Sweet treats await at Choco le'a at Manoa Square

Nadine Kam photos
Choco le'a milk chocolate-covered macadamia nuts made with a blend of Belgian, Swiss and Hawaiian Waialua Estate chocolate, plus chocolate-dipped strawberries and raspberries.

Choco le’a celebrated the grand opening of its first Manoa boutique with an open house and tasting of its artisan chocolates on Nov. 22nd at Manoa Square, 2909 Lowrey AVe.

Patrons filed through all day for a sample of some of their varied, handmade chocolate creations—made with a blend of fine European and Hawaiian chocolate—that whet the appetite for more!

The counter is stocked with such truffle creations as fresh mochi on ganache, caramel with Alae’a Hawaiian sea salt, and Guinness beer. There is also an assortment of chocolate-covered Oreos including mint, peanut butter, and peppermint flavors, and other treats such as fresh dipped strawberries.

Co-owners Erin Uehara and her uncle, chocolatier Colins Kawai.

With the opening perfectly timed for the the start of the holiday gift-giving season, some of the more festive options include specialty Dom Perignon champagne and Canadian ice wine truffles.

In addition, they launched their European-style sipping chocolate that was served with a handful of potato chips. Delicious, but so rich a little goes a long way.

The kama’aina company started with experimentation by Colins Kawai, marketing director for the University of Hawaii Press, who merely wanted to try to wow friends and family by making truffles as a dinner dessert. People liked it, so he tried new flavors, and before long, dinner guests were requesting to buy them.

Soon he was offering his signature chocolate truffle bar for catered corporate events, parties and weddings, and Kawai now co-owns the business with wife Joan, niece Erin Uehara and her husband Chris.

With a mission of “Bringing peace to our world, one chocolate at a time,” a portion of every sale is donated to charitable organizations.
————
Choco le’a is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Fridays, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays. Call (808) 371-2234, visit www.chocolea.com or follow @chocoleahawaii on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

Choco le’a makes holiday gift-giving easier with your custom picks of such delectables as milk, white or dark chocolate-covered macadamia nuts, chocolate-dipped fruit including mango, pictured, mochi-centered truffles and sea salt caramel truffles.

The chocolates appear like jewels, ready to be custom packed into gift boxes.

Closer look at the chocolate-dipped fruit.

A tempting array of chocolates awaits at the Chocole’a counter.

The source: the cacao pod.

Better than cocoa

Nadine Kam photos
There's a reason the Aztecs considered chocolate to be a gift from the gods. Ahh!

Blue Hawaii Lifestyle makes good use of Twitter whenever the company is testing new products and needs to mobilize a focus group to say "yay" or "nay."

The latest group came together Dec. 3 at the downtown cafe, which didn't have to pull any arms to lure people in for a tasting of a new chocolate drink.

Waialua Estate Coffee & Chocolate's sales and marketing manager Derek Lanter was there to mix the drinks, made with Waialua Estate 70 percent dark chocolate, with cinnamon, Samoan vanilla, Hawaiian chili pepper. The result is a rich, smooth, foamy drink better than any cocoa I've ever tasted.

Cacao pods on display at Blue Hawaii Lifestyle Cafe's downtown outpost, at 1111 Bishop St. (underground, near Hawaiian Island Stamp & Coin).

BHL owner Michael Zhang had to wait, like everyone else, for a sip. He said he's sure the drink will eventually make it on to the holiday menu, but the only question is how to speed the process when it can get busy at the cafe. Lanter's already thinking ahead to Valentine's Day possibilities.

Another drink about to land on the menu is one of strawberry and mango, with the green of spirulina. It was created by BHL vp Matthew Olson, and in spite of the green, tastes of the fruit. It's one way to get the benefits of the blue-green algae (it's full of protein, vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids), without any of the ick factor associated with spirulina. Try it if you have the chance!

Derek Lanter mixes a new drink for Blue Hawaii Lifestyle, made with Waialua Estates dark chocolate.

Cinnamon, Hawaii chili pepper and Samoan vanilla is built into these chocolate bars, which unfortunately, are not available for retail, yet. Lanter may make it available in some form, perhaps with a separate spice packet, for those who want to recreate the drink at home.

 

Lanter pours the drink, a slow four at a time, and among those waiting for a sip was BHL owner Michael Zhang, a former nuclear physicist, who thought he might do more good for the planet by promoting an eco-conscious health and wellness lifestyle. He's pictured below with his children.