FABELLE - PREMIUM CHOCOLATES FROM ITC

 Fabelle - Premium Chocolates

ITC grand Chola - Guindy, Chennai

Food blogging Charlies and the Verucas got their golden ticket to experience and taste the ITC's grand entry into the market of Chocolates. After successfully launching in Bengaluru and Kolkotta, the next destination to get lucky was Chennai. I was thrilled to bits but didn't get my hopes too high since it was Indian and most of my attempts have been disappointing to say the least. How they shattered it all and made me cry "wow" in joy unfolds

As you walk into this landmark structure you really feel the grandeur and panache and a be-fitting jewel to this crown Fabelle - first luxury boutique in India is on your left (Mind voice - good things start with sweet) . If you have watched "Charlie and the chocolate factory", "Chocolat" - the child like glee is what you wear and the sinful indulgence is what your mind craves. You are desperate to get your first aroma, the myriad textures and the perfect flavors to hit your tongue. We mostly would have tried the Lindts, Hersheys, Ghirardelli, Ferro-rocher, Guylian, Toblerone brought down from abroad and you will already know the difference from the Cadburys (India), chocolates of ooty or the compound "Morde, Godiva - home made chocolatiers" mostly. If you don't - they contain more of vegetable oils and other fats than chocolate/cocoa. Any chocolate which has 70% and above cocoa in it is premium.

The evening started with a tea/coffee snack session and quick introductions as people were still coming as they were delayed by some convoy blocking traffic around city

Vineeth Viswambharan - The Managing head of the specialty foods division gave a short and crisp presentation of their new addition to ever growing presence in the retail market. When you visualize this you feel the brilliance and the mastery of this 4000 year old art and its only fair that ITC has taken not less than 10 years to explore, understand, research, develop and deliver this to us
All those individuals involved be it the PR/chefs/marcomm seemed so passionate about the brand and its offerings. There was never a dull moment in all those 3 odd hours we spent there. This puts India up there alongside Swiss, Belgium and Germany from where I mostly had my chocolates
Trivia: Did you know that chocolates date back to as old as 1900 BC of  the aztecs and the Mayans?

We were split into two batches and were taken on a trip of Choclatopia. First group tried the lounge and the other were to try the dream collection and vice-versa

Chef Harpawan's : His passion (would love to call him Mr. Willy Wonka), his words are still ringing in my ears as he kept re-iterating that "the proof of the pudding is in the taste" and how true as it become meaningful when you have a first bite and connect with whats being said.Spot on!
His vast patisserie experience alongside ever smiling Chef Stefan's made it even more tasteful. Its a global team work

5 ELEMENTS pralines - 400/- and 10 for 750/-
26 ingredients sourced from 7 countries that go into making this masterpiece collection
EARTH: Granules of muddy chocolate pod seals a smooth dark mousse encrusted. The crumbling of the stones and muddy after chew is the key sensation.

AIR: Aerated mousse covered by a dark chocolate shell. Mousse is so creamy and light that it gives you the sense of air and is encapsulated by the dark chocolate shell. They didn't just go about trapping smoke just to make it to true to the element

WATER: A dark chocolate shell which seals acacia nectar (honey which doesn't freeze) and a tinge of french sea salt makes you salivate giving you feel of mouth filled with water. Brilliant conceptualization

WOOD: Chocolate, cinnamon and coffee in their mousse was a culmination of aroma, flavor and sensation. Even woody allen would agree!

FIRE: Sweet candied mango is what you taste first and then Ancho chilli kicks in. You feel the heat only when it reaches your throat.  A must have from their collection 

PS: pralines are to be popped in whole and enjoy and not in bites

GANACHE: 20 cubes for 675/-
This isn't the one commonly used as glaze, icing, sauce, or filling for pastries made from chocolate and cream. Fine Ghanian and Ivory Coast chocolate and fresh cream are conched for 12 hours (seriously!!!!) into rectangles and sprinkled with cocoa. A melt in the mouth experience (I just popped in one now as I write from the gift pack I got - couldn't resist the temptation)
Conching - Is the process of continuously for hours rubbing/polishing of the intricate components of cocoa - the crystals and the butter together to bring that sheen you see of the chocolate.When air is trapped and the heat gives it all the more flavor and texture

