Scharffen
Berger Chocolate Maker's Nibby Bar has been a favorite of
mine for years. What could be better than 62% Cacao Semisweet chocolate
and roasted cacao nibs? A crunchy delight that is good...and good for you.
Long Chocolate
It is very difficult to choose when you are standing in a Jean
Paul Hevin chocolate boutique but these chocolate bars with
deep, dark chocolate ganache are easy to munch during your walking tour of Paris.
The perfect chocolate in a perfectly easy-to-use form.
Amano Milk Chocolate Bar
Amano Arisan Chocolate's Ocumare 30% Cocoa Milk Chocolate Bar is rich and creamy, as a milk chocolate should be, while at the same time full of chocolate flavor with a hint of caramel undertones.
Raspberry Cordial
This is the Lillie Belle Farms bonbon that knocked me off my feet at the Fancy Food Show. The raspberry taste was sweet and tart at the same time and just melted in your mouth along with the dark chocolate shell.
Dark Gray Salt Caramels
Fran's
Chocolates' butter caramels are hand-dipped in dark chocolate
and sprinkled with Brittany gray sea salt. Sweet and salty has always
been a favorite since my childhood when my Dad bought chocolate-covered
Spanish peanuts as a treat.
De Vries Chocolate
Steve De Vries is fixated on quality and best process, from bean to bar, and is an inspiration for other artisan chocolate makers. His bars are always hard to get so, if he has one for sale on his website, buy it. You won't be dissapointed.
Aromatica Barrique
We love Simone de Castro's Aromatica Barrique bar with
its spices of mace, ginger, red peppercorns and Caribbean pimento, infused
into 60% cocoa dark chocolate.
Cremini
Daniele, Stefania and Leonardo Vestri, of Cioccolaterie
Vestri, produce the classic Italian cremini in three layers,
from light to dark, emulsifying hazelnuts and chocolate until they become
one.
Amaretto Almond
If you are an almond lover like I am, you will appreciate Woodhouse
Chocolate's ode to the nut. Take a chocolate-dipped almond, then nestle it in a milk chocolate shell, surrounded by Amaretto-flavored
milk chocolate ganache.
Tartufi
In the middle of the Tuscan countryside is a little palace of chocolate
and coffee owned by the Slitti
family. Their tiny, bite-size truffles, infused with Cognac and rustically
rolled in cocoa powder, are the perfect little something to enjoy after
dinner.
California Brittle
One of my favorite chocolates since childhood, See's
Candies’ California Brittle is a rich, hard toffee, full
of roasted almonds and covered in just the right amount of milk chocolate.
This candy balances a perfect ratio of crisp, sweet toffee to nuts.
Milk Chocolate Bar with Caramel Bits & Crystal Salt
Need we say more? Who can resist milk chocolate with bits of caramel and a sprinkling of salt? Thank you, Vintage Planations, for getting all the flavors just right.
Donnelly Chocolate Bars
Richard
Donnelly was one of the first to offer fine chocolate bars—single varietal or flavored with almond or cardamom. His milk
chocolate bars with a West African cocoa blend are flavored with almond
or hazelnut almond toffee.
TCHO Nutty
TCHO produces blended bars, labeled with flavor profiles, not origin or cocoa percentage. Their Nutty Bar definitely was a hit with our taste buds.
French Cherry
Martine's
favorite bonbon is mine, too, as it brings back memories of her childhood
in France and reminds me of my time spent there. French Cherry is the chocolate-covered
cherry for chocoholics: a cherry, marinated in brandy, is nestled
in dark chocolate ganache and encased in a perfect chocolate shell.
Gianduja
Vestri
Cioccolate produces classic Italian Gianduja bars
following the traditional method of blending hazelnuts and chocolate
together until the two are indistinguishable, resulting in a smooth chocolate
infused with hazelnut flavor.
Puertomar
Domori's
chocolate bars are always interesting and Puertomar is a favorite with notes of cream, spices, almond, cherry preserve.
Chocolate Bar Criollo 70%
Along with his tiny chocolates and pastries, Christian
Constant in Paris offers chocolate bars, including a Criollo
70% bar. Less than 5% of the cocoa beans grown are the criollo, which, when
expertly dried and fermented, produces a complex flavor.
Dark Chocolate Classic Truffles
Fritz Knipschildtcelebrates the classic, deep, dark chocolate truffle using France's
smooth, creamy Valrhona 70% Grand Cru chocolate. This is the confection
to satisfy your cravings for rich, dark chocolate flavor, with nothing else
getting in the way.
