Argentina Travel Guide to Tasting the Best Chocolate and Beer in Bariloche

Chocolate lovers keen to try cocoa products from other countries
might want to spend winter cozied up in Bariloche, Argentina's premier
winter ski resort. Not only can you eat chocolate to your heart's
content, but afterward you can hit the slopes or hike through the
stunning, pristine landscapes of Patagonia to make room for the award
winning beers served in Bariloche's many microbreweries.Bariloche's
chocolate tradition began shortly after World War II when European
immigrants, primarily from Germany and Austria who originally settled
in Bariloche in the 1800s, began making chocolate from their homes. In
1928 the Swiss chocolatier Carlos Triberholn opened a small chocolate
shop in the city center. The store may have been small, but even
Willy Wonka must have started somewhere, and Tiberholn soon converted
the town's inhabitants into chocolate fanatics before unleashing his
creative methods to Bariloche's residents and his creations on the
world.Today Bariloche's city center has numerous small shops offering
chocolate in every form imaginable. Turista is a chocolate mall of
sorts, and there is the Del Fenoglio chocolate museum, and whatever
you do don't miss Mitre Street, a chocolate wonderland lined with
chocolate shops where you can watch the gourmet artisans at work.
Chocolate enthusiasts will find unique items like chocolate liquor and
eggs, as well as chocolate bars of all flavors, and truffles filled
with alcohol, or more chocolate, nut paste, or coconut.After doing
some of the numerous outdoor activities in Bariloche such as skiing,
trekking, taking a lake tour, horseback riding, or any other activity
that will adequately remove the extra 2,000 calories you just consumed
on your chocolate tour, head to one of the ten microbreweries in town
to put them right back on.The five best breweries are Antares,
Berlina, La Cruz, Cerverceria Blest, and Cerveza Artesanal Gilbert.
Antares has live music and is right downtown, Berlina has great views
and is a nice dinner spot, La Cruz attracts locals, Cerverceria Blest
is the most popular among travelers, and Cerveza Artesanal is family
owned and located on the way to and from some of Patagonia�s most
beautiful hikes.