Lake Champlain Chocolates Blog

Chocolate is a very poplular topic to write about. Just Google the word and you'll be amazed by what you find. So, in my e-travels, I came across a quote that made me smile. When I saw who it was attributed to, that smile turned into a laugh!

"All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt." - Charles M. Schulz

Very Snoopy-esque, no? So, if you don't have one, go get the other. But in my opinion, the latter of the two is easier and since you can pick out exactly what you want, it makes more sense, too! And with that, I think I'll go have a chocolate-covered caramel.

So we’ve discovered a trick here at the chocolate factory. In our break room, there is a window that looks out at one of our enrobers. It’s about 10 feet away. If you come in early, you see the folks in production in full swing and often they’re enrobing one of our Five Star Bars. Usually we all watch for a minute or two while we make a cup of tea.

Here is what we’ve discovered. If you stare for a while and you’re expression is one of enough longing and pity, there’s a good chance they’ll bring some fresh seconds out on a plate to the break room for snacking on. Mind you, there’s rarely a time when there isn’t chocolate around to snack on but the opportunity to gobble down a freshly made Five Star Bar is one I can’t resist.

And this morning, they were making Caramel Five Star Bars. And on a day when you’re not quite sure if it’s going to be a good one or a bad one, a fresh bite of Caramel Five Star Bar is enough to tip the scales in favor of good. (But maybe I should find a better word to use than “scale”…)

This is my first week at Lake Champlain Chocolates…as a chocolate lover, a dream job come true!  Today I was asked to help cover the phones for a few hours since our receptionist is out sick.  Everything was going smoothly until a tray of Milk Chocolate Pecan Caramel Clusters was put out on the coffee table next to the front desk for visitors to enjoy.  I tried my best to ignore them, but honestly will power is not my middle name.  I rationalized “hey I’m new, I really do need to try all our products” so I quietly tip toed over and took a sample.  DELICIOUS is the only word to describe them!  I did not realize however that these clusters had caramel and just at that moment the phone began to ring.  I ran back over chewing as quickly as I could, but it was too late I missed the call.  A co-worker peered around the corner to see if everything was okay, and there I was evidence in hand still not able to say a word…BUSTED!  I learned a very valuable lesson on my third day – Milk Chocolate Pecan Caramel Clusters and the phone do not mix.  But finding my new Lake Champlain Chocolates favorite was well worth the embarrassment!