We are giving away FREE Chocolate!

Tune in to Pure Cocoa Podcast and find out how to you can get a sleeve of three chocolate golf balls for FREE! Golf balls are available in dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate. Episode #4 also contains information about how cocoa can aid losing weight and find out how to find us on television in a city near you.

Download the podcast thru iTunes or manually - the links are just to the right of this box.

Our online catalog has been updated now to include the descriptions of the current line of pralines offered by Galler Chocolate in America. Click here to link directly to our Praline Section of our online store.

Please feel free to browse our site and familiarize yourself with our selections of dark, milk and white chocolate pralines. This section is particularly helpful for those who want to know want types of chocolates are packaged in our ballotins (prepared boxes of chocolates).

Individual pralines may be custom ordered to include quantities in increments of half-pounds (20 pieces). However, Due to our chocolates being made of natural ingredients and without preservatives, we want to ensure freshness and no back orders for your ordering satisfaction, so we recommend that you call us directly at 1-877-Galler5 (877-425-5375) in these cases.

In essence, these lists and descriptions may not accurately depict our current inventory as we are very careful about the quality of our chocolate.

See you online in the store...

Share in our passion for chocolate,
Galler USA

In Episode #3, we spotlight Les Florales, the amazing collaboration that blossomed chocolate and flowers and made sending them together much easier. This episode also talks about Tropical Storm Ernesto, reminds our viewers of our special offers that will be expiring soon and projects our future podcasting schedule.

Also, remember if you would like to share your love of Galler Chocolate, you can join us on a future episode of Pure Cocoa Podcast. If you have a broadband connection, an external microphone and an AOL Instant Messanger (AIM) or iChat account, you can email us at podcasts@gallerusa.com and we will arrange to interview you over the internet and include the conversation in an upcoming episode.

Thanks for listening.

Share Our Love For Galler Chocolates,
Galler USA

We are preparing for the arrival of Tropical Storm Ernesto. At this time we are being told not to expect Ernesto to develop into a hurricane. However, we are being told that we may see up to 15 inches of rain in the next 24 hours with winds in the 40-70 mph range. For those not familiar, Galler USA is located where 'the X marks the spot' on the above map less than 2 miles from Ft. Lauderdale beach.

Galler USA Chocolates does not expect this storm to impact us in any major way. Shipments of chocolates may be delayed dependent on service in and out of area airports. We will keep you appraised of the situation as it develops.

We are assured our website is protected by back-up generators, so please enjoy online shopping while we 'batten down the hatches'.

Thank you all for your concerns and well-wishes.

Galler USA

We have updated our online catalog with three items from our print catalog. Now available are our chocolate bars and tablets in prepackaged assortments (for a slightly discounted price) and the ability to purchase our shortbread in a container suitable for gifting.

Please use the link for our online store to the right and select our New Items category.

Share in our passion for pure cocoa chocolate,
Galler USA

For a limited time only: Exclusive Galler Chocolate Golf Balls are on sale for $5.90 (originally $9.95) for a set of three. Each trio set comes in a traditional golf ball sleeve and can be purchased containing either dark chocolate, milk chocolate, white chocolate, or a special set containing one of each.

The direct link to our online store's 'Seasonal & Holiday' section is here .

Remember, this is a special promotion and only while supplies last.

We would like to stress the word "potential" here as the following was a preliminary study:

French researchers with the company BIOAlternatives, claim that the polyphenols in cocoa beans have a powerful impact on stopping the spread of cancerous prostate cells.

Test showed that malignant cells, exposed to high does of cocoa extracts, were prevented from spreading with no harm coming to adjacent healthy cells.

This appears to be lab based study without examination on cells within a person. Cancer Research UK has warned that despite the promise of the study, "We are a very long way from giving chocolate bars to prostate cancer patients."

SOURCE: Daily Mail

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Galler USA Note: If there is any truth to be borne from this in the future, it seems clear that only pure cocoa with a high cocoa mass content (like our dark chocolates) will likely provide any benefit. This study seems to be in keeping with other research (some of which is posted on this blog) showing cocoa providing vast heath benefits.

Share our passion for pure cocoa chocolate,
Galler USA

We apologize to our loyal fans and following about not posting Episode #3 today. Our website has required a bit more attention this week than usual. We hope to bring you the next episode next week.

Remember, the Coupon code presented in the first two episodes is valid till the end of the month. Feel free to download our previous podcasts to get the code.

See you next week.

