No more chocolates until Fall?? I’ve heard from some of you that it’s a long wait until the next chocolate collection!
My apologies for that. The travails of warm weather shipping are just too challenging. And it’s a good time to get your chocolate through ice cream, too. Though it has been cool enough on recent New Hampshire mornings to self-justify drinking hot chocolate. Admittedly, I self-justify easily.
I hope you enjoyed the four collections of this past season. Design-wise, I was especially pleased with two. The December collection, “A Light in the Woods”, stands out for how the image I envisioned when initially drawing the designs actually came across so well in the box. Plus, it created an evocative image for story-telling in the booklet.
For me, this Spring’s “Warbler Love” set a new standard for detail, as the warblers on the chocolates really carried the field marks of actual birds, even some of the finest lines.
But of course, the collections are about more than beauty. The chocolate itself should be the star. When working with a diverse range of truly exceptional chocolate couvertures that’s easier to achieve. The many couvertures, most of them from heirloom cacao varieties, that I purchased from Dancing Lion Chocolate saw me through the season. While I still have some left, I’ll be searching out new varieties and supplies over the summer.
Given there were 24 different flavor combinations over the season, it’s hard to pick out the favorites. I heard from some of you that the black sesame praline was a big hit.
Personally, I am quite pleased with the spruce tip ganache and the peated whiskey and Lapsang Souchong ganache from the warbler collection. These remind me of how constant experimentation and continuous learning pays off. I have used both Lapsang Souchong and spruce tips before, but these iterations were markedly better. With the spruce tips I thought “this is really one where I should try cold-steeping them” and the result was much fresher and brighter.
Wherever I travel, I’m also on the hunt for interesting new flavors for chocolate. I picked up the peated whiskey in Ireland back in February and wanted to try the smoky flavor in ganache. But there’s only so much liquid you can add in ganache without throwing off the balance. It occurred to me that a light touch of Lapsang Souchong would enhance the smokiness without overdoing the alcohol. And it worked! The other factor is matching these flavorings with the optimal chocolate couverture, as each has a different profile.
What are your favorite flavors from the season?
I enjoy finding images for the cards that accompany each collection. They need to convey the feeling of what's inside without duplicating it. The four from this year feel like they worked well; striking and evocative of the theme.
I always use these for any gift notes you request. And typically, when none is requested I use them for a note of thanks for your purchase, though I often waver on whether you might want a clean card for a note of your own.
Ten percent of the proceeds of these chocolate collections go to organizations doing important work. This season that generated over $5,400 in donations shared among five strong organizations. Thanks for helping advance all these good works by eating fine chocolate!
Supporting the Greater Good
Heirloom Cacao Preservation (HCP)
Heirloom Cacao Preservation works to identify and protect rare cacao varieties with exceptional flavor and cultural value. They connect farmers, scientists, and chocolate makers to preserve biodiversity and ensure a sustainable future for fine chocolate. Visit the website and you can find a cool map showing the origins of heirloom cacaos, including some of the ones I have been using, like Alto Beni and Tranquilidad.
World Central Kitchen (WCK)
World Central Kitchen is first to the frontlines, providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises. Founded by chef José Andrés, this remarkable organization does exceptional work. If haven’t already seen the video of José Andrés receiving a donation from Stephen Colbert during the last week of The Late Show, it is both touching and absolutely hilarious.
New Hampshire Food Bank
The New Hampshire Food Bank shepherds a statewide network of partners to alleviate food insecurity, nourish communities through innovative programming, and advocate to end hunger in New Hampshire, where Clandestine Chocolates is located.
Environmental Defense Fund
The Environmental Defense Fund works to stabilize the climate, strengthen the ability of people and nature to thrive, and support people's health. We are in a time where protecting nature is vital to our own future. EDF is one of the strongest organizations working on real solutions.
Earlham College Birding Big Day
Earlham College (yes, my alma mater) is an exceptional institution that changes lives. Founded by Quakers over 175 years ago, Earlham is a liberal arts college with unique and exceptional strength in ornithology, field biology, and preparing the next generation for protecting nature. My annual Spring bird migration collection is always tied to Earlham’s Birding Big Day, a global bird-a-thon that helps support Earlham’s guarantee of fully funded internships, hands-on summer research, and field study around the world. Watch a fun video I produced of this year's event below!
The Fun (?) of Shipping
Ahhh, shipping, by far the most stressful part of the process. After all the care in production, you hand over the boxes to someone else to deliver, not fully knowing how they will be handled.
The US Postal Service has long been my primary shipping service. It has been mostly reliable and I enjoy interacting with our local postal employees when dropping off a few hundred boxes. But there were some significant delays in December, including a week to get to an address just a half hour away.
As a result, I switched most shipping to UPS beginning with the February collection and delivery times appear to be substantially more reliable and fairly quick. That said, the crazy hot temperatures throughout much of the country in April caused havoc with my plans to ship the warbler collection early in the month to beat the heat. I must have checked the 10-day forecast for almost all destinations at least 3-4 times and adjusted shipping accordingly. Hopefully your chocolates arrived in good condition.
I will be exploring how best to handle shipping options over the summer in advance of next season.
Thoughts for Next Fall
Speaking of next season, I’ve only thought as far as a concept for the first collection. I am moved to illustrate and celebrate our national public lands--parks, forests, and wildlife refuges—as they are currently under the greatest threat in a generation or more. So, I’ll be thinking of the imagery that would fit on chocolates to hold up these special places. Details and designs still to come, though one of these guys may well be included!
A Few Special Moments
Many of you receive my chocolates in your mailbox or on the front step and I don’t get to see you. So it is always heart-warming to hear from you and know what you liked or how you shared (or didn’t!) your chocolates with others. I am grateful for your thoughts.
Here a few particularly special moments from this season.
I have long been a big fan of "The West Wing" and a year ago met Melissa Fitzgerald, who played CJ Cregg’s assistant Carol throughout the series. Melissa is a wonderful person and the co-author with Mary McCormack of What's Next: A Backstage Pass to The West Wing, Its Cast and Crew, and Its Legacy of Service. We communicated a few times in the last year and I’ve shared my chocolates with her. She sent this lovely photo as she was tasting the December collection. She shared the box with Allison Janney, too!
Rich Tango-Lowy, master chocolatier, former owner of Dancing Lion Chocolate, and president of Heirloom Cacao Preservation, has been a friend and advisor for the last several years. I’ve written about him before. In April, he was in Washington DC (from his new home in Costa Rica) to announce the latest heirloom cacao designations and I managed to get a box of the warbler collection to him. He shared this photo on Instagram along with some very kind words.
In the "A Light in the Woods" booklet, I wrote a bit about visiting a "local candlemaker" -- a big understatement. Marklin Candle Design primarily produces candles for liturgical use in churches. Through a remarkable process Martin Marklin and his team create beautiful candles, some six feet tall, and ship them all over. He has supplied candles to several popes. I gave Martin a box of the December collection. In January, he stopped to share the story of his family opening the box, reading the booklet, and then creating this candle.
So let me hear from you, too!
That's all for now. There may well be a few newsletter updates over the summer on topics I think you might find of interest. In the meantime, I hope you have some relaxing time in warmer weather wherever you are.
Thanks for reading.