By Jochebed Kastaneer, MSc.
On Friday 14th of December, the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to the Kingdom of the Netherlands in collaboration with Diplomat Magazine and Diplomatic Card, hosted an exclusive Venezuelan Chocolate and Rum tasting.
Via chocolate and rum, invitees experienced a guided sensory journey through the most beautiful regions of Venezuela, while physically remaining at the luxurious Crowne Plaza Hotel in the Hague.
Awaiting the arrival H.E. Ms. Haifa Aissami Madah, Ambassador of Venezuela Permanent Mission to the International Organisations in The Hague, Mr. Wilhen Diaz Lara, Chargé d´Affaires a.i., and his colleagues personally and warmly welcomed all guest; ratifying that the best of Venezuela is the warm and friendly Venezuelan.
Ambassadors, Diplomats, entrepreneurs, economics advisers and friends were among the guests of honour who attended the evening.
Viewing the conference style setup of the meeting room, one could already sense that a personal transformation to a higher level was about to take place. But the transformation and its altitude were nothing you could have imagined or think of, prior to attending the event.
You kind of know that by accepting the invitation to a diplomatic chocolate and rum tasting, there is a high probability that you are happily and voluntarily going to change your vacation destination to the country the chocolate and rum is coming from.
But at the Venezuelan tasting this was just a minor side effect; reached within 5 minutes of arrival, by tasting the hors d’oeuvre of exquisite Venezuelan dark chocolate mousse, topped with raspberry. The unfolding of the layers and layers of flavour of the cacao pleasantly elevated our palate to a new level; we immediately knew what we didn’t know we didn’t know.
We were left without words, unable to answer the simple question: how does it taste? Heaven?! Glowing skins, sparkling eyes and smiling faces revealing that the word ‘heaven’ might be an understatement.
After we hovered to our seats, the renowned Ms. Annemarie van Leggelo, CEO of the prestigious Etiquette Bureau presented the program. She explained that we were embarking on a fun and exciting Masterclass and were about to become a true sommelier du chocolat!
Mr. Wilhen Diaz Lara clarified that the masterclass was designed to make us become acquainted with the worldwide recognized Venezuelan cacao. In a way that we could distinguish the very high quality, colour, taste and smell of the Venezuelan cacao.
The good news is that we don’t have to travel to Venezuela to enjoy Venezuelan chocolate: the premium Venezuelan chocolate is available in the EU. And it’s savoured best in combination with the Venezuelan rum.
Ms. Mariana de La Rosa, chocolate and cacao expert and founder of Puro Origen, was our honourable Masterclass professor, in charge of expanding our senses to see, hear, feel, smell and taste the Venezuelan cacao.
Ms. de La Rosa kicked-off the masterclass with a brief cacao lesson, guiding us through the different cacaos of Venezuela, and allowing us to understand the difference that each region has to offer through the discovery of each flavour. Cacao for Venezuela stands for: heritage, history, genetics, terroir, tradition, culture and sense of place.
Venezuelan cacao is very exclusive: only Cacao Premium (15.300T/year) is produced in Venezuela, from which half of the production is consumed in Venezuela. As bugs are elemental for the pollination of the cacao, Venezuelan cacao is free of pesticides.
The unique Venezuelan cacao ‘Porcelana’ is considered the Holy grail of Cacao, being one of the rarest and most expensive of all cacao beans in the world.
To become a true chocolate sommelier, Ms. De La Rosa taught us how to master a 5 steps process of tasting fine chocolate:
- See the chocolate; especially super premium chocolate looks a bit shiny;
- Hear the chocolate by breaking it. The distinctive sound of the ‘snap’ when breaking the chocolate reveals information about the cacao to a true connoisseur;
- Feel the chocolate;
- Smell the aroma of the chocolate;
- Taste the chocolate.
It then became a sacred experience to taste four of the premium Venezuelan chocolate separately; the ‘Rio Caribe’, ‘Carenero (70% cacao)’, ‘San Joaquim’ and ‘Sur del Lago (70% cacao)’; each of them an intense and unforgettable experience on its own. One could clearly understand why the indigenous ancestors of Venezuela worshiped cacao.Thankfully Ms de La Rosa gave us the words of Darin Sukha to verbalize the experience: “A good piece of chocolate is like a good piece of music. It contains something memorable that stays on your mind for the entire day”.
For the last part of the Masterclass Ms. de La Rosa appropriately introduced us to the Venezuelan Diplomático rum. Venezuelan rum is recognised as the finest rums in the world and Diplomático is a unique rum blending with unmistakable character and irresistible and subtle aromas. Can you picture combining this exquisite rum with the finest chocolate? It’s a magical ride exceeding all your expectations!
We tasted the following combinations of rum and chocolate:
- Diplomático rum Mantuano (8 year- old blend) paired with Carenero chocolate (61% cacao);
- Diplomático rum Planas (6-year-old blend) paired with Carenero superior white chocolate (34% cacao);
- Diplomático rum Reserva Exclusiva (12-year-old blend) paired with Carenero superior chocolate (70% cacao).
Once you experience this perfection, you can’t go back. Your universe is now expanded for ever with the ‘two ambassadors of Venezuela: rum and chocolate’ as the Representant Permanent Ms. Haifa Aissami Madah, remarked in her closing address. Luckily, we reached this higher level of consciousness right before the holidays and are able to savour these beautiful treasures of Venezuela right here in the Netherlands.
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Photography by Naldo Peverelli, group of images is a courtesy of Sarai Aser.
