Chocolate Love for Tu B’Av

chocolate hearts

Tu B’Av may ring as French to your ear, but it’s actually in Hebrew: It’s a Jewish mini-holiday similar to Valentine’s Day. In 2018 it will begin in the evening of Thursday, 26 July, to be celebrated for 24 hours. Get into the Tu B’Av spirit: Shimmy in white & have some chocolate.  Tu B’Av

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Learn To Speak Like A Chocolatier

dipping chocolate preline

If you truly love chocolate, why not become a real expert? In this month’s post Ika will provide you with the vocabulary professional chocolatiers use. Interestingly, the most important chocolate terms start with the letter C! Here are the 7 most useful terms you need to know in order to speak like a chocolate expert:

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The “Michelin Stars” of The Chocolate World: Chocolate Appreciation Professionals

pralines closup

How do chocolatiers get their medals & awards? This month, while working towards the 2017 International Chocolate Awards winners ceremony, we share some tips and behind-the-scenes insight, to help you judge the quality of chocolate, just like the jury members of international competitions, and writers of guides like Le Club des Croqueurs de Chocolat. Professional

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Ika’s Tokyo Address Book

memories from Tokyo collage

There is a metaphorical two-way street between Tokyo and Paris, that goes through the world’s finest chocolateries – internationally acclaimed Japanese chocolate artists, like Sadaharu Aoki, opened branches in Paris. Pierre Hermé, Pierre Marcolini and Jean-Paul Hévin run hugely successful branches in Tokyo, in return. The leading international chocolate festival, “Salon du Chocolat” that was

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Chocolate Tourism Should Be About Terroir

  1. Terroir isn’t just about wine making In some ways, chocolate is like wine. The aroma, texture and taste of both pleasurable products depend much on the Terroir. Like wine, chocolate may be impacted by how it’s been grown: Location, geology and climate of the place. In fact it’s among the few products with a

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Mad About Music (And Chocolate)

Abbey-Road Anat Hultzer

Talking with Ika about music is like talking to her about chocolate – basically we end up discussing her entire life – past and present. “I used to work in a radio station for many years as a sound technician. I can’t possibly describe how much music means to me. I flew four hours to

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