Baileys Chocolat Luxe heralds chocolate innovation

Baileys is launching a Belgian chocolate liqueur it claims is “ground breaking” for fusing real chocolate with Irish whiskey.

Baileys Chocolat Luxe is hailed as ground breaking for marrying real chocolate with Irish whiskey

Baileys Chocolat Luxe is a blend of Belgian chocolate, cream and Irish whiskey designed to replicate as closely as possible the experience of drinking pure melted chocolate.

Anthony Wilson, son of Baileys creator Steve Wilson and lead innovation scientist at Diageo, took three years to develop Baileys Chocolat Luxe having experimenting with over 200 different kinds of chocolate from around the world.

According to Wilson, the act of blending real chocolate with whisky proved cumbersome, primarily as chocolate turns pink when added to strong alcohol, as well as getting the liquid to pour correctly with the correct texture and consistency.

“After years of scientific experiments, sometimes it is the smallest of changes that can provide a breakthrough,” he said. “By lowering the alcohol content by 1.3%, I discovered that the flavour of the whiskey drew out, rather than overpowering the sweet, smoky flavours of the chocolate.

“Baileys was the first liqueur to fuse whiskey and cream, and now, Baileys Chocolat Luxe heralds a world-first innovation in chocolate – the first time that real Belgian chocolate has been fused with alcohol. I am proud to be the one to say I helped make this happen.”

Baileys Chocolat Luxe (15.7% abv) contains 30g of Belgian chocolate in every 500ml bottle, resulting in an RRP of £16.99.

The release will form part of the core Baileys range and will be exclusively available at Harvey Nichols in London from 12 August ahead of a general release across Western Europe – the UK, Ireland, Spain, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Austria, France, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Italy and Switzerland – from October 2013.