• Chocolate Walks: Downtown Portland
• Choco-Invention of the Month
• Next Portland Chocolate Lovers Meetup
• Choco-Quote of the Month
• 52 Perfect Days of Summer
• Seattle Chocolate Salon
  
• A Morsel of NW Chocolate History

CHOCOLATE WALKS : Downtown Portland

This month's Downtown Portland Chocolate Walking & Tasting Tour is scheduled for Saturday, July 24th, from 1-4:30 pm. Our walks are a great way for locals and chocolate-loving summer visitors alike to explore the nooks and crannies of Metro neighborhoods. Interested in joining us? You can reserve your spot on our website until the Friday before and please be sure to select the desired route. Hope to see you on the chocolate trail!

CHOCO-INVENTION OF THE MONTH

When one thinks of important chocolate technological inventions over the years, one might think of the Dutch cocoa press by Van Houten (1828) which allowed for the extraction of cocoa butter from the chocolate mass. Or the Swiss conching machine by Lindt (1879) that gives chocolate its silky smooth mouthfeel. These were both amazing technoligcal breakthroughs in manufacturing. Yet, how about the French grinding table by Dubbuisson (1732)? This table, which was heated from below by charcoal, allowed workers to stand while grinding the beans. Until then one had to kneel in front of a small stone to do the grinding, the way it had been done for centuries. This resulted in a more productive method in processing the beans- and definitely less backaches.

NExt PORTLAND CHOCOLATE LOVERS MEETUP

Join us at Henry's 12th Street Tavern at 10 NW 12th Avenue in The Pearl. Enjoy a savory bite and experience some of their sweet chocolate offerings. How about some freshly baked to order, hot right-out-of-the-oven Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Cookies served with vanilla and chocolate ice cream or their Triple Decker Chocolate Cake with raspberry frosting, chocolate ganache, creme anglaise, and whipped cream? Delicioso! Go ahead and pair them with Young's Double Chocolate Stout from England. We'll conclude the evening with a personal tour of this wonderful establishment. Reservations are required, so go here for more info. Hope to see you there!

CHOCO-QUOTE OF THE MONTH:

"Behind every successful woman is a substantial amount of chocolate!"

52 PERFECT DAYS OF SUMMER

Last year, Caitlin Dwyer with www.52PerfectDays.com went along with us on a search for all things chocolate in the Pearl. She put her experience in an article, Portland's Pearl: Chocolate, Powell's and Jazz. Hopefully, after reading it you'll want to join us on our upcoming Pearl Chocolate Walk on Saturday August 21st from 1-4:30 pm. While you are on their site, please be sure to explore this wonderful online travel magazine, "An Insiders Travel Guide to a Perfect Day." You'll discover all you need to start planning your next perfect summer day-whether it is in the Portland Metro or around the country!

SEATTLE CHOCOLATE SALON

This 3rd annual event is happening on Sunday, July 11 from 10am-5 pm. Hosted by Taste TV, the same organization puts on similar events in SF, LA, Chicago and Las Vegas. There will be samples to savor from over 24 chocolatiers, confectioners, wineries, and other culinary artisans. Never been to a chocolate show like this? Get more information and see footage from the 2009 salon here . Why not make a day or weekend out of it? If you do, you might want to check out this blog post with other chocolating ideas in the Emerald City.

MORSEL OF CHOCOLATE HISTORY

In 1776, the first English chocolate maker, Joseph Fry, petitions the government Treasury to lower the tax on chocolate in the hopes of making this beverage less expensive and available to more people. Fortunately, in time he is successful. J.S. Fry & Sons was later established and created the first eating chocolate bars in 1847.

HAPPY july 4th

When the Spanish brought cacao to Spain, the secrets of this Old World treasure eventually leaked to other parts of Europe. Once chocolate hit the British shores, it wasn't very long before the American colonies, too, would fall in love with chocolate. Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson were both chocolate enthusiasts. In a letter dated 1785, Jefferson wrote to John Adams about the "the superiority of chocolate, for both health and nourishment." Take it from our forefathers and hopefully you'll get some dark, healthy nourishment this holiday weekend!

OTHER PDX CHOCO-HAPPENINGS

Cacao is offering a special informal tasting and presentation tonight, Friday July 2nd, from 7:30-8:30 pm with Mott Green, founder of The Grenada Chocolate Company . As their name implies, this cacao is grown and manufactured on this southeastern Caribbean island country. The event is being held at Cacao's main West End location at 414 SW 13th Ave in Portland. It is free of charge and reservations are not necessary.

A few months ago, Elizabeth Montes announced that Sahagun Handmade Chocolates has scaled back its hours to Saturdays only from 10 am-6 pm so that she can concentrate on her growing mail order and wholesale business. If you haven't experienced her new product, Ka-Pow!, you can also pick up a bar at Cacao at both their West End and Downtown Portland locations. Read about this new coffee bar in a recent NY Times blog post.

On Sunday, July 18, catch a Summer Technique class at your local participating Williams Sonoma on delicious Summer Sauces for meats, veggies, and even scoops of, ice cream (hopefully chocolate)! Please call ahead for times.

Thanks for subscribing to our newsletter & be sure to check our blog.

Have a great July of Chocolating!