I’m Not Complaining. But…

Each spring, as the temperature starts to gently climb in Paris day-by-day, most normal people spend their time figuring out how to maximize their time outdoors basking in the gloriously warm Parisian air.

不过，在这里，春天只意味着一件事：吃我所有的巧克力，因为我的公寓变成了世界上最大的巧克力bain marie, a sizzling oven capable of melting the thickest, darkest, and densest of chocolate bars from ’round the globe.

当我旅行并遇到有趣的巧克力片时，我总是把它拿起并带回家，希望我能邀请一些朋友品尝。而且我的藏匿处整整一年都在增长。但是，当我终于能够吹起木制的窗户敞开并让新鲜空气进入时，苦乐参半的积压变得太多了，我意识到我需要吃所有的巧克力现在—and as quickly as possible.

So I spent the last couple of months, pre-Speedo season mind you, wolfing down lots and lots of unusual and curious chocolate bars.

This year, I think I set a record and was successful at finishing all the best-quality bars by late May and was down to just a couple of strays, which were mostly commercial chocolates gifted to me by well-meaning folks. But there’s not much to look forward to when the label boasts it was made under the Kraft umbrella of fine products, so they sometimes get melted down for a batch of布朗尼or chocolate ice cream. So far, no complaints.

Yet this year, my plans were thwarted. Not that I’m complaining or anything.

One问题是，今年夏天在巴黎的天气非常糟糕。凉爽，经常毛毛雨。不是我在抱怨；我宁愿拥有过去的104度温度。

The其他issue I had to contend with was my trip back to the US in June. Once again, I’m not complaining, mind you, but everywhere I went I was loaded up with chocolate bars. And not just one or two nice bars of chocolate, but stacks and stacks of them, which all looked incredible. I think I returned to Paris with at least thirty very interesting bars of various origins, percentages, and flavors.

And I mean really; how does one say no? I didn’t want to be rude.

So I’ve been working my way through them, rather quickly in fact, in anticipation that the broil of summer is probably just aroundlebend.

这个嫩咸的酒吧是亚当的礼物Fog City News这是一家报摊和巧克力店，在我见过的一个地方拥有最惊人的精美巧克力棒。哎呀，如果他们在角落里为我设置了一个婴儿床，我很乐意在所有这些杂志上努力，并在我身边搭配一堆男士时尚杂志，并像里面所有模型一样梦想着六包腹肌。发生这种情况的胖子。但是，如果我可以梦想住在一家巧克力店里，我可以梦见完全口臭的腹肌，不是吗？

Uba Budowas the name of the bar, fromCoppeneurin Germany. It was made of darkForesteromilk chocolate from São Tomé, 52% in case you’re a numbers-queen. But what made it startlingly good was the minerally taste of Himalayan pink salt, which played off perfectly against the smoothness of the milky caramel. The milk chocolate was creamy, not sweet or gunky. And although I’m not a big milk chocolate fan, this bar convinced me to step away from the dark side and lighten up a bit.

I have lots of bars now in my stash, that’s been refreshed to the max, which includes a milk chocolate bar fromScharffenBergerwith sea salted almonds, a seriously-dark 95% bar fromE.吉塔德，每个酒吧Theo混合（i容易地sailed through the two enormous boxes of filled chocolates they sent me home with with no problem…whatso曾经），以及沉重的（重……我随身携带所有这些平板电脑）CharlesChocolate loaded with everything from caramelized puffed rice to little bits of tangy candied orange peel and roasted hazelnuts.

我巧克力中的下一个酒吧queue是来自Coppeneur的另一台片剂，带有香蕉和生姜，它坐在我的巧克力面糊盒中。但是我需要开始耕种allthese bars…quick!… before the weather decides to be less-accommodating to Paris’ most prolific and multi-national chocolate collector.

因此，当我穿过酒吧时，很高兴第一个是本垒打，我很好奇继续下一个。

下一个……和下一个。

And the next.

Not that I’m complaining.