Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser – Luxury Hot Chocolate At Home!

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I don’t drink tea. I don’t drink coffee. I didn’t even drink hot chocolate till my mid 20s. In fact I remember the first time I actually had a hot chocolate and thought, ‘oh I might like this now‘. It was in Starbucks in the Trafford Centre and I was with my friend Mike, who I used to work at The Disney Store with. It was a mint flavoured hot chocolate, perhaps a festive special, and whilst I didn’t drink all of it, I realised perhaps I could learn to drink hot chocolate after all.

Fast forward some fifteen years and hot chocolate is still the only hot drink I drink – unless you count the hot gin cocktail I discovered last Christmas!

Over the years, my loyalties have changed and fluctuated in terms of my preferred brand. I used to refuse Starbucks hot chocolate because you couldn’t get marshmallows and the hot chocolate itself felt too rich. The festive Costa Black Forest was a favourite for many years until they started messing about with the recipe and now I actively dislike it – it is far too sickly sweet for my taste these days and I haven’t drunk one for a couple of years.

But my most favourite hot chocolate of all time is a seasonal offering from Hotel Chocolat – the Salted Caramel and Clementine with all the cocoa whip.  (I’ve missed the whip so much this year!)

However, it all changed last Christmas when my sister bought me the Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser which might well be one of my most favourite gifts of all time. This is the ultimate gift for a lover of hot chocolate and something of a luxury. A gadget purely for making hot chocolate that costs more than your average kettle? There’s no denying its an investment and one that for many will raise the questions of “Is a Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser worth the money?”

The Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser is a collaboration with Dualit and quite frankly it’s a thing of beauty. Available in three colours – white, matte grey and copper, this isn’t a gadget to hide away in a cupboard (besides mine is in far too regular use to be bothered putting it away every time I’ve used it!)

How do you use the Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser?

The Hotel Chocolat hot chocolate maker itself couldn’t be simpler to use – fill to the line with your choice of milk (they recommend semi-skimmed milk but full fat makes a nice treat – you can also go plant based (my sister loves coconut in hers) or use water (I haven’t tried that one), pour in your sachet of chocolate flakes put on the lid and press go. Don’t make the mistake of putting the chocolate flakes into the machine before the whisk – that isn’t going to go well. 2.5 minutes later you’re pouring the perfectly blended and slightly frothy hot chocolate from your Velvetiser into your cup. A faultless, silky smooth and insanely delicious barista-grade hot chocolate every time.

You can use your Velvetiser to make chilled drinks and cocktails too but if I’m honest I’ve had little success with this so tend to stick to my tried & tested hot chocolates.

How do you clean the Velvetiser

The Velvetiser is super easy to clean – but I do recommend you do it as soon as you’ve used it. HC recommend you clean it by filling to the level with water and adding a drop of washing up liquid before turning it on (the froth that this creates is quite satisfying!)  The whisk itself can go in the dishwasher but you need to be careful with the machine – and treat it in the same way you would your kettle – it cannot be submerged in water!  I tend to find a quick rinse out and a wipe with some kitchen roll does the trick.  The darker hot chocolates seem to be harder to clean off but it really does only take a matter of moments.

People often ask if you can use other brands of hot chocolate in your Velvetiser but to be honest I don’t know why you would, and I certainly haven’t tried it – I’d be too worried about damaging it! (I’ve had a few messages from readers saying you can indeed use other chocolate in your Velvetiser, just be sure to grate it and weight it out carefully!)

Is the Hotel Chocolat Velevtiser worth the money?

For £99.95, you get the Velvetiser machine itself in a choice of three colours with two perfectly sized pod cups. You can also buy promotional “starter kits” as an add on.

Liquid Chocolat is available to buy in store or online in a choice of 250g tubs or single serve sachets – per gram the tub works out marginally cheaper (about 7p per drink) and is better in terms of the amount of packaging but the single serve sachets are convenient and ensure a perfectly measured 35g serving each time. It’s far too easy to sneak an extra spoonful of chocolate flakes into your Velvetiser if you’re using a tub – which will negate the pennies you saved and also add extra calories!

At £13 for 10 single serve drinks, £1.30 per hot chocolate initially seems quite expensive however it’s still considerably cheaper than your average take away hot chocolate and significantly better for you as there is no sugary rubbish or syrup in it (unless of course you choose to add it – but I can’t be friends with you any more if you wreck your drink like that!)

In fact, in the long run, I would go so far as to say my Velvetiser has saved me money as I no longer buy takeaway hot chocolate (and I would previously have bought at least two a week). I’ve had my Velvetiser for 10 months now and I think in that time I’ve only bought two takeaway hot chocolates – turns out I actually don’t like them anymore, I don’t even order hot chocolate when I’m out for a coffee with friends. It’s HC or nothing thanks.

Which is the the best flavour Hotel Chocolat hot chocolat?

When you first get your Velvetiser, I wholeheartedly recommend buying an “Everything” selection box to get a feel for the range and your tastes. Before I had the Velvetiser at home I was absolutely a Salted Caramel girl but over time I’ve realised I actually like the darker, richer flavours of the 50% Milky or Hazelnut Praline (that said, when the Salted Caramel & Clementine comes in stock at Christmas I’m buying the lot!). I find the 100% Dark Honduras to be fairly brutal, it feels like the hot chocolat version of drinking black coffee! I’m not a fan of the Chilli Dark or Ginger but that’s no reflection on the hot chocolate – they are just not flavours I like in any situation. I’ve recently tried the Raspberry White chocolate flavour – and whilst I don’t mind it, I don’t like it enough to invest in 10 sachets. I believe the guys at HC are looking into a pick and mix service after feedback from customers so that would be handy!

Look, basically, if you like your hot chocolate, buy a Velvetiser. You won’t regret it.

(By the way, you can get cashback on your Hotel Chocolat purchases with TopCashBack)

Read this next:

The best places to go for hot chocolate in Manchester

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