sote23

i've never even heard of them, let alone tried them. so i can't comment.

i'm like you, i prefer ordering online as well, but i recently place an order from them and i had it in 2 days, they are very friendly, have good service, fast shipping, and the best prices. give them a call, you won't be disappointed.

try http://qzina.com/ they have the best prices on them, that i've found.

where do you buy your pcb transfer sheets? i can find some places that sell some , but not the ones i want.

← the lavender is very good, his orange is the best i've had and the basil was delicious. what's cool about his shop in st remy de provance, is they give you as many samples as you want, and it worked, we walked out with 8 boxes.lol lol

I'm sure you can bring them into Canada...people bring boxes of chocolates as gifts across the border all the time. I might order from the NY La Maison and have them shipped to my bf's place in Seattle. Any recommendations on what I should get? ← I think if you call the NY store, you can pick and choose what you want, as opposed to a pre packaged box. I recommend andalouise, valencia, guayaquil, and anaguy, but i would imagine they are all good. on this page, click on discover the assortment and if you click on each one it tells you what they are. http://www.lamaisonduchocolat.com/commerce...roduct_sku=U-BN he also has a new summer collection called sevillane, which i haven't tried, but looks good. Luis

← your very welcome. Joel Durand's chocolates are what got me on this whole chocolate thing. Not many are familier with him, because he's in provence, and not in paris. by the way, you can order directly from joel durand, just fax over the order and they will ship to the US.

Hi escry, Yes, I'm familiar with the general rule about the chocolates produced in each country, but in my opinion, PM does not produce the typical Belgian chocolate, but more French-style chocolates. I believe that's also what's written in his pamphlet and it agrees with what I've read online by other tasters. Like I said, I haven't tried LMduC and I think I will go and order a box now! ETA: It costs 48 Euro to ship a box of chocolate to Canada...that's $68 Cdn just for shipping! ← wow that is crazy, yes try the NY store, they have 2. My sister sent me some from one of the stores, I don't know what she paid for shipping, but I know it wasn't that high. luis ←

Hi escry, Yes, I'm familiar with the general rule about the chocolates produced in each country, but in my opinion, PM does not produce the typical Belgian chocolate, but more French-style chocolates. I believe that's also what's written in his pamphlet and it agrees with what I've read online by other tasters. Like I said, I haven't tried LMduC and I think I will go and order a box now! ETA: It costs 48 Euro to ship a box of chocolate to Canada...that's $68 Cdn just for shipping! ← wow that is crazy, yes try the NY store, they have 2. My sister sent me some from there, I don't know what she paid for shipping, but I know it wasn't that high. luis

I think when it comes to tasting chocolate a lot of subjectivity comes in play, heck I change my mind about my preferences every so often, the one chocolatier who I could not digest was Richart, tried twice and both times were miserable Tarek ←

They slighty reheat many of their ganaches and whisk to add (very little) extra volume, resulting in a lighter texture. ← i see, so to add a little texture. i didn't notice it, but then again i wasn't paying attention to it either.

I'm about an hour from san francisco, so i get recchiuitti whenever i'm in the city. most of his stuff is pretty good, but i agree it's too sweet. he uses invert sugar which i'm avoiding at the moment. your absolutly right though, the american palette in general prefers a sweeter chocolate. yes, marie belle's are made by jaque torres from what i hear, and pretty pricy from what i hear, about $100 a pound. i've not tried christopher norman or vosage, or jaque torres for that matter. why don't we all try the ones we each are missing and compare notes. i'd love you try yours as well escry, which i know would be difficult, since your in england.

i haven't tried pierre marcolini, but la maison is definatly not too sweet. I think they have the perfect balance of sweetness, chocolate and flavors. the best balance by far, not to say other choolates aren't good, but the balance la maison creates is tops in my book.

I agree that la maison is the benchmark, at least for me. a lot of others mentioned, Michel Chaudun, and I would be interested in trying his, but being that i'm in CA and he's in paris, it will have to wait. Richart does have pretty chocolates, but for me the taste is lacking.

I have to agree with you there in terms of robert linx. It's all about balance with him. most other chocolatiers don't have the right balance, and are using too strong of flavors which overpower the chocolate. I'm not familier with michel chaudun or patrick roger. can you tell me more? Luis ← Michel Chaudun has been making chocolates probably as long as Robert Linx. His chocolates are similiar to La Maison du Chocolat, a touch sweeter than most of the newer chocolatiers. His shop in the in Paris 7e has a friendly old-fashioned feel, unlike many of the newer designer shops. I really like his Palette d'Or, his pralines and his bittersweet truffles. Patrick Roger's studio/shop is in Sceaux, a suburb of Paris. He recently opened a shop on Blvd St. Germain, between Carrefour de l'Odeon and Blvd St. Michel. His chocolates are a little more bitter than those of Robert Linx and Michel Chaudun, but are balanced by his wonderful fillings. I love his dome shaped caramel with various fruit juice, chocolate covered almonds, almond and pistachio pralines. thyme and citron ganache. I generally do not like herb flavored ganache but his is very subtle and perfumy rather than artificial and medicinal. ← next time in paris, i will look them up.

I will have to try them at some point. what do you mean by fluffing?

← your correct, i actually think our imaginations should be used more often, and yes, there are many many ways of doing things. I remember reading a study, where there were over 100 different ways to wash dishes. i'm a believer in breaking new ground, trying different things, not going with the status quo. Look at the restaurant El Bulli, they threw the cookbooks out the window and came up with all sort of wonderful ideas. I myself don't have any training either, and never said artisan chocolatiers aren't serious.

Sorry, I phrased it wrong. I wasn't implying she is not serious or professional. she's good at what shes does. I know people adore her carmels, and I like them too. yes, i agree, everyone has different tastes, and what tastes good to one person may be horrid to another. and no, one must not make saffron chocolate to be serious. i've never even tried a saffron chocolate. doesn't sound very tasty to me, although it maybe. of course there is room for many different kinds of chocolatiers in the market, I never implied there wasn't. don't worry, no feathers were ruffled. lol

he has a very well made site. i think it's one of the nicest ones out there.

I was a little bit let down with Recchiutti as well. However, I do think his fleur de sel chocolate is much better than Fran's. Did you try the fleur de sel at Recchiutti, Wendy? I was disappointed with Fran's salted caramels after hearing so much about them. To me, they are merely good candies than serious chocolates. ← your absolutly right. that's exactly what i thought when i had frans, good candies, but not a serious chocolatier.

hi wendy, your right about the burnt caramel. it's his signiture chocolate and it does nothing for me. most of his stuff is pretty good, but not outstanding, he is nowhere as good as la maison. i haven't tried norman love as of yet.

Michael Recchuiti makes some good chocolates. it would be interesting to see your list of chocolatiers you hate or are indifferent to. and sure you can say yourself lol lol where is woodhouse chocolates located? are they in CA? Luis

i've heard good things about pierre. anywhere to get his chocolate in the US?

if you ever get the chance, try Joel durand. the only place that sells in in the US is Paradou in new york. I've yet to try jacque torres, but will have to put him on my list. http://www.paradounyc.com/chocolates.htm

right, he is the one with the school in florida right?