Peace, Love and Chocolates,
Brett

Some would consider it a dream situation to be trapped in a vat of chocolate. We are pretty sure Darmin Garcia, a 21-year old in Wisconsin would not agree with you. Last Friday, Garcia was working in a chocolate factory and slid into a 110-degree (F) hopper of chocolate. The chocolate was thick enough to prevent Garcia from moving. Cocoa Butter had to be added to thin the mixture enough to remove him after two hours. He was treated for minor burns (110-degrees is hotter than most hot tubs, by the way).

Source: Washington Post Online

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Galler USA Note: Please do not try this at home. We recommend eating chocolate at room temperature and not getting involved with HOT chocolate that is contained in anything bigger than the cup you are lifting to your lips.

We are proud to announce the addition of four gift boxes and a ballotin (prepared praline box) to our online Galler Chocolate Catalog.

Now available in our Prepared Box - Ballotin Section are the 'Prestige', 'Gourmet', 'Dégustation', and 'Découverte' gift box sets and the 'Etui Classique' Ballotin. The gift boxes offer a variety of Galler products with the Prestige set being capped with a bottle of Champagne. The Classic ballotin is an entry level prepared box ($6.90) of our Pure Cocoa, All-Natural pralines.

We hope you enjoy these additions.

Peace, Love and Chocolates,
Brett

We received a fresh shipment of chocolate tablets today. Three tablets we were previously out of (Noir 85, Noir 70 and Lait Pleine Saveur) have been re-stocked and are available in-store and online.

Noir 85 and Noir 70 are our solid dark chocolate tablets made of 85% and 70% cocoa mass content, respectively. Lait Pleine Saveur is our solid milk chocolate tablet with a 32% cocoa content (minimum). All tablets weigh 100 grams (3.5 ounces).

Just click on the Online Shopping link to the right and then the Bars and Tablets section to order online.

Happy shopping.

Peace, Love and Chocolates,
Brett

If you have been waiting for an excuse to come visit our store on Las Olas Blvd. in Ft. Lauderdale - now you have it.

We have posted a valuable coupon in Google Maps. Search for directions to our store by using Google Maps and you can print a coupon to save 10% off a prepared box (ballotin) of pralines. This coupon is good until the end of August.

Our Ballotins consist of dark, milk and white chocolate and are the best possible way to experience the variety found in Galler Chocolates. Remember we are "The" Belgian Chocolate and our chocolates are made of Pure Cocoa and are All-Natural.

Hope to see you in the store soon.

Peace, Love and Chocolates,
Brett

In Episode 2, find out how cocoa can benefit your cardiovascular health, save on both Cat's Tongues (Langues de Chat) and your overall online order, and learn how to be heard on upcoming episodes.

Episodes are available in both MP3 and MPEG-4 (iTunes Enhanced). Links for our podcast page, rss feed, and iTunes subscription are located on the right side of this page.

Remember, you have to listen to get the discounts...

Enjoy and let us know what you think.

Peace, Love, and Chocolate,
Brett

For a limited time only, Cat's Tongues or Langues de Chat (with praline only) are discounted 33% when you purchase three or more of each item. Currently in stock are the Milk Chocolate with praline in both the box and the tin, as well as the Dark Chocolate (70%) with praline in the collector's tin.

Don't miss out on this opportunity!

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For Milk Chocolate w/praline (boxed) click here.

For Milk Chocolate w/praline (collector's tin) click here.

For Dark Chocolate (collector's Tin) click here.

We are entertaining the idea of having a Galler Chocolate Fan join us on Pure Cocoa Podcasts.

Chosen fans will be able to share their love of Galler Chocolate with others by highlighting their favorite product and offering a quick anecdote. Requirements are simple: Have a broadband connection, an account on either AOL Instant Messanger (AIM) or iChat and a decent microphone/headset to chat in audio mode (built-in mics are not adequate - sorry). The interview will be recorded and featured in an upcoming episode. Just email us at podcasts@gallerusa.com and we will make the necessary arrangements. It's that simple.

Looking forward to your emails...

Peace, Love and Chocolates,
Brett

Chocolate quips and quotes:

“Chemically speaking, chocolate really is the world’s perfect food." -- Michael Levine, nutrition researcher, as quoted in “The Emperors of Chocolate: Inside the Secret World of Hershey and Mars."

Chocolate’s effects on the body: According to Italian researchers, women who eat chocolate regularly have a better sex life than those who deny themselves the treat. Those consuming the sugary snack had the highest levels of desire, arousal and satisfaction from sex.

The celebrated Italian libertine Giacomo Casanova (1725-1798) took chocolate before bedding his conquests because of chocolate’s reputation as a subtle aphrodisiac. More recently, a study of 8,000 male Harvard graduates showed that chocoholics lived longer than abstainers, possibly due to the high polyphenol levels in chocolate.

