25 April 2017
“Let’s be spontaneous” said hubby, on the eve of the Easter long weekend. So, with zero preparation on Easter Saturday, we hop in the car and head in the direction of the Blue Mountains.
As the ever predictable chocolate opportunist, how can I pass up the chance to check out the chocolates in the Mountains?……And so I grab it with both hands, literally!
Situated in Emu Heights, at the base of the Blue Mountains, and tucked away in a light industrial estate, it’s the stop that every chocolate lover should make before they ascend the Mountains. This is THE place where Zokoko weaves their renowned bean to bar chocolates – the Tranquilidad, Guadalcanal and Alto Beni.
The cafe and shopfront is bright and buzzy, with a central glass display lined with tasty chocolate treats of cakes, pastries, biscuits and their very own chocolate ganaches. The shelves in the cafe serve as a showcase of their entire collection of chocolate bars, drinking chocolates, cocoa powder, cocoa nibs and Morgan’s Coffee. And to the back is where all the action happens – their manufacturing facility. No photos allowed, unfortunately.
While we are here, there is no end to the throng of customers who stream in and out of the shop. Perhaps it’s the last minute Easter rush but I suspect that this is the norm.
My recommendation is to grab yourself a hot chocolate or coffee and a chocolate treat, then sit down and soak in the atmosphere of Zokoko as you savour every mouthful. The giant chocolate cookie is delectable, crisp on the outside but soft and chewy on the inside, as are their handmade chocolate ganaches that only retail here at their cafe.
The Gingerbread House Katoomba
It seems like the whole of Sydney has decided on the exact same road trip, at the same time. The queue snaking up to the top of the Mountains starts at the base and moves painfully slow. Thankfully, after a hearty lunch at Pins on Lurline Restaurant, which I highly recommend, there’s a reward in the form of a visit to The Gingerbread House.
This building used to be an old church that was eventually restored. In 2013, Jodie, the owner of Josophan’s Fine Chocolates, turned it into the home of Gingerbread, sweets and chocolate treats.
As the name suggests, it’s almost fairy tale-like inside. Tables are lined along the edges of the walls and surround a central service and retail area filled with house-baked Gingerbread, cakes, brownies, cookies and muffins as well as ice cream, chocolates and vibrant coloured lollies in many shapes and forms. Hansel and Gretel, eat your heart out!
We sit down to a serve of Josophan’s legendary Mexican chocolate cake, accompanied by a scoop of “Death by Chocolate” ice cream, whipped cream and a cup of chai tea. This signature cake is made purely with Belgian couverture chocolate; the result is a deliciously rich and intensely dark tasting treat, with just the right level of sweetness. It hits the spot for me.
Blue Mountains Chocolate Company
After a refreshing walk to Echo Point Lookout and a quick photo-taking opportunity of The Three Sisters, we chance upon a cute cottage housing this chocolate discovery.
The Blue Mountains Chocolate Company handcrafts all their ganaches, pralines, truffles and caramels on site using Belgian couverture chocolate. The range is extensive and complemented by an equally impressive selection of chocolate bars and blended drinking chocolates, available exclusively in-store. There is ample seating here, both inside and outside, to relax and refuel with warm and cold chocolate treats after a day of bushwalking and sightseeing.
For something a little different, try the popping chilli bomb (dark chocolate chilli ganache with the added touch of popping candy), dark chocolate chestnut praline made with locally grown chestnuts, and the dark and milk chocolate banoffee (molten banana flavoured caramel, encased in milk and dark chocolate).
A trip up to the Mountains is incomplete without an obligatory visit to Josophan’s. Sadly, they are closed by the time we reach Leura. The consolation is that I have easy access to Josophan’s in Sydney. Better luck next time.
The Verdict
The Mountains is a conducive environment for chocolates all year round, with cooler temperatures and a steady stream of chocolate lovers amongst the many tourists and locals alike. To maximise the experience of chocolates in the Mountains, start from the bottom and work your way to the top.
Ask visitors about the capital of New Zealand and chances are, “Windy Wellington” will roll off their tongues. Others may allude to the iconic, antique red cable car that runs up the steep hill through the Botanical Gardens, the brilliant blue harbour that houses the heart of the city, Lambton Quay, or the hip and happening Cuba street district with its vibrant food and craft beer scene.
My first destination is one that I’ve been eagerly anticipating. Established as recent as 2013, this young and dynamic homegrown chocolate maker is already making waves in the craft chocolate world.
