September 13th is International Chocolate Day. As premier chocolatiers and operating our chocolate factory in Reno, our team spends countless hours not only making hand crafted chocolate but also enjoying it. We decided to ask our employees to divulge their favorite Dorinda's chocolates.
Dustin Vance - Owner/COO
I absolutely love everything we create here at Dorinda’s Chocolates and although I eat several pieces a day, yes several pieces every day, my all-time favorite go to is the Rice Krispie treat. It brings me back to my childhood with every bite! The only difference is that these are not just for kids, they are the perfect balance between sweet and chewy deliciousness. Our rice Krispy treat is 2 layers of gooey marshmallow holding little bits of crunchy rice together with a layer of premium milk chocolate in the middle. I swear I could eat one every day for the rest of my life. They are so good.
Khine Thazin - Retail Store Manager
My favorite piece is the Naked 70% dark chocolate truffle. I like it because it has an old fashion taste, it’s a classic truffle. The most enticing part is the raw cocoa powder on the outside that really overwhelms the taste buds with an almost too-rich bitter taste and then as the dark chocolate ganache explodes you get this smooth silky finish that is great with any wine or whiskey. If you are looking for a pure dark chocolate and no fruit flavors this is the piece for you, a chocolate on chocolate masterpiece with nothing else to mess with it.
Amber Hale - Marketing Director
The Kraken! I love the Kraken because the piece feels more like an experience than just a flavor. When you first bite into it your hit with hazelnut right away, and no not the fake Nutella stuff, I’m talking pure hazelnut flavor, and once you start chewing you get these little bits of biscotti crunch and as you chew all the layers come crashing in one by one taking you on a sweet journey. Your body starts to sweat, you get a sugar head rush, and when it starts to disappear your mind yearns for another… and another.
Daniel Lawson - Operations manager
I have had many favorite pieces over the years and pretty much have a new favorite every month when I create a new monthly piece but I have to say my all-time favorite is the Toasty Blonde. Its adorable heart shape lures you in but don’t let that little heart fool you. This intensely rich creamy ganache has undertones of a burnt nuttiness yet the sweetness of this truly Dulce blond chocolate overwhelms your senses and leaves you clinging for another little heart break.
Dorinda Vance - Owner/CEO
First of all…. Amber copied my favorite piece. The Kraken is my crack. Once you eat plenty of chocolate over many years the more and more you love and appreciate dark chocolate and nuts. This piece is the perfect balance between dark and nut, the hazelnut accentuates the bitter sweetness of the dark chocolate and with a biscotti crunch it truly is a release of the kraken. And because it is my favorite chocolate I created years ago, it has my flower logo on top. Not only is it a house favorite, this piece won people’s choice best chocolate at the Chocolate Wine and Roses festival in 2011.
Garret Biselli - Kitchen Manager
My favorite chocolate here is the Inspiration Tasting Bar. It’s one of my favorites I think because it gave me so much trouble to make, but now that it's dialed in it comes out beautiful and vibrant with rich colors and explosive flavors. This bar has three separate parts depending on what mood you're in. The first is a dark chocolate Yuzu that is as unique as it sounds, the next is an orange color passion fruit dark chocolate bar that borders on the over bitter and tangy flavor but stops just before it overloads your taste buds. The last but not least in this lineup is the dark chocolate raspberry infusion, with its bright red color and extreme difficulty to temper this one demands a certain respect to taste, slow down, let it melt in your mouth and take away any other thought in your mind, the raspberry requests your attention, the dark chocolate it’s infused with helps set your mind straight only long enough for you to grab another piece.
Evangeline Zikos - Chocolatier
I love making all of our pieces here at Dorinda’s Chocolates and although the Kraken is one of my favorites, the dark chocolate Toffee Cream is the piece that I dip one and then eat one and then eat another. I love all things crunchy and this piece has a sweet milk chocolate ganache with folded in bits of crumbled toffee. And although this piece comes in both milk and dark chocolate dipped outside, the dark chocolate really helps balance out some of the sweetness of the sugary toffee and light milk chocolate ganache. It’s topped with sliced almonds giving it a little more depth and a little more crunch.
Beth Howson - Chocolatier/Baker Busy B Baking
I hate to agree with the rest of the world but for me it really is the Sea Salt Caramel, I love the combination of sweet and salty. This little bite of heaven always surprises me, the caramel is just so soft and the honey really brings out the best flavors. This piece won people’s choice award in 2010 at the Chocolate Wine and Roses Festival at the Hyatt in South Lake.
My favorite thing to bake (yes we do custom desserts to order) are cheesecakes. Cheesecakes are my favorite to bake because they are so satisfying, they are the ultimate indulgence, and such a challenge. When you take that first bite and run that cheesecake between your tongue and your mouth it's just smooth, and thick and creamy, it is truly a rich, pleasing dessert and a timeless classic I can eat over and over.