A Tasty Adventure

One of my favorite experiences last week was so completely unexpected -- both in not having planned for it as well as not ever having dreamed up doing something like this.  My next-door neighbor is one of the most interesting, unusual people I know.  She shares with me new ideas and ways to do things that have enriched my life. I love knowing her!  As I passed her house Thursday evening she was in her front yard digging up the awful quack grass starts in her small home orchard when I stopped my van to say hello.  She invited me along on a tasting adventure in Provo.  All I understood about the adventure was the word "chocolate" because I was in a hurry to get my kids in the door so I could start my afternoon piano teaching schedule.  Miraculously I did not have any plans (beyond dinner prep) once my teaching was over so I agreed to come along.    

My neighbor Allaire had assembled a fascinating group of women and I enjoyed getting to know them.  It turns out this company called Taste. specializes in artisan chocolate and vinegars and, as the name implies, you can taste any of the merchandise before you buy. This wasn't a buying excursion, however. This was a "mini tasting."  For a small price we were given the opportunity to try several different samples of chocolate made from beans grown around the world (New Guinea, Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico) and made into chocolate by artisans in Denmark, Lithuania, Paris, and Italy.  It was an Experience.

Our host/chocolatier/college student gave us a mini class on tasting chocolates and vinegars (more on the vinegars in a moment; that might have been my favorite part).  For the chocolates, each of us was given a small rectangular try with seven or eight thumbnail-size pieces of different chocolates. In order to get the full range of flavors from each morsel we were instructed to first rub the chocolate piece between thumb and forefinger until it softened under our fingertips. Once it softened we were supposed to deeply inhale the scent (Mmmmmm!) and repeat this another couple of times.  Next, (once we couldn't stand to wait any longer) we put the piece on our tongues and waited for it to soften and then push that around in our mouths. No biting yet!  Between scent and first taste there are different layers of flavor to notice, and even as the chocolate swirls in your mouth there are other flavors that become apparent. The most unusual piece of chocolate I tried was one made in Lithuania called Spice. This particular bar was a vanilla cinnamon cayenne pepper chocolate. Yep. Cayenne pepper! I am NOT a very spicy food lover, but this was so interesting and delicious. It was like being in the Wonka factory with the gum that was supposed to be a three course meal. I could smell the cinnamon and hints of the cayenne before I put it (a bit apprehensively) in my mouth. The first flavor was a vanilla, followed by a burst of cinnamon.  As I started to swallow the melted chocolate a definite heat went down my throat, almost like I was swallowing hot chocolate. It wasn't unpleasant or painful. It was awesome. Another piece I tried started out very bitter on my tongue and I was sure I  had had my first chocolate I wouldn't like. But as that piece sat in my mouth the flavor mellowed, got sweeter, and then tasted almost bread-like, like it was chocolate smeared on a warm crusty roll. Fortunately we all had notecards on which to write down our impressions as we went along. It was hard to decide which one was my favorite.

At the conclusion of the chocolate part we got to try a couple of fruit vinegars, some Tahitian vanilla, and some wonderful balsamic vinegars. If you're thinking of white vinegar or apple cider vinegar, I don't blame you for wrinkling up your nose saying, "Ew!"  This was nothing like that.  Depending on what we were tasting we were either given a tiny little plastic spoon sample or a droplet on the "snuffbox" part of the wrist. Did you know you have a snuffbox on your wrist? Me either. The fruit vinegars were either cane sugar based or fruit pulp based. We got to try ginger (my favorite) and passionfruit (not sweet, but just tangy fruity); dark cherry balsamic vinegar (aged in dark cherrywood casks that imparted a definite cherry flavor); "regular" balsamic vinegar; and Tahitian vanilla -- a very intense vanilla that, while much more expensive than what you find on your grocery shelf, was so amazing, deep, and layered in its flavors. It would take just a tiny amount to make something common become stunning!  

Am I raving a bit?  I supposed I am.  The whole evening was so much fun with these women and an experience so out-of-the-ordinary for me.  As I sat there laughing with these new friends, having my tastebuds rocked, all I could think of was how much fun this would be for my children to come do or for my parents and sisters to come do with me.  It would be a very cool date for a young couple to go on that would be affordable for the mini tasting and offer so much opportunity for conversation rather than just dinner and a movie (and less expensive!).  And though I hadn't come prepared to purchase anything, I will certainly be going back to get something(s) and hopefully taste a wide range of other delicious somethings. They have a much broader range of chocolate than the few we sampled and an expansive selection of vinegars too.  Who wants to go with me?