Kansas City, MO Chocolate Tasting Workshop:

This coming Saturday, December 1st, at Magazines and Coffee on 1722 Main Street in Kansas City, MO, our very own Alan McClure, chocolate maker of Patric Chocolate, will be conducting a chocolate tasting of the first bar in Patric Chocolate's line of fine dark chocolate bars, the 70% Single Origin Madagascar bar, starting at 2 pm.

As one of only 5 or 6 micro-producers of chocolate in the US, Alan will be give a brief talk on quality in fine chocolate and the aspects of fine chocolate production that are most conducive to such quality. Alan will also field questions from attendees about any chocolate-related issues.

This event is standing room only, free to the public, and no reservations are being accepted. Once again, the event information is:

What: Chocolate Tasting Workshop led by chocolate maker Alan McClure of Patric Chocolate
Where: Magazines and Coffee on 1722 Main Street, in Kansas City, MO
When: Saturday, December 1st, at 2 pm

See you there!

10th Annual New York Chocolate Show: One Chocolate Maker's Perspective

Alan McClure, chocolate maker of Patric Chocolate, walked the 10^th Annual New York Chocolate Show for part of each day from the 9^th-11^th. Here are his thoughts on the show:

The Metropolitan Pavillion & Altman Building was crowded full of chocolate lovers searching for chocolate revelations, and whether they found them or not, they had quite a lot to choose from. In fact, it seemed that every type of chocolate product from artisan-made limited edition truffles to micro-produced fine dark chocolate bars were available. However, there were also a good number of factory-produced chocolate products from much larger companies, and for the first time, gigantic chocolate manufacturers such as Mars were to be found giving out sample upon sample of some of their new dark chocolate products. Yet, despite all of this chocolate, there was a noticeable lack of products from many foreign chocolatiers and bean to bar chocolate manufacturers. Even Valrhona, one of the most well-known, quality, French chocolate manufacturers, was nowhere to be seen, and smaller manufacturers from both Italy and France were also absent. Even more interestingly, a number of talented American-based chocolatiers who had been present at the show in years past had decided to skip the event this year. One wonders if perhaps the show is starting to cater more and more to the consumer of mass-market chocolate rather than to those who have a particular love for fine chocolate. Only time, and next year’s show, will tell.

Regardless, there were still a decent number of what Chocolate in Context's Emily Stone has called “chocolate wonks” at the show, and I did my best, over the course of the three-day show, to track them down for chocolate-related conversations covering such topics as bean to bar chocolate manufacture and the future of fine chocolate. Clay Gordon, author of the book Discover Chocolate: The Ultimate Guide to Buying, Tasting and Enjoying Fine Chocolate, noted that chocolate folks are some of the happiest and nicest people that one can meet, and this happily turned out to be true almost without exception.

(Above photo: Alan (left) talking to Clay Gordon about the new American micro-chocolate movement)

In addition to talking chocolate, however, I was also interested in seeing whether there would be any new, up-and-coming, bean to bar makers at the event; those of which I had not yet heard. Though I keep pretty good tabs on what is going on in the United States, I was expecting a surprise here or there. However, it seems that no such new companies were in the crowd. That said, I continue to stand behind my belief that we are seeing the beginning of a new fine chocolate making movement in the United States, and I expect that over the next several years we will continue to see serious US-based individuals trying to make a difference in the world of fine chocolate manufacture.

One might wonder, though, why it seems that I am forecasting or even wishing for competition, but I don’t see it quite like that. Rather, I think that the more excellent-quality chocolate that is made in the US, and the more people who have access to such chocolate, the better off all of the small chocolate makers will be. This increase in exposure of people to fine chocolate will result in an inevitable education regarding appreciation of fine chocolate, and a larger percentage of Americans will be able to distinguish between the quality products of such micro-producers and those of the mass-producers that simply pretend.

As Alexander Morozoff, editor of CocoAroma, noted when I talked to him some months ago, there are scores of small but serious wineries in the US that do wonderful business, and there is room for all of them. Why shouldn't the same apply to the world of chocolate?

It's not that I expect there to be hundreds of micro-producers of fine chocolate anytime soon, but there is plenty of room for a few more of us, and hopefully next year at the NY Chocolate Show I will be seeing at least one or two new faces who are just as excited about fine chocolate making as those of us who were there this year. After all, can there ever be too much excellent chocolate?

(Above photo: Alan holding two samples of his just-released 70% Madagascar bar. Luckily the upside down bar tasted just fine!-Photo by Kerry Beal)

Upcoming Events Featuring Patric Chocolate

Well, it's November already, and there are a few chocolate events over the next month that Patric Chocolate has either organized, or at which we will be present:

First there is the New York Chocolate Show from the 9th-11th of November. Though we won't have a table this year, chocolate maker Alan McClure will be there wandering the floor with samples of the Patric Chocolate 70% Madagascar dark chocolate bar, hoping to meet some blog readers, friends, colleagues, and other chocolate lovers. With so much chocolate under one roof it should be a very good time, and we hope to see you there.

Next, almost right after the NY show, Patric Chocolate will be holding another chocolate tasting workshop at World Harvest in Columbia, MO. For those of you who were there last time, the content of the talk will be slightly different, so it will be worth attending again, and for those who missed the last tasting in September, we had a great time, so we hope that you can make it. The chocolate tasting workshop will be held on Saturday, the 17th of November, at 1 pm at World Harvest Foods off of Nifong behind Gerbes.

Finally, we are taking a day trip to Kansas City for another chocolate tasting workshop. This one will be special in that we are working hard to debut one of our new bars during this tasting. You might just be able to have a taste if you can make it. It will be held at Magazines and Coffee at 1722 Main St. in KCMO on Saturday, December 1st, at 2 pm.

To be kept abreast of Patric Chocolate events in Missouri, if you haven't already signed up for the Missouri Residents mailing list, then please do so now to be contacted when events are held in Columbia, St. Louis, Kansas City, and elsewhere in Missouri. Just be sure to select "Chocolate Updates" AND "Missouri Resident" when you sign up on the list.

If you have already signed up on the Patric Chocolate mailing list, then just re-enter your e-mail below, and follow the simple instructions to change your subscription options to include "Missouri Resident."

What could be better than an e-mail list that tells you when complimentary samples of Patric Chocolate will be available near you?

Please let me know when Patric Chocolate is holding Missouri-based talks and tastings:

For those of you who couldn't make the last Patric Chocolate "Talk and Tasting," at World Harvest Foods on Sept. 1st, you can learn more about the content by viewing two previous blog posts, here, and here. (Links open in new windows)