Five States Consider Laws to Ban Chocolate

April 1, 2011, Washington, D.C. – FPress International – In a move that threatens to undermine the spreading trend to legalize marijuana, Idaho took the lead in drafting a bill to criminalize chocolate.  The law, if passed, would place severe limits on the sale or possession of any solid or drinking chocolate in the state.  Authors of the bill cite undisputed reports in scientific journals documenting that chocolate contains a multitude of psychoactive compounds.  Among these is anandamine, a molecule also found in marijuana, albeit in much larger quantities [1,2,3].

Mildred Blancofacia (Idaho), co-author of the bill explains:  “Tolerance of hedonism in this country is out of control.   It only makes sense at this time to enforce a prohibition on chocolate in any form so that our citizens can focus more on hard work and family values.”  Some chocolate sales would still be allowed for those who have a medical need or for external use such as in spa treatments:  “We’ve made a provision in the law to allow limited chocolate sales to people with certain conditions, but only at state-run cocoa dispensaries.”

Chocolate advocacy groups are already starting to organize against the new legislation.  Mary J. Lunavahker, co-chair of Mothers For Chocolate, MoFoCho, sees the bills as regressive:  “You know the government is going to just hand out over-roasted cocoa beans diluted with vegetable oil, artificial vanilla and extra sugar.  We want our single-origin artisan chocolate and we will fight for it!  Besides, this is just a way for the states to make money taxing chocolate at a time when prices for cacao beans are going through the roof.”  Opponents of the bill also point out that chocolate is widely thought to provide broad health benefits when eaten in moderation.  Lunavahker continues: “Any move to ban it would compromise the health of our nation.”

Plans are already underway to monitor chocolate sales at the federal level.  According to Chester Wilson of the DEA, “Distribution of these substances will be strictly controlled.”  So far no violence has resulted over the issue, but federal authorities are concerned about what will happen when supply is shut off.  Wilson explains: “Idaho is a big state and most people are not going to drive to Canada or Nevada to get their fill.  We fully expect smuggling routes and mobile chocolate labs to become active within weeks.”

Four other states are expected to quickly follow suit to institute chocolate bans including Kansas and Alabama.

References:

[1] Di Tomaso, E., M. Beltramo, and D. Piomelli (1996) Brain cannabinoids in chocolate.  Nature 382:677-678.

[2] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11363932

[3] Nature 396, 636 (17 December 1998) | doi:10.1038/25267

The Top 5 Incredible Disappearing Holiday Gifts for 2010

It seems like just yesterday when I published last year’s guide to Incredible disappearing holiday gifts. With this year’s new list of five gift ideas, I’ve once again sought to free us from the burden that inevitably comes with the holidays: more and more stuff in our lives.  Spending money is great if you have it, but there is a hidden cost in that we sometimes confuse having stuff with living.  While some stuff can enrich your life, most stuff will only entertain you or distract you temporarily and fails to add anything really meaningful to your existence.  When all is said and done,  you end with a lot of stuff to take care of – things to store, clean, repair, resell, lock up, protect and eventually, throw away.  So please, let’s spend money, but let’s spend at least some of it on more enriching gifts that leave no burden.

This year, I’ve added a new twist by raising the bar.  For a gift to make the list, it must meet three criteria:

1)      Create experiences. It’s all about replacing stuff with experiences.  The best experiences bring family and friends together and ideally, they enrich your life in some way – through learning, giving back, or creating new and deeper relationships.  Now that’s a memorable gift.

2)      Do good. The gift must do some good.  Sounds lofty, sure, but the emphasis is on some.

3)      Disappear.  The gift must disappear in some way.  It must not leave behind burden, excessive waste, or otherwise make a pest of itself.

Since the bar has been raised and I’ve got a self-imposed deadline, the list is a shorter this year, which should make your decision easier.

2010′s Top 5 Incredible Disappearing Gift Ideas

1) The Gift Card that Keeps on Giving – Kiva.org

This is my favorite microloan site, a place where you can grant interest-free loans to entrepreneurs in developing countries around the world and even those struggling to get ahead right here at home.  It’s simple to use – just view profiles of the entrepreneurs online and decide who you want to loan to.  I’ve done over 25 loans in the last few years and it takes no time at all.  As the loan is repaid, you can loan it out again.

