Chocology Today

“With the health of a nation deteriorating, studies are showing that cacao contains interesting health benefits that could reverse the effects of a fast-paced lifestyle.” Center for Flavonoid Research, White Paper Supplemental: University Studies At Chocology, we are interested in all aspects of chocolate, including reasons why we want to and should eat it. Spawned by an article in the Huffington Post, “17 Reasons You Should Eat Chocolate Every Day” we went on a search to prove why we really should eat chocolate every day. Who doesn’t love chocolate? It’s rich, luscious taste and consistency has enamored young and old alike for centuries. We all feel a little guilty when we eat it, don’t we? But what if indulging in chocolate is not as bad as we originally thought? In fact, what if it actually saves lives? In recent years, the study of the effects of cacao on the human body has increased at Universities around the world. A publication from The Center for Flavonoid Research suggests that eating cacao daily provides many health benefits including the healing of certain chronic ailments.  Another article published by Dr. Bret S. Stetka at Medscape.com also suggests benefits of eating chocolate and even offers amounts that should be consumed daily to attain these benefits. So what are the benefits? Here are just five benefits of eating quality chocolate on a daily basis.

Lowers Blood Pressure

In his article on Medscape, Dr. Stetka references a study that suggests that 3.5 ounces of dark chocolate per day for a month can lower blood pressure by 2.27/2.20 mm HG. That’s quiet impressive! The blood-pressure-lowering properties are attributed to the flavanols found in cacao.

Lowers Risk of Mortality Due to Heart Failure

According to Stetka, a study published in European Heart Journal found that “daily dark chocolate consumption over a 4-week period improves endothelial and platelet function in patients with congestive heart failure. Chocolate consumption has also been associated with a lower incidence of myocardial infarction and mortality from coronary heart disease.” Now there’s a great reason to eat chocolate every day!

Improves Mental Acuity

Professor David Kennedy of Northumbria University in England conducted a study exploring the benefits of chocolate on the human brain. His group suggests that high levels of flavonoids found in quality dark chocolate can improve brain function when performing mentally challenging tasks, such as counting backwards from 999. They also found that subjects were less tired after performing these tasks.

Lowers Risk of Stroke

As stated by Stetka, Neurology published a study reporting that individuals who eat at least 1.8 oz of chocolate per week have a 17% lower risk for stroke compared with people who ate less.

Lowers BMI (You’ve got to be kidding!)

No, we’re not kidding. Frequent chocolate consumption is associated with a lower body mass index (BMI). The antioxidants found in cacao are believed to contribute to metabolic health, which in turn can help you stay trim. Universities around the world have recognized and proved some of the benefits of eating chocolate and studies are still being conducted.  Knowing your chocolate can yield great benefits not only to your palate but also to your health. Go ahead and have a bit every day! You may be very glad you did. Reference Websites: http://adampaulgreen.com/wp-content/resources/University_Studies_White_Paper.pdf http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/10/chocolate_n_5118120.html  

Meet Natalie -This morning we met with Natalie who was flying in from Cape Town—bless her heart after flying for 22 hours on Easter morning she still wanted to take her time to meet with us.  Natalie will be bringing in new business with Chocology.  Natalie was magical as David’s PA here in England.  She would always believe that something is possible and somehow she made it so.  I love her positive attitude and trust our new clients couldn’t be in better hands. Our final destination of this trip is the London Eye!  Madeline and I had the most lovely afternoon tea, the staff was charming and we were in the center of absolutely everything. After our hour ride we stolled along the River Thames and enjoyed the street fair (in the rain) and indulged in the sites and smells of the rich indian foods and the diversity of people only to be found in London.  It’s no wonder Madeline wants to move back here. Happy travels, Linda and Madeline

London Chocolate Tour We are staying out by the airport for the duration of our trip so that tomorrow morning we can meet an old friend and possible Chocology team member out at Terminal 3 at 10am. Yes, today is once again back to work—we must indulge again in more chocolate.  We engaged in secret shopping in order to check out some of the competition.   Madeline even drew some images of the competitors products on the iPad! Yes, I know our products and how we wish to service our customers but I also want to know what our customers are doing.  I don’t want to miss anything.  When I was an Inn Keeper in Maine I was sure to sleep (and shower) in every room just so I would know how each guest might experience their room. As we were entering the tube station Madeline said to me “Mama why do you always tell me where we are going—every little detail?”  I stopped, then asked her to close her eyes and then I turned her around a couple of times to disorient her and then started dragging her along with me.  She looked at me with a big question mark on her face and I explained to her how Knowledge is Power and don’t you feel more in control when you know where you’re going and what’s coming next?  She said “yes” and then I had her get us into Leicester Square.  Now she knows her way around the London tubes like a local. Happy travels, Linda and Madeline

