Un-American Chocolate in America found

What began as a cup of drinking chocolate at La Verna (Italy) in the summer of 2009 is today a quest to find the "perfect" cioccolata calda at home in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is a passionate pursuit that has brought me to many cafes at home and abroad, in New Zealand, Australia, and Italy. And it has led to many attempts, many many attempts of re-creating a dark, thick, and rich drinking chocolate from "do it yourself" (aka "instant") products at home. I've tasted a lot; I've learned a lot; and I've blogged a lot this week as I share my experiences with this rather "un-American" delicacy during American Chocolate Week. Why, you might ask? Because even though Italian-style drinking chocolate is not easy to find in America, I finally found it locally at home, and that is a reason to celebrate!!

During our drinking chocolate tasting party earlier this year, my chocolate-loving friends told me about a recent article on SF Gate.com on "Where to find hot chocolate in the Bay Area". I asked them to send me the link and was relieved to see that many places I had visited were listed, including CocoaBella, Christopher Elbow, and Bittersweet. I was on the right track in my drinking chocolate pursuits. There were some places I had never heard of, but what excited me the most was the two locations where you could find "European-style" hot chocolate.

The term "European-style" can be ambiguous as it is used differently. At Christopher Elbow, for example, "European-style" refers to the use of water as opposed to milk in the "Classical-style". The article, however, clearly implies that a European-style hot chocolate is "thicker", and can be enjoyed at Emporio Rulli in San Francisco's Union Square, and Almare, "an unassuming gelato shop in Berkeley".

While I don't get to San Francisco downtown very often, I am in downtown Berkeley all the time for school. Has the object of my quest been in my backyard all the time and I just never knew it? I remember walking on Shattuck a year ago and seeing a sign for hot chocolate at a gelato store. Mapquesting the location, I discovered - yes, it is. Almare is located just a few feet from the main entrance of the Downtown Berkeley BART station, a destination I had been commuting to for the past 3 years!

Not needing to be in Berkeley again for a few days, I decided to check out the Almare website and see what they say about their drinking chocolate. There is absolute nothing about chocolate on their website. Everything screams (or should I say, "sings"?) of gelato. The signage at the store, however, reveals that something chocolate is going on inside. The billboard and window display appear to be new as I do not remember seeing them. I have passed by this place numerous times, thinking that this was simply a gelateria. I wonder if the chocolate signs were added after the write up in SF Gate.com. I know if I had seen the signs last year, I'd be in there in a flash!

I was so excited when I entered Almare for the first time at the start of the new spring semester. I probably sounded like a blubbering idiot as I began sharing with the server about my search for an authentic cioccolata calda and how I was surprised to find that it was here the whole time. As I asked about their drinking chocolate, Cel, the server, explained that the owner makes a fresh batch each morning using a combination of three different chocolates, cocoa powder, sugar, and whole milk. It gets warmed up to 190 degrees, and then is kept warm at 140 degrees, continuously mixed in their Ugolini chocolate dispenser, before being served. According to Cel, they do not use corn starch to thicken their drinking chocolate as it cheapens the quality. Instead, the owner's secret recipe, using high quality chocolate, and the proper temperature creates the thick, dark, and rich brew.

My anticipation to try this was high. $3.00 for a regular. $1.50 for a small. I ordered a regular without whip cream, and as it was being dispensed, I closed my eyes and took in the deep chocolate smells that filled the air. While the clear glass serving cup was a bit odd, I gently embraced it in my hands and began to take a seat. This serving portion was a lot larger than the coffee/espresso cups used in Italy, but I was not complaining. Instead, I prepared to indulge in a cup of cioccolata calda at home in Berkeley, and to be swept away with the memories of drinking chocolate in little cafes in Italy.

The consistency of Almare's hot chocolate is just as I would expect. The dark chocolate brew was thick, but smooth and velvety. Though similar to a creamy liquid pudding, it did not have the gelatinous taste that the Italian "do it yourself" instant drinking chocolate mixes had. Instead there was a nice balance of bitter and sweet, with a dark chocolate bite that lingered on the back of the palate, creating a nice tongue feel. It was beautiful. I was in chocolate heaven. And with some reading to do, I spent an hour enjoying my cioccolata calda, knowing that I would be back again, and again, and again.
I had found Italian-style drinking chocolate at home in America, and I was happy.

Happy American Chocolate Week!

THE END.
(Or is it? Stay tuned.)