How to Become a Chocolate Connoisseur

White chocolate is considered a confectionery, not real chocolate.

If you're an admitted chocoholic, you can take your chocolate obsession to the next level by learning to tantalize and refine your taste buds. If you're not sure where to start, you can order chocolate tasting kits online, which contain a preselected variety of fine international chocolate brands. Invite a few friends over, compare notes and find out what you've been missing.

Things You'll Need

• Chocolate

Instructions

1. Broaden your palate. Try a variety of international chocolate brands, both milk and dark, with different percentages of cacao content.

2. Store chocolate properly at room temperature, in a dry place. Condensation or high temperatures can cause a pale, powdery coating called "bloom." (It's still okay to eat, but it can affect the flavor and texture).

3. Learn how to taste fine chocolate. It's a multisensory art, just like wine tasting. Engage all your senses: sight, sound, smell, touch and taste. Compare five to seven small pieces at a time, starting with the chocolate that has the highest percentage of cacao, and working your way down to the lowest.

4. Look at the chocolate. Quality, well-tempered chocolate will have a fine sheen without pits, blemishes or waxy appearance.

5. Pick up your first chocolate piece. It should be firm and smooth and hold its shape, not melt instantly or feel sticky, gritty, greasy or waxy.

6. "Snap" is the term for the sound the chocolate makes when you break it in half. Quality chocolate will break cleanly with no crumbling or bending, and make a sharp sound.

7. Smell the chocolate and try to analyze the unique fragrance. Notice if you detect hints of nutty, floral or fruity influences, or subtle notes of vanilla or spice.

8. Place the chocolate on your tongue and let it slowly melt. Don't chew it. Slowly swirl the melted chocolate until it covers your whole tongue. Notice any subtle flavors: bitter, tangy, fruity, floral, nutty or sour. Also notice the texture. The flavor of chocolate, like fine fruits, is influenced by the surrounding climate, soil, and other factors.

9. "Length" refers to how long the flavor lingers in your mouth. Quality chocolate leaves a pleasant taste in your mouth that lasts, and a little goes a long way. Cheaper chocolates often leave a bitter aftertaste that forces you to eat more in order to get the pleasant flavor back.

10. Write down your observations after each piece, and see how it compares to other samples you try. Over time, you'll start to see a pattern of which chocolate varieties you prefer.

11. Cleanse your palate between each tasting with plain bread or a drink of water (not too cold, or it will numb your taste buds).

Tips & Warnings

• If you're not sure where to start, you can order chocolate tasting kits online, which contain a pre-selected variety of fine international chocolate brands. Invite a few friends over, compare notes, and find out what you've been missing!

References

• Chocoloate.org: Thirty Steps to Chocolate Heaven