Some like it dark, some like it sweet, while others prefer it with a hint of spice. If you’re thinking coffee, wine or even tea, well then, you’re still to come to terms with little revolutions in world of chocolate. While Hollywood starlet Eva Longoria (of Desperate Housewives fame) is said to have agreed to strip on camera for a Godiva bar, in India, for long the humble Cadbury or Amul bar has been the synonym for chocolate, exotic or otherwise. Besides, that’s not much of a hassle choosing, if you don’t know your cocoa from drinking chocolate.

Circa 2006, single origin bars, bonbons with exotic fruits and spices, and praline of various kinds are fast replacing the traditional bars. “Indians are still not exposed to the real thing. But as markets are opening up, things are only beginning to change,” says pastry chef Daniel Koshy of Chocolate Box, the chocolate boutique at Radisson MBD Noida. While flavours like cointreau and champagne are passe, Koshy is now experimenting with herbs like rosemary, thyme and basil, along with exotic fruit fillings and is planning to expand the concept into a chocolate studio by the year-end. This, he says, would cater to made-to-order chocolates, with the help of a digital diary, making the whole experience more customised.

In a country where “chocolate culture” is still in the nascent stage and the consumers conservative, connoisseurs often rue the fact that most don’t appreciate dark or bitter chocolate (without any additives or flavours), its unique flavours and complex textures. As is the case with wines, cocoa beans from different regions have a different flavour, aroma and feel, and globally chocolate tastings (like wine tastings) are de rigeur. Back home, though, chocolates are mostly blended  — Swiss brands like Felchlin and Valrhona, Callebaut from Belgium, Selbourne from Malaysia, for instance, are doing the rounds at various hotels and chocolatiers.

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