The experience:  Unlike when you donate some money to charity in someone else’s name, with the Kiva gift card, the recipient will need to get involved.  They will experience the satisfaction of choosing the people to receive the loans.  Who knows, if they are turned on by the experience, they may make it a habit and kick in some of their own money in the future.  Either way, the experience will be perpetual if they decide to re-loan the money again and again.

The good:  when people in developing nations are provided the resources to help themselves, the whole world benefits by becoming  a better and safer place.  Kiva connects with people that have the energy and the motivation to create value for themselves.  This is an incredible opportunity to leverage what is a small amount of money for us into a life-sustaining experience for someone else’s family and community.

The disappearing act:  the only thing physical is the gift card and even that can be sent by email.  No paper, no waste.

2) Premium Chocolate Gifts from NewLeaf Chocolates

Five Piece Truffles in Red Eco Box from NewLeaf Chocolates

NewLeaf Chocolates is an online shop for premium and artisan chocolate.  They bring you the world’s best chocolates in a sustainable way – by shipping in their earth-friendly GreenPod, by featuring delicious organic and fair-trade chocolates, and by donating a portion of all sales to the environment.  Choose from a number of gift assortments of bars or truffles all wrapped in attractive, earth-friendly materials.  The Chocolate of the Month Club will keep premium chocolate bars coming throughout the year. [1]

The experience –   At the core of any culture is food and language.  Food brings people together.  Explore the world of premium chocolate and you will discover that this is a gourmet food worth sharing and talking about.  So make sure your gift should includes enough to share.  Or, you could host a chocolate tasting party where everyone compares different styles of chocolates – explore cocoa origin, textures, and flavors.  If you have a tasting party, why not also reach out and invite someone you wouldn’t normally socialize with.  Make new connections and enrich your life and theirs.

The good – NewLeaf Chocolates is a member of 1% for the Planet, so no matter what you buy, a portion of all sales is donated to environmental charity.  Organic chocolate is not only better for you, but  when cacao is grown without pesticides, the tropical habitat is kept clean and farmers are not exposed to dangerous chemicals.  That’s good for the earth and everyone.

The disappearing act – I don’t know about you, but chocolate doesn’t last too long in our house.

3) Plan a Volunteer vacation

I’m a big fan of living in a smaller house and spending the difference on traveling the world.  If you could see my house and my passports, you would understand.  So it’s no surprise that two of the gift ideas this year involve travel.  On your next trip, how about skipping the museum tour and tan-o-rama routine on the beach and instead pitch in and do some good.

My favorite trip from this page from my passport was eco-travels in Belize.

If you go this route  be sure the agenda is a good match to your physical abilities.  It’s also wise to ask about who else will be on the tour – singles, families, students, etc. to make sure you will feel part of the group.

The experience –   At first glance, an active volunteer vacation might not seem all too relaxing, but consider that the satisfaction you gain will bring a more lasting sense of peace that you can’t get from a blender drink by the pool.  Besides, you can always round the trip off with a few days of R&R.  Who knows, you might even make some new friends who share a passion for adventure and doing good.

The good – I think this one is self evident.  All you need to do is decide what good to do.

The disappearing act - You need only bring home some photos and the memories of a lifetime.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

For an overseas experience with a well-established organization, check out Cross Cultural Solutions. They accommodate people and groups of all ages and have opportunities in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe.  They follow established standards for social responsibility.

If you want to stay closer to home, then consider repairing hiking trails in America’s precious wilderness.  See American Hiking’s site.

Not sure if you want to stay on home turf or pull out your passport? Habitat for Humanity has both domestic and international programs where you and your family can build homes for those in need.

This forum provides even more ideas:  Frommers.

4) Plan an Eco Vacation

Whether you want to simply support the preservation of protected lands by wandering the wilderness or get hands-on with an eco-volunteer vacation, there are many options for those who really care about preserving the planet.

The experience – There is nothing better for the soul than getting outdoors and connecting with the earth.  Push your limits and learn about a new culture and environment.  Do it with your family and friends and you’ve created a shared memory.

