The House Of Grauer is catering to the cigar smokers among us this holiday season by offering The Aficionados Collection of chocolates specially designed just for them. Depending on the assortment you choose, flavors include delicacies like Italian roasted hazelnut, milk chocolate with French organic bee pollen, and Sri Lankan cinnamon. Leaves, sticks, and rings of swiss chocolate are boxed up beautifully and formulated expressly to enhance the cigar smoking ritual and bring new levels of flavor and sensation to the experience. Prices range from $65 for 14 pieces to $275 for the 104 piece Magnum Mixed Collection.

Via ForbesLife

The one problem with Halloween is that you often end up eating a lot of mediocre candy. Let's get that taste out of your mouth with some really great chocolate. Amano is a new brand of artisan chocolate. Owner Art Pollard makes chocolate in his factory in Salt Lake City. Utah might seem like an odd place for a chocolate factory until you consider the fact that many Swiss chocolate makers do their work at similar high elevations. Pollard is on a mission to make the best chocolate possible and he and other chocolate start-ups have launched their own network, the Craft Chocolate Makers of America, a group of "bean to bar" producers.

What exactly goes on in the journey from bean to bar? It's actually a complex process. Beans are harvested, dried and then shipped to the chocolate maker. Like fine wine, which is the perfect marriage between nature and craft, excellent chocolate is made by a combination of choosing the right beans and processing them correctly. There are many decisions to be made, some of which Art Pollard has delineated on the Amano blog. Cocoa nibs that are carefully roasted, winnowed, refined and conched reach their full flavor potential. The goal is to bring out the "true essence" of each bean. I think you will agree they have succeeded. In fact, the Los Angeles Luxury Chocolate Salon Tasting Panel Awards recently voted Amano the best dark chocolate.

We are giving away the Amano Variety Pack which offers three bars of Ocumare, three Madagacar, three Cuyagua
and three Jembrana. The Jembrana is a new bar. Pollard tells me that the beans used to make the chocolate came from the tropical island of Bali and that Amano is the first company to release a single origin bar who's beans exclusively come from the island of Bali. They just finished molding this new chocolate bar last week and so the winner will be one of the first in the country to taste this new chocolate from a new origin.

It would of course make a lovely gift but I'm pretty sure once you take a bite you might be keeping this all to yourself as a little antidote to pre-holiday stress. To win, leave a comment about your love of chocolate.

Some other important details:

* To enter, leave a confirmed comment below.
* The comment must be left and confirmed before Friday, November 7, 2008 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.
* You may only enter once.
* One winner will be selected in a random drawing.
* One winner will receive the Amano 10-bar variety pack, valued at $62.95.
* Open to legal residents of the 50 United States including the District of Columbia who are 18 and older.

See complete contest rules here.

This contest is closed. Thank you for your participation.

The blog Jewelry Insider hit upon a great item that combines jewels and chocolate -- perfection! A Swiss chocolate company, Cocoa Gourmet, has created what its calls its "Royal Collection," which features 12 chocolates made with safe-to-eat gold or silver, or sprinkled with diamonds. Priced at $1,250, the collection has four 22-carat gold chocolates, four pure silver chocolates and four sweet diamond pieces. There's also a $520 Gemstone Collection. Lovely, and an unusual gift idea, but I'm not convinced that ingesting metal is such a hot idea, though I guess if you have dental work you're ingesting it all the time ... Order here, if you're braver than I. Free worldwide shipping!

Deliciousness comes to Seattle on July 13th in the form of the Seattle Luxury Chocolate Salon. The show takes place at the Bell Harbor International Conference Center, 2211 Alaskan Way, Pier 66 from 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. The show will include a variety of chocolatiers and confectioners include Amano Artisan Chocolate, Kekau Chocolatier, Cocoa Chai Chocolates, Petit Noirs, Guittard Chocolate, Theo Chocolate,Alma Chocolate, Lula's Chocolates, Dilettante Chocolates, Posh Chocolat and more. The event will also include chocolate demos by local talent. The salon will also hold the Luxury Chocolate Salon Awards and members of the tasting panel include Seattle food and city journalists Molly Wizenberg (Orangette, Bon Appetit), Eric Scigliano (Seattle Metropolitan Magazine), Viv (Seattle Bon Vivant), Ritzy Ryciak (Conscious Choice Magazine) and Dana Cree (TastingMenu.com, Pastry Chef - Veil Restaurant). Tickets are $20 for adults at the door or $17.50 in advance.

Years ago I used to have a nasty habit of chewing on my pens and pencils, and although I've since broken that habit I know I can expect a serious relapse if I ever own a set of these chocolate pencils by Nendo. The pencils come in a set that includes a variety of different cocoa blends so you'll have the perfect flavor (and color) to top whatever it is you're garnishing, plus a pencil sharpener for easy and perfectly shaped shavings every time. Sounds like a perfect gift for the chef or hostess that already seems to have everything!

The Bespoke Chocolates service from Sir Hans Sloane is about so much more than just customizing a box of chocolates by ordering how many you want each of different available flavors -- they actually mix and make personalized chocolates just for you. As in no two patrons have the same formula.