Perhaps it’s because their chocolates are proudly organic, bean to bar and single origin. Maybe it’s their strong social and economic stance on ethically (fair or direct) traded cacao beans. Or simply that they make great tasting chocolate by applying their unique flair such as conching for 2.5 days and ageing the conched chocolate for a month.
The highlight of the tour is definitely the tasting. On offer is the whole single origin range, namely the Peru Norandino 70%, Dominican Republic 70%, Samoa 77% Bouganville 70%, plus specialty bars such as the coconut milk chocolate 52%. My top pick is the Dominican Republic 70% – intense flavours of citrus, with bursts of nuttiness, in an acidic bar with trace notes of bitterness. As for intrigue, the honours goes to the Bouganville 70% for its rarity, zero emissions status and smoked dried beans. The people’s choice is apparently the salted brittle caramel 70%.
To top off the tour, visitors are served a single origin hot chocolate to enjoy while they soak in the lively atmosphere at the WCF.
Next up, I’m off to visit a person whose growing passion for chocolate is highly infectious and has led him to his current calling. Luke is the owner of The Chocolate Bar, a retailer and enthusiast of craft chocolate based in Wellington. He sources his chocolates from within New Zealand and the world over, and retails them online as well as through pop up stores. He also runs chocolate appreciation courses in partnership with establishments such as breweries, wine shops, wineries as well as tea shops.
More importantly, I finally get to taste and purchase elusive craft chocolates from makers like Ocho, Hogarth, The Smooth Chocolator, Map Chocolate, Naive, Soul and many more.
The attraction here starts with how one pronounces its name….bo-he-mee-un or bo-he-mine or bo-he-mane? I’ll leave you to figure this out.
Visitors to Bohemein are also treated to a mouth watering array of meticulously crafted and preservative free ganaches, creams and truffles, spun from the freshest ingredients, in a classy European-style setting. For those who enjoy their chocolates hot or warm, customize your hot chocolate by working off their hot chocolate menu.
Since Easter is just around the corner, the shelves are filled with endless varieties of chocolate eggs and bunnies, including their highly popular milk and dark chocolate bunnies filled with chocolate caramel, cinnamon caramel and mulled port ganache.
I’m both shocked and impressed by the gourmet chocolate range at Schoc. They may be boutique in size but it doesn’t stop them from churning out 60 different varieties of bars/ tablets and an equally impressive range of ganaches, truffles, caramels and creams. One is clearly spoilt for choice.
The caramels, both dark bitter and soft butter caramels, are “must-tries”, as are the truffles such as lavender salted caramel and honey cumin. My friends at 
This discovery is courtesy of my newfound friends at Bohemein. Housed in a traditional, cozy setting and tucked in the beautiful Old Bank Arcade, the chocolates here reflect the ambience of the shop and building. The chocolatiers at De Spa skillfully handcraft up to 70 different varieties including ganaches, truffles, creams, caramels and bars using Callebaut Belgian couverture chocolate and fresh, locally sourced ingredients.
My recommendations here are the Black Forest ganache and, for those who enjoy texture in their chocolates, the macadamia and hazelnut truffles.
There are about 40 different Easter specials at Kakawa. David, one half of the Kakawa duo, proudly declares as I inquire about their spread. Try one or a pack of four hot cross buns – cinnamon-spiced milk chocolate ganache, enrobed in milk chocolate. It’s soft, light and creamy, with just the right intensity of spice. For the more adventurous, there’s the multi flavoured quail eggs, the “fried egg on toast” (caramel flavoured marshmallow coated in dark, milk and white chocolate shaped like a cracked egg, and sprinkled with praline powder), honeycomb egg, rocky road egg and many more. The hardest decision is which one to choose – the variety is truly impressive.
What an eye catching display of beautifully hand-painted eggs, bunnies and chickens, lining the display window! Once inside, the visual feast continues with many a cute and nicely wrapped bunnies, chickens and eggs. My top pick is the creative Easter praline – dual layer of caramelised macadamia on a base of lemon myrtle-infused white chocolate ganache. The aroma conjures up memories of freshly-popped caramel popcorn, and the flavours and texture of the caramelised macadamia praline are just divine.
This Melbourne-based establishment doesn’t disappoint, with multiple Easter treats to suit many a discerning taste buds. Fans of pralines and ganaches can choose between the hazelnut praline quail egg, hazelnut praline bunny or the hot cross bun, the latter being a spiced ganache-filled, egg-shaped dark chocolate truffle, dusted in cocoa powder. The Easter range here also extends from plain solid and moulded eggs and bunnies to inventive flavoured eggs such as the caramelised coconut, hazelnut and cocoa nibs and salted cashew nut brittle, all attractively packaged.
