Zotter Chocolates at Vine & Table gourmet market
Organic – Fairtrade – Bean –to-bar

I must say this is one of the most fun and interesting chocolates I have come across in a while! This family enterprise is in Bergl, Austria directly next to the home of Josef Zotter, founder of Zotter Chocolates. His chocolates have become somewhat of a cult in Europe and it wouldn’t be far-fetched to hear him referred to as the Mad-Austrian-Chocolatier. Interesting and characterized by his personality and charisma, Zotter is indeed the only manufacturer in Europe who produces organic and fair trade quality starting from the bean. He roasts, grinds, mills and conches (mixes and agitates to evenly distribute cocoa butter within the chocolate and develops flavor through frictional heat and release of volatiles) in order to provide his chocolates with character or that special note. At Vine & Table we carry two of his lines – Labooko and Mitzi Blue. Visually impressive, the artwork designs by Andreas H. Gratze are extraordinary. Stop by and check it out.

Labooko – the world of chocolate!
Pure chocolate desire! With two chocolate bars and the colorful story included, get to know the diversity of chocolate. Dark chocolate with a high content of original and regional cocoa, a variety of milk chocolates as well as incredible fruit and nut chocolate fill out this international line. The Soy Smooth & White is a sweet and organic soy chocolate bar with 40% cocoa content and white chocolate with organic soy milk instead of milk. Suited for people who are allergic to cow’s milk and also Vegans. The fruit chocolates are wonderful, and my favorite is Raspberry, a cheerful and fruity red chocolate with the natural taste of raspberries, a beautiful melt and the sweetness of natural sugar, pure fruit power. Also mouth-watering is the banana fruit bar, it is exotic tasting with the usual milk powder content replaced by bananas and a dash of lemon. For the purist of chocolate, try Peru Criollo, this excellent cocoa is a genuine rarity. What I would recommend for Valentine’s Day, if you are looking for a small treat, would be A Bouquet of Flowers which are two bars, one almond and roses, homemade almond nougat made of roasted and caramelized Spanish almonds and white chocolate covered with rose petals. The second bar, Cashew nougat with meadow flowers. Another fun one is, For Those In Love. Love and chocolate – there is nothing else which fits together so ideally under one wrapper: 60% Ecuador, among the finest aromatic cocoas of the world, along with one of my favorites, Raspberry, beautiful, natural fruited chocolate.

Mitzi Blue - daring, wild and free!
Mitzi Blue is in touch with the latest trends, captivating titles, cool Zotter designs and a small Mini Mitzi is contained within every Mitzi. Imaginative breaking patterns and packaging with the look of a CD. Names and flavors from around the world like, Caribbean Dance, Crispy Caramel, Mango Tango, Marrakesh and Sky of Love. Give your Valentine the Sky of Love with its white chocolate for the hunger for love and a pink strawberry Mini Mitzi for butterflies in the stomach and a little red raspberry heart as decoration. It is simply lovely.

Tip for the sweet tooth:
If you would like to be a chocolate connoisseur, you should not munch the chocolate, but savor it by letting it melt. Let a piece of chocolate rest for a short time on your tongue and then stick it to your upper palate. Tickle the chocolate with your tongue so that it slowly begins to melt. Good chocolate has greater staying power. This means you will feel the aromas for some time after you have eaten the chocolate.