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Le Whif ~ Le No Thanks

 

Ever feel like you could satisfy a strong chocolate craving with a chocolate inhaler instead of the real deal? Yeah, me neither.

Le Whif is a new breathable chocolate using an inhaler and organic cocoa powder. They come in three flavors, Pure Chocolate, Raspberry Chocolate, and Mint Chocolate. They have also created a coffee inhaler with the caffeine contents of a very light espresso.

From the website:

Invented by Harvard Professor David Edwards in collaboration with students, designers, engineers, and entrepreneurs working in Edwards' ArtScience Labs centered around Le Laboratoire, in Paris, Le Whif contains hundreds of Milligrams of tiny food Particles.

The lipstick size inhaler is made biodegradable poly-lactic acid making it safe to easily dispose of, and is designed to be spill proof.


The launch for this new chocolate inhaler took place last night at a restaurant in Harvard Sq. called Tory Row. Le Whif is gearing to to release their product in Paris as well as Tokyo and London. Le Whif is being sold at Cardullo's in Havard Sq. for $2 or via Le Whif's website.

While scientifically this is cool, this is a pretentious, and stupid device that takes away the joy of eating real chocolate. Why? Because we can't get over stupid body image issues and calorie counting and someone will always be there to exploit that. Le Whif is being promoted as "The taste of chocolate without the calories."

I shake my head because there is nothing better in the world than eating a fantastic piece of chocolate. Getting your fingers messy with chocolate is also part of the fun. Tasting the differences in cocoa percentages, letting it melt in your mouth, discovering new regions and flavors in origin chocolate, truffles, hot chocolate, chocolate sauces, bars, infused chocolates... It's a never ending journey. Not to mention it's mood enhancing, and dark chocolate is healthy for you.

Le nom de ce produit est très stupide. They really could have come up with a much better name for this silly novelty.

This product takes all the fun out of actually eating chocolate. It might taste good, I will still give it a try and fully review it when I can score one of these things, but I am not going to support it and tout it as good alternative to chocolate. Nothing will ever be better than the real thing.

Eat what you like, embrace real chocolate!

 

Here is a lightening review of Le Whif from Mark Wilson of Gizmodo.

The Verdict: The size of a container of Chapstick, you pull the telescoping Le Whif out to coat your entire tongue and mouth with a tiny amount of chocolate. The "essence" of chocolate, as it was described to me.

Words cannot capture the humiliation of inhaling a chocolate/raspberry Le Whif, then coughing the sugar out of my lungs, like a first time cigar smoker but even more pansy. (Supposedly the 80 to 300 micron chocolate pieces are too big to enter the lungs, so it's possible that I just sucked down a nasty coat of chocolate into my trachea.)

My second and third puffs, however, were more successful. The sensation is akin to sucking a tiny bit of cocoa powder through a straw. And while not necessarily enjoyable in any way, it was admittedly a lot of chocolate flavor for only .8 calories a stick.

A spokesman explained to me that just as Man had evolved from eating one meal a day, He's gone on to eat 2, 3 and then even a recommended 5. And under this logic, Man would eventually breathe food at all times. So Le Whif is working with a variety of French chefs to capture the essence of their dishes. If and when Le Whif releases inhalable foie gras, I might try again. Until then, I'll stick to good old fashioned overeating.

Chocolate: A Love Story by Max Brenner

A good friend of mine, Mr. John Lefler, brought me this book last night while I was at a beer tasting for the release of Pretty Things Fluffy White Rabbits.

I brought some of my leftover chocolates from all of my reviewing that had been accumulating in my house, which looks like I am distributing crack in little plastic baggies (those are older pictures from the first time I had to unload leftover chocolate), for my friends to sample too. Out comes this book and I couldn't be more grateful. The art work was incredible and recipes will be a good challenge for me to try at home.

The art work is done by Yonatan Factor.

The description of the book from the website and on the back of the book. Complete with celebrity endorsements.

With gigantic vats of churning chocolate, desserts like our famous chocolate pizza, and 12 varieties of hot chocolate served in custom mugs, Max Brenner, Chocolate by the Bald Man has turned our line of hip, colorful themed restaurants into an international sensation.  Chocolate: A Love Story is a vibrant new cookbook that includes 65 original recipes narrated in the quirky, captivating voice of Max Brenner, our visionary founder and "bald man." Bold original illustrations inspired by Art Deco poster graphics, full-color photographs, easy-to-follow, delicious recipes, and a serving of Max's unique vision for spreading "chocolate culture" around the world make this book a must for every chocolate lover.