Cambur Caramel
Chuao
Chocolatier takes its name and inspiration from Venezuela,
the home of one of the owners. This fruit caramel definitely reflects
that part of the world, with banana and brown sugar caramel, tucked inside
a Venezuelan milk chocolate shell.
Raspberry Truffles
Fran's
Raspberry Truffle ganache is infused with red raspberry purée and
a splash of Clear Creek Framboise from Portland Oregon (where it takes
up to 80 pounds of raspberries to make one bottle). Then she protects
that flavor with dark chocolate!
Chocolate Bar Selection at Fog City News
Fog City News carries 200 different chocolate bars in stock at all times including bars from the US, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland and other countries around the World.
Nibby Chocolate Bar
Scharffen
Berger Chocolate Maker's Nibby Bar has been a favorite of
mine for years. What could be better than 62% Cacao Semisweet chocolate
and roasted cacao nibs? A crunchy delight that is good...and good for you.
Chocolate Bar Criollo 70%
Along with his tiny chocolates and pastries, Christian
Constant in Paris offers chocolate bars including a Criollo
70%. Less than 5 % of the cocoa beans grown are the criollo which when
expertly dried and fermented produces a complex flavor.
Vestri Gran Cru Bars
Danielo
Vestri is proud of his Dark Chocolate Gran Cru bars from
the Caribbean, Venezuela and Madagascar. We particularly liked the red
fruit flavors in the Madagascar.
Macaron Plénitude
Ok, Ok! Macarons are not bonbons, but when they are tiny chocolate
and caramel macarons with dark chocolate ganache, from Pierre
Hermé in Paris, I think they need to be on our list
of the best tiny confections we've ever tasted.
Patrick Roger Trinidad 75%
Paris chocolatier Patrick
Roger has a wall of bars in single origin or chocolate blends in a
range of percentages: the Trinidad is a particular favorite for munching
on long walks.
Madecasse 70% Cocoa Bar
Cacao from Madagascar produces an instantly-recognizable fruity flavor. This not-too-strong dark chocolate from Madecasse is rich and satisfying.
Les Pavés
Les Pavés are tiny squares of dark chocolate ganache, cut into
perfect 1/2 inch squares and coated with cocoa powder. The ultimate melt-in your-mouth bonbon is a specialty of Michel Chaudun
and protegé Jean-Charles Rochoux.
Chocolate Mice
L.A.
Burdick's tiny mice come in three flavors: dark chocolate mouse
with orange and dark chocolate interior, milk chocolate mouse with mocha and dark chocolate, and white chocolate mouse with cinnamon and dark chocolate.
Iris Delice
Inspired by her love of chocolate and her passion for the Iris, Barbara
Golini produces delicate bonbons of soft, iris-scented dark
chocolate, called Iris Delice, in Florence, Italy.
Maya Gold
Green
& Blacks original organic bar and its homage to the Mayan
peoples of Belize, delivers a slight crunch of exotic citrus and spices
that takes you back to the tropics.
Apple White Chocolates
Norman
Love's chocolates, made with fine Swiss white chocolate, are
as tasty as they are jewel-box beautiful. We especially love the bright
green apple chocolates made with Granny Smith apple purée and a
pinch of cinnamon.
E. Guittard L'Harmonie 64%
Made from a blend of Criollo and Trinitario cacao beans, Guittard
calls L'Harmonie a "baking bar," but I think it's one of the richest
and smoothest bittersweet chocolate bars around for munching.
Hazelnuts in Chocolate
Paul De Bondt, of DeBondt
Cioccolato Originale, taught me how to make chocolate-covered
hazelnuts by hand, a specialty of Tuscany. What could be better than
fresh-roasted hazelnuts, rich dark chocolate and a tiny bit of sugar for
crunch?
Donnelly Chocolate Bars
Richard
Donnelly was one of the first to offer fine chocolate bars—single varietal or flavored with almond or cardamom. His milk
chocolate bars with a West African cocoa blend are flavored with almond
or hazelnut almond toffee.
Davao White Chocolate Bar
Akinosie Chocolate's white chocolate bar is unlike any other white chocolate: it actually tastes wonderful. They press their own cocoa butter at the factory, then combine it with goat's milk powder and organic cane juice.
Amedei Chuao
Il Cioccolato
Amedei, located in the countryside outside of the small town
of Pontedera, in Tuscany, sources their own beans to produce varietal
solid chocolate squares and bars. Their Chuao bars are grown only for
them in the rain forests of Venezuela.
