Instead of opting to give dad a pair of socks or a gift card this Father’s Day, folks can gift their fathers a sweet virtual experience. Boulder Book Store will host a chocolate bar tasting, via Zoom, at 2 p.m. Sunday. Ahead of the event, a varied selection of eight handcrafted single-origin bars can be ordered through the store’s website and purchased via curbside pickup.

“Just as our taste buds have gotten more sophisticated about wine, cheese, craft ale and cuisine, we want to taste beyond the boring sameness of the Hershey’s and Cadbury we grew up with,” said John Lehndorff, a local food writer, who will lead Sunday’s tasting. “With good chocolate, you definitely get what you pay for.”

Lehndorff hosted an in-person chocolate tasting event at Boulder Book Store on Valentine’s Day and most recently did a cyber tasting for Mother’s Day. The food columnist and host of longstanding show “Nibbles Radio” on KGNU is excited to once again welcome fellow foodies into new territory.

“When Helena (Patsis-Bolduc) asked me to host a virtual gathering for Father’s Day, I said ‘yes,’ as a dad and a chocolate lover,” Lehndorff said.

Throughout the session, chocolate tasters will learn about the industry and share thoughts on the bars’ flavor, texture and subtleties.

“I taste the bars once a couple of days before the event to glean some tasting notes,” Lehndorff said. “Besides talking about the best way to taste chocolate, I’m always happy to suggest food and beverage pairing with particular varieties but we’ll be sampling as is, except for the all-important palate-cleansing beverage between chocolate bars.”

From aromatic mole and barbecue sauces to waffles, yogurt and dishes involving coffee, the antioxidant-rich super food has shown up in many of Lehndorff’s at-home dishes.

“I’ve loved all kinds of chocolate since I was a kid,” Lehndorff said. “It’s the essence of comfort and special moments and I’ve learned to cook with it. I often add a little cocoa when I am making sauces, chili and meat stews to add a little depth.”

Sunday’s online event is geared to foster togetherness, engage the senses and provide both knowledge and entertainment.

“This concept came about as a way to promote social warmth during social distance,” said Helena Pastis-Bolduc, Boulder Book Store co-owner and gift buyer. “We did the Mother’s Day chocolate event and it was fun and well-received and we thought dads deserve the same treatment. In our previous event, whole families were getting together and tasting chocolate.”

In addition to providing the public with literary gems, Boulder Book Store is quickly becoming a purveyor of some of the finest varieties of artisanal chocolate. All bars featured in the virtual tastings are sold at the Pearl Street store.

“Last Valentine’s Day we had an event at the book store that brought in 360 people,” Pastis-Bolduc said. “We curated 130 different bars for that event. The Boulder Book Store is becoming a well-known establishment among chocolate makers as an ally to diffuse and propagate the current bean-to-bar crafted chocolate evolution.”

Tickets to the Zoom event are $10 and include a free Arete Fiji 70% bar, a favorite of Pastis-Bolduc, that originally rings in at $12.45. Participants will have to purchase at least two other bars on the list.

“For the Father’s Day tasting, I selected bars that I believe will please a more male taste,” Pastis-Bolduc said. “Just like in the previous event, for Mother’s Day, I selected bars that were more fruity and flower tasting. This time we have coffee, rum, darker and stronger bars with more chocolate content. I think the whole selection of eight bars is very unique for this event, because we normally carry such a large variety of bars at the store.”

From bars created with goat milk from Hawaiian chocolatier Manoa to an offering by Goodnow Farms crafted in a copper still using small-batch Lawley’s Rum and Ecuadorian cacao that retails for $19.20, the options stretch far beyond an average Kit Kat or box of Russell Stover.

“When you seriously appreciate handmade, responsibly sourced bean-to-bar sweets you have an ‘a-ha’ moment,” Lehndorff said. “You realize that chocolate isn’t so much a flavor but a wide world of nuances, aromas and tastes from sweet to savory.”

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