"Max Brenner's desserts are so amazing and so creative! With this delightful book, y'all can recreate the magic of his chocolate restaurants in your own home." - Paula Deen, host of Paula's Best Dishes and Paula's Party

"We've always enjoyed bringing our daughter, Ella, to Max Brenner's in NYC. We look forward to using his cookbook at home." - John Travolta & Kelly Preston

With locations in NYC, Philly, Australia, Israel, Philippines, and Singapore, Max Brenner will be making his debut in Boston this winter with a new shop opening up on Boylston st. in the Back Bay. I will be looking forward to the opening.

William Curley ~ Sea Salt Caramel Bar

Now this is what life is all about! William Curley's Sea Salt Caramel bar.

This thing is like heaven. The chocolate is rich and wonderful, while the caramel is so soft, and buttery. The taste of the caramel and chocolate together gives off a little bit of a rich coffee flavor. Beautiful roasted cocoa lingers on the palate.

This is eye's-rolling-into-the-back-of-your-head good!

I don't need to write a detailed review for this. You can tell just by looking at it that it's good. I just want you to look at it and crave it. I want you to envy me for having such a life where I get to write about these kinds of tokens from the gods.

William Curley ~ Chilli 70%

My second encounter with William Curley. This time with the the Chilli pepper chocolate bar made with 70% dark chocolate.

I sent my good friend Angelo around London to collect the best chocolates from the city. It was imperative that William Curley, with their tremendous reputation, be apart of that collection. The bars I received come from the Belgravia location.

Let's not waste time and get right into the review.

William Curley ~ Chilli 70%

Bean Varietal: Unknown

Type: Flavored Bittersweet, 70%

Ingredients: Cocoa mass (65% cocoa solids), cane sugar, cocoa butter, vanilla, chilli.

Sample Size: 50g or nearly 2oz


Appearance: Deep, rich brown color, shiny, simple molding, no monograms.

Score: 95

Snap: Excellent deep, firm, crisp snap. Clean break lines.

Score: 99

Aroma: Roasted cocoa, coffee notes right out of the package, a little citric, very soft aroma it's very hard to get anything out of it.

Score: 91

Taste: Roasted cocoa, sweet, low bitterness, almonds, complex fruit characters, slight heat from chilli, a slow, comfortable heat, soft chilli taste, and a very soft heat.

Score: 93

Texture: Soft and smooth, medium melt time.

Score: 94

This was fantastic chocolate. The heat could have been kicked up just a notch though. And that is coming from someone with a super sensitive palate to heat. The chocolate was delicious and complex. Big roasted cocoa notes, sweet, and had some complex fruity characters to it.

I am willing to bet the cocoa came from South America, though I wouldn't be surprised if it was from Ghana or the Ivory Coast.

This was completely redeeming chocolate after my first encounter with William Curley bars. I was worried after that first review. This bar however, blows that previous review out of the water. With all the accolades William Curley has received, now I understand why they deserve such high praise.

Final Score: 94.4

score
A-

William Curley ~ House Dark 65%

William and Suzue Curley, a husband and wife duo with a world class reputation as patissiers and chocolatiers. This bar once again, comes to me as part of the British Chocolate Invasion.

I was doing some random research about chocolate in London, when I stumbled upon the name William Curley. A quick search of the name and lots of accolades began to come up. This was about the time I asked my friend if he would sweep London and hit up all the fine chocolate shops for me.

About William and Suzue Curley:

The rise to the top has been a hard but rewarding climb for William and Suzue Curley. The couple have enjoyed many successes in their careers so far but retain the passion and drive that is certain to see them enjoy many more in the years to come.

In 2004, they opened their first shop in the leafy suburban haven of Richmond's Paved Court, just off the prestigious and picturesque Richmond Green and made an almost immediate impact. William was awarded the Best British Chocolatier accolade for 2007, 2008 and again for 2009 by the Academy of Chocolate.

 

[Images via Scottish Chefs Conference 2006]

Brought up in Fife, William's career began with an apprenticeship at Gleneagles. He then went on to spend 6 years at numerous Michelin-starred establishments, working with respected chefs including Pierre Koffman at La Tante Claire, Raymond Blanc at Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons and Marco Pierre White at The Oak Restaurant.

He has won numerous awards, including The Caterer's Acorn Award, The Craft Guild Pastry Chef of the Year, The Academy of Culinary Arts Awards of Excellence and British Dessert of the Year. Having won the William Heptinstall Scholarship, he was given the opportunity to work under Marc Meneau at L'Espérance in France.