Chocopod
Chuao Chocolatier created Chocopod: a cross between a bar and a bonbon. Chocopods are made from Venezuelan chocolate, containing 60% cacao, with a surprise filling of flavors, such as Mayan-inspired spices or nutmeg with coffee.
Ultimate Toffee
Andrew Shotts of Garrison
Confections takes classic English toffee one step further,
using lots of butter to create a crunchy, not sticky, rich toffee, covered
in a not-too-sweet milk chocolate and generously sprinkled with nuts.
It's hard to eat just one.
Fresh Fruit Chocolates
Thomas Haas
Fresh Fruit Chocolates combine a layer of fresh fruit gelée with
a layer of chocolate ganache and come in five flavor combinations. Our
favorite is Passion Fruit with Tahitian Vanilla Gelée. Hand-painted
plaquettes indicate the flavor.
Passion Fruit Truffles
Brian McElrath and Christine Walthour of B.T.
McElrath Chocolatier partner passion fruit mousse with just the right chocolate so the tropical fruit flavor takes center stage in a shiny molded shell.
Key Lime Apples
The first time I tasted these crisp, dark chocolate-coated apples from
Recchiuti Confections,
I was amazed. So much flavor packed into a wafer-thin confection. Protected
in its chocolate shell, the sweet and tangy apple slice retains a crisp
bite.
Chocolate Covered Blackberries
Bissinger’s
special treat is only available in late August and early September
each year—Chocolate Covered Blackberries. Fresh blackberries from
the Pacific Northwest are hand-dipped in fondant and then dipped in either
milk or dark chocolate.
Bonnat Apotequil
Bonnat Chocolater uses beans from Peru to create its Apotequil 75% dark chocolate bar. The bar's flavors go from floral to roasted nut notes that delivers a soft chocolate taste.
Taittinger Champagne Truffles
Jacques
Torres' Taittinger Champagne Truffles combine milk chocolate,
fresh cream and Taittinger Brut La Française and are enclosed in
a milk chocolate champagne-cork-shaped shell. Real champagne, not flavoring,
gives the ganache its melting texture.
Lindt Excellence 85%
Yes, I've included a bar that you can buy at your local drugstore. The
chocolate makers at Lindt
have created a dark bittersweet bar that rivals any other high cocoa content
bar.
Theo Classic Mint Bar
Sometimes we just crave a taste from our childhood and Theo's Mint Bar, made from 70% dark chocolate with a blend of spearmint and peppermint oils, is just what we needed. Cool and refreshing, without overpowering the chocolate flavor.
Guanaja 70%
Valrhona's line
of Grand Cru bars started the interest in single origin, high percentage
chocolates. Guanaja has the smooth, creamy mouthfeel we expect from Valrhona,
combined with a deep, intense chocolate flavor.
Coeur Framboise
When I first saw this chocolate, it looked like a jewel in Pierre
Marcolini's boutique window. I thought the raspberry flavor
would be sweet under its white chocolate (tinted deep red) coating. But
I was delighted to find the shell hid a bitter chocolate.
Fortunato No4
The Maranon Chocolate Company found Pure Nacional cacao trees with 40% and 100% white beans growing in a remote canyon of the Marañón River Valley in Peru. This is not a strong, bitter chocolate but has a mellow, soft flavor with many different layers and a long finish..
Red Fire Chocolate Truffle &
Bar
Vosges
Haut-Chocolat makes both a truffle and a bar with dark chocolate,
ancho chili powder and Ceylon cinnamon. The hot and cinnamony flavor of
Red Fire brings back memories of hot chocolate but with the grown-up zing
of chilis.
Amedei Chuao
Il Cioccolato
Amedei, located in the countryside outside of the small town
of Pontedera, in Tuscany, Italy, sources their own beans to produce varietal
solid chocolate squares and bars. Their Chuao bars are grown only for
them in the rain forests of Venezuela.
Chocolate Tools
Roberto
Catinari was the first truly artisan cioccolatieri in Tuscany
who, as a young man, studied in Switzerland. He perfects the technique of
creating chocolate versions of mundane items. Yes, everything in
the picture is chocolate.
Pavé du Faubourg
It is hard to visit La
Maison du Chocolat without having one of their Chocolat Chaud
- French hot chocolate. But this is the next best thing when you are in
a hurry. Delicate squares of dark chocolate ganache are flavored lightly
with a blend of spices.
Debondt Habanaro
I don't envy Paul
Debondtwhen he starts slicing and candying the amazingly
hot habanero chiles in preparation for this bar that has loads of fruity
flavor, as well as a good bite.