My mouth is watering already.

The process starts with a series of interviews, followed by a series of tastings, and finally ending in the delivery of 60 chocolates made by master chocolatier Bill McCarrick in a handmade rosewood-and-maple inlaid box. Also included is a copy of the chocolate tasting consultations and a backup box of an additional 60 chocolates. YUM. $2400.

Red wine and chocolates, you can't get a much more perfect pairing for romance than that. The inspiration for the NOKA-RIEDEL Experience came from 10th generation glass maker George Riedel and his exquisite glassware, and it includes one of two combinations of chocolate and glasses. There's the "2-piece Vintages with 2 Cabernet Glasses" or the "4-piece Truffles with 2 Champagne Glasses."

Apparently when George Riedel visited the NOKA Chocolates boutique in Dallas for a tasting he said that combining the chocolates with champagne in a RIEDEL varietal-specific glass resulted in an experience that was "beyond words." $96-$104

Glenmorangie whisky have a new treat this Valentine season. The whisky maker has teamed up with Paul A Young Fine Chocolates, to create whisky truffles made from the Trinitario cocoa bean and the Glenmorangie Quarter Century. The truffles are handmade and hand painted with gold and gold leaf. The truffles are meant to be a perfect pairing for the Glenmorangie Quarter Century whisky. A box of eight sells for £40.

Two major chocolate companies are offering luxury contests for Valentine's Day:

Dove Chocolate and Kwiat Diamonds have teamed up for the My Dove "Expressions of Love" Contest. Entrants have 51 characters or less to express their love on the My Dove Chocolate website. The most romantic message will win the writer a 5.58 carat diamond and platinum necklace from Kwiat Diamonds and a gift box filled with their winning message printed on the personalized My Dove foils to commemorate the special message.

To win Godiva's contest you have to either buy a box of Godiva chocolates or send away for a free game piece. Their contest has one grand prize which is a trip to New York City for two, staying two nights in a Godiva chocolate-themed suite, a private chocolate tasting, spa services and a private dinner for two. 100 first prize winners will get a Special Collectors Gift Box of Godiva chocolates and products.

Instead of providing your beloved with a box of chocolates on Valentine's Day you can provide them with a whole taste experience and an education in understanding chocolate. The Sensory Collection includes 28 dark, 6 milk and 6 white single origin chocolate bars from Ecuador, Papua New Guinea, Trinidad, Java, Ghana, Madagascar, Venezuela, Grenada, Bolivia, Tanzania, Peru, Costa Rica & Santo Domingo, 42 aroma essences including tobacco, charcoal and asparagus, a chocolate guide book, a flavor wheel, a notebook and a blindfold to help you concentrate on the flavors. It sells for $375.

Need a fabulous Valentine candy for the vegan in your life? CocoaVino makes hazelnut and sea salt bonbons that are made from a dark chocolate ganache blended with extra virgin olive oil, roasted hazelnut and flavored with with hazelnut liqueur and Mediterranean sea salt. CocoaVino makes an entire line of artisanal chocolates and confections including drunken figs, a decadent treat that is made of an organic fig, stuffed with chocolate and port-style wine and dipped in dark chocolate.All the chocolate they use is both organic and fair trade certified. A box of 12 olive oil bonbons sells for $35.

The problem with a gingerbread house is that gingerbread is not always a fan favorite. Chocolate on the other hand, is always a crowd pleaser. This chocolate toy shop is completely edible including the snow-covered roof and candy decorations. The confection sells for $74.95.

We've mentioned the curious goods offered by Douglas Little before, his latest venture takes him into the world of the edible but he has not left his love of skulls behind. He has worked with confectioner valerie gordon to create the mori ex cacao (death by chocolate) collection. The delicately delicious skulls are done in bittersweet chocolate and filled with either scorched caramel, bitter brandied cherry or chili and chocolate and then painted with colored cocoa butter. A set of three, one of each flavor, sells for $90.

One great reason to visit the Michel Cluizel chocolate shop in New York City is the fact that it is a fine chocolate store with a liquor license. This means that not only do they serve hot chocolate and cold chocolate drinks and chocolate desserts but you can also get liquor-filled bonbons and pairings of wine and spirits with your chocolates. Their bonbons made with Calvados, Cognac, Cointreau, Grand-Mariner, Kirsch, Rum, Whiskey and Framboise sell for $85 per pound. The bonbons are available only through the store but you can order other items online such as the tasting boxes. The sampler box of 70 disks shown here spans the range of cocoa percentages from 33% milk chocolate to 99% dark chocolate so you can experiment with finding your perfect number. The box sells for $40.

Nothing says fall like warm cake and a crate full of apples, and this is both treats wrapped into one. This Apple Crate Cake, created especially for Dean & Deluca, features carefully crafted marzipan apples nestled into a bed of white chocolate "straw," all sitting in a "crate" of chocolate cake. And it's not only decorate but every bit is edible, although it must be hard to take the first slice and ruin the illusion! Perfect for fall entertaining, the cake measures 6"x5.5" and usually ships within 48 hours, $185.