HoCho Fest Day 25: ...?!

I was disappointed to find that another location in the hot chocolate festival has stopped serving festival specials - but this time, the website was not overlooked by me! They stopped early according to the schedule online. With a tight schedule and a lot of driving ahead of me, I went to Beaucoup Bakery and decided to get something to drink as an alternative to their "Hungers Satisfied" item.

Note: This post will be short.

The drink I chose was their regular hot chocolate (to upkeep my daily intake of cacao products), and was made of dark chocolate ganache and was flavoured with salt. It came with small sugar cookies on the side that were delicate and lightly sweet.

I ordered my drink with soy milk, and the ganache and soy blended so smoothly, and the richness was countered by the salt, which made the drink more dynamic. Additionally, the small size of the drink was very nice - the perfect amount of hot chocolate for me! While I am disappointed that I was unable to grab a festival item today, it was nice nonetheless to try one of the participants' regular drinks.

HoCho Fest Day 9: The Intimate Act

Today was a slightly unpleasant day for my physical well-being - body aches, nasuea, foggy-headedness. The foggy weather made my state feel very real, but I trudged through the beginning of my day and wondered whether or not it was wise to get hot chocolate, particularly from the nearby location (due to time constraints) that was serving a white hot chocolate. I decided I may as well, as it was on my to-do list and I would feel worse for having not checked it off! With that, I made my way to Beaucoup Bakery & Café.

The decor of the the café was warm and homey, and brought life to what would otherwise be a very industrial-looking neighbourhood. I was pleased to be offered the option of a small, medium, or large beverage; this way, I would pay less in the face of my upset stomach. I discovered that the flavour had, in fact, changed a day earlier than what was listed online - now it was milk chocolate rather than white chocolate! That was a step in the right direction, at least. I discovered with this change came a new flavour blended into the chocolate - passion fruit! My second of the festival and of my life of hot chocolate consumption. As this was my second time encountering passion fruit, I was sure to order it with soy milk rather than almond this time. 

Milk Chocolate with passionfruit
Served with a hazelnut cookie.

($3.15)
Available: January 28 - February 5

When the order arrived on the counter, it was a perfectly small drink with a small cookie on the side - 
evidently, a white chocolate hazelnut strudel cookie. I detected no white chocolate, but the hazelnut was yummy and the wee cookie deliciously textured. I sat down and sipped my drink: Immediately evident milky chocolate flavour and equally evident passion fruit overtones. The creaminess of the soy and chocolate seemed to absorb the fruitiness in the way I would have liked for my first time with the flavour. It was a little milky for my preference, but it was small-sized and reasonably priced! The overall flavour was balanced and creamy, without an overpowering sense of passion fruit (which I appreciated).

I would return for tea, baking, and a delicious pear sandwich!

HoCho Fest Day 7: Mint To Be

After a somewhat stressful dinner experience, I made my way over to Blenz to snag the day's hot chocolate festival item before all of the stores closed. I was pleased that my original hot chocolate location closed after all, because the second Blenz option was rather nice!

An organic peppermint tea infusion combined with Belgian milk chocolate. 
Served with a mini chocolate croissant.

($4.25 sans croissant)

Unfortunately, for the second time, I went without the mini chocolate croissant! While this was disappointing, I went forth into my beverage-consuming experience. I ordered it with soy as the flavour itself was milk chocolate infused with organic peppermint tea - so while I could not avoid that dairy, I did what I could with the soy. The peppermint flavour was stronger than I had expected, as I have tried steeped tea hot chocolates of this sort before - and this one was much more quality! The peppermint flavour was strong and well-blended with the smooth chocolate.

The soy milk was smooth and delicious as usual, and it took in the minty chocolate flavours easily. Simplicity really defined the entire flavour experience, but in an elegant and effective way - just the kind of beverage to finish the night with! Texturally, the drink was light, as I believe the peppermint tea kept the drink from settling and sitting heavily on the tongue, and it was very easy to drink.

Tomorrow, I believe,  shall be an exciting adventure - with many different flavours being shared amongst the three of us that shall go - EXCITING.