Day Twenty The End

All good things must come to an end, and unfortunately today was such a day. We ended the day with a repeat of the initial mystery chocolate taste test.
1) Extremely sweet
2) More bitter, a little dry, slight acid element
3) Complex with a lingering fruity flavor

It turned out the first one was Dove, the second was Godiva, and the third was Shaffenberger. It was interesting how much peoples taste buds changed over the course of the course, with most people switching from preferring the Dove.

When I signed up for this class, I did so mainly because I was interested in cooking/eating a lot of food. However, as the course progressed, I quickly realized that a much more important thing was happening. I can confidently say that I understand my tastes much more now after this course. It was extremely interesting to have the daily chocolate tastings and witness the changing nature of my taste buds and the so called "loss of innocence" about what makes a good chocolate. Additionally, I really liked the cheese tastings and being exposed to a variety of new tastes. While I wish we could have been in the kitchen more often, since I truly enjoyed cooking, given the logistics I think we had a perfect balance. Therefore, I truly appreciated the experiences this class gave me, and think it was definitely an interim well spent. 

Day Nineteen Southern Cooking

Today the other group was in the kitchen cooking southern food. Of course I love southern food, so I was really excited about this day. I have to say that the group did a good job, and it tasted like something my Grandmother would make. I particularly enjoyed the macaroni and cheese and the gravy they made. It was a good way to end our time in the church kitchen with such a homey, and comfort food filled meal.

Day Eighteen

We started off with our last official chocolate tasting today. All of these chocolates Vahrona, and we are determining what differences vintages have on chocolates.
- Gran Couva (Trinidad 2010): Complex flavor with a fruity flavor that developed on the palate.
- Gran Couva (Trinidad 2011): Milder flavor with a hint of bitter
- Palmira Criollo (Venezuela 2009): Very fruity, elements of honey
- Palmira Criollo (Venezuela 2010): Still fruity, but more bitter than the older vintage

After this tasting, it does not seem as if vintage has too much of a significant effect on flavor.

We also did a vanilla tasting.
- Tahitian: Mild flavor, but very smooth and good
- Mexican: Most pronounced flavor that was almost a little spicy
- Madagascar (homemade): Milder than the storebought
- Madagascar (Spice House): Intense vanilla flavor

I think out of these my favorite was the Tahitian.