Event: Northwest Chocolate Festival October 22-23 in Seattle

The Northwest Chocolate Festival (NWCF) will be held in Seattle next month, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day during the weekend of October 22nd and 23rd. Nearly all of the festival will take place in the Northwest Rooms of Seattle Center (305 Harrison St., Seattle, WA 98109). The theme of the weekend is Taste, Learn, and Celebrate.

Tasting includes not only an amazing selection of chocolate (from at least 17 chocolate makers, including: Amano, Chocolate Conspiracy, Divine, Escazú, Fresco, Indahphoria, Kallari, Lillie Belle Farms, Madécasse, Madre, Mindo, Olive & Sinclair, Rogue, Snake & Butterfly, Stirs the Soul, Taza, and Theo), but also chocolate desserts and even drink pairings.

Learning includes a huge variety of more than 70 classes about farming cacao, trade equity, crafting chocolate from the bean, single origin chocolate, tempering chocolate, pairing chocolate, health benefits, etc. For an additional $8 [$10 at the door] and attending 5 classes, NWCF is offering their Chocolate Academy "Masters in Chocolate Level 1" certificate, which also includes Chocolate Academy membership. Membership benefits include a quarterly newsletter, discounts on tickets to future festivals, and invitations to special chocolate events at partner businesses.

Celebrating is highlighted by Saturday night's Chocolate Masquerade Ball at Sole Repair (1001 E. Pike St., Seattle WA 98122). This special event has separate admission. It starts at 8 p.m. with a Chocolate Dessert Showcase and Competition, with awards for the best desserts. At 10 p.m., there will be a Best Costume contest. Attire is black tie and/or masquerade.

You can read more about the entire weekend on their website: http://www.nwchocolate.com/.

In addition to these activities open to everyone, 100 VIP tickets are being sold that include full weekend passes, an exclusive "Meet the Maker" opening night reception of wine and chocolate, a VIP-only chocolate and pairing event, a complimentary drink flight in the Beer, Cider, Spirit and Wine Garden during the festival, the Chocolate Academy certificate described above, and a chance to win two tickets on Alaska Airlines.

You can purchase any of the following tickets in advance and pick up your non-transferable ticket at Will Call with photo identification:

• $37.50 full weekend pass [$40 at the door]
• $22.00 one day pass (age 13+) [$25 at the door]
• $6.50 one day youth pass (age 5 to 12)
• $89.00 VIP full weekend pass and more
• $42.50 chocolate masquerade ball [$50 at the door]

With so many bean-to-bar chocolate makers and great classes, the third annual Northwest Chocolate Festival might be the best chocolate event in the U.S. this year. If you will be in the Seattle area, you do not want to miss it. Lindy and I are attending, and we hope you'll be able to get there, too!