The good – eco-tourism allows communities to extract sustainable value from the land without resorting to more destructive forms of development.  Just supporting national parks and sanctuaries at home and abroad helps prevent move destructive types of development and industrialization from taking over.

The disappearing act – see above.

Volunteer on an organic farm and learn about organic farming while helping support a good cause.  US and international including some very pleasant locations stateside such as Hawaii are listed on Wwoof.org.

For an overseas adventure that still puts you on the beach, help save the endangered sea turtles of Parismina, Costa Rica.  Volunteers patrol the beaches at night to deter poachers and help transfer eggs to the hatchery.  Get a real authentic taste of Costa Rica by staying with a local family for only $25 per night.  More information.

This article provides a few more ideas for those who wish to stay in the USA.

5) Gift an Organic / SUSTAINABLE Food  Cooking Class

Learning a new skill is a great way to enrich your life, a fun way to meet people, and something that you can easily enjoy every day.  Even if you can’t find a program that’s purely organic, there are numerous classes that emphasize organic or local ingredients or highlight sustainability.

The experience –   Learning something new is the perfect path to enriching your life and keeping sharp.  Sharing food, recipes and cooking tips with other foodies builds connections and perpetuates the art of gourmet food.

The good – cooking with organic and local ingredients is kind to the planet, reducing your carbon foot print and keeping potentially harmful chemicals away from our soil and water.

The disappearing act – what could be more satisfying than eating the fruits of your labors?

Offerings will vary regionally, but here are some suggestions worth looking into:

New York

At The Natural Gourmet Institute for Food and Health you can find gift certificates for public classes using organic foods.

The Culinary Institute of America, CIA doesn’t offer specific courses in organic cooking, but they often use local ingredients, including some from their own garden, and recreational classes on sustainable food.

Northern California

Gourmet Retreats at Casa Lana provides cooking classes in an idyllic Napa Valley setting and is also a B&B.  It appears that they use some fresh, local ingredients, but check with them first about emphasis on organic foods or sustainability.  With the small class sizes, you’ll be sure to get individualized attention.

CIA, St. Helena - see Culinary Institute of America, above.

Los Angeles

Spork Foods has purely recreational classes in vegan and natural cooking with an entertaining, fun vibe.

Texas

CIA, San Antonio- see Culinary Institute of America, above.

The Natural Epicurean Academy of Culinary Arts in Austin focuses on pure plant-based cooking including vegetarianism and veganism.

Overseas

Make it a vacation and head for Organic Tuscany where you can do a week-long program or one day class cooking with local ingredients under Italy’s Tuscan sun!

Happy Holidays

I hope this year’s list gave you some food for thought at least.  Feel free to make suggestions of your own.  I’ll be back on line after the holidays.  Until then, all the best.

Notes: [1] If you haven’t figured it out yet, this is our sister site.  If you like this blog, please support NewLeaf Chocolates.  [2] I didn’t eat any chocolate to write this blog, so I don’t care who paid for it.  Next time I will…stay tuned.

The Old and the New: Grenada Organic Chocolate 71% Dark Chocolate

Sometime in the mid 90′s I bought a few bottles of Hess Collection Cabernet Sauvignon for about $15 a bottle[1].  The wine blew me away with great fruit and unexpected complexity, especially at that price.  When I went back to the wine shop a couple of weeks later, the price had suddenly risen to $18, but I still bought a few more bottles of what was clearly a great find.  With a little help from The Wine Spectator, Hess Collection was eventually discovered by the masses.  Within a year prices rose into the mid $20′s and finally to where it is today at $48.

With wine, you never know if the next year will be as good (or as cheap), so you’re best off to grab more fast if you find something you love.  So it was with the Grenada Chocolate Company’s 71% Dark Chocolate bars.  At NewLeaf Chocolates, we grabbed a ton of this stuff last year in our overwhelming and well-founded enthusiasm for an excellent chocolate and a great value.  Well, there is still some of this”old vintage” left, so I thought I’d compare it to the “new vintage” which has recently arrived [2].