The hot cross buns are Adora-ble (pun intended?). These decadent, adult-only treats comprise tri-layers of chocolate – chocolate cake jazzed up with a dash of rum, coconut and cherries, then enrobed in dark chocolate and topped off with white chocolate. Why stop at one when you can indulge in a pack of six? If you’re shopping for the kids, there’s a choice of plain milk, dark or white chocolate rabbits as well as a selection of cutely decorated Easter shortbread, chocolate filled eggs and hampers.
The classic favourites are back again. Haigh’s version of the hot cross bun is chewy chocolate fudge, flavoured with fruit and spices, and coated in dark chocolate. Rather more-ish, I might add, so they made them in packs of six too. The solid white chocolate duck is another Easter special, almost too cute to eat. There’s also an abundance of solid and moulded chocolate eggs in multiple sizes and coloured foil wrapping.
I’ve mentioned the term in numerous posts, in connection with well made chocolates. Now, let’s aim to explore the What, Why and How of “temper”.
Tempering enhances the structure of chocolate. Because the beta crystals are tightly bound, it takes more physical effort to pull them apart. This is why when well tempered chocolate is broken apart, you hear the characteristic snap. Untempered or poorly tempered chocolate breaks apart easily and may crumble.
Tempering enhances the appearance of chocolate. The stable alignment of the beta crystals results in the glossy, shiny sheen on the surface of well tempered chocolate. Untempered or poorly tempered chocolate appears dull or matt, and over time, white or light brown patches may start to appear. The latter is caused by a phenomenon called fat bloom, whereby the less stable alpha crystals deposit on the surface of the chocolate.
Tempering enhances the mouthfeel of chocolate. The beta crystals are the finest of the cocoa butter crystals. Together with variabilities in the production process namely the size of the winnowing sieve and duration of conching, tempering creates the smooth and even texture of chocolate.
Untempered chocolate is heated to 45ºC, after which two thirds of the melted chocolate is poured onto a clean, cool marble or stone surface. The melted chocolate is spread and worked until the consistency starts to thicken and the temperature reaches 27ºC to 28ºC. At this point, the tempered chocolate is added back to the untempered chocolate and mixed in thoroughly to create the working chocolate.
Untempered chocolate is heated to 45ºC. To the melted chocolate, another 25% of untempered chocolate is added. The mixture is stirred vigorously until all the chocolate has melted, to create the working chocolate.
Untempered chocolate is heated in a microwave, in bursts of 30 seconds and while stirring in between, until the proportion of solid to melted chocolate is roughly 50:50. This mixture is then stirred until all the chocolate has melted, to create the working chocolate.
If available, make the effort to read the label or packaging to understand what it is you’re consuming, the ingredients that have gone into its production and the economic, social and environmental impact of the chocolate.
It’s also worth understanding the story of the cacao beans including the variety, region, country of origin, terroir and method of processing. If you’re a chocolate nerd like me, this will be enough to get you excited even before your first mouthful!
Look at the surface. Does it have a shiny, glossy sheen or looks dull with whitish or light brown spots? A shiny, glossy sheen is an indication of well tempered chocolate. Conversely, a dull surface with spots is likely to indicate bloom, either sugar bloom (sugar dissolves in moisture from condensation and crystallises upon its evaporation) or fat bloom (fat in the form of cocoa butter crystals deposit on the surface of the chocolate). Both are usually caused by suboptimal chocolate storage conditions and in the case of fat bloom, inadequate tempering. The chocolate is still nonetheless edible but obviously, this affects the overall experience. And on this note, an invaluable piece of advice to always bear in mind – avoid storing your chocolates in the fridge! The optimum storage temperature of chocolate is between 15 to 18 degrees Celsius.
Admire the artistry of the colours, shapes and designs of the chocolate moulds. The latter can be both unique and beautiful, and provide a glimpse into the personality, heritage or background of the chocolate maker. Take for example the chocolate bars from Hungarian bean to bar maker Rózsavölgyi Csokoládé that are moulded to look like 19th Century Hungarian fire place tiles.
Are the flavours fleeting or do they build up and linger? Is the flavour profile flat or multi-dimensional and changes with time? It’s not unusual for the flavour profile of single origin and blended good quality chocolate to vary as the chocolate melts. The same holds true for “layered” pralines, ganaches and truffles.