www射-国产免费一级-欧美福利-亚洲成人福利-成人一区在线观看-亚州成人

USEUROPEAFRICAASIA 中文雙語Fran?ais
Lifestyle
Home / Lifestyle / Food Reviews

Chocolate charms

By Fan Zhen and Sun Ye | China Daily | Updated: 2012-11-11 09:17

Chocolate charms

Valrhona chocolate buffet at the Writers Bar at Raffles Beijing brings warmth to winter evenings. Photos by Fan Zhen / China Daily

Chocolate charms

Chocolate macaroon cakes. [Photo by Fan Zhen/China Daily]

The skies are gray, the winds are icy and winter has arrived with an early coat of snow, but there is a warm spot in the heart of Beijing fueled by a decadent temptation. Fan Zhen and Sun Ye are drawn to the heat.

Chocolate charms

Chocolate lollipops [Photo by Fan Zhen/China Daily]

If you think chocolate lovers crave it because of its palate pleasing sweetness, stimulating caffeine content, and health-boosting antioxidants, you miss the point. These are only the accidental benefits. What drives the passion is the total sensory pleasures that chocolate offers.

At the beginning of another round of winter chill, the Raffles Beijing is tempting chocolate lovers with an irresistible Valrhona buffet at the Writers Bar, during the evenings.

Latte, mocha and chocolate mousse come served in delicate crystal.

Small chocolate buttons start us on a discovery of origin, moving from a dark chocolate made from Madagascar beans that are acidic and bitter in intensity, and then to a stellar sweet with 64 percent cocoa solids that strikes just the right balance.

You get the high sugar content but it is the very distinct cocoa taste that lingers.

Multiple layers of flavors enrich every mouthful: Bitter sweetness slowly lingers with an earthy aftertaste that gently nudges at the sweet flavors and takes precedence as the chocolate melts on the tongue.

"The quality of chocolate is a little bit similar to wine," says Pierre Tabarie, brand manager of Valrhona in the Asia-Pacific region.

"When you have wine, you tend to have a long aftertaste. It's the same with the chocolate. When you finish a good chocolate, after one or two minutes, you can still feel the aftertaste. With a regular chocolate or wine, you will lose the taste just after you finish eating it or drinking it."

With the bouquets still lingering in our mouths, the host leads us into another room where the secret feast is unveiled.

It is a long table laden with all the delights made from Valrhona chocolate: pink and brown lollipops, dark and white chocolate fondue,

Chocolate charms

Souffle in the oven [Photo by Fan Zhen/China Daily]

and chocolate cheesecakes topped with oranges and strawberries. Even the glittering gilt photo frames are made of chocolate.

Among these beauties, the cracked chocolate bars with Sichuan pepper are a knockout.

Chocolate is just right for the chilly weather and so is Sichuan peppercorn, known to dispel cold and usually used in Chinese hotpots to spice up meals in winter. These two now collaborate to fend off the chills.

Dried peppercorns are buried in bars of Valrhona milk chocolate, and make their presence felt with the slight crunch in every bite or two.

The combination doesn't soften the pepper's pungent fragrance. In fact, the aftertaste here belongs to the palate-numbing spice, while the dutifully sweet and silky chocolate takes a secondary role.

Another indulgence is the souffle fresh from the oven. Crusty on top, the hot pudding tastes light at first, but as you slowly spoon the liquid lava into your mouth, you are once again transported to chocolate heaven.

Winter may be gloomy and gray, but when there are these dark, dense delights to start your taste-buds singing, and dance a little waltz in your mouths, even the season's blackest evenings will take on a sweet sheen of anticipation.

Contact the writers at fanzhen@chinadaily.com.cn and sunye@chinadaily.com.cn.

Chocolate charms

 
 
 
 

 

 

Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349
FOLLOW US
主站蜘蛛池模板: 亚洲线精品一区二区三区 | 欧美13一14sexvideo欧 | 中文字幕精品在线 | 欧美日韩在线观看精品 | 亚洲精品天堂自在久久77 | 国产a级特黄的片子视频 | 奇米888四色在线精品 | 欧美一区二区在线播放 | 日本高清一本二本三本如色坊 | 国产呦在线观看视频 | 国产女王vk | 日日摸天天摸狠狠摸视频 | 日本一本久 | 波多野结衣在线不卡 | 亚洲另类视频在线观看 | 久久一区二区精品综合 | 亚洲日本一区二区三区在线 | 日韩国产欧美视频 | 日韩一级片在线观看 | 国产日产欧美精品一区二区三区 | 一级毛片日韩 | 亚洲欧美一区二区三区国产精品 | 成年人在线网站 | 亚洲免费精品 | 国产激情一区二区三区成人91 | 美女很黄很黄是免费的·无遮挡网站 | 亚洲视频免费观看 | 免费观看一级欧美在线视频 | 久久成人免费视频 | 国产成人精品日本亚洲网址 | 亚洲天堂一区在线 | 欧美日韩在线视频播放 | 亚洲人成高清 | 国产精品爱久久久久久久小 | 国产成人精品免费视频大全办公室 | 日韩精品视频美在线精品视频 | 国产福利精品在线观看 | 亚洲国语在线视频手机在线 | 日韩美一区二区三区 | 在线播放 亚洲 | 一级做a爰片久久毛片人呢 一级做a爰片久久毛片唾 |