Viva Las Vegas!

Here's a good reason to go to Las Vegas. (As if the sun, great restaurants and Star Trek Experience weren't enough.)

Apparently this very funky restaurant Vintner Grill (www.vglasvegas.com) offers the only chocolate truffle flight in the country, featuring truffles by Vosges. Check out the menu:

• Olio d’Oliva (olive oil + white chocolate) with potato chips
• Dulce de Leche (Argentinean caramel + cashew + milk chocolate) on a piece of smoked bacon
• Naga (sweet Indian curry + coconut + milk chocolate) and corn nuts
• Absinthe (Chinese star anise + fennel + pastis + dark chocolate) aside Indian fennel seeds.
• Black Pearl (Japanese wasabi + ginger + black sesame seeds + dark chocolate) atop wasabi peas
• The Rooster (taleggio cheese + organic walnuts + vanilla bean + bittersweet dark chocolate) amongst cocoa nibs
  

Now even though my tastes veer toward the more plebian, I have to say that these combos sound intriguing, particularly the Olio d'Oliva and The Rooster. The Dulce de Leche sounds really good, too, although I must admit that the bacon kind of scares me.

And now for a public service announcement from Vosges:

How to Eat a Truffle:

Firstly…read the story. This sets the stage. It allows you to paint the picture through your imagination to conjure up the expectations as to how the chocolate will taste and where you will transcend.

See…there should be a glossy shine to the truffle, this shows a good temper: a tight bond between the cocoa butter and the cacao mass.

Lick…the spice on the top of the truffle; we always like to do this on the spice truffles because it gives a hint of what is to come, a teaser…

Snap… quality chocolate should always be dry to the touch. If the chocolate is stored at idea conditions between 63-65 degrees Fahrenheit when you take a bite you should hear a crisp, snap breaking through the outside to reach the creamy ganache inside.

Taste…we always like to bit the truffle in 2 bites. In the first bite you are just getting to know the truffle and in the second, you delve deeper searching out the flavors and nuances, you become immersed into the experience of the chocolate, you mouth and the sensations. The taste should have a long, lingering, finish that is layered with its perfumed notes.