“Life is like a box of chocolates.... You never know what you’re gonna get." -- Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks) in “Forrest Gump."

Chocolate-covered what? In different regions of the world, the following 'foods' are known as delicacies when covered in chocolate: Ants, crickets, potato chips, coffee beans, mealworms, scorpions, cicadas, bacon.

SOURCE: tuscaloosanews.com Aug. 9, 2006
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Galler USA Note: We do not carry any of the 'delicacies' listed above.

Our entry into the podcasting medium has begun. Pure Cocoa Podcast presented by GallerUSA.com is a rather entertaining method to communicate chocolate and cocoa news, events, history and information to our world-wide community. Also included in this podcast is a coupon code good for 15% off any online purchase, good until the end of August.


Web addresses are provided, as well as hot links at the bottom of this post and in the static links section to the right. We highly recomend you subscribe to this podcast as well as our Blog so you don't miss anything important. The URLs are:

Podcast Page:
http://gallerusa.libsyn.com

RSS Subscription Feed:
http://gallerusa.libsyn.com/rss

Please feel free to comment and let us know what you think about the 'cast. These podcasts are for you - so don't hesitate to ask us to address a particular topic, or ask a specific question for an upcomming episode. If you do have any specific podcast questions or comments, please direct them to ' podcasts@gallerusa.com '. We intend on publishing the podcasts about every two weeks, dependent on demand.

Thank you for your support and hope to hear from you soon.

Peace, Love and Chocolates,
Brett

Originally Published by WebMD, Aug. 4, 2006 and linked in its entirety below.

By Jennifer Warner
Reviewed by Louise Chang, M.D.
© 2006, WebMD Inc. All rights reserved.

Researchers found adults who drank a specially processed cocoa beverage rich in flavonols for four to six days improved their blood vessel function, and older adults appeared to benefit the most.

"Aging is typically associated with deterioration in vessel health, specifically related to function of the critical inner lining, or endothelium," says researcher Naomi Fisher, M.D., assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, in a news release. "Our findings demonstrate that consumption of this flavonol-rich cocoa can improve the function of blood vessels in a healthy elderly population."

Flavonols are a class of antioxidants found in plant-based foods and beverages — such as cocoa, wine, and tea — that have been increasingly linked to heart benefits.

Chocolate Is Good For The Heart

The results showed blood vessel function improved among both younger and older adults after the cocoa phase. But these improvements were more pronounced in the older group.

Researchers say the findings agree with previous studies that suggest flavonols found in cocoa appear to benefit blood vessel function by influencing the body's production of nitric oxide, which helps regulate blood vessel tone.

SOURCES:: Fisher, N. Journal of Hypertension. August 2006; Vol. 24: pp. 1575-1580.

Greater Ft Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau

We received mention today from the Greater Ft. Lauderdale Convention and Visitor Bureau in their blog about how delicious our chocolate is as well as how informative our website is. Thank you to LauderBlogger for the review. We are looking forward to satisfying your chocolate decadence in the future, Sir.

Here at Galler, we ask only that your own taste buds be the deciding factor and you not take for granted our word or the wonderful reviews we may receive. Just click on the link below and and shop our site for yourself.

Enjoy the decadence...
Peace, Love and Chocolate,
Brett
Galler USA

HACKETTSTOWN, N.J., July 26 (UPI) --A team of U.S. and German researchers finds that flavanol-rich cocoa has circulatory health benefits including brain and cardiovascular blood-flow improvement.

Two independent studies, one in a healthy elderly population and another in young healthy women, demonstrate that the consumption of flavanol-rich cocoa can increase blood flow to the brain, according to the Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology, in a supplement that focuses on the potential health benefits of flavanol-rich cocoa.

The scientists found that the regular consumption of flavanol-rich cocoa resulted in a significant increase in blood flow in hypercholesterolemic postmenopausal women, suggesting that this cocoa may improve vascular function in this population with higher cardiovascular risk.

In addition, researchers coupled studies of platelet function in humans with in vitro studies with highly purified flavanols from cocoa. The results of these studies support that cocoa flavanols may have beneficial effects on platelets and that certain flavanols and flavanol-rich cocoa itself may also reduce the cascade of events that can lead to vascular damage.
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Galler USA Notes: Now there is truly no excuse not to eat our all natural chocolate! The link below is the UPI source for the story...

