Category Archives: Events

Farewell to Sips and Shoes!

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Chocolate, Wine and shoes?

Visitors to Seattle’s Grand Hyatt last Sunday (Oct. 3rd, 2010) afternoon shopped for shoes to their heart’s content! Attendees brought a pair of new or gently used shoes to donate, and everyone got a shot at them during the auction.

Entrance to the event bought not only a chance to bid on great kicks, but also wine tasting from 30 wineries and pairings with luscious eats like Intrigue Chocolates.  The proceeds went to support the Ryther Child Center, an amazing facility that lends support to children and families with behavior health needs.

We thought those of you who walked our way looked absolutely fabulous in your new duds! Our only regret is that this was the last of a really neat event, Sips and Shoes is being retired. However, we’re sure we’ll see you again out there in the world where chocolate and wine (and sometimes shoes) intersect!

Wine Walk Goes to the Dogs

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Dogs and Wine

We were part of another 3rd Thursday Wine Walk on September 16, 2010. Once again we were the pleased guests of Davenport Cellars, nestled in the Woodinville Warehouse Winery District amongst 20 other winery shops.

This month’s theme was “Bottles and Dogs”. A ticket bought entry for you and your best friend (a 2-for-1 with the caveat that your best friend has fuzzy ears and a tail!), as well as the satisfaction of having made a donation to animal rescue. We think that’s an excellent cause worth supporting. And it was really fun having so many doggy visits during the event. (But NO chocolate for dogs, it’s toxic for them!!)

There were lots of dogs and dog lovers. Those of you from the Seattle area already know that we are a dog-happy lot, and a dog-friendly public event is greatly appreciated by 2-footed and 4-footed attendees.

Aaron (our chocolatier) found a favorite in Bailey, part of the Davenport Cellar’s family. He’s of Great Dane dimensions and heritage, along with (“we think”) wire-hair something or other (he’s not a dog-breeder, he’s a chocolatier!). A curious two-tier aspect of his coat makes him especially attractive. He’s beautifully sleek, BUT with a fine mist of gray and white wirey hair sticking up all over from his sleekness! Love it!

Runner up: That oversized Saint Bernard puppy that gazed at us with his chocolate eyes. Gangly, adorable, puppy-love.

Sunset Supper at Pike’s Place Market 2010

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Sunset Supper at Pike Place

Friday, August 13th, 2010 found us at the Pike Place Market and the 15th Annual Sunset Supper event. It was an honor to be there among all those wonderful restaurants, wineries, breweries and spirit companies (we love that Intrigue Chocolates defies categorization!). All 80 entities , 1,000 paying customers enjoying the night out, and 150 volunteers, joined together by the Market Foundation’s mission to raise money for their community.

If you were there you know there was a definite buzz of excitement in the air, and if you stopped by our booth, you were having a blast! People really did seem to be having a good time, and we saw a lot of excited truffle-sampling going on!

The weather was awesome, wine was flowing, Seattle’s top chefs were cooking. Add live music to all of that and it was a good party! It was great to work with Seattle Uncorked once again, and we are so pleased to be part of the tradition of neighborhood that the Market Foundation works to preserve. Social services provided in the marketplace include; senior center, daycare, preschool and food bank. All valuable services for valuable Seattle residents!

Balefire Bar Wine-Chocolate Tasting

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Wine-Truffle Tasting at Balefire Bar

Last Saturday (July 31, 2010) we headed up to Everett, WA to join the good people at Balefire Bar for an extravaganza wine tasting (along with an excellent selection of Intrigue Truffles, of course!) Balefire plans to host this sort of blow-out event once a month, and we were happy to be on hand for the breaking debut. There were more than 20 wines on offer, all created by the well-known and award-winning Robert Smasne. The wines themselves came from ten different wineries around the region.

Balefire owner, Jon Tobey, impressed us with his passion and knowledge of wine, beer, scotch and Blues. Quick trivia quiz; What exactly is a balefire? Why, it’s a fire set to burn outdoors as a signal, a bonfire, or a beacon. Balefire Bar sees itself as a shining beacon of “fine fermentables”. An outpost of civilization in a wilderness unrefined palettes and screw-off lids. One thing we know for sure; they have really good wines at pretty good prices.

Meridian Market Wine – Truffle Tasting

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Dylan and Aaron Setting Up

Organic. Local products. Music to our ears.

That’s what we hear at the Meridian Market whenever we visit. And the music was as loud as ever last Wednesday evening (July 28,2010). Those folks who joined us to taste five wines paired with our truffles agreed that the combinations were truly melodious.

The category for the tasting was “summer wines”, with three of the five being poured out that night being white wines. What makes a wine a summer wine? Thirst quenching and light, that’s what! And these five representatives certainly met those requirements.

What makes a chocolate truffle a “summer chocolate truffle”? Why, any Intrigue chocolate truffle that you eat with a summer wine, of course!

As usual we enjoyed our time at the Meridian Market. It’s just cool to be in a place of business that has a genuine commitment to community.
And we love their honesty; “We’ve got things you need and lots of cool stuff you don’t actually need but probably want.” This market is the antidote to Psycho-Super-Corporate-Mega-Stores!