Besides harvesting a new crop of cacao, our friends in Grenada have been busy doing some enhancements to the packaging to make them more environmentally friendly.  The labels are now printed on recycled paper with vegetable-based inks [4].  Add that to the fact that what’s inside the wrapper is organic chocolate made in a factory powered by solar energy and you can see why we love these guys for their sustainability.  But does the chocolate still taste as good as the 2009 vintage?  When I tasted the 2009 bar in an earlier post, I enjoyed the deep espresso and marshmallow-like flavors so much that I made it my daily chocolate for a while.  This time, I’ll compare the two side by side to see what’s new.

Vintage 2009: Grenada 71% Organic Dark Chocolate still delivers coffee and marshmallow flavors we love

Vintage 2010 Grenada 71% Organic Dark Chocolate with new eco-friendly label

Tasting Grenada Chocolate Company’s 71% Dark Chocolate

Since I’ve reviewed the 2009 bar before, I’m going to approach this a little differently than usual and just call out the differences between the two.

WHAT:  Grenada Chocolate Company – Organic Dark Chocolate, 71% Cacao.  “Vintage 2009″ and Vintage “2010″   bars.  85g (3oz).  Ingredients:  Organic cocoa beans, organic cane sugar, fresh organic cocoa butter, organic soy lecithin, organic vanilla beans.  Where to buy  Grenada 71% Dark Chocolate.

WHEN:  August 12, 2010

AROMA:  Both bars are more or less the same with more coconut than I noticed before.  Then there are those beautiful coffee notes with a bit of leather.

INITIAL IMPRESSIONS:    Both bars have warm espresso and cappuccino flavors on the approach.  The 2010 vintage offers a new note – a bit of melon, like honeydew.

MIDDLE TASTE:  The 2009 has more going  on in the coffee department along with some cinnamon, angel food  cake, apple and toast.  Thankfully, the 2010 still has that marshmallow, cappuccino and whipped creme thing coming through strong.

FINISH:  The 2009 vintage fades a little faster while the 2010 has a longer buttery finish with more vanilla and fruit.

TEXTURE:  The 2009 vintage was somewhat more pliable, but I think this is more “bar variation” than anything else.  I had eaten another 2009 bar last week and it was more snappy.  No real difference here in the whole  scheme of things.

LAST BITE – What I love about this chocolate (both vintages) is the intense coffee notes blending perfectly with a marshmallow and whipped creme sweetness that is not at all cloying.  I’m completely relieved that Grenada  was able  to pull it off again for the 2010 vintage.  Overall, the 2009 is a bit mellow and rounder while the 2010 is creamier in the middle with a longer finish making it even more attractive to a larger audience.

NOTES: [1] Not to be confused with Hess Select which is their lower-tier wine (still good stuff).  By the way, if you are in Napa Valley, the Hess Collection Winery (used to simply be called Hess) is a fantastic place to visit because you can both taste their wines and tour their fine art museum.  It’s a good way to slow down the pace if you are prone to fall for the squeeze-six-winery-tours-into-a-day approach.

[2] The 2009 vintage has been stored under impeccable conditions.  I’m convinced that these bars would still be tasting great for another year or two, but alas, they are all gone as we “go to print” with this story.

[3] I paid for all this chocolate myself.

[4] 50% recycled,  25% Post-consumer content.

Pacari Organic Chocolate Covered Cacao Beans

Pacari Chocolate-Covered Cacao Beans are dusted in organic cocoa powder

I’ve come to admire Pacari chocolate not only for their innovative organic chocolate products, but also for their active and seemingly ever-expanding social programs .  I’ve also been intrigued by the fact their chocolate is single-origin Ecuadorian as well as organic, a combination that you don’t see often.  This is reflected in their name – the word Pacari means “Nature” in Quechua, the indigenous language of Ecuador.

In my first review of Pacari chocolate, I tasted some chocolate-covered cacao nibs – little bits of roasted and ground cacao beans that have been coated in organic chocolate.  What I’m writing about today is a completely new product that’s a cousin of those little coated nibs.  These chocolate-covered cacao beans are a bigger, bolder look at coating cacao with chocolate.