London to Bath to Glastonbury -After breakfast we took the tube to the train to meet our dear friend Michelle and her family.  We met Michelle and her family when we moved to Port Jefferson, New York 8 years ago and Madeline went to school with her boys.  Sadly (for me) in October they moved home to England to be nearer Michelle’s mum. But now it appears to be a positive as Michelle will be packaging and shipping our Chocology orders here in UK!  I love that we are all connected as coworkers AND as people.  Life is good! When I mentioned to Michelle how much we love Indian food, her husband Joe whipped together a lovely Indian meal and we all enjoyed catching up and making Chocology plans.  It felt so good to be in a home and with good friends. Madeline and the chaps stayed up playing games until midnight!  It was so cute in the morning when they all said staying up late was great fun but “it wasn’t worth it in the morning.” Happy travels, Linda and Madeline

London -When we lived here the first thing I would do when anyone from America came over to visit was send them on the Big Bus Tour—which is exactly what I wanted for Madeline to do.  It’s a great way to get your sense of direction and at the very least get to see the sites of London.  Madeline loved spending the entire day sitting on the top of the double decker bus seeing all of London’s famous landmarks! I’d have to say Tower bridge was probably Madeline’s favorite.. and I’m confident that’s because for her 10th birthday we had a big ‘ol Lego party and the final mystery build was 18 kids building the 4,287 pieces Tower Bridge. It’s still sits proudly in my office at home. Pretty much as soon as I moved over to London I learned the best Indian food comes out of London and guess what?  Marriott Regents Park restaurant features Indian food and Chef Ali's Chicken Tika Masala was out of this world.  Oh it was good to just take a day off and enjoy a fabulous dinner at the hotel and then sleep like rocks. Happy Travels, Linda and Madeline p.s.  Madeline absolutely love, love, loves London.  She says "The people are so refined, and helpful and the city is busy and quiet at the same time".  She also loves how the people respect history.  She'd move here in a heartbeat.

Our First day in London -First thing this morning I met with our web designer, Denise.  I’m so happy she’s going to stay on and work with us as well as take on the responsibility of the Chocology Unlimited site.  She’s so positive; she didn’t even flinch when I asked her to be sure the website looks good not only on a desktop but on the iPads and Smartphones as well… After a lovely breakfast, we were frustrated because we STILL couldn’t get Madeline’s wifi working.  The hotel staff as well as their tech department couldn’t get it working and then Madeline said “Ethernet Cable!” and all was well with the world.  Just a short taxi ride over to St John's Wood High Street we picked up a British phone and sent some chocolate home to some of Madeline’s friends.  Then we went immediately over to the Apple store on Regents Street.  As always, they were just as impressive as the other Apple stores and spent an hour explaining the differences between US and UK network access. Later we enjoyed a scrumptious dinner at Fortnum & Mason and were very happy to be able to read the menu.  Back in the hotel that evening, Madeline created a business flow chart of how our Chocology orders will flow.  It was very easy to understand.  Her diagrams, illustrations and logical sequence process was spot on!  I love the way she thinks! Happy Travels, Linda and Madeline p.s. Any questions?  Drop us a line at:  info@chocology.uk.co or email me at linda@chocology.co.uk

Chocology: What started as a dream is now a sweet adventure. Know Your Chocolate, Acknowledge Your Dreams. Yield to Chocolate, Realize Your Dreams! Oxford, England. April 9, 2014 Chocology ltd., first launched in Oxford Covered Market in 2001 and is reemerging and rebirthing its efforts to provide the most exquisite chocolates, servicing farms shops, independent chocolate shops and discriminating chocolate connoisseurs all across the UK. Linda Johnson, Owner and Managing Director of this online shop Chocology, along with her 12 year old daughter, Madeline hope to empower their customers to contemplate chocolate in a new way. Their dream of a family business, where Madeline could be a full participant, has been realized through Chocology and they want to inspire their customers to see that chocolate can assist them in reaching their dreams as well. Linda says, "I've wanted to have a family business ever since I can remember; life such as it is, the timing was never quite right. The moment I discovered Chocology, I knew it was the ideal business for our family. Madeline is passionate about chocolate, the smell, taste and the look of it and so am I! Chocology provides us an exceptional opportunity to study chocolate and bring our customers along with us for the ride. The future of Chocology encompasses endless possibilities...our dream come true." This Mother-Daughter Duo plan to launch several new products throughout the next year. Chocology products go beyond your normal run-of-the-mill chocolate. Each chocolate, a miniature work of art, is packed to order and never warehoused. Chocology chocolates are hand finished, containing 100% cocoa butter and cream combined with the highest quality natural ingredients available. Each decadent morsel is hand finished with careful artistic style. High in cocoa mass and low in sugar content, this chocolate is actually healthy. Scientific research has recently confirmed chocolate is good for your heart. Johnson states, "For the past several months we've worked very closely with former owner John Partington. We want to keep what's working-working and expand on that." Last week Johnson and Madeline spent time touring and tasting chocolate in Belgium--the chocolate capital of the world. Linda describes that experience saying, "We loved visiting our Chocology chocolate supplier and learning all about the science of how they make our chocolate so special--we even collaborated to develop a unique new product." "Chocology--the study of chocolate," says Madeline, "need I say more? It doesn't get any better than that!" As a family owned business, Chocology prides itself on its unique approach to the chocolate business, focusing on exceptional chocolate, personal customer service and superior quality. Chocology will soon be offering something special for everyone, Best gift ever--monthly themed chocolate gifts. Enhance your gift giving experience, with a 5% off coupon for your first order. The Johnson's have big lans for the future. Chocology Unlimited will be expanding to the Americas in summer 2014. For more information please contact Linda Johnson at linda@Chocology.co.uk or linda@ChocologyUnlimited.com Follow them @ ChocologyToday.wordpress.com    

