A SWEET TIME
Junior Caroline Midyette tours Lindt & Sprüngli Chocolate Factory
PeeDee and Caroline Midyette pose with a Lindt chocolatier. (Contributed photos)
PeeDee and I were lucky enough visit the Lindt & Sprüngli Chocolate Factory and get the full Chocolate Experience.
The second we walked into the Lindt store, the air smelled delightful. There were thousands of Lindt chocolate truffles, chocolate bars and chocolate covered fruits. PeeDee did not hesitate to dive right into it. Samples were set out around the store for us to taste.
Although Lindt is an international company and has many flavors available in the United States, there were many flavors at this store that were unfamiliar to me. These flavors included Mango and Cream, as well as Coffee and Mint, just to name a couple.
Back home, it is common to see peanuts in chocolate; here, however, the most common nut found in chocolate is the hazelnut. Due to the severity of peanut allergies, Lindt has discontinued any product containing peanuts. Before this trip, I had never experienced chocolate with hazelnuts, and I must say it is delicious.
I had heard great things about Swiss chocolate, so I had high expectations, and the chocolate was not a disappointment.
During the Chocolate Experience, we learned about the history behind the Lindt company.
Lindt first started manufacturing chocolate in 1845, but the invention of “melting chocolate” was not introduced until 1879. This idea of melting chocolate began when Rodolphe Lindt was using a machine to mix the chocolate when he left in a hurry, forgetting to turn the machine off. When he came back the next day, he was shocked at the lovely smell and taste of the liquified chocolate. This was unlike any chocolate he had tasted before, and that original chocolate recipe is still sold in stores today.
Lindt is the leading manufacturer of premium chocolate, and they have high expectations for the quality of their chocolate. With the exception of the cocoa beans, which are grown in tropical rainforests and examined for quality, everything is done in-house.
PeeDee dives into some samples.
When it came time to taste the chocolate, PeeDee and I could not wait.
We learned from the chocolatier that all five senses should be used when identifying premium chocolate. Chocolate should be shiny and smooth and should snap without leaving crumbs. Each different type of chocolate had a different aroma. The white chocolate smelled the sweetest, while the dark chocolate had a strong cacao scent.
PeeDee and I both agreed that the classic milk chocolate was the best. Being able to experience Swiss chocolate with a Lindt chocolatier was a special experience I will never forget.
-by Caroline Midyette, junior from Washington, N.C., majoring in finance
June 12, 2018