I never met a *Swiss* chocolate I didn't like!

Switzerland is known for their chocolate. They boast the best chocolate in the world and it's easy to taste why! Swiss chocolate is known for it's smooth texture and high quality due to the ingredients used and care that is taken in producing it. Although they import their cocoa, the milk comes from Swiss dairy cows raised outside on the mountains and the grasslands (They have organic diets). The Swiss also regulate what ingredients go into the chocolate and the ingredient ratios to ensure the highest quality. In many countries you can buy "chocolate" that isn't technically chocolate. However, if you buy Swiss chocolate you are guaranteed that it is real chocolate and completely manufactured in Switzerland!

Lugano has a few of its own chocolate shops in the city, the supermarkets have entire sections devoted to Swiss chocolate and located a few miles outside is the Alprose Chocolate Factory, where you can visit and take a tour.

Läderach Chocolate Shop Lugano

I always knew Swiss chocolate tasted good, and although surrounded by it here I never thought to ask why. Until I saw this statistic:

• The average Swiss eats 23lbs of chocolate per year compared to the 11.7lbs consumed by Americans!

The Swiss are the largest chocolate consumers in the world!! And with that little fun fact I stumbled upon I began to wonder about Swiss chocolate and the history behind it.

Chocolate was introduced to Switzerland in 1697 by the Zurich Mayor Heinrich Escher and was served in secret to various ruling guilds. Although enjoyed, it was banned in 1722 by the Zurich Council because they considered chocolate an aphrodisiac. A few decades later chocolate was reintroduced by the Italians and the first chocolate manufacture opened in 1750 in Bern. However, it didn't stay open for long. Nevertheless, chocolate did take and before the end of the century chocolate factories began to open up. (One even opened in Ticino, the canton of Lugano!) Since then the Swiss have continually made their chocolate the best in the world and are credited for many of the innovations that make chocolate what it is today.

• The first chocolate bar was produced in Switzerland by Francois Cailler in 1819 and the Cailler brand still exists today. (They are now owned by Nestle) 

Callier Dark Chocolate Bars

• Peter Suchard invented the mixing machine that combined the cocoa and sugar which it is still used today.
• Daniel Peter was able to successfully create milk chocolate by using Nestle's condensed milk instead of regular milk. Milk has a high water content that wouldn't combine with the cocoa and the milk turned the chocolate rancid quickly.

Milk Chocolate & Hazelnut Milk Chocolate from Alprose in Ticino!

• Rodolphe Lindt (of Lindt Chocolates) created a machine called a conch that makes the chocolate smoother and less bitter by breaking the chocolate and sugar into particles smaller than your tongue can detect. The longer the chocolate stays in the conch the higher the quality. Some chocolate stays in the conch for up to 72 hours.

Lindt Chocolates

Next time you buy chocolate make sure it's Swiss to enjoy the finest chocolate in the world!

*Title adapted from Deanna Troi in Star Trek: The Next Generation

A New York Minute

Happy belated New Years! No Triskaidekaphobia here, 2013 is going to be a great year!

I came home to NY for my four week break from school and had a great time seeing friends and family. I can't believe how fast the break went and that class starts up again on Monday!

A quick overview of my month off from school:

• Christmas Eve and Day was spent with new and old family! Christmas Eve we went to my Uncles to spend time with my cousins, a yearly tradition that I always look forward too. We switched it up this year on Christmas day and headed to Teresa's house which was so nice since we got to spend time with our officially new family.
• New Years Eve- I headed to NYC to ring in the new year with Colgate friends! We went downtown in the Flat Iron District to Beecher's New York, a cheese shop (where they make their own cheese), cafe and cellar. During the day the first floor operates as a cheese shop and cafe and just downstairs is their cellar. The cellar was dimly lit and perfect for the perfect New Years with friends. We tried their cheese plate and their "World's Best Mac&Cheese" and everything was great! It was a wonderful night with 6 of us talking and enjoying the drinks and cheeses that they had to offer!

Me, Boots & Caroline

Boots, Me & Katie enjoying some wine & cheese

  
• Arthur Avenue- My Colgate friends and I headed down to the Italian Section of the Bronx, Arthur Avenue. It's a family favorite location that we head to for food shopping, pizza and the great coffee. I always would rave about it at Colgate and come back to school fully stocked with food for us. We had great pizza at Full Moon Pizzeria and then shopped around. My friends went home with biscotti, pasta and cheese. Before we left we stopped at Palombo's for what I believe are the best cappuccinos around.   

Calandra's Cheese Shop

• Eri's Birthday- My last weekend in NY was spent celebrating Eri's birthday and seeing Jeannie! Jeannie was in NYC for the week with her mom so she came out with me to celebrate. We went down to Alphabet city to Blackbird. The music was great and the atmosphere was a lot of fun. 

At Blackbird for Eri's Birthday

• Spending time at home- I got to see my high school friends and catch up with them. It is always so great to spend time with them because I don't know what I would do without them. Between grabbing drinks, getting coffee and just hanging out it was great to spend quality time. Allie, just booked her ticket to come visit me in Switzerland so I am so excited that I can show her where I now call home!

Now that the break is over it's time to head back to Lugano to begin my last semester as a grad student! I am so looking forward to what the semester has to bring and cannot wait to share my experiences with you!