Brussels, Belgium -Madeline slept in late and this afternoon she and I took a chocolate workshop! The shop was within walking distance of our hotel and it was good to step away from everything and clear my head.  We made our own truffles and discovered even more secrets of the chocolate makers. FINALLY at 7 o'clock in the evening, our dreams came true and we were officially the new owners of Chocology Limited in the UK. John and I spent hours going through paperwork until seriously, I couldn't see straight anymore. It was a fine day! Happy travels! Linda and Madeline Owner and Managing Director http://www.Chocology.co.uk Know Your Chocolate, Acknowledge Your Dreams.  Yield to Chocolate, Realize Your Dreams!

Brussels, Belgium - We had planned to close on the business today and I was very excited to close on my father's birthday HOWEVER; numerous last minute back and forth between Solicitors  and 3 time zones kept us from doing so---my stomach was in knots the entire day, I hadn't slept, I hadn't eaten.  The solicitors coupled with technology problems (I couldn't make phone calls for half the day, our UK bank wouldn't recognize my PIN number and my Skype didn't work...ugh) combined to make it a long, frustrating and disappointing day during most of which I was holding in tears and there was a huge lump in my throat. So anyway, after an emotional day, I remembered; all I can do is "Keep Calm and Carry On" And fortunately I did so and before I fell asleep; I had a solid plan for tomorrow! Happy travels, Linda and Madeline

Meeting "our" Chocolatier and Suppliers Brussels, Belgium -This morning we toured OUR (I use the collective our) Chocolatier with a behind-the-scenes look at making the chocolate. The tour was exceptional and the chocolate mouth-watering. We learned all about the chocolate making process and of course, Madeline was impressed to be able to taste along the way! We had a quick lunch in the car and then onto the packaging company...which was also a great treat! We spent hours looking at all of the lovely packaging and dreaming of the future. It's not everyday one has this opportunity. We'll tell you all about this process once we get home to America and digest. My head is still spinning. We'll also add in photos (where we can) The only downside of the day is that we were unable to connect Madeline's laptop to the hotel wifi and she was very much looking forward to skyping with her friends from Belgium. Happy travels, Linda and Madeline p.s. we plan to close on the business tomorrow in honor of my fathers birthday!

Brussels, Belgium -John ( the seller of the business we are going to buy) and I have SKYPED many times over the past month but this was our first time meeting in person. He very kindly picked us up at the airport and brought us to our hotel which was right in the heart of Brussels. After checking into the hotel and freshening up a bit (we were running on zero sleep) we were off with John on a walking tour around the Sablon district to orient us to the area. Home to some of the some of the worlds most famous chocolatiers such as Neuhaus, Leonidas, Laurent Gerbuad..., there's no denying Belgium makes the worlds best chocolate so where better to learn about chocolate then in Brussels with it's 2,000 plus chocolate shops. Madeline and I indulged in as many different chocolates as we could each time John explaining to us the differences and history. We visited 5 famous chocolatiers in total and organized some chocolate classes and workshops for our next visit. We walked until we couldn't walk anymore. For our last stop John introduced us to a chocolatier whose creations are unlike anyone else's we seen. I love to share more but honestly we earned so much today my head is spinning and quite honestly I don't remember if the meeting was proprietary or not therefore I shall not share his name at the moment. Anyway, there I had the most sinfully delicious cup of hot chocolate and it was the perfect way to end our first day in Belgium. Happy travels, Linda and Madeline