Past Newsletters - July 2010
Royal Palm Chocolates – Passion Pays!
Thankfully for club members this month, Philip Fincher found – and pursued – his passion. He left a potentially lucrative career in law to pursue the sweet life. Professionally he did a one-eighty and we get to enjoy the “fruits of his labors,” so to speak. Well over a decade ago, Chocolatier Philip Fincher was an attorney pursuing yet more education—a Masters in Law in Estate Planning, a program that accepted a limited number of candidates. That took him from Fayetteville, Arkansas, his hometown, to Miami, Florida. Upon completion of his advanced degree, he went back to his hometown to start his own law firm. He and his wife, Stephanie had every intention of raising their four children there.
But, he had fallen in love with Florida, so when recruited for a job opportunity that was the perfect fit for his expertise in law, he moved his family to the Sunshine State, specifically to the beautiful town of Naples. He loved his family first and foremost, and now he was also in a locale he loved, but another love lay dormant—his affinity for chocolate and pastry. As luck would have it, Philip found himself at a crossroads with an unusual opportunity to attend a pastry school owned and operated by Ewald Notter, a World Champion Pastry Chef known for his 15 gold medals in international pastry competitions and his unique teaching style. Philip seized the moment. After enrolling in Notter’s intensive program in Orlando, his love, fascination and passion for this new world of chocolate and pastries ignited even more. He graduated at the top of his class and returned to Naples where he landed a job in the pastry kitchen of the 5-Star and 5-Diamond Ritz Carlton Beach Resort.
Shortly after his tenure at the Ritz, a rare opportunity to acquire the assets of a local chocolate shop presented itself. The fit was perfect since of all the confections Philip loved creating, chocolate was at the top of his list. So, Royal Palm Chocolates was born, opening for business in the fall of 2009. Their molded chocolates start with the finest semi-sweet Belgian Chocolate. Each one is crafted with a silky blend of chocolate and cream infused with flavor called ganache (“guh-nahsh”). Royal Palm Chocolates offers confections sure to delight the chocolate lover in all of us. From chocolate enrobed pretzels and marshmallows to a variety of milk and dark chocolate candy bars and bark, each is handcrafted and irresistibly delicious! Seasonal items include roasted hazelnuts, almonds, and pecans, plus ginger and orange peel drenched with luscious chocolate.
With twenty-three mouth-watering and decadent flavors to choose from, there has been great demand for Philip’s artisan Belgian chocolates. His selections include traditional flavors like raspberry, strawberry, and cherry as well as the more exotic passion-fruit and cayenne pepper. All are made with fresh ingredients and no added preservatives. Each tempting flavor is presented with impressive elegance and looks almost too good to eat. But indulge yourself!
Your Belgian – By Way of Naples – Confections
You have been graced this month with extraordinary treats. Your shipment includes a gift box of 36 chocolates, including one of each of 23 flavors. Look for the “flavor map” in your box. Each and every one of the chocolates will have a name underneath. Look for:
70% Dark
Apricot
Banana
Cayenne
Cherry
Coconut Pineapple
Dark Ganache
Grand Marnier
Green Tea
Hazelnut
Honey Cinnamon
Java
Key Lime
Lavender Lime
Malibu Rum
Mojito
Passion Fruit
Pistachio
Plum Cognac
Pomango (Pomegranate-Mango)
Port Wine
Raspberry
Strawberry
With upscale resorts, country clubs and specialty shops serving these fine chocolates, Philip keeps focused and busy on perfecting the high gourmet standards he sets for himself. His talent and expertise in the chocolate world is a hidden treasure in Naples being quickly discovered by many. Who says change isn’t sweet?
Once again we have the distinct pleasure of featuring one of the best chocolatiers in the world! His distinctive chocolate creations are as extraordinary as his story. And we’ll wager Gourmet Chocolate of the Month Club members will agree we need more chocolatiers in the world a heck of a lot more than we need more lawyers!
How to Store Your Belgian Treats
Belgian chocolate is considered to be the gourmet standard by which all other chocolate confections are measured. Even the Swiss, known for their own high quality chocolate, imported the basic recipe from Belgian chocolatiers. Each of these tasty treats is made with fresh ingredients and no preservatives. This means they may have a relatively short shelf life—about six weeks. So you have approximately four weeks from the time they arrive to eat them. That is your mission, should you choose to accept it. And how many chocolate lovers aren’t up to the task? If, however, you plan to keep them over a month, store your chocolates in a cool, dry, dark area—away from odors since chocolate tends to absorb them. They can be stored unrefrigerated for up to three weeks as long as they are in a cool, dry area. Somehow, though, we have a feeling that storage is not going to be an issue for most club members. That's why they call us "chocoholics," right? Savor each and every one of them in your own time.
