Because it's snowing in New York. Because it's the holiday season. And because it's one of the silver linings of winter: these are the hot chocolates you don't want to miss. Jacques Torres When you walk into Chocolate Haven Soho, the heavenly scent of chocolate is all around you. Belly up to bar and order my personal favorite: the peanut butter hot cocoa. Vosges That their cocoa is called "drinking chocolate" and served in elegant glassware is telling. I like to change it up at Vosges and get the Bianca Cocoa: white chocolate with vanilla, lemon myrtle and lavender. Dessert Truck Insanely thick. Made with Valrhona and Guittard chocolates. Don't expect to drink the whole thing. Even I can't . City Bakery If hot chocolate could be landmarked, City Bakery's would be the first to receive the designation. Start training for February's Hot Cocoa Festival by sipping their small portions now. It's habit-forming. MarieBelle I was going to give the fifth spot to La Maison du Chocolat . But since this blog is all ( or mostly ) about NYC, MarieBellewith a proper cacoa salon, six varieties, and the option for European (made with water) or American (milk) stylegets the nod.

Nunu has new digs from which to peddle its oh-so-lovely chocolates. Two years after starting the company, they have appropriately cute space on Atlantic Avenue, not so far away from Sweet Freak favorites Atlantic Diner and Betty Bakery. The hot cocoa and tea are still coming, but all the caramels and ganaches are ready to be snapped up. Like the best selling hand dipped salt caramels: chewy two-bite treats that taste tobacco-y, salty and sweet altogether. Nunu gets their chocolate from a family farm in Columbia and relies on local, organic ingredients for the rest. "Totally natural. Handmade to order in Brooklyn." Better leave room for seconds.529 Atlantic Avenue between 3rd and 4th Aves917.776.7102

While we've all been waiting for Bespoke Chocolates to debut, Lynda Sternbam!opened Bond Street Chocolates on 4th Street. God, I'm loving the East Village these days. Bonbons come in flavors as demure as Earl Grey, wild as tequila, and classic as Valrhona. But Lynda's personality really comes through with some of her other treats: chocolate-covered wasabi peas (spicy!), corn nuts (salty!) and toffee (smokin!) I wish my nearby apartment were decorated halfway as nice as this super cool chocolate spot. It's small but chic, with rich chocolate brown walls and fuchsia (my favorite) accents. Aside from the gorgeous bonbons, I think one of the best touches is the thermos of free cocoa near the door. Nice!63 East 4th Street between Bowery and 2nd Ave212.677.5103

Jean-Paul Hvin, Patrick Roger, Un Dimanche Paris I was certainly getting around to my favorite chocolatiers during my last weeks in Paris. But in the very last few days, I made visits to two brand new chocolatiers: Chloe Chocolat and Franck Kestener.

My own copy of Chlo Doutre-Roussels bible, The Chocolate Connoisseur (2005), is a tattered, stained mess from all the bonbons I consumed while reading about Criollo trees and the tempering process. And when I spoke with Chlo at the Salon du Chocolat in October about the chocolate salon she was opening dangerously close to my apartment, needless to say I was as giddy as a kid in a candy shop. She debuted her two-story sliver of a salon just days before my departure, so I got to sit and chat with her and taste some mighty good chocolate.

What distinguishes Chloaside from being the former chocolate buyer for Fortnum & Mason and one of the very few female pros in an industry dominated by menis how no-nonsense she is. She doesnt scold about cocoa percentages or eschew milk chocolate for dark. She doesnt make you feel like a chump for liking chocolate even if its not wrapped up from a beans to bar artisan or stamped with organic approval. Dont worry about where the beans come from, she insists. When you buy chocolate, youre buying an emotional experience; its sensory. Ah oui, merci!

Thats not to say shes not on a crusade to make the world filled with better chocolate and more appreciation for it. Indeed, the intent of her new Marais home is to school both amateurs and connoisseurs through classes ranging from an introduction to chocolate to comprehensive international trends. She also offers two-and-a-half-hour walking tours that pay visits to some of the citys most prestigious chocolatiers. And, once youve worked up a chocolate appetite, she offers milk and dark chocolate tablettes (in adorable packaging), both of which are divine and can be paired with carefully selected teas.

Across town, Meilleur Ouvrier de France Chocolatier, Franck Kestener offers a different, more decadent chocolate experience. Its a posh shop near the Luxembourg Gardens, peddling marzipan, macarons, mendiants and more.

I went straight for his ganache-filled bonbons, which come in a beautiful and inspired range of flavors, from buttery tarte tatin to crisp mint to fruity juniper.

I saved my square of Atlantiqueshortbread and salted caramel, topped with 66% dark chocolatefor the plane ride home, but piggishly ate two Nuages while strolling the streets of the sixth arrondissement. Another one of the young chocolatiers specialties, these treats look like cannels but are filled with a light and fluffy whipped chocolate marshmallow.

