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GOURMET NEWS www.gourmetnews.com n JANUARY 2016 n GOURMET NEWS 1 1 0 Tillen Farms: Appetizers and Cocktails Will Never Be the Same By Tim Metzger My wife, Helen Metzger, and I created Tillen Farms to continue a delicious tradition first begun by Mike and Gary Hogue with the Hogue Cellars Winery four decades ago in the fertile, volcanic soil of Washington's famed Yakima Valley. Tillen Farms' range of uniquely crisp, pickled asparagus, spicy beans, crunchy carrots and sugar snap peas, has become a must-have addition for many specialty food lovers and at-home mixolo- gists. Tillen Farms veggies are used to gar- nish a martini, dress up a Bloody Mary, cre- ate a colorful appetizer tray or enjoyed as a healthy, low calorie snack right out of the jar. We began looking for other healthy, lo- cally grown products to complement our veggies and were fortunate to partner with a leading Northwest cherry grower and co- op. Today, Tillen Farms offers four delicious tasting, Northwest grown cherries, including our top selling Merry Maraschinos and ex- ceptionally flavorful Bada Bing cherries and more recently, adding Rainier Reserve and Tickled Pink Maraschinos. Made from only natural ingredients, our prized cherries are sweetened with cane sugar and contain no artificial colors, flavors, red dye, preserva- tives or corn syrup. Our cherries are pitted with stems on, of- fering our valued customers added usage possibilities with desserts, ice cream top- pings, baking, cocktails and more. And for those with allergen concerns, the entire range of Tillen Farms pickled vegetables and cher- ries are gluten free, vegan, nut and peanut free, and most varieties are Kosher certified. Tillen Farms products are available through a network of specialty food distrib- utors and are sold to select supermarket chains, spe- cialty and health retail- ers and wine and liquor shops. Our retail sized veggies and cherries are packed in re- tail-friendly six-packs and enjoy an extended shelf life, too. Now the top selling cherries are available in 6 x 72 ounce foodservice sizes for bars, restaurants and caterers. For more information, email Tim Metzger @tim@tillenfarms.com, call 212.957.0055, visit www.tillenfarms.com or stop by booth #722. Ariston's New Line of Organic Balsamic Vinegars The new Ariston line of organic balsamic vinegars are characterized by a perfect bal- ance between sweet and sour. This product is made exclusively with organically farmed grapes, without pesticides involved. The en- tire production process is certified in order to guarantee consumers compliance with the highest organic farming standards, guaran- teed by the CCPB certifying body. The grape must, cooked over a direct heat in an open vessel, simmers slowly and is concentrated until it is reduced to about one third of its origi- nal volume. It is then placed in the attic, in a series of casks of oak wood. Here the balsamic vinegar passes the years acidifying, aging until it has reached a balance that only the alchemy of time can master, prodded along by the mas- terful hands of artisans. This balsamic is naturally dark and dense, with a five percent acidity content. Add some over strawberries, or on your favorite salad to add complexity. For more information, visit www.aristonspe- cialties.com. Madelaine Chocolate Company Adds to Its Traditional Line with Chocolate Hunt In 2012, Superstorm Sandy destroyed The Madelaine Chocolate Company's inventory and equipment. Although the storm put the company out of business for eight months, that time gave company Chief Executive Of- ficer and President Jorge Farber and manage- ment time to reflect on the company's focus during the rebuilding. Now, Madelaine is back at the show with new products to add to the 67-year old company's traditional line of quality Swiss-formula chocolate made in New York and foiled in exquisite Italian foils. "We're going more towards giftables, which will be interesting for the fancy food trade. We're featuring our seasonal foiled chocolates and specialty gift packaging," Farber said. New for this year's Christmas holiday sea- son, the company is introducing its Holiday Hunt, which is an extension of its successful Chocolate Hunt™ game line. Many families make an annual tradition of a chocolate Ad- vent calendar, but by December first, Advent calendars have all been purchased and retail- ers have an empty spot that the Chocolate Hunt is designed to fill. It's a game similar to an Advent calendar, with doors or win- dows to open and reveal a chocolate and a clue about the location of the next piece of chocolate. Players follow from clue to clue until they find a chocolate Santa at the end. "You can buy one for each child. You can have it as a game for Christmas Day or during the holiday season. It's 16 pieces of chocolate, so you can go through the game fairly quickly, and everyone will have had multiple pieces of chocolate. It retails for $9.95," Farber said. Madelaine is also introducing a whole new line of seasonal four-ounce chocolate gift bags for Christmas, Valentine's Day and Easter. The gift bags are available in dark chocolate, milk chocolate or filled choco- lates. 'We also have some exciting Chocolate Parades for the holidays displaying our tra- ditional foiled seasonal chocolates perfect as stocking stuffers,' Farber added. The company is broadening its product of- fering to better service its customers' needs and attract customers in all channels of trade. 'Many of our customers purchase our chocolates in bulk but we also need to be conscious of the retailers that need a finished package for their customers,' Farber said. One of Farber's other pri- mary focuses has been main- taining affordable prices despite the volatile chocolate market. In fact, Farber proudly mentions that he has even lowered prices this year due to increased efficiencies and im- proved equipment performance. Visit Madelaine Chocolate in booth #979 during the Winter Fancy Food Show. After the show, email customerserviceservice @madelainechocolate.com for more infor- mation.