The San Francisco International Chocolate Salon announces the 2007 Award Winners of its Chocolate Tasting Panel. The Salon, sponsored by TasteTV and TasteTV.com, welcomed over 2,000 chocolate aficionados, fanatics, buyers, and journalists who enjoyed 27 of the finest artisan and premium chocolatiers, in addition to wine, beverages, and Vermeer Dutch Chocolate Cream Liqueur.

The Chocolate Tasting Panel presented awards in categories such as Best Dark Chocolate, Top Artisan Chocolatier, Most Artistic Chocolate Designs, Most Luxurious Chocolate Experience, Best Organic Products, and Best Comfort Chocolates. Winners include Amano Artisan Chocolate, Charles Chocolates, L'Artisan du Chocolat, XOX Truffles, Poco Dolce, and The Xocolate Bar. To see the full list of awards, go to the Salon's website.

Organic and fair trade chocolates were well represented at the Salon, and speakers included chocolate perfumer Yosh Han, blogger Emily Stone of Chocolate in Context, Global Exchange's Adrienne Fitch-Frankel, and conceptual chocolate artist April Banks, Seneca Klassen of the Bittersweet Chocolate Cafe, food writer GraceAnn Walden, and New York's Reverend R. M. Peluso, who demonstrated how to use chocolate in spiritual meditation.

Because of the success of the first San Francisco International Chocolate Salon, TasteTV also announces that it will be sponsoring the Salon again next year in July 2008, as well as in Los Angeles in 2008. In addition, it will be launching an annual series of publications known as The Chocolate Guides, showcasing the chocolate makers, chocolatiers, bakeries, and matching wines of four North American regions. The first Chocolate Guide, the Western Edition, is scheduled for publication in fall 2007.

For more information about the San Francisco International Chocolate Salon, go to the website.