Organically grown cacao beans (cocoa beans) are lightly roasted, coated in single-origin chocolate and then dusted in cocoa powder.  If you’re still with me on this, then let’s see how they taste…

 

Parcari Organic Chocolate Covered Cacao Beans

Raw Organic Chocolate-Covered Cacao Beans

WHAT:  Pacari Chocolate-Covered Cacao Beans, Natural.  Single-origin Ecuador.  USDA Certified Organic. 90g. Ingredients: Cacao beans, evaporated cane juice, cocoa powder, sunflower lecithin. Dairy and soy free.  Kosher (Parve).  Where to buy Pacari Chocolate Covered Cacao Beans.

WHEN:  June 20, 2010

OVERALL RATING: Not rated. Since this is not a straight chocolate bar, I can’t really use the same rating scale.

AROMA: Honey, vanilla, rum, raisins.

INITIAL IMPRESSIONS: Dates, wood, light sweetness, faint black pepper.

MIDDLE TASTE:  Fresh fruit salad, apples, blueberries, strawberries. There were actually two middle tastes. The first had the sweet floral notes of the single-origin chocolate coating.  This floral character is typical of Ecuadorian Nacional beans.  The second wave was more powerful  and all fruit with the dominant notes being blueberry.

FINISH:  Mushrooms, sage, wood, paper, and finally the fiber of the bean.

TEXTURE: Never have I experienced so many sounds coming from something chocolate.  Crack! Crunch and then squeak.  It was an adventure in textures with most of it coming from the bean inside.

LAST BITE – These are so cool.  It’s a sign of a great food that you only need to eat a little of it to keep interested and

The bean on the inside is lightly roasted and so has a light reddish-brown color

satisfied. I had no desire to eat these quickly.  They are something you eat one at a time and listen and feel what’s going on in your mouth – and there is so much going on.  The two middle tastes – let’s say an “early middle” and a “late middle” were unique, but this makes complete sense because you are chewing through the sweeter, more familiar outer shell first and then releasing the more bitter, but intense, fruity center (remember that when we say “fruity” we are referring to the fruit notes that originate from cacao).

With some help, I ate the whole package over the course of about a week and experimented a bit more.  First, don’t eat these guys with other chocolate.  The sweetness of a chocolate bar will just throw things off.  Enjoy them by themselves or have the chocolate bar as a second course.  I did successfully pair them with some Dow’s Late Bottled Vintage 2003 port and it worked well.  After you get 90% through a bean, the remaining fibrous bean bits are somewhat dry, so wash down the rest with a sip of port and you’ll replace that last bit of bitter wood with sweetness.  Nice.

As you can see in the photo, I cut open a bean as neatly as I could and found them to be a bit lighter in color than expected, but with beautiful veins of reddish-brown.

Pacari’s coated cacao beans are an innovation that brings us about as close to the raw bean as we can get without asking us to chew on raw, naked beans. If milk chocolate is your favorite thing, you’re probably not be ready for this stuff.  If you are truly interested in experiencing real cacao flavors, these beans are a captivating gourmet food.

Please Share:

Disclosures: I paid for this chocolate myself.

Chocolate – The Breakfast of Champions

Legend has it that the Aztec emperor Montezuma drank 50 small cups of cocoa a day as an aphrodisiac and to boost his energy.  I figure at least some of this had to be consumed at breakfast.  Of course, that was 500 years ago and cocoa was so expensive that only kings could afford this excess.  When chocolate was first introduced to Europe it was mainly consumed in the evening as a decadent after-dinner drink.  Still, there were eventually signs of more creative use of chocolate like this:

“When you have breakfasted well and fully, if you will drink a big cup of chocolate at the end you will have digested the whole perfectly three hours later, and you will still be able to dine..Because of my scientific enthusiasm and the sheer force of my eloquence I have persuaded a number of ladies to try this, although they were convinced it would kill them; they have always found themselves in fine shape indeed, and have not forgotten to give the Professor his rightful due.”
Jean-Antheleme Brillat-Savarin (1755-1826)
The Physiology of Taste (1825)

We’ve come a long way since then and today chocolate is relatively inexpensive and accessable to all.  So the time has come to enjoy organic chocolate at breakfast and I’m not just talking about hot chocolate.

