Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival 2015

The Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival returns this month as over two dozen local purveyors offer up almost sixty delightfully tasty and creative cocoa concoctions that you can order between January 17th and February 14th.

Photo credit: stephbond on Flickr

Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival

Vancouver’s best chocolatiers, pastry shops, bakeries, gelato and ice cream shops draw on their talent and imagination to create the Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival.

Organizers sent out a list of trends and some of the most unique flavours you’ll find this year which include salted caramel, Earl Grey tea and coconut. Ready for something a bit more adventurous? Mink Chocolates will incorporate crickets; Soirette will stuff one of their drinks with hints of potato, sage and cinnamon; Koko Monk Chocolates’ “Mona Rosa” will have chocolate, anise and bay leaf; also look for apple cider and scotch, wasabi, and even more twists on hot chocolate.

Traditional, high quality favourites like Bel Cafe, Thierry, Thomas Haas and Chocolate Arts are back this year along with new participants such as 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters, Butter Baked Goods, Diva at the Met, Chez Christophe, and Glenburn Soda Fountain and Cafe.

Bella Gelateria and Schokolade Artisan Chocolate will serve up scoops of gelato and Lauren Mote will be shaking up chocolate cocktails incorporating Bittered Sling bitters at Uva Wine & Cocktail Bar.

Profits from festival sales will be donated to The PHS Community Services program for Downtown Eastside women’s employment and job skills training programs, as run by East Van Roasters.

Look for the new self-guided walking map online, which will be available after January 17th and read up on the Social Media Contest. Follow CityFood Magazine on Facebook and Twitter with the tag #HotChocolateFest for Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival updates.