"During my twenty-five years in the business, only one or two like William have ever come along. He is a fantastic pastry chef and chocolatier - perfect!" declared Koffman, London's undisputed Chef of Chefs. He then became Chef Patissier at The Savoy Hotel under Anton Edelman (where he met Suzue), as Chief Patissier leading a team of 21 pastry chefs.

Suzue is also a highly respected patissier. Originally from Osaka, Japan, Suzue moved to London in 1996 where she trained at Le Cordon Bleu. She has worked at Claridges and The Savoy where she was in charge of the world famous Afternoon Teas. She has won many national competitions including Gold at Hotelympia in 2000. Both William and Suzue have represented Scotland at international culinary events, winning Gold medals in Chicago and Basle. Prior to opening their shop together William and Suzue both won Gold at the Culinary Olympics in Germany in 2004.

The Academy of Chocolate's Best British Chocolatier three years in a row. That's quite a feat. This particular bar was also the 2008 winner of the Best House Bar using cocoa liquor or courverture from the Academy of Chocolate in London.

They work exclusively with Amedei chocolate.

It gives us great pleasure to announce that William Curley will become the first ambassador for the Amedei chocolate brand.

Having already enjoyed a successful and rewarding partnership, Amedei and William Curley will cement this relationship further by working more closely together on a number of future projects. This means all our creations will be made purely with Amedei chocolate.

"We believe that there is currently no finer brand of quality chocolate on the market than Amedei. I recognise that being the sole chocolatier in the UK exculsively using only Amedei in his products is a rare honour and feel this reinforces my commitment to bringing the finest chocolates both to my art and more importantly, to my customers."

For me, this is all about pioneering new ideas in chocolate whilst setting the standards for quality."

Cecilia Tessieri commented, "I find in William Curley, uprightness and passion; the same cultural approach to the world of chocolate that we share, made of creativity and the constant testing of inspiration and technique.

"I’m proud that William has taken on this prestigious task and I’m sure that being such a perfect match will bring our brands to be ever higher level of leadership and prestige".

I have only reviewed one bar from Amedei so far and that was their "9" bar. I have had their Toscano Black 70%, but massive fat bloom made it unworthy of review. Too bad really, it tasted amazing. They pulled their products out of the US, so it's hard to get their chocolate now. 

William Curley House Dark 65% 

Bean Varietal: Unknown, probably a blend.

Type: Bittersweet 65%

Ingredients: Cocoa mass (65% cocoa solids), cane sugar, cocoa butter, vanilla.

Sample Size: 50g or Nearly 2oz

Appearance: Smooth, shiny, simple molding, no monograms, deep, rich brown color.

Score: 95

Snap: Excellent firm and crisp snap. Clean break lines.

Score: 99

Aroma: Interesting aroma of roasted cocoa and wood, with subtle hints of tobacco, cherries and cinnamon. It kind of smells like dish washing machine soap.

Score: 89

Taste: Strange opening taste. Just like the aroma it tastes like the way dishes smell coming right out of the dish washing machine. I know that's a weird way to describe this. Very funky then opens up to roasted cocoa flavors, sweet low acidity, hints of leather, once it's opened up and has lovely subtle cocoa flavors on the finish and through retro-olfaction. But that initial taste ended up being the dominating lingering taste on the finish, bitter and soapy mixed with cocoa.

Score: 76

Texture: Soft, very smooth, medium melt time.

Score: 94

I realize that this wasn't the most elegant way to describe this chocolate, but there were some strange things going on with the aroma and taste. It smelled like dishes right out of the dish washer with that clean soap smell. It was holding back the roasted cocoa and other aromas. It was odd but I honestly didn't know how else to describe that aroma.

Then the taste was totally loaded with that extremely odd soapy character. It was too funky right up front. I actually almost spit it out, but it did eventually open up with a lot of other flavors that were enjoyable. Still, this odd soap taste was too dominating and ended up being the lingering taste of the chocolate.

There is something else blended in this bar that I can't put my finger on. Amedei does not taste like this. I could just have a funky bar, but based on looking at it, nothing seemed off about it.

This is a case where it's technical marks prevent it from being scored lower. It was beautiful looking chocolate, simple molding, great snap quality, but the taste was very bad. The roasted cocoa that was hidden underneath this soap taste is what prevented the score from being even lower for the taste. I was very tempted, but there were great flavors hidden in this chocolate.

I am really hoping that this was just fluke for this one bar. With all of their accolades and the use of Amedei, this was not a good first introduction. Especially considering that this is their house bar.

Final Score: 90.6

score
B+