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You could put together a story from the pictures on Alegio Chocolate—and then eat it! Photography by Evan Dempsey | THE NIBBLE. |
| WHAT IT IS: Fine chocolates from Berkeley, California. |
| WHY IT’S DIFFERENT: Top quality plus “eye candy” designs. |
WHY WE LOVE IT: We made up a story using all of the pieces, and then ate the “story.” |
| WHERE TO BUY IT: Alegio.com. |
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Alegio Chocolate:
Serious & Whimsical Gourmet Chocolate
CAPSULE REPORT: Alegio Chocolate makes bonbons filled with variously flavored ganaches: cinnamon, grapefruit, habanero, honey, orange, orange & ginger and Scotch. If you don’t like flavors, you can have single-origin ganaches from the Caribbean, Ecuador, Santo Domingo and Venezuela. The chocolates—all dark—are very fine, and the highly-original designs engendered our first-ever session of storytelling via chocolate. (Line up the pieces in an order that tells a story; then eat them.) Read the full review below.
INDEX OF REVIEW
This is Page 2 of a five-page review. Click on the black links below to visit other pages:
MORE TO DISCOVER
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Alegio Chocolate Overview
Robbin Everson understands picky people like me. She knows that we’ll want to choose the chocolates that fill our boxes, and she provides for that on her website.
You choose your box size, then watch as a scrolling list of chocolates comes up. When you see one that intrigues you, pause the scroll; if you like the description, simply drag the chocolate into your virtual box.
And there are a lot of drag-worthy flavors.
- Try the Grapefruit, a dark chocolate exterior with a lovely soft caramel center; the caramel has a fresh-tasting tart note from that citrus.
- Maybe the Orange is more your speed, with an outstanding blend of 67% Madagascar dark chocolate and the title fruit in a silken-textured ganache.
- If coffee with your chocolate is a “must have,” the Espresso is for you: Illy espresso in a salted caramel base with dark chocolate, enrobed in 90% Ecuadorian couverture.
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 A boy and his dog watched the graceful hummingbird lick* nectar from the penstamon blossoms. Then, they sat among the flowers enjoying the lovely day, until the moon came out. (An example of the story we made up before devouring it.)
*Biological fact: Hummingbirds don’t suck nectar. They lick it at a high rate of speed. |
If you’re the type who eschews decision-making, there are, of course, selections that save you the time of choosing. Note via the photos that some pieces are smaller than others: Think of them as accommodating the mood when you just want a tiny taste. The designs that top the pieces are different from those I see elsewhere, and it’s fun to see such individualistic self-expression. I like the understated packaging here, as well.
Alegio also offers chocolates from Enrico Rovira, one of the most renowned of Barcelona’s many famed chocolatiers; in fact, they are Rovira’s only U.S. retailer. His creations are stylish, beautiful, and sometimes surprising. If you have not tried Rovira’s Chocolate a la Taza (Drinking Chocolate), it’s high time you did so.
If you’re in the Bay Area, there are two Alegio Chocolate boutiques. The original is located at 1511 Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley, California—two doors down from Chez Panisse, smack in the middle of the town’s “Gourmet Ghetto.” The second is in Union Square in San Francisco, at 11 Maiden Lane, inside Manika Jewelry.
—Stephanie Zonis
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