December 6th is St. Nicholas day when children in some countries put their shoes outside and St. Nicholas fills them. (I'm writing this on 8 December.)
It was also day six to open our Advent Calendar to reveal another Auer chocolate. As Rick put on his gloves, hat and Sherlock's leash, I opened the little box, bit half of the chocolate and put the other half in his mouth. As good as Auer chocolates are indoors, the flavor is even stronger in the cold.
I spied the calendar in the window of Auer's Chocolate well over a decade ago. It's my favorite chocolaterie. Walking in, I'm surrounded by the aroma of chocolate. The case is full of all types of small squares of chocolate. Each is something you savor - no swallowing one after another as one might with say M&Ms. I prefer to hold it in my mouth and letting it melt as slowly as possible. Even after it's gone, the memory of the taste lingers.
When American diplomat John Kerry is in Geneva, it is said he always goes to Auer's. I don't know if it is true or not, but as a Bostonian living on Beacon Hill ('m a former Bostonian too and that city always will be in my heart) it is the quality he would appreciate.
Each year I bring out the red boxes and with the exception of two years, trek to Auer's to buy 24 different black chocolates. I take them home and with great tenderness fill each box. On the night of the 24th when all the boxes are empty, I will take the calendar and return it to its safe place ready for another year.
That doesn't mean I won't shop at Auer's when I walk by.
Note: Tomorrow I will publish chapter 4 of Lexington: Anatomy of a Novel.
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