Who Wants Some Snake Sweetness?
May 3, 2006
12:32 p.m., MT

No, not that kind of sweetness, you pervs! (I mean that in the nicest way possible, of course.) I mean the chocolatey, flavor-filled, truffley kind of sweetness.

Here's the thing: I've some testing to do to finalize the flavors I launch my truffle business with. And I'd like to get some more feedback on them before I finalize the flavors and their recipes. Several of you have expressed an interest in tasting some of the truffles, and I've hit on a way of taking you up on that that might work well for you as well as me. If you're willing to cover the shipping costs of getting some truffles to you, and you're willing to give me some critical feedback about the truffles, let's step into this little room to talk specifics, shall we?

Here are the flavors I want to work on: piña colada; cardamom, pistachio, and walnut; honey spice; mint julep (a mint julep is a bourbon and mint drink); peanut butter (which peanut butter connoisseur Jim Bovard deemed 5-star tasty); white chocolate; and raspberry—maybe some raspberry/nut combination(s) too. I use natural flavorings (I make the raspberry sauce for those truffles myself), and top quality, fresh ingredients, including Maker's Mark bourbon, Adam's or Smucker's all-natural peanut butter, and fresh coconut (not the sweetened, processed stuff). I don't use corn syrup in the truffle centers, and I don't add extra sugar to the chocolates I use, so the candies aren't cloyingly sweet. The packaging won't be professional, pretty candy boxes, but it should be sturdy enough to withstand the rigors of shipping. Also, the truffles won't be in their final, prettified form, but they will look like professional, handmade candies.

If you're interested in any (or all) of these flavors, and you'll cover the shipping costs of getting the truffles to you, leave an unambiguous comment on this post [e.g., Yes, I want chocolatey truffle goodness sent to me!]. We'll go to private email to work out the details (and if you need it, here's my eddress and PGP key). You probably won't hear from me immediately, since I'm up to my elbows in various projects, but I'm anticipating being able to do these truffles this weekend. The investors who've sent money, and the other person with whom I've a business deal in progress, you needn't sign up below—your truffle booty is already spoken for. If I haven't covered all the bases and you have a question, you can save your spot in line by commenting something like, Yes I want chocolatey goodness, contingent on the answer to my question ... and then opt in or out after your question is answered.

Here are the terms you're agreeing to by leaving a comment saying you want me to send you chocolates:

1. First commented, first served. I'll try to accommodate everyone who wants chocolates, but I can't guarantee that'll happen.

2. You'll receive one of each flavor unless otherwise agreed. If you opt out of certain flavors, you may receive extras of the flavors you want—but that will depend upon demand.

3. The chocolates need to be specially shipped to get them to you fresh. It won't be cheap—but it should be worth it. I prefer to use FedEx (I've had bad experiences with UPS, and the Post Awful isn't called that just to be amusing). If you live in a warm region of the country, this'll mean overnight or 2nd-day shipping—again, not cheap. If you use a mail drop to receive packages, you should track your package and fetch it as soon as it arrives in order to keep the truffles from getting too warm.

4. In large part because of the constraints on shipping fresh food items, I can only ship to people in the USSA. Sorry 'bout that, those of you located elsewhere.

5. If you receive truffles (and you'll know if you've made the cut in advance of shipment, so you'll have an opportunity to opt out if need be), you agree to reimburse me for the full cost of shipping the truffles to you. This means postage only. Payment in cash or payee-blank money order is much preferred; I might have a PayPal payment option lined up by the time the candies ship but I can't guarantee that'll happen. If these options won't work for you we can talk about payment in silver or some other form.

6. When I make my truffles, I try very hard to avoid cross contamination, especially of nuts in non-nut flavors. But I can't guarantee that it doesn't occur—and since much of the chocolate I use is processed in plants where nut-chocolate bars are also processed, it may be a moot issue anyway. If you are extremely allergic to nuts, I don't recommend that you risk participating in this offering. If you're allergic to any of the items listed above and choose to participate anyway, I cannot be held liable for any ill effects that may befall you.

7. All email and location information exchanged in the course of this transaction will be kept in strict confidence by all parties involved. (That means I won't reveal your physical location, and you agree not to reveal mine.) I further agree that I will not use your personal information only for the purposes specified above, and for this transaction only. If I want to use any of your comments for promotional purposes, I will seek your permission to do so.

Sorry for all the mumbo-jumbo, but I want everybody to be clear on the deal. And now, let the chocolate lovefest begin!

Sunni

Comments: 10 people have contributed to the conversation

On Wednesday, May 3rd, at approximately 1:20 p.m. Mountain time, Erin said:

Oooh, ooh, pick me, pick me!

On Wednesday, May 3rd, at approximately 3:06 p.m. Mountain time, freeman said:

I'd definitely like some chocolate goodness too!

The peanut butter and mint julip flavors sound especially good. Chocolate and peanut butter is one of my all-time favorite food combinations.

On Wednesday, May 3rd, at approximately 3:23 p.m. Mountain time, jpheonix said:

chocoholic right here! would love to feed my habit from a freedom loving business. my husband would love to taste test too

On Wednesday, May 3rd, at approximately 7:49 p.m. Mountain time, B.W. Richardson said:

I like chocolate AND raspberries. Will you take four volunteers???

On Thursday, May 4th, at approximately 7:05 a.m. Mountain time, Ginny said:

Though it pains me to do so, yes I will try your truffles ;-). I would love some homemade chocolates!

On Thursday, May 4th, at approximately 7:06 a.m. Mountain time, Ginny said:

OH, and I'll try any or all of them. Whatever you want.

On Friday, May 5th, at approximately 5:54 a.m. Mountain time, Happy Curmudgeon said:

I'd love to be one of your taste testers.

On Friday, May 5th, at approximately 8:42 a.m. Mountain time, Sunni said:

Okay, I think I can guarantee you six can get some truffles. Anyone else signing up after this point, we'll just hafta see how lucky you are ...

On Monday, May 8th, at approximately 10:59 a.m. Mountain time, SRS said:

This sounds heavenly!

Am I too late?

On Tuesday, May 9th, at approximately 9:07 a.m. Mountain time, Sunni said:

Unfortunately, yes ... for this round. I'll probably be doing a similar offering next month. If it's any consolation, I didn't get to the cardamom truffles, so they'll be up next.

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