Central Market buyers have scoured the world sourcing only the best and finest chocolates for this year’s Chocolate Fest, Jan. 30 through Feb. 14, at Central Market Plano. They gained a little inspiration along the way, and this year are rolling out nine new flavors of Central Market’s own brand of chocolate bars just in time for the festival.
In addition, they have curated some of the world’s most exclusive chocolates and have brought them to Texas retail for the very first time. These chocolate bars are only morsels in comparison to the lengthy list of chocolate-inspired items, which will be featured throughout the store during Chocolate Fest. Everything from Good Day Chocolate multi-vitamins (in Healthy Living) to Mole Poblano Seasoned Pork (in Market), the stores will be overflowing with chocolate goodness. Here’s a first taste of the decadence to come.
Central Market Chocolate Bars
- Central Market’s own house-made bean-to-bar chocolate is debuting nine new bar flavors this year. The chocolate is sourced from the finest cacao beans from farms around the world and then used to craft small-batch chocolate bars made right inside the Central Market-Houston store.
- Made from only ground, single-origin cacao beans and sugar, the bars are minimally processed, allowing unique regional flavors of the cacao to shine.
Fresco
Fresco is a unique chocolate tasting experience. Fresco Founder and Chocolate Maker, Rob Anderson, isolates a single parameter, such as the cocoa bean roasting level, and offers variations of the chocolate based on changes to that parameter. Fresco meticulously controls these events, changing them purposefully to create new flavors. A light roast verses a dark roast results in remarkable flavor differences. Fresco uses only pure, dark chocolate and three ingredients: cocoa beans, cane sugar and cocoa butter. The collection is free of dairy, nut, soy and gluten.
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Seed and Bean
- Exclusive to Central Market
- First time in the United States
- Handmade in Cornwall, England
- 100% organic products; Vegan friendly dark chocolate
- Single origin cocoa
- Compostable foil packaging; England’s only fully recyclable packaging
Cocoba
- Handmade in Dartford, England
- Known as the “guilt-free” chocolate
- Cocoba Chocolates have no sugar added
Éclat Chocolate
- Founder of Éclat and Master Chocolatier, Christopher Curtin honed his skills in the finest chocolate houses of Belgium, Switzerland, France, Germany and Japan.
- Inspired by symbiotic relationships in nature. Through innovative design, the Parallel Bars takes you on an incredible and ever-changing chocolate journey that awakens your senses.
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American Heritage Chocolate – Mars Wrigley
- American Heritage ChocolateÒ is an artisanal dark chocolate made with hints of vanilla. Orange, chili pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg and other flavors unique to the 18th century. American HeritageÒ celebrates the 3,500-year journey of chocolate through time, its impact on our culture and its global, multicultural stories.
- It is backed by years of historic research and several publications on the history of chocolate (2009 Wiley/2015 National Geographic). The result of that research and the passion of founder, Forrest E. Mars, Jr., to share stories of global history led to the birth of the brand in 2006. Its goal then, and still today, is to support the mission of education in America by sharing the timeless ongoing narrative of chocolate in people’s lives.
- In support of that mission, for the past 10 years, American HeritageÒ has been sold exclusively in specialty gift shops at over 150 historic sites in the U.S. and Canada.
Other favorite chocolate bar brands featured this year include:
- MIA
- Jelina Chocolatier
- Vosages
- Mackie’s of Scotland
- Boulete
- Bostani Chocolatier
- French Broad
- Markham and Fitz
- Goodio
For more information on specific chocolate bar flavors, visit centralmarket.com.