Organic cocoa nibs on granola

Here are some ideas for the creative use of cocoa nibs at breakfast.  If you recall, cocoa nibs are the coarsely - ground bits of roasted cacao beans that are bitter, nutty and full of true minimally processed cocoa flavor.  I tasted some organic chocolate covered nibs from Pacari earlier this year and loved them, but you don’t want to use coated nibs [1].  You want to use uncoated nibs like the Taza organic cocoa nibs I used to make an organic chocolate martini.

Organic Cocoa Nibs on Granola

This is real simple:

• 1 cup of granola
• 1  -2 tablespoons cocoa nibs such as Taza’s organic roasted nibs.

Toss the nibs around with the granola, add milk or soy milk and enjoy.  Most pre-boxed granolas have enough sugar in them to balance out the astringent bitterness of the nibs, and you will enjoy a real lively contrast to the run of the mill granola (I think that was a pun).  I found the nutty texture and the cocoa aroma that came up from the bowl rather pleasing.  Of course you can get decent granola at any good market or mix your own to avoid the added sugar.  The website MixMyGranola.com lets you design your own mixtures or order premixed cereals.

Oatmeal with Organic Cocoa Nibs

The breakfast of champions - Organic cocoa nibs on oatmeal

Another civilized and healthy way to get your organic chocolate in the morning is to mix it  with oatmeal.  I stopped adding dark chocolate chips to my oatmeal (a tradition introduced by my own mother, no less) when my wife insisted that I was setting a bad example for the kids, but in my mind this discussion is not over.  At any rate, if you put a small cocoa nib into a child’s mouth, they will soon spit it out, so there is no worry that they will be begging for nibs every morning.   This will make two servings:

• 1 cup organic oats
• 2 cups water
• 2-4 tablespoons organic cocoa nibs
• Butter to taste (optional)
• Brown sugar to taste (recommended)

Mix in the nibs after the oatmeal is cooked.  I like the granola, but I liked this even better.  The nibs are subdued and coated by the oatmeal and the contrast between the soft oatmeal and the nibs is much more dramatic than with oatmeal.  Something about the warmth of the oatmeal and the aromatic nuttiness of the organic nibs makes this an exotic comfort food.

So break out of your morning routine and add some excitement with chocolate - the breakfast of champions.

LIKE IT? PLEASE SHARE:

Notes: [1] Actually, you can try it if you want.  I haven’t tried it with coated nibs, but the coating would certainly melt away in oatmeal, so it seems like a waste, right? [2] I paid for all of the ingredients myself.

The Top 10 Incredible Disappearing Holiday Gifts

We’re about to enter the homestretch for the holidays where we will be barraged with platitudes telling us that it’s not about buying presents, but about the spirit of the holidays.  Blah, blah, blah.  Even though most of us will nod in agreement, we will still march down to the mall and fill up bags with video games, monogrammed golf balls, and plastic fish that tell jokes when you clap.  How can we still buy gifts, but make them more meaningful – more about our family and our full experience of life than about stuff?

It reminds me of the scene from the movie American Beauty where Lester (played by Kevin Spacey) and Carolyn (played byAnnette Bening) appear to be making up.   They start to kiss on the couch until Lester nearly spills his beer.  The mood abruptly changes when Carolyn says, “Lester, you’re going to spill beer on the couch.” Lester:  “So what?  It’s just a couch.”  Carolyn, incredulously replies “This is a four-thousand dollar sofa upholstered in Italian silk!  This is NOT just a couch!”   Becoming exasperated since he now sees the world through different lenses than his wife and the one opening back into their marriage is beginning to close, Lester jumps up and childishly beats the sofa repeatedly with a pillow and yells, “It’s…just…a…couch!”  Gesturing at everything in the living room:   “This isn’t life; it’s just stuff…!”

The truth is, stuff creates a burden.  You have to find a place to put it, you have to worry about it getting stolen, lost, or broken.  You may worry about the impression it creates (“am I a leather or silk sofa person?”) and you may even have to pay someone to maintain it.  Since everything in this world is temporary, you have the burden of how to dispose of it when it is no longer of use to you.   The more stuff you have, the more complexity you have in your life, bogging down your mind and muddying up your focus.

