Chocolate Shop in Munich

Last Friday I went on a day trip to Munich (one of my favorite cities in Germany) and stumbled upon a lovely chocolate shop: Stolberg Schokoladen, located in the heart of downtown. I have never seen such a wide selection of chocolates from different national and international companies. The shop felt very cozy despite the slighty cool air (to keep the chocolate from developing the undesirable white "bloom" due to temperature fluctuations). Each inch of shop space was covered with chocolates (bars, truffles, cocoa etc.) and other related products. The best part of the shop was that there were so many samples available. Who doesn't love samples? I find shops that don't offer samples kind of suspicious, like they have something to hide. And shop owners that don't offer samples make the impression of being cheap, a word that I do not like to see in combination with food.

Of all the samples I tried the weirdest sample was coriander seeds covered in chocolate. To say it in one sentence: I prefer my coriander in Indian cooking. But the chocolate-covered anise seeds offered by the same company (unfortunately I cannot recall the company's name) were delicious.

Here is a brief description of what I bought. Before I continue, however, I must say that this was the first chocolate specialty shop I have come across whose chocolates ALL tasted fresh and did not have any bloom!

• Dark chocolate nougat bar ("dunkel") by the German company Nougabella: very good flavor, especially the roastiness of the hazelnuts, but the filling is kind of sticky, reminiscent of peanut butter
• Marzipan bar "noisette" (with nougat) by Danish company Summerbird: good flavor, but I had expected more of the nougat filling and less marzipan, very good nonetheless 
• Dark chocolate nougat bar "noir praliné" by the Belgium company Le Chocolatier Manon: this was by far my absolute favorite; great hazelnut taste, great mouthfeel and delicious dark chocolate coating 
• Dark chocolate coconut sticks by the German company Mayer Junior: yummy! say goodbye to "Bounty" coconut bars, these were fantastic!