About Us

Richard Vaughan learned about chocolate and numbers starting at age two. He was allowed to eat all the M&Ms® he could count. A maximum limit was soon imposed.

Since then, he has always wanted something chocolate for dessert. In 2009, Richard was exposed to artisan dark chocolate for the first time, and it soon changed his relationship not just with chocolate, but with all food.

He is now attentive when eating, and finds himself more fully enjoying the entire sensual experience. While Richard's palate has developed to appreciate quality dark chocolate, and he bakes cookies, cakes, tortes, and truffles only from scratch, he still occasionally indulges in peanut M&Ms® (though he considers them candy rather than chocolate).

After travels on all seven continents and in more than 50 countries, Richard settled in Seattle (from where, among other things, he writes this blog).


Lindy Helfman couldn't believe her luck when Richard issued an invitation to help him taste bar after bar of dark chocolate. She brought along her camera and has been taking photographs and tasting chocolates for the blog ever since.

While she still makes a face when tasting chocolates near 100% cacao, she has been amazed to notice so many naturally occurring flavors in chocolate and can't help herself paying more attention to the variety of flavors and aromas in other foods and beverages. She enjoys the challenges of identifying tastes, aromas, and faithfully representing chocolate images.

When Lindy isn't taking photographs of chocolate, she's fascinated with attempting to capture the beauty around her and takes at least one photograph every day. She completed a Ph.D. in Economics in 2011 and lives in Seattle with her husband and two narcoleptic cats.

Alex Grrrrr took this photo of Lindy.


You can contact us via email at onegoldenticket@outlook.com.