Peppermint

This story was first published on our Facebook page in 2018 as part of our ‘The 12 Days of Chocolate’ flavour story series. So, why did we decide to do ‘The 12 Days of Chocolate’ that year? For a few reasons really. Richard designed the Christmas Boxes many moons ago with 12 different flavours to tie in with the 12 Days of Christmas. Having worked with Richard for the second Christmas running, I (Laura) knew first hand he had many fascinating facts and anecdotes surrounding his chocolate and I thought they should be shared! As a very humble man and not one for the ‘limelight’, it took some convincing, but we hope you enjoy finding out a bit more about the chocolates and feel free to share and like these posts.

In 2001 / 2002, Richard was inspired by his love for After Eights, to try and create his own minty chocolate. He found After Eights a bit too sweet and sickly, so he endeavoured to make his mint chocolate more balanced. He wanted the mint to be subtle and not overpowering like toothpaste. 

He found during his research and development that dark chocolate was the best option here and he added a piece of fondant laced with mint to the centre for a strong hit of mint. He encased this in a truffle with no mint flavouring and as the truffle matures, the strong mint fondant seeps into the surrounding chocolate to give a more balanced flavour profile on the palate. 

He dips this truffle into dark chocolate. The overall affect gives no overpowering mint taste and stays away from being sickly as it is not full of sugar. It’s perfect for an after-dinner palate cleanser. The white spiral decoration reflects the white fondant in the centre of the truffle. He tried decorating with a green spiral at one point, but he is not a fan of green food stuffs and thought the white gives a preview of what hides within the truffle and looks more appealing. Being a fan of spirals in design, not just on his chocolate, the spiral is something of his trademark marking as it appears in variations across his range.