It would be too easy for me to quote a Zen master here; the connection is so obvious.  Instead I offer something from an old, err very old, British guy:

“Every increased possession loads us with new weariness” – John Ruskin

Don’t get me wrong – some gadgets can be very valuable even though they may appear shallow.  My Ipod makes the tedious job of washing the dishes 100 times more pleasant and has helped educate me on countless topics.  This is value.  So if you are going to buy stuff, make sure it does something for you – some job that’s important.  On the other hand, it would be much better to buy more gifts that disappear.  Yes, disappear – something that gets consumed by the recipient.  There’s nothing to throw away or worry about getting stolen, lost or broken.  The best gifts provide some experience for the user.  Isn’t it better to experience life than to own something?  Experience is what makes life rich and shared experience makes it even richer.

So, free your self from the burden of stuff and consider my list of:

The Top 10 Incredible Disappearing Holiday Gifts (of course there will be chocolate in here somewhere):

#10 – Vacation ($400 – $4000)

OK, let’s start out with the pricey one and then get more realistic.   You can treat the family to a vacation and put aside all of the stresses and distractions of your everyday life to really focus on being together.    Too expensive, you say? Then go local, but try to get away.  And for all you young people, pull out the calculator – do you really need that 3000 square foot house or would 2200 Square feet be OK with a lot left over for a vacation every year.  You won’t need the extra space if you buy less stuff and enjoy more experiences.  Besides, the house really isn’t an investment, is it?  You decide – showcase house or memories with the family.

There are soo many options.  Trip Advisor is a great place to search on vacation spots and hotels and read reviews from real travelers that have stayed there.

Eco-tourism is another great option that doesn’t cost a cent more than a conventional vacation. Help preserve the world’s precious natural habitats by spending your travel dollars where they benefit the local community and help sustain the environment.  We did a trip to Belize a few years back that included hiking in the rain forest and swimming in a river that flows through a cave.  All services and meals were provided by local people and care was taken to not disturb the environment.

There are no widely accepted standards for what constitutes eco-tourism, but you start your research with these websites:

Eco-Tropical Resorts provides a directly of environmentally friendly hotels and resorts with reviews by customers.

Mayan Encounter specializes in a la carte tours for differently-abled people and seniors as well as everyone else.

#9 – Massage  / Spa – Gift Card ($50 to $150)

It’s been a tough year.  Treat someone to the gift of deep relaxation, the kind only brought about by a professional massage.  For ideas, check out Spa Finder where you can buy gift certificates accepted at over 5,000 spas world wide.

One of our favorite spas in the country, Ten Thousand Waves, in Santa Fe is also a destination spa so that you can combine vacation with spa treatments and Japanese style hot tubs inspired by the onsen tradition.  On our last visit, my wife and I had a phenomenal couples massage followed by a good steeping in the hot tub surrounded by cedars, into the sauna, cold plunge, hot tub, repeat…ahhh.

#8 – Dinner out with the family ($80 – $250)

It’s funny how people say “I would never blow 150 bucks on dinner out” but they would waste it on that pair of shoes they just had to have, but may not ever wear.  For many people, dinner out is an infrequent treat and if you get them a gift card, it gives them permission of sorts to go spend the money.  You could also decide to treat your whole family as a gift.  If you do, be sure to eat the European way – drawn out and slow, with plenty of time for conversation mixed in.  Here’s the trick:  just order some appetizers and send the waiter away for a while.  Give your self sometime to enjoy the appetizers, relax and settle in before you order the  entrées.  This will slow the pace for everyone and give more time for conversation and a more rich experience.

#7 – Movie gift cards ($15 and up)

You don’t have to talk to share experiences with someone.  Just being there and enjoying the same experience together says something.  A provocative movie gives you something to talk about, reflect or debate later.

#6 – Premium and Artisan Chocolate ($5 – $50)

Gift pack of three premium chocolate bars from NewLeaf Chocolates

Don’t just buy any chocolate from the drug store!  There is a wonderful explosion of interest in organic and fair-trade premium chocolates now with many options to choose from.  These include many small-batch chocolate bars where the chocolate maker has a hand in everything from selecting the bean variety to how the cacao is grown, fermented and processed.  A truly accessible gourmet food, it’s the perfect affordable indulgence with bars and gift packs for under $10 and gift baskets or boxes often less than $50. Of course, you can spend more on hand-made truffles or large baskets, but it’s unnecessary.  I don’t know about you, but this stuff disappears pretty quickly in our house.