Our 'Teas, Cocoa and Co.' section of our website has now been updated to include our line of international teas. Our teas include those classified as Black, Green, Red and Herbal. Additionally, we have teas from India, Ceylon, Japan, China, England and Africa to name a few. Prices range from $2.20 to $9.50 per ounce. Our teas are all natural and loose leaf.

Chocolate and Tea is a natural combination popularized by Jean Galler in Europe with the concept stores "Chocolat-Thé".

Don't miss out on these incredible blends. Just click on the link below to go directly to our Galler USA e-commerce store.

Looking forward to seeing you at the store...

Peace, Love and Chocolate,
Brett
Galler USA

Sample Les Florales for FREE...
We are offering FREE samplings with the purchase of half or one pound Ballotins. Receive 4 (one each) with every one-pound Ballotin purchase or get 2 (different floral pralines) with the purchase of a half-pound Ballotin.

What are Les Florales?
The Latest Creation From Jean Galler...

Cultivated from the collaboration with world-renowned Belgian florist Daniel Ost, these unique chocolate offerings possess an original texture and surprising lightness not found in other pralines.

As Jean Galler says himself, "A magician in the garden, 'The Wizard of Ost' brought me the scented flowers and I infused their essence into these pralines. Blossomed from the union of fresh flowers and chocolate, 'Les Florales' exudes a unique texture, with surprising lightness. Delicate as a flower."

The 'Les Florales' collection includes chocolates infused with Rose, Jasmin, Violet and Orange Blossom. You can find Les Florales located with our Prepared Boxes and Ballotins under the 'Order Our Chocolate' heading at our online store. The Blogger Link will take you directly to the page!

Peace, Love and Chocolate,
Galler USA

Originally published: July 18, 2006 - NY Times
By ANAHAD O’CONNOR

THE FACTS The Aztecs may have been the first on record to draw a link between the cocoa bean and sexual desire: the emperor Montezuma was said to consume the bean in copious amounts to fuel his romantic trysts.

Nowadays, scientists ascribe the aphrodisiac qualities of chocolate, if any, to two chemicals it contains. One, tryptophan, is a building block of serotonin, a brain chemical involved in sexual arousal. The other, phenylethylamine, a stimulant related to amphetamine, is released in the brain when people fall in love.

But most researchers believe that the amounts of these substances in chocolate are too small to have any measurable effect on desire. Studies that have looked for a direct link between chocolate consumption and heightened sexual arousal have found none.

The most recent study, published in May in the journal Sexual Medicine, looked specifically at women, who are thought to be more sensitive to the effects of chocolate. The researchers, from Italy, studied a random sample of 163 adult women with an average age of 35 and found no significant differences between reported rates of sexual arousal or distress among those who regularly consumed one serving of chocolate a day, those who consumed three or more servings or those who generally consumed none.

The study relied on self-reports. But it reflected what many researchers believe: if chocolate has any aphrodisiac qualities, they are probably psychological, not physiological.

THE BOTTOM LINE Research suggests that chocolate’s aphrodisiac properties, if any, are limited.

Not quite ready yet for our official kickoff announcement. We realize that nothing is perfect in this world (with a small exception made for Galler Chocolate), but we want to be sure our promotional giveaway to launch the blog is appropriate and rewarding.

So, stay tuned and don't wait to post. We know you are watching. Just email us at gallerusa@gmail.com to become a Team Member and get post creation authority; otherwise, you can comment on any of the posts presently here. Posting now will give you a leg up on the competition come time for any promotions or contests.

Looking forward to your comments, reviews and chocolate musings.

Peace, Love and Chocolate,
Brett S.
Internet Operations Manager
Galler USA

The grand launch of this blog is imminent. We are planning some promotions via this blog in conjunction with our e-commerce site (see the user supplied link) and this blog site's official commencement.

We hope for this blog to be an open forum for all to participate. This will allow persons to blog or review our store/website/products on your own. We are also planning some promotions and contests for those that post on the blog. To do this, you will have to be a team member. Membership in this blog will always be open (and of course free) and we encourage your participation.

To become a Team Member, just e-mail us at ' gallerusa@gmail.com ' with the Subject Line reading 'Blogger Team Member Request'. We will add you as a member within 24 hours in most cases.

Thanks for stumbling across this blog...Hope to see your Blogger Team Member Request in our inbox soon.

Peace, Love and Chocolates,
Brett
Galler USA

We have created this blog in anticipation of expanding the web community for our website at /gallerusa.com/. There will be regular and frequent posts made in the coming days. But, why wait for us...post away!

In the meantime, we would like to solicit your comments on our website as we upgrade and update the catalog. The site is functional now and new items are being added daily.

Can't wait to hear from you all!