Locals have paid their respects to our new president through paintings, cupcakes, baseball hats and song (pending story on Nate Schneekloth), but within 24 hours of finding out our Obama was a fan of salty caramels, Choco-Logo Chocolatier Dan Johnson came up with Waves O’ Change Inaugural Bark.
Dark and milk chocolate are swirled together, with white chocolate combed through the top of this caramel-filled bark. (Bare-pated Dan jokes that he had a comb lying around that he hasn’t needed in years.) Dan then sprinkles the top with sea salt for that familiar choco-logo mix of chocolaty, creamy and salty joy he’s so well-known for. Internationally, in fact.
Dan tells the story about how his friend Fran, a chocolatier in Seattle was the first to reach Obama with her salty caramels. “I coulda’ been Fran,” he laments. But then he goes on to tell the story of how, once upon a time, he swiped a candy bar a chocolate rep was showing Fran (when the guy got up to use the men’s room, according to Dan), brought it back home, analysed it and developed his own Gold Bar from it–and went on to win 2nd place above Fran’s third in a subsequent contest. Fran’s still laughing about it, but something suggests that the next thing Dan designs might be a confection called Good Karma Caramels.
At any rate, I got what I went in for: a pound of Salty Turtles for daughter #1, a pound of Salty Caramels for daughter #2 and Dan’s crazy Buffalo Nutcorn–for myself.
If you’re not celebrating Valentine’s Day, but the election still makes you feel giddy, Obama Bark might be right for you. Then again, you could pick up some Pezzy Up the Bark, Dan’s tribute to Robby Takac of the Goo Goo Dolls and lover of all things PEZ. Half of all Pezzy Up sales will goo to Music is Art, Robby’s pet charity. But that’s a subject for another post…
In the meanwhile, Dan has added another night, with only a few spots left, to The Perfect Pair, a wine and chocolate tasting to benefit Roswell. Such a good citizen, that Dan; he’s helping people, who help people. Forget the Good Karma Caramels; Dan has to have earned it by now.