#5 – A Yoga Class or Membership ($15 and up)

Giving someone a gym member ship seems a little risky since the hidden message is, “you need to work off some pounds,” but yoga has no such pitfalls and is a low-impact way to get out and move your body, reduce stress and focus your mind.

To find a studio near you try Yoga Finder.

#4– An e-book Reader ($200 to $300)

By now, you’ve probably heard about one of the hottest gifts this year – the Amazon Kindle – a wireless-enabled e-Book device that allows readers to download and almost instantly begin reading books in electronic form.  No trees are harmed and there’s no old novels to lug out to the garage sale.  There will still be a place in my heart for turning pages, but for the avid reader, they can put a whole bunch of books in a small place and read on a plane, on vacation or wherever.

Barnes and Noble has now launched their e-Book reader, simply called “nook,” but it’s sold out (they’re accepting back-orders).  There are also similar devices by Sony that are pocket-sized.

#3 Membership to an outdoors organization ($25 to $75)

Know someone who likes to hike and appreciate all of nature’s splendor?  You can gift memberships to organizations like the Appellation Mountain Club or the Sierra Club.    The AMC is an east coast regional organization that promotes outdoor activity and environmental conservation.  Membership includes discounts on lodging, books and maps plus access to trips and workshops.  The Sierra Club is the oldest and largest environmental organization in the country.  Membership gets you their magazine and access to the outings program.

#2 A Cooking Class ($50 to $400)

Not only will they experience the joy of learning some new skills, but it will spur more experience as they practice what they learn.  Maybe you’ll get an invite to dinner  after the class (this may or may not be a good thing).  Most communities have an adult education program and many urban areas have culinary schools that also provide short “recreational” courses.

#1 A Gift of charity ($20 and up)

Most charities will let you gift a donation in someone’s name.   The beauty is that the only thing that gets shipped around is a note card to tell the recipient about your gift.  Our favorite that we’ve used for many years is Heifer International. We like them because the donation feels very tangible – a flock of chickens or a goat goes to someone in need in a third-world country and it results in something sustainable – milk for a village or eggs for a household to sell.  The hope is that this will make a lasting impact and help people to provide for themselves.

Well, I better get this posted before all your shopping bags are full.  Happy Holidays!

Keeping It Real: New FTC Social Media Disclosure Rules

I’ve recently become aware of new rules that will be enacted by the Federal Trade Commision on December 1, 2009.  The rules basically state that if you are reviewing or endorsing a product on your blog, through tweets or other social media, you must:

• Disclose if you are being compensated - for instance, free samples were provided.  I wish I had time and the foresight to ask for free samples, but so far all but one of the chocolates I’ve rated have been paid for by me…usually at full retail.  I will go back and note the one’s I’ve paid for and those I haven’t …soon.
• Write from experience – You must have actually tasted, tried, or tested the product in order to review or endorse it.  This is just common sense.  Check – of course I’ve tasted all of the chocolates on this blog.  Otherwise, what fun would it be?
• Be truthful in your statements – Again, common sense.  I’ve tried to be as accurate as possible in my assessments of the chocolates tasted.  The numerical rating system is designed to keep things as objective as possible.  But chocolate is art so don’t be surprised if you occasionally disagree with my sense of what tastes good.

I really don’t have any problem with these rules since I’ve been following them already.   There are other people out there getting free stuff from chocolate makers.  I don’t see a problem with this either as long as it’s disclosed.  In the end, it’s best to use online reviews as only a guideline to what you might expect in the style and character of a chocolate.  If the chocolate sounds intriguing or the chocolatier’s story interesting, then try some yourself and make your own decision on what’s best.

In the mean time, I’m going back through all of my past posts to add a disclosure statement to the bottom.  The  FTC doesn’t require that I do this for past posts, but why not? Those old posts still get viewed and people should know the history.

For more information, see the FTC link above or take a look at this New York Times article.

Thanks and good luck to all my fellow bloggers.  Remember to keep it real.