Debondt Fruit and Chocolate Bars
Paul Debondttakes classic chocolate bark one step further by loading the
top of each bar of melted chocolate with an abundance of pistachios, hazelnuts,
almonds or dried fruit.
Drew Elementary Garden Mint Truffle
John and
Kira Doyle infuse mint leaves (grown and picked by the student
gardeners at local schools) in their cream and then blend with Valrhona
milk chocolate to create the careful balance of chocolate and mint in
one smooth mint chocolate truffle.
Cacao Atlanta Love Bar
Cacao Atlanta Chocolate Co.hand-manufactures their Love Bar with beans from the Dominican Republic. This bar has a deep rich flavor, with notes of tobacco, coffee and raspberries.
Caramel with Balsamic Vinegar
When Andrea
Bianchini introduced us to his caramel flavored with balsamic
vinegar, I was sceptical, but I was won over by the perfect balance of sweet
and tart caramel, covered in dark chocolate.
Passion Amande Sucreé Salée
This praline from the original Belgian branch of Neuhaus
Chocolates caught my eye because of its graphic decoration.
I was surprised to find inside a combination of gianduja (emulsified hazelnuts
and milk chocolate) with caramelized salt almonds.
Tablettes Luca Mannori
Award Winning Pastry Chef Luca
Mannori takes the chocolate he uses for his special chocolates
and forms it into bars with different themes: dark chocolate, fruit, tea,
spices, air.
Los Anconès
Michel Cluizel's
Los Anconès bar, made from cacao from Santa Domingo, has an earthy
fruitness that lingers: not to be missed, as it is one of the great flavors
in dark chocolate.
Chocolate Tools
Roberto
Catinari was the first truly artisan cioccolatere in Tuscany
who, as a young man, studied in Switzerland. He perfects the technique of
creating chocolate versions of mundane items. Yes, everything in
the picture is chocolate.
Mon Cheri Bar
Even though I'm not a huge fan of dried fruits and chocolate, Frederick
Schilling at Dagoba
creates such darn healthy and good tasting bars that I succumbed to this
combination of bittersweet chocolate, sun dried cherries and cranberries.
Fruit Caramels
Patrick
Roger's fruit caramels combine fine caramel with fruit puree
such as pear or Brazilian lime then creates sparkling one-of-a-kind multi
colored shells to hold the soft caramel. But don't let the good looks
fool you, this is a seriously good tasting bonbon.
PBJ OMG
We were told Patric Chocolate's PBJ OMG bar was great and we agree. You can't go wrong with a blend of dark-roasted peanut butter, plus cacao with naturally occurring jam-like berry flavor.
Divine 70% Dark Chocolate
Divine Chocolate's 70% Dark Chocolate bar, made from beans from Ghana, was the winner in a recent tasting of five dark chocolate bars of 70% cocoa. Everyone voted it number one and loved the rich "chocolate" taste.
La Dolce Grapefruit
Joan Coukos
of Chocolat Moderne enrobes tangy grapefruit-flavored caramel in dark
chocolate. The very complex taste and texture are the result of balancing
the sweetness of the caramel with the strong citrus flavor and deep, rich
chocolate.
Burnt Caramel
Michael Recchiuti
once told me that he has always loved the flavor of burnt caramel. His
almost smoky caramel is blended with extra-bitter chocolate ganache and
then enrobed with deep, dark chocolate. One taste and I, too, shared his
passion.
Bianchini Cioccolato Barrettes
Andrea Bianchini blends deep, dark flavors of South
American chocolate in his 85% cocoa bittersweet barette; he also enriches milk
chocolate with dark tones in his 43% cocoa milk chocolate barette.
Mon Cheri Bar
Even though I'm not a huge fan of dried fruits and chocolate, Frederick
Schilling at Dagoba
creates such darn healthy and good tasting bars that I succumbed to this
combination of bittersweet chocolate, sun dried cherries and cranberries.
bonbons & bars
our hall of fame
We celebrate the chocolatier's art by featuring our favorite bonbons
and bars. These confections combine balanced flavor and texture
as well as overall great looks.
"Bonbon" is the word we think best represents scrumptious
chocolates in all their forms to differentiate them from confections
such as lollipops.
our favorite bonbons
our favorite bars
Bonbons from Ecole Chocolat Graduates: Julio Fernandes and George Soriano
Our whimsical "bonbon"
greetings are sure to put a smile on your special chocoholic's face
as well as brighten the day by hearing from you! Send a card on
Holidays, Birthdays and Anniversaries.
recipe collection
We have collected recipes from our our library of chocolate
cookbooks and websites to inspire you to spend some quality time
in the kitchen with your chocolate.