AS YOU LIKE IT (Chef's recco) OR personalized chocolate cups  at 100/- per piece  6 for 500/- and 12 for 1000/-
You can choose from Triple chocolate, Machiato, sweet n salt, minty dark and creme of caramel. If you do not fancy their offering or if you want to get creative with your choices or wish to have your favorite combos. Choose a cup, the fillings and toppings - you can choose from a variety of tid-bits (almond slivers, cocoa nibs, french sea salt crystals, arabica coffee etc) and fillings  (caramel, white chocolate, dark chocolate to name a few). The options to keep increasing and expanding soon. The best part is you can sit back and enjoy the making on live-tv (request for it) and ogle at the beauty being crafted to be devoured by the beast. You can take suggestions if you are indecisive or want to know what pairs best
PS: in between all your indulgences, its good to have a soda or bread as taste breaker/cleanse your taste buds palate

FABELLE SIGNATURES aka THEATRICAL DELIGHTS - 525 - 575/-
Chocolate flower: Mousse of single origin Saint Domingue 70% dark chocolate enriched with Turkish pistachio cream, balanced with raspberry confit, in a dramatic setting of a chocolate flower, set to unfold at your table.
When the Chef Deepti picks and places each of the fruit pieces with the tweezers so skilfully and patiently with perfect hand coordination is when you assure yourself that this art needs to be perfected and its not an easy task. Each of their creations requires immense concentration and hand eye coordination to position things right

E N T R E M E T S 450/-
Premium almond and coriander praline tartine: Balanced notes of 33% Ghana milk chocolate paired with Mandarin orange, brittle coriander almond praline is a welcome addition. The orange and coriander culminate well as you work it around your mouth one should personally indulge and cherish. The cocoa-almond tartine underneath forms a fine base.
Ghana milk chocolate mousse with caramel and banana créme: 33% milk chocolate, notes of toffee, vanilla and coconut, complementing layers of caramel and luscious banana créme on thin hazelnut crisps. you can instantly identify the flavors as banana and coconut can stand out in anything
Black forest revisited: Sour cherry confit accentuating the vibrant berry notes of 64% dark chocolate, balanced with elegant Madagascar vanilla bean créme is very good
Éclair Venezuela 375/-: Éclair of single origin 72% Venezuelan chocolate, augmented with rich caramel notes of dulcey cream and garnished with gold pepin  wasn't my type

BEVERAGES 375/-
Smores chocolate milk - An American classic, this is pure Ghana milk chocolate
with flame charred marshmallows and sinful choco-chip was for the ones with sweet tooth and who love mashmallows
Milk cocoa - Pistachio almond torrone nougat chunks, in a rich reassuring hot chocolate. Really thick hot chocolate with the melting gooey nougat is a must try (In spite of being a cold drink fan. I loved this)

The purchased packs are neatly packed. A hand-crafted box to match the hand crafted chocolates is an artful combination with an ice gel pack placed in a dark cover lined with styrofoam to protect the quality/temperature for a few hours. Chocolate flavor may change with temperature fluctuations and therefore this setup until it reaches the refrigerator of the end consumer. A lot of care and thought has gone into this as ITC owns up the complete life-cycle from production at a world class manufacturing unit at hoskote near bengaluru to the chocolate boutique (24 hours) - I was impressed

After 3 odd hours, you are in a tizzy with a chocolate high. Who needs alcohol after that on a Saturday night? Made a few suggestions about making it kid friendly with cartoon moulds, sugar free versions for diabetics and weight-watchers and of course the liqueur based creations for the after party sweet cravings. They already seem to be in tandem with our thoughts and will be releasing them in a paced manner. There is a lot more being planned in terms of enriching the experience of the customers like chocolate making classes, theatricals etc.

If you are a Chocolate aficionado, this is your must try place. Our very own Indian premium brand of Chocolates - Fabelle-ous !

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