A Pop and a Crash

So the other night I was sitting in my living room with the back door open to let in some fresh air, and I hear a strange popping noise. I listen, the dog perks up and stares at the door...but nothing else happens. So I go back to what I'm doing, only to be startled by more popping. Finally I get up and shut the door, unnerved at not knowing what the strange sound is. As soon as I sit back down on the couch I hear what sounds like oddly muffled thunder...just over my house. One glance out the back window reveals all: A large branch from the neighbour's tree had broken from the trunk and landed partially on our roof and partly in our yard. It's still partially attached to the trunk, I think. I'm still not sure what to do about this...

An Open Door

This photo is fresh off the...well, phone! I took it just 15 minutes ago. This is my front door, and yes, we have it propped open, and yes, that is sunshine you see outside. It is 62 degrees (F) out there and it is only mid-February. Punxsutawney Phil predicted an early spring this year, and I guess he wasn't kidding! It's a beautiful day!

Les Petites Noirs 8

This is one of the two owners of Les Petites Noirs. Unfortunately I did not catch her name, but she is very knowledgeable; Not only about chocolate, but also about wine and coffee. She apprenticed with a candy-maker in New York for a few years to learn her chocolate craft. Now, obviously, she runs a successful chocolate shop in a small town in Oregon. It's nice to have people from all over the world in our little valley.

Les Petites Noirs 7

Here is the promised non-truffle chocolate display. Here they have toffee and chocolate bark. The toffee is flavoured with rum, coffee, and other selected items such as nuts and fruit. The chocolate bark has pistachios, walnuts, craisins, and perhaps some other things I'm forgetting. I taste-tested some coffee bean toffee and enjoyed it immensely. Les Petites Noirs allows for taste tests, so make sure you take advantage of that!

Les Petites Noirs 6

This picture I took just for the brilliant combination of colours. This sitting area is behind the display of non-truffle chocolates, which I will show you tomorrow. What a cozy area to enjoy some of the shop's specialty hot cocoa with friends in front of a roaring fire.

Les Petites Noirs 5

One of my favourite parts of the chocolate shop Les Petites Noirs is the white piano used as a display area. It looks as though at some point it might actually be used as a piano, since there is a bench provided, but I don't know when/if it has been. Perhaps for a wine and chocolate event at the shop? That sounds like fun...if you drink wine (which I don't). Again, the colours are stunning.

Les Petites Noirs 4

An example of the chocolate shop's recommended pairings. This set, including a Pinot Noir (I didn't notice the date) and 24 truffles, sells for around $70. Not a bad deal in my book.

Les Petites Noirs 3

Their display case is small, but it houses some interesting truffle flavours: Oak Chestnut, Lavender Vanilla, Chili Pepper, Apple Pie, and - no I am not making this up - Beet. Les Petites Noirs creates its chocolates to pair with wines. They taste local wines and pick up flavours in them that would make interesting truffles. They are happy to recommend wines to pair with their chocolates.

Les Petites Noirs

Les Petites Noirs is a gourmet chocolate shop in Milton-Freewater. It was featured in a Northwest travel magazine (I can't remember the name of it!) last year, along with chocolate shops in Spokane, Seattle, and Portland. I've visited this shop twice: once over a year and a half ago, and the second time just last week. This time I took pictures. It's a beautifully colourful shop located on Main Street (aka Highway 11) in Milton-Freewater. I hope you enjoy your tour of Les Petites Noirs this week.

Discovery

I took a drive with my daughter a few weeks back. We went out into the fields of the countryside surrounding Milton-Freewater, since there is so much of it to explore. I tried to take roads I hadn't been on before, and it seemed to work well; I found this road closer to town that is occupied by houses that are obviously owned by well-to-do families. This one caught my eye, as I thought it was quite beautiful. It has a nice size lot, as well. In order to not raise concern (people taking pictures of houses these days tend to rouse suspicion), I snapped a shot as I drove by the property.

Summertime Transport

I spotted this bike parked in front of a house on 4th Street in College Place and I instantly saw it in black and white. I love these old beach bikes...they're in style around these parts right now, though they aren't cheap bikes! This one was white and looked brand new. I'd love to take it for a ride on a summer evening.

Stately Homes 2

Another of the fabulous homes that have been here in Walla Walla for over a century. That may not seem old to some of you - those whose countries have been thriving since the years were only triple digits - but for us here in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, a hundred years is a long time! We're just little infants, but we enjoy our relatively recent history as well as you enjoy your ancient histories. For more information on this series, see yesterday's post.

Stately Homes 1

I hope to collect more photos of the beautiful homes around the WWV and post them here for you enjoyment. To begin with, we have this fantastically regal residence on Palouse Street, if I remember right. Isn't it gorgeous? And yes, real people still live here. It's not a museum, bed and breakfast, or law office. There are many houses of this sort around Walla Walla, built by affluent newcomers (mostly) during the 19th century.