Tag Archives: Chocolate Competitions

Super Stars of Seattle Chocolate Salon

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Intrigue Chocolates Super Stars? Well, our big sisters think so (and hopefully some of you who are wild about our truffles…)

We were happy to be back for the 4th Annual Seattle Chocolate Salon a few weeks ago (May 14). The 2011 edition of the Salon was a full house of excited chocolate imbibers. Held at the Bell Harbor Conference Center, the throngs that passed by our sample table looked to be having a great time. And by the conversations we had with those that dipped into our truffles, they liked us, too!

In the midst of tastings, chocolate-making demonstrations and expert talks, we were thrilled to visit with so many of you. And while we were all having fun, the judges were hard at work sampling premium artisan chocolate. Pretty rough job! But, seriously, we appreciate their dedication to the difficult task of sorting through so many fine, gourmet chocolates.

The competition was serious, with many really excellent chocolatiers in attendance with their wares. And yet, Intrigue Chocolates came home with some notable recognition. We grabbed “a Silver” in Best Dark Chocolate, Most Delicious Ingredient Combinations, Best Milk Chocolate, Best Flavored Chocolate, and Best Traditional Truffles.

It’s the fans that make the Super Stars. We couldn’t do it without you! Thanks for coming out to see us, for loving us for who we are, and knowing good chocolate when you taste it. These awards go out to you, truffle-lovers!

Intrigue Full-tilt in February

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Smile for Chocolate!

We are running at full-tilt at Intrigue, and lovin’ every minute of it! Thank you’s to all of you fine chocolate lovers (and lovers of all stripes, especially during February) for keeping us so busy.

We’ve been out and about for the last few weeks, so many places, and so many new faces. Soon we want to catch you up on our travels to Woodinville for Weddings, the Sanctuary Art Center Grand Opening , and the annual Enumclaw Wine and Chocolate Festival.

Intrigue truffles have been competing in Issaquah, walking around with wine in Woodinville (hosts: Davenport Cellars), and being created in a truffle class at Woodhouse Family Cellars.

Isn’t that enough action for ya’? Not quite. This weekend we are at Davenport Cellars again for a red wine and chocolate pairing that’ll win your heart! When we catch our breath we’ll give you lots of fun details of our exploits, but in the meanwhile check out this mention from a “neighbor’s” blog (The Dessert Tray) about our debut at Portland’s ChocolateFest.

Portland’s 6th Annual ChocolateFest 2011

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What a thrill to be at the 6th Annual ChocolateFest in Portland, Oregon last week! Pretty hard not to get excited with 6,500 enthusiastic chocolate fans in attendance.  We spent January 21st through the 23rd there, and generated a lot of enthusiasm for out unusual truffle flavors.

Here’s a cool thing about this event. Some of the proceeds go toward supporting the World Forestry Center in Portland. A really great place, the Forestry Center is a non-profit reaching out to do education on trees and forests around the world. The have a huge focus on teaching the world about environmental sustainability, something we definitely need more of!

As the crowds moved through the Oregon Convention Center we enjoyed visiting with those that stopped to share a moment at Intrigue Chocolates’ table. Aaron, Intrigue Chocolatier, was his usual effervescent self in front of the camera! He was interviewed early Friday morning by a local TV station, and was definitely adorable, and full of chocolate expertise.

With a slightly different line-up of flavors each day, we were able to offer truffle bars and truffle samples in all of the six flavors that we brought along. The truffle bars were a huge hit with Basil, Lemon Zesty, Cardamom-Coffee, and Honey-Ginger bars selling out in pretty short order. We still had Tannenbaum and Tasmanian Pepperberry truffle bars on hand, but they proved to be popular, too.

There was music, wine, and lots of presentations, ranging from the academic to the just plain-old fun. The Forestry Center educated the gathered about the cacao tree, from whence all that goodness came. And did you know there was such a thing as a Chocolate Martini? Choco-tini!

Seattle Chocolate Salon 2010 Awards Announced

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Intrigue truffle samples

The 3rd annual Seattle Chocolate Salon Awards have been announced. With some great new chocolate companies, as well as some experienced chocolatiers, the competition was steep, as usual!

So much chocolate innovation going on in one space, and so many people (competitors and attendees alike) involved in the process of enjoying chocolate. The sight of it, the presentation and, of course, the taste of it! It is a pretty cool event and for the third year in a row, we have loved being a part of it.

We stepped outside our comfort zone this year with an unexpected presentation that went over really well. Sharing knowledge about putting our fine chocolate together with wines is always really popular! What’s not to like?

We came away this year with two awards! The tasting panelists gave Intrigue Chocolates a Bronze Medal in Best Truffle! They even went so far as to award us another Bronze Medal for “Most Delicious Ingredient Combinations”. Our opinion is that Intrigue is Gold Medal all the way, Baby! But we are grateful to have been appreciated amongst so many great chocolates.

Seattle Luxury Chocolate Salon, 2010

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This was our third time (3rd annual, too) at the Seattle Chocolate Salon and we enjoy it more every year! In some ways we were better prepared, therefore better able to lead participants through an enjoyable experience of the chocolate-hazed day. (See Karl’s awesome “how-to” survival tips for the event). Then again, the salon threw us for a new loop, and that was a fun challenge, too.

At the last minute we were approached with the opportunity to make a presentation (the sudden opening was NOT due to “death by chocolate”, that is a different event!). We accepted the challenge and teamed up with Quady Wineries to make an Intrigue truffle – wine pairings presentation that went wonderfully.
(Thanks to Brian from Quady and Diane, our guest presenter. She did a great job introducing the winery and describing the wines for our audience.)

Aaron walked everyone through what he thought were the best matches for the day. (How do you decide what pairings to make?, he was asked the other day. “The hard part is, ya’ gotta’ drink the wine.”, was his sage reply….) Here’s what he came up with;
Mojito and White Electra (slightly effervescent, made from an orange muscat grape)
Balsamic Strawberry-Red Electra (black muscat grape, a red wine)
Lavender Lemonade-White Essensia (White Electra that is fortified and non-fizzy)
St. Basil-Elysium (Red Electra that is fortified and non-fizzy)
Jamaican HOT Chocolate-Starboard (can’t call it Port, ‘cuz it’s not from Portugal! Does that qualify as a punny?)

Much more about the event soon…and keep fingers crossed for the awards announcement!