Sometimes the only difference between luxury chocolate and regular chocolate is the price. But truly luxurious chocolates really are worth the extra money.
A good producer of gourmet chocolates will take great pride in his work. That means that as well as tasting delicious, a luxury chocolate should look good too. So if the chocolate doesn't impress you visually, your taste buds are likely to be equally unimpressed.
As well as the design of the chocolate itself, there are three key things chocolatiers needs to get right when creating a luxury chocolate: the ingredients, the blending technique and the filling.
One: Only pure fruits and spirits should be used to make quality luxury chocolates - that means no artificial essences or flavourings. The cocoa bean itself should be of exceptional quality, ideally from a crop growing no more than 20 degrees either side of the Equator where conditions are most favourable for perfectly smooth and flavoursome beans.
Two: The chocolate needs to be carefully blended to give a smooth, rich taste and a consistency that means the chocolate will 'snap' when it enters your mouth.
Three: Lastly, the filling should be delicate and light, but rich enough to allow its full flavour to be appreciated alongside the chocolate. Successfully achieving the perfect balance between chocolate and filling means that when you put the chocolate in your mouth, you should first hear the crack of the chocolate, then taste the warmth of the filling.
Basically, a luxury chocolate should do exactly the job you'd expect - it should look and taste luxurious!
There are other reasons for opting for luxury chocolate - it can actually healthier for you than regular chocolate. Most brand name chocolate is made up of less than twenty percent chocolate solids, and is bulked out by extra fat and sugar. Because of the limited pure chocolate content, you will have to eat more of it to satisfy your chocolate craving. With high quality, luxury chocolate however, your craving will be satisfied much more quickly, and you will have consumed far less sugar and fat along the way.
So, for the healthiest way to eat chocolate, you just have to be a bit pickier about what you buy.
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