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Top 10 Places to Eat Gourmet Chocolate

1. Jacques Torres Chocolate - Brooklyn, N.Y.

2. Byrne & Carlson - Portsmouth, NH  

3. Candinas Chocolatier - Verona, Wis 

4. Martine's Chocolates - New York 

5. Fran's Chocolates, Ltd. - Seattle and Bellevue, Wash.

6. Confections by Michael Recchiuti - San Francisco 

7. Garrison Confections - New York 

8. Norman Love Chocolates - Fort Myers, Fla. 

9. Donnelly Fine Chocolates - Santa Cruz, Calif. 

10. XOX Truffles - San Francisco
10. Ah! Some Chocolates - Shavertown, PA

 
Best Chocolatiers in America

1. The Chocolate Garden - Coloma, MI

2. Linda Grishman Chocolates of Vermont

3. Vosges Haut-Chocolat - Chicago

4. Fritz Knipschildt - Norwalk, CT

5. Payard - New York

6. Ah! Some Chocolates - Shavertown, PA
7. Lake Champlain Chocolates - Burlington, VT
8. Green Mountain Chocolates - Waterbury, VT
9. Ghirardelli - San Francisco, CA
10. Hershey - May not be the best but its the biggest. Great for the family

Honorable Mention

Neuchatel Chocolates - Oxford, PA

Chocolate Websites

Godiva Chocolate

Chocolate.com 

Chocolate: The Exhibition
DOVE Chocolate

The Sweet Science of Chocolate! 

Candy USA! 
M&M'S Chocolate Candy

Shop 4 Chocolate - Gourmet Chocolates 
Snickers.com - Candy bars with chocolate, nougat, peanuts and caramel.

THE WILLY WONKA CANDY FACTORY

Chocolate Lover Festival - Fairfax, Virginia 

Types of chocolate
Several types of chocolate can be distinguished. Pure, unsweetened chocolate contains primarily cocoa solids and cocoa butter in varying proportions. Much of the chocolate consumed today is in the form of sweet chocolate, combining chocolate with sugar.

Milk Chocolate
Milk chocolate is sweet chocolate that additionally contains milk powder or condensed milk.

White Chocolate
"White chocolate" contains cocoa butter, sugar, and milk but no cocoa solids. Chocolate contains alkaloids such as theobromine and phenethylamine, which have some physiological effects in humans, but the presence of theobromine renders it toxic to some animals, such as dogs and cats. It has been linked to serotonin levels in the brain. Dark chocolate has been promoted for its health benefits, as it seems to possess substantial amount of antioxidants that reduce the formation of free radicals.

White chocolate is formed from a mixture of sugar, cocoa butter and milk solids. Although its texture is similar to milk and dark chocolate, it does not contain any cocoa solids. Because of this, many countries do not consider white chocolate as chocolate at all. Although first introduced by Hebert Candies in 1955, Mars, Incorporated was the first to produce white chocolate within the United States. Because it does not contain any cocoa solids, white chocolate does not contain any theobromine, meaning it can be consumed by animals.

Dark Chocolate
Dark chocolate is produced by adding fat and sugar to the cacao mixture. The U.S. Government calls this "sweet chocolate", and requires a 15% concentration of chocolate liquor. European rules specify a minimum of 35% cocoa solids. Dark chocolate, with its high cocoa content, is a rich source of the flavonoids epicatechin and gallic acid, which are thought to possess cardioprotective properties. Dark chocolate has also been said to reduce the possibility of a heart attack when consumed regularly in small amounts. Semisweet chocolate is a dark chocolate with a low sugar content. Bittersweet chocolate is chocolate liquor to which some sugar, more cocoa butter, vanilla and sometimes lecithin have been added. It has less sugar and more liquor than semisweet chocolate, but the two are interchangeable in baking.

Unsweetened Chocolate
Unsweetened chocolate is pure chocolate liquor, also known as bitter or baking chocolate. It is unadulterated chocolate: the pure, ground, roasted chocolate beans impart a strong, deep chocolate flavor.