wine you may also be interested in drinking a cup of coffee each day:

Drinking one cup of coffee a day could protect against Alzheimer's disease, according to research.

American scientists found caffeine blocks the ability of cholesterol to move from the blood into the brain. [Read]

Now all we need is that story that says ice cream is the perfect food.

Really, the cork does not belong under your nose. There is nothing you can really learn from sniffing the cork that you cannot get from the scent in the glass. What you can get from the cork is from your sense of sight and touch. If the cork looks "bad" and/or appears crumbly, it may have compromised the wine.

Next time you are handed a cork, use your eyes to judge if it says anything about the wine you are about to drink and keep it away from your nose.

Yes, there will be a day when a cork will be a piece of antiquity, but not yet.