Earl Grey Tea chocolate – This chocolate had the lovely scent of dark chocolate but none of the lush bergamot scent.  Biting into this chocolate releases the most lovely delicate flavour of real Earl Grey tea.  It is subtle and delicious and not overwhelming.  I could eat a box of these!

Mulled Wine chocolate – Once again, this chocolate does not reveal its interior from outside with the delicate scent of the Amedei chocolate used the only scent.  Biting in to it releases the flavour of the jelly mulled wine interior with the chocolate ganache.  Yummy and delicious, this is a lovely chocolate.

Sea Salt Caramel – different from other sea salt caramels I’ve tried in the past, this is a thick base chocolate with a liquid caramel interior closest in flavour to Kraft caramels from my childhood.  The caramel oozes out in deliciousness making you gobble the whole chocolate up.

Whoops… looks like I munched these before I had a chance to photograph them!

The layers of high quality chocolate make biting in to this pop a deliciously messy affair exactly as it should be.  Anyone who has ever tried to bite into a Tootsie pop knows how foolish that is.  Allowing the chocolate to warm as you gently nibble brings the chocolate to just the right temperature to gently bite.

The popping candy is the first experience.  I thought I would be put off by it and yet it was delicious.  It added to the experience by giving an initial kick then fading away.  Next is the salt quickly overwhelmed by caramel to be finished with a touch of salt.  That almost sour flavour balancing the sweet and the beautiful dark chocolate rounding it all out with the last vestiges of the popping candy still thrilling your taste buds.

So… nomnomnom… I suppose my verdict… nomnomnom… is that… *washes sticky hands* I really like it!

Laura White, a former pastry chef and 5 year expert chocolate maker, invents some of these innovative chocolate flavours at the front of the shot in full view of the window to the outside tables where people sup on home baked cookies with some of the finest chocolate chips nestled in excellent dough.

Utilising Tuscano Amedei chocolate in her creations, Laura balances the flavour of the base chocolate against the exotic fillings.  Often utilising Belgian style chocolate as a carrier for her more exotic flavours, Laura uses her knowledge of flavour and chocolate to balance flavours off.  Marrying tea and coffee both with chocolate but in very different ways, she is committed to creating delicious and innovative chocolate.

I found her sea salt caramel to be one of the flavours of hers I liked best.  The chocolate did not seem to be the highest quality but the sea salt caramel was lovely. The Earl Grey tea was way more intense than I was used to but it didn’t detract from the overall experience.  The chocolate covered almond dragees were nothing I hadn’t enjoyed elsewhere in the UK but I have a feeling they are a rarity in Toronto.  As such it is nice to see these lovely roasted almonds with caramelised sugar covering them before the delicious chocolate and powered cocoa finishes it off.

Pop by and try the chocolates.  They are yummy and unique and fun at a dinner party.

This lovely egg comes with a keepsake egg cup and spoon which makes it a lasting gift.

Lovers of Paul A Young’s sea salted caramels must think Christmas has come early with the release of the rather large sea salt caramel egg. Larger than a Cadbury’s crème egg, it is also slightly larger than a traditional breakfast egg but not by much.

The egg comes in an egg cup with a lovely egg spoon to scoop out all that lovely sea salt caramel. The chocolate used is a delight. Delicious and lots of it, the chocolate encases the rather extremely generous filling. Hungry as I was, and celebrating a few milestones in my life as I was, I still could not finish the whole egg. No bad thing, a bit of cling film and I can report it was as nummy later as when fresh.

This is any chocolate lover’s dream and must have. Forget that cheap chocolate, forget boxes of Easter crème eggs, forget fancy silly overpriced bunnies, get the chocolate lover in your life this egg. They’ll love you for it. I love the person who sent me mine lots and lots now – YUM!

I tried the cinnamon praline first.  I’m not a huge fan of praline as it is often gritty and the strong nutty flavour overwhelms the flavour of anything else.  WOW… I’m a cinnamon fan as readers will know and this was like a warm Christmas choccy in my mouth.  Brilliant.  A bit of a nutmeg topping and I think we’ve got Christmas in a choc.

Caramel crunch wasn’t quite as dramatic but was still OK.  Both chocolates were sweet but I found the caramel crunch a bit over my sweet tolerance level regrettably.

The sea salted caramel was OK but again the sweetness of the chocolate detracted from the overall experience for me.  Perhaps it was just my mood but it was just too much sweet for me.

Saving the best for last I had the Marc de Champagne star. It was lovely and age had not dimmed it though it too was quite sweet.  It was probably just me but I did feel the white chocolate was quite over sweet.

I’m very sure that a lot of people would love a selection like this.  It may be sweet to me but I’m sure other people more familiar with popular brands of chocolate will love these.

The mint chocolate was a nice with a very green mint flavour mixed in to the chocolate ganache.  The flavour I prefer is that of a fresh green mint and this was slightly on the synthetic side for me for some reason.  I cannot say if there was real mint or mint oil used but regardless I did enjoy it but did not finish it.

The sea salted caramel was too salty for me.  I’m sure it is brilliant for some and probably developed to be the perfect balance but for me the salt was too much. It didn’t get finished. ***UPDATE*** Tried one at the Chocolate Festival and chatted to Paul about it and he said it was not representative and on trying both the lollipop and a truffle I can say it was not. They are LOVELY!

The raspberry was the one I love love loved. I am a huge sea salt caramel fan but this raspberry had it beat.  The chocolate was fab and the filling brilliant!  I’d eat a box of these – I wish I could!!

Artisan du Chocolat's Sea Salted Caramel Balls

Sea salted caramels seem to have become a popular confection among chocolate makers and Artisan du Chocolat are no exception.  The ones bought for me arrived in a white box within which was a nice brown plastic tub with a screw top lid.

Unscrewing the lid of this delightful container of chocolate was like opening the door to a chocolate shop.  I was met with the delightful scent of good quality chocolate.  It enveloped me and seemingly wafted through the room, following me as I sat down to try one.

These small balls are just the right size to pop in your mouth and enjoy.  They do need to be chewed as letting them melt takes forever but the yumminess is not harmed.   On biting through the outer chocolate shell, your mouth is bathed in a delightfully runny dark caramel.  With hints of molasses the caramel is strongly flavoured and delightful. It mixes with the chocolate in your mouth and is fantastic.

The chocolate itself is a bit flat in flavour which is slightly disappointing.  It lacks any distinguishing characteristics and is a bit grainy.  It would have been nice to have had a better quality chocolate.

I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this chocolate to anyone as a gift or as a treat.