My beautiful friend Maria’s lovely husband gave her a box of Vosges Collezione Italiano truffles for Valentine’s Day. Lucky girl. Maria was kind enough to give me two of the truffles, as we have been lusting after these particular confections together for years.

And so I came into the possession of the Balsamico truffle (12-year aged balsamic vinegar + dark chocolate + Sicilian hazelnuts) which I have not yet tried. And… the Rooster, described as follows:

Your tasting begins with the Rooster truffle, a mélange of Taleggio cheese, organic walnuts and Tahitian vanilla beans draped in bittersweet dark chocolate. A bit salty, slightly tannic and rich in mouth-feel with an undercurrent of sweetness.

And it may be one of the most exquisite things I have ever eaten. On par with the pink grapefruit sorbet at Berthillon, which stopped me in my tracks on the rue saint Louis en l’ile so that I could lean against a building and taste…

sigh.

After that truffle, I had to pour a glass of wine–the cheapo Alcion Malbec I get by the case at Weaver Street Market that is actually very delicious, especially for being so ridiculously inexpensive. If I were a smoker, I might have had a cigarette…

And, speaking of Berthillon, the ice cream making is so far successful. I am trying the coconut recipe from the previous post. I have succeeded in not boiling the cream or ending up with chunks of egg yolk floating in the cream.