Event: Chocolopolis Fifth Anniversary and Golden Tickets

During their anniversary celebration in July, Chocolopolis places golden tickets in three bars of chocolate in their store. Buying one of the bars with a golden ticket inside wins the buyer one free chocolate bar of their choice each week during the subsequent year! As you know if you're a regular reader, winning one of those golden tickets is what inspired me to begin my exploration of artisan chocolate and this blog. They'll be staggering the release of the three bars containing golden tickets over the month, with the first one being put out on shelves on July 6th, the second on July 13th, and the third on July 20th.

So, if you live in the Seattle area and haven't yet been to Chocolopolis, then this is the month to go and buy some great chocolate (and maybe find a golden ticket). If you can't make it this month, remember that Chocolopolis has weekly Thursday evening (5 to 9 p.m.) free themed happy hour chocolate tastings that occur year-round.

During this fifth anniversary celebration, they also have many special events:

• Tuesday, July 2nd, all day: 50% off drinking chocolate.
• Saturday, July 6th, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.: meet chocolate maker Rob Anderson of Fresco and taste his chocolate for free, including some prototypes in development. First golden ticket bar is on the shelves today!
• Wednesday, July 10th, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.: truffle-making demonstration, Kickstarter campaign kickoff, and free samples.
• Thursday, July 11th, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.: meet Alex Espiritu of Valrhona and taste free samples of their single origin chocolate.
• Saturday, July 13th, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.: try free samples of iced drinking chocolate at Chocolopolis table during Queen Anne Days festival. Second golden ticket bar is out!
• Sunday, July 14th, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.: Bastille Day, so free samples of French chocolate bars from Bonnat, Michel Cluizel, Francois Pralus, and Valrhona, plus videos about their chocolate making techniques.
• Wednesday, July 17th, all day: 50% off truffles made by Chocolopolis.
• Thurday, July 18th, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.: drinking chocolate demonstration, meet Chocolopolis chocolatiers, and free samples of Chocolopolis products.
• Friday, July 19th: By invitation and reservation only, a tasting of fresh cacao pulp and selected bars. I hope you're an active Chocolopolis Frequent Bar Club member so you're invited to attend this.
• Saturday, July 20th: Third golden ticket bar is on the shelves.
• Monday, July 22nd, all day: 50% off chocolate bars made by Chocolopolis.
• Tuesday, July 23rd: Another by invitation and reservation only event: a guided tasting by Alex Espiritu of Valrhona nibs, cocoa mass, and chocolates.
• Thursday, July 25th, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.: meet chocolatier Christopher Elbow and try free samples of his creations.
• Saturday, July 27th, at 11 a.m., 2 p.m., and 5 p.m.: guided chocolate tastings for children.

You can read more about their anniversary and other events at Chocolopolis (and their Frequent Bar Club) on their website.