Fontainebleau Miami Beach Becomes First U.S. Hotel to Create Its Own Custom Chocolate
[caption id="attachment_7790" align="alignnone" width="618"] Executive Pastry Chef Brielle Fratellone at the Or Noir™ lab in France (Photo credit: Aeterno Praesenti Photography)[/caption] Is there ever a bad time for chocolate? We don’t think so, and thankfully, the
Executive Pastry Chef Brielle Fratellone at the Or Noir™ lab in France (Photo credit: Aeterno Praesenti Photography)
Is there ever a bad time for chocolate? We don’t think so, and thankfully, the culinary team at Fontainebleau Miami Beach {4441 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 305.674.4641} agrees.
After a special collaboration with the world-renowned French chocolate brand, Cacao Barry, the hotel’s Executive Pastry Chef, Brielle Fratellone, was able to visit the French chocolatier’s lab in France and customize a chocolate recipe just for Fontainebleau. The result was FONTAINEBLEAU SAPPHIRE NOIR™: a dark chocolate named for the careful effort and perfect crafting needed to create rare jewels, much like this recipe. And with it, Fontainebleau Miami Beach is now the only hotel in the United States to retail their own, customized chocolate recipe.
To create this dark chocolate, Fratellone tasted over 20 cocoa masses and chocolates from different countries, and played with lots of recipes until she achieved the perfect marriage of acidity, sweetness, and bitterness. In the end, Sapphire Noir uses cocoa beans from The Dominican Republic, Ecuador, and Mexico, and has an intense cocoa taste with hints of yellow fruit and woody notes. Available to guests throughout the resort, Sapphire Noir can be enjoyed as a chocolate bar, as signature pralines, or in a petit gateaux sold at Chez Bon Bon. Diners will also find it in select desserts on the menus at StripSteak by Michael Mina, Scarpetta by Scott Conant, and Hakkasan.
Chez Bon Bon’s Signature Gemstone Collection made with Sapphire Noir
Here are the specific ways guests can experience Fontainebleau’s new Sapphire Noir:
Chocolate and wine pairing experience at StripSteak by Michael Mina
Guests will have the opportunity to taste three wine varietals from different continents, each paired with Fontainebleau Sapphire Noir. In this tasting, guests will learn how each wine complements the dark chocolate. Classes take place every Monday and Wednesday, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., starting March 18, 2019. Reservations are required, and can be made by calling 305.674.4780. The pairing is priced at $25 per person, excluding tax and gratuity.
Fontainebleau Sapphire Noir 3 oz. Dark Chocolate Bar
Taste the complexity of Sapphire Noir in its purest form. This bar is priced at $10. It is available exclusively at Chez Bon Bon.
Dark Chocolate Bon Bons
Guests can enjoy Sapphire Noir paired with a variety of flavors, including the Signature Gemstone Collection—a collection of four Sapphire Noir pralines artistically created to look like jewels. The gemstone collection consists of the following flavors: classic Sapphire Noir, Mango Chili, Caramel Plantain, and Smoky Mezcal. These bon bons are priced at $2 each. They are available exclusively at Chez Bon Bon.
Fontainebleau Sapphire Noir Petit Gâteaux ‘Chocolate Textures’
This Sapphire Noir dessert combines chocolate, creamy and crunchy textures, cake, and a mousse with a coco nib glaze. This petit gâteaux is priced at $6. It is available exclusively at Chez Bon Bon.
Happy dining!
By Jennifer Agress | Miami Editor