HoCho Fest Day 20: Big Bad Wolf

Hallelujah, Friday has ARRIVED! In celebration of this, and with great fatigue, I made what turned out to be a somewhat lengthy journey east of UBC to indulge in hot chocolate today.

The journey took us to Schokolade Artisan Chocolates and Cafe. It is a not-too-small shop with a sweet aroma that contrasts the harsh vibe of the neighbourhood in which it resides.

A 38% milk chocolate flavoured with a blend of gingerbread spices and
steamed milk. Served with a gingerbread cookie.
($10.50)

$10.50?! That may seem unreasonable when you look at the description, but the chocolates accompanying the gingerbread man cookie are included with the purchase of one hot chocolate - one hot chocolate, one gingerbead man, and four fancy chocolates of your choice! Pricey, but quite the filling and tasty offer.

 Luckily, I had someone with me with whom to share what could have been a chocolate overdose if done alone. We selected: Two dark chocolate raspberry hearts, a dark chocolate nougat, and a salted caramel treat (the supernova-esque one in the photo). They all proved to be very delicious, and the gingerbread man was soft and chewy when dipped in the hot chocolate (may he rest peacefully in our tummies).


In terms of the drink itself, I did not find that I was particularly overwhelmed by it as a specialty drink for the festival, but it was delicious as a hot chocolate in its own right. We agreed that a darker chocolate would have provided more contrast with the ginger flavours to make it a bit more of a dynamic drinking experience. However, the way type of chocolate we had allowed for seamless blending of ginger and chocolate - the ginger was subtle but provided a little extra something that made it reminiscent of the season. What seemed to be missing was evidence to explain its given title - I sensed no "bad side" to this hot chocolate - it seemed quite tame, in fact, more like a "Big Friendly Golden Retriever" perhaps (ha-ha-ha)!

If I'm ever out in that direction again, I'd be happy to try something else,

as they do seem to have an interesting selection of special drinks and certainly

a delicious collection of crafted chocolates to choose from.