Get high on chocolates!

As a kid you may not have enjoyed chocolates which contained alcohol, and that could well be because you  had yet to develop a taste for them. But today, having a liquor-filled chocolate may just be your favourite pastime.

Liquor chocolates have been immensely popular and while earlier they were normally confined to rum-filled nuggets they now carry whisky, vodka and even wine as their fillings!

These alcohol filled choco bites have a very distinct taste to them.  Manufactured in various shapes and sizes, the look of these chocolates can vary. Some are in the shape of a candy which is an inch-long bean-shaped dark chocolate shell filled with whisky or brandy.

Although not very strong the candies are immensely satisfying. The chocolate is silky, smooth and cool while the inside is ever so warming.

Chef Erri Santosh from Radisson Blu, Noida, says that the secret of making a good chocolate is to have patience. “You need a lot of patience and skills to make these chocolates. All the pieces should look identical and for that a chef has to work all alone on one table. You just cannot let any ingredient get mixed with another. It ruins the recipe. Another thing which is very important is passion. Without passion chocolate making is not complete.”

According to Santosh, whisky, rum balls, bailey chocolates, khalua - coffee flavoured chocolates are amongst the most selling ones.

Although these chocolates tastes heavenly, they are high maintenence - only until you
bite into them. They have a maximum of two weeks of shelf life and ideally stored in refrigerated conditions.

Another homemade chocolate maker residing in Rohini, Sangeeta Ahuja, seconds Santosh when it comes preparation.  “The preparation is really tough and time-consuming also. You need more than half an hour to make just five pieces of liquor chocolates. We provide bottle-shaped, bean shaped and square shaped ones and use vodka, rum, wine and whisky for the filling.”

Sangeeta is the busiest with liquor chocolates around Diwali and Christmas. The range starts from Rs 1000/kg and goes upto 3000/kg. The packed ones, cost anywhere between Rs 800 - 1000 per pack.