Spin the Divine Flavour Wheel at Chocolate Festival

Date published: 05 April 2011

A huge range of tasting sessions and workshops awaits visitors to this year’s Ramsbottom Chocolate Festival.

Award-winning master chocolatiers will bring all their skill and knowledge to the town over the weekend of 16 and 17 April.

Ramsbottom Civic Hall will host a series of chocolate workshops over the two days. The workshops are being hosted by Divine Chocolate, the only Fairtrade chocolate company to be 45% owned by the farmers.

David Greenwood-Haigh from Divine Chocolate said: “In the UK we consume £3.6 billion of chocolate a year! Most of us know how to eat chocolate but few take the time to really taste all the varieties of flavours you can enjoy in chocolate. I will be taking you through a simple guided talk which will help everyone appreciate the subtle aromas and flavours in Ghanaian cocoa.

“We also have something for children who love to get messy in the kitchen. Our Dubble chocolate workshop will have them making chocolate cheesecakes and learning how buying Fairtrade can improve the lives of farmers in Ghana."

Due to the popularity of the workshops, and as numbers are limited, there will be a small charge for taking part. Places are bookable on the day at the Civic Hall.

Meanwhile, an "activity pod" in Market Place will provide a daily programme of demonstrations and talks from leading chocolatiers and producers. These will encompass the history of chocolate, speciality chocolate recipes, how to taste chocolate and chocolate wine, and truffle making. Why not sample food from the Chocolate Fountain at Market Place while you watch and learn?

The programme will include talks and demos from UK Chocolate Master John Costello, who is the first contestant from the North West to win the UK competition. John will represent the UK against 19 other countries at the World Chocolate Masters in Paris in October.

John said: “It is fantastic to be involved in such a great local chocolate event. I will be demonstrating a range of chocolate flowers from simple chocolate flower lollipops that can be made at home to more intricate ornate flowers. I will also give an insight into my preparation for the world chocolate masters competition final, for which I have to make a range of products that includes two chocolates, one dipped and one moulded.”

During John’s show people can buy a special box of chocolates which will contain three dipped and three moulded chocolates. These will be John’s shortlist for the final, and people can then look at his website and say which ones they prefer.

Ramsbottom Events