Perfume Pilgrim

Kaori: “meaning perfume, scent and fragrance.” The language of scent has been borrowed to describe a plethora of taste or gustatory sensations. I am always trying to find ways to eat perfume as well as imbibe it. So discovering delicacies where the lines blur is always a pleasure. Whether it be describing cigars, teas, coffee, sugar, sweets, cheese, oils, vinegars, wine or in this case chocolate and fragrance we reach to same language.

The Japanese language has a beautiful vocabulary to describe the pleasures and aesthetics of scent and emotion, and how the expression of such art resonates within us. Galler, the Belgian Chocolate sell an exotic chocolate box called Kaori. Within the orange casket lie brushes of perfumed chocolate sticks to dip into aromatic inkpots and thus with “compose your own Kaori.” The three compositions are powders of orange and nibs, tea and poppy and a gold liquid of Kalamansi (a Japanese citrus). The brushes are filled with flavours of saffron, yuzu, cardamon, ginger, vanilla & coconut and lastly strawberry with balsamic.

If I could create my own chocolate brushes, I would add rose, violet, jasmine, pandan, kewra, musk, orange blossom, cinnamon, honey, frankincense, grapefruit, truffle, salt, pepper, chilli, galangal, ginger, tonka bean, sumac among others. For the dips I would choose perfumed gooey fondants, ganaches, caramel, honey, gold flakes and my imagination runs wild… But Galler has read my mind, they have also created Les Florales, ganaches scented with rose, jasmine, violets and orange. These can be found at Harrods in London.

If you are looking for a romantic chocolate box for Valentines Day, I can also recommend another favourite Chocolate house, La Maison Du Chocolat. They do subtley scented ganaches and also the occassional ganache making/tasting workshop. Their new “The Book of Love” box includes an actual book with 6 stories of Love and Chocolate, charming vignettes written by the French journalist Emmanuelle Gaume. The ganaches include rose petals, caramel, mint, chilli and passionfruit with liquorice.

For caramel she writes: “love would be the true reason  of my existences, my search to conserve and always seek these pure and sublime moments.” I would love to quote more, but I suggest you read it yourself.

Finally, I can’t write about perfumed chocolate without mentioning my most favourite truffle I have ever tasted. Rococo’s Chocolatiers make fresh rose oil scented truffles with a crispy outer shell rolled in pure chocolate nibs. When I bite into the outer layer, the wonderful texture and bitternes of the nibs enrobe a soft sweet rose center that melts rapidly in the mouth. One of the most blissful chocolate perfume experiences. They also sell geranium, rose, violet, saffron, and jasmine amongst many other traditional perfume notes in their chocolate. They also have fabulous events during chocolate week in London, I attended a quaint chocolate and storytelling session last summer.

Please let me know of any other perfumed chocolate recommendations, thankyou.