The Highland Chocolatier

So courtesy of the crack of dawn ferry and BST we had lots of time to do our drive down to Glasgow, so the OH rather uncharacteristically suggested that rather than go straight down the A9  we followed the Perth Tourist Route instead. I was quite happy to do that, I feel I am more than sufficiently acquainted with every inch of the A9 already, and I hate a thing near Perth called the Inveralmond roundabout, so avoiding that was a bonus.

 

We hadn't got very far along this diversion when the OH said something about signs to the Highland Chocolatier, in terms which suggested he had not previously been aware of them. Now Perthshire in general sports a plethora of brown 'tourist attraction' signs, which is why almost every time we drive through it I say brightly 'We really should spend a week here you know and explore some of these things'. Obviously I'm not all that bothered about some of them - Laggan Wolftrax being top of that list for me - but others, like the Highland Chocolatier sounded much more tempting.

 

'Shall we go and have a look?' he enquired. So we did.

 

They weren't doing tours of their production area, but there's a café and a gift shop and a chocolate shop, all in a  pretty little village, and we managed to while away a very happy hour. Obviously we went to the café, which has a pretty courtyard garden

 

 

and is quite nice inside too - I suspect it will look wonderful when all decorated up for Christmas

 

we indulged ourselves ....

 

this is their selection of award winning truffles ...

 

clockwise from top, mango and passion fruit, caramel and liquorice, raspberry and black pepper and dark chocolate.

 

 

As far as it goes I didn't like the dark chocolate one, but I knew I wouldn't because I am a pleb when it comes to chocolate and this was what is generally referred to as  'good quality chocolate with a high cocoa solid content' which for me translates as far too bitter for consumption by a normal human being. Given what a fan I am of John Bull Liquorice fudge I thought I would enjoy the caramel and liquorice one, but I didn't really. I'm a big fan too of raspberries, but I don't generally shake black pepper over them when I eat them, and having tried the raspberry and black pepper truffle that seems to be a good choice. The only one I would contemplate actually buying, were I to win a little something on the lottery, is the mango and passion fruit one and I have to say that that was delicious. 

 

I truly envied them this wonderful chest with the travel/advertising material  on it; I suspect it is a modern copy of something older but I'd still try to find somewhere in my house for it if someone gave it to me!

 

And in their garden I was quite taken with this little feller too.

 

More info on their website, which is here