Sustainable Chocolate for Valentine's Day: Part 1 - Equal Exchange

We've really had it rough around here lately.  My family has had the tough job of taste-testing chocolate to recommend for Valentine's Day.  Organic, Fair Trade chocolate, no less. 

We began with a chocolate and coffee tasting.  Equal Exchange sent me a Chocolate & Coffee Pairing Gift Bag, a nicely packaged set that includes 2 bags of Organic, Fair-Trade certified coffee (Love Buzz and Mind, Body & Soul) and 2 each of the Organic Extra-Dark and Organic Milk Chocolate (w/a hint of hazelnut) bars.  Plus instructions for how to go about doing a chocolate & coffee pairing. 

So after lunch on Sunday, I brewed up a pot of Love Buzz and we got to work.  First we sniffed, then we popped a chocolate square in our mouths and took a little sip of coffee with it.  Then we had fun describing the flavors.  My 9 year old took it very seriously (although he was a little short on descriptive adjectives) while my 5 year old just gobbled up the chocolate. My husband, who used to work in the wine trade, came up with more sophisticated things to say like 'smoky' and 'balanced' to describe the flavors.  Personally, I thought both chocolates were excellent but that milk chocolate with the coffee was seriously good!!! (and I'm a dark chocolate gal all the way!) 

Yes, my boys got a tiny little serving of coffee and they were none the worse for it!  Personally, I think it's good to teach your kids to slow down and really taste and appreciate what they eat.  If you want to try a chocolate and coffee tasting for yourself you can purchase the set at the Equal Exchange online retail store.  Use the code 'chocolatelove'for free shipping in the contiguous US (good through February 14th).

Come back tomorrow for Part 2 in our quest for great-tasting, sustainably produced chocolate!

{Full disclosure: There are affiliate links for Equal Exchange in this post}

Comments

[Kristin Craig Lai]

I am very fortunate to live near an organic fair trade chocolate shop with such divine truffles as cinnamon chilli and earl grey. They even have their own spiced hot chocolate that's nirvana on a cold winter day.