Its been over three weeks since those visits. My cupboard is finally depleted of the bars and bonbons I brought home with me. I think I need another Parisian chocolate run.

Every since I saw a magazine article and photo of the crystal dishes filled with truffles at Mary Chocolatier in Brussels , Ive wanted to go. So last weekend, I took Sarah and Jo on a death march to find the place. It wasnt easy, but it worth it. The chocolatier and their recipes have been around since 1919. In 1942, King Leopold III gave them the royal seal of approval. Needless to say, plenty of other notable figuresand plebes like ushave traipsed through the doors since then for their pralines, truffles, caramels, ganaches. Bonbons, tablettes, mendiants, molded marzipan. The boutique and the packaging were almost as heavenly as the bonbons. And I made sure I had my fair share.

This weekend is the Salon du Chocolat in Paris. My advice is to go with a big appetite, big pockets and a big checkbook. There is lots of sampling and plenty of temptation.Theres hot chocolate and chocolate spreads. Chocolate bonbons in bright colors pretty spheres and shaped like animals and fish and vegetables. There are chocolate truffles, chocolate mendiants and chocolate pavs. Chocolate bars and chocolate tablettes. There are giant slabs of chocolate with nuts and berries and candies and chocolate treats by the ounce. Chocolate fondant, chocolate pastries and chocolate macarons. Plus, chocolate demos and sculptures. There are chocolatiers and chocolate experts. High quality chocolate and sugary garbage. I think there will be plenty of chocolate in my dreams tonight.

I am sitting here in Paris, three days after my trip to Lisbons only gourmet chocolatier, enjoying a block of 70% dark chocolate with raisins and a unique and potent liquor extracted from the pulp of the recently harvested cocoa fruit. Its heady and delicious.

It was on my recent trip to Portugals capital that I was fortunate enough to have a friend with a Frommers Guide. Inside, it shared a little-known address on a not-so-well-known street: that for Claudio Corallo on Rua Cecilio da Sousa.


I knew my chocolate block was going to be a winner since the moment we rushed into the small boutique, we were warmly greeted and eagerly treated to a chocolate tasting.

We sampled the 70%, 80% and 100% chocolates, a tasting that ranged from semi-sweet to acidic. Some of the bars had ginger or orange pieces, adding a touch of lovely sweetness.


And some of the pristine chocolates are made into more whimsical bonbons, like these lovelies made with pine nuts.

Claudio Corallo is not for everyone. With a devotion to pure cacao that's cultivated on the tiny African archipelago of So Tom, the beans are meticulously sourced and produced into dark chocolate without any sugar or vanilla. Its hardcore chocolate.

But how wonderful (and, to me, delicious) to discover an Italian man, living in Africa, producing chocolate in Iceland and offering it at a hole-in-the-wall in Lisbon.

Sometimes when youre crazy for chocolate, you really will go to the ends of earth for it.

Before I moved to Paris, I had only a vague understanding of the citys layout and, more important, its sweet spots. Now I can feel (and taste) my way around. And whenever I have to do an errand in the first arrondisement, I prepare myself for lusting after things I cant afford on rue St-Honor, but taking solace in the fact that I can at least splurge on <span style="font-style:italic;">something</span> sumptuous: chocolatein solid or liquid format one of citys, nay countrys, best chocolatiers.

Lets start with the old master. Nestled between the luxury boutiques flaunting fine lingerie and crazy haute talons, <a href="www.chocolatmichelcluizel-na.com "><span style="font-weight:bold;">Michel Cluizel</span> </a>(201, rue St.-Honor) has been making chocolate since 1948, though his daughter Catherine now manages the store. Among the delights for you to discover: a wall-mounted fountain spewing molten chocolate, giant bowls filled with truffles and macarolats (a chocolate version of the macaron) and 99% cacao chocolate bars. Pas mal!

Further up the street is <a href="www.jphevin.com "><span style="font-weight:bold;">Jean-Paul Hvin</span>s</a> modern and refined tea salon/chocolate shop (231, rue St-Honor)top 3, if not my very favorite, chocolatier. Dainty macarons and pretty cakes welcome you along one wall (or you can indulge upstairs in the tranquil salon de th), but the bonbons are hidden in the back. With cocoa sourced from Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia and Madagascar, and ingredients like cinnamon, caramel and champagne whipped into the dark chocolate ganache, theyre nothing if not sublime.

The selection at <a href="www.pierreherme.com"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Pierre Herm</span>s</a> 4 rue Cambon boutique is more limited than at rue Bonaparte, but dont despair. While you wont find towering cakes like the Plenitude or Isaphan, you will find all the incredible macarons and chocolates your heart might desire.

Finish off the decadence by sitting firmly on your butt at Angelinas (226, rue de Rivoli). You might have to battle some tourists and none-too-friendly waitresses for a seat, but a pitcher of their chocolat Africain more than makes up for it. Its rich and chocolaty, smooth and velvety, thick enough to coat your tongue, and almost thick enough to stand a spoon up in it. Its, oh whats the word heaven?