STOKE FERRY & DISTRICT LADIES GROUP

At 9.30am on August 9th, 23 members & guests left Stoke Ferry on a Harrods mystery coach tour. Our driver, Adam, took a devious route to keep us guessing, until we arrived at our first stop, the market town of Saffron Walden. Although it was raining lightly, we all managed to explore the many little lanes & individual shops. However, on leaving our chosen lunch venues, the heavens had opened, and most of us got extremely wet walking back to the coach. After a short journey, our spirits were lifted when we arrived at our 2nd stop, a farmhouse in Steeple Bumpstead which displayed a sign saying “The Chocolate lady”. We were shown into a large room, where “The Lady” in question, Julie Sherry, gave an interesting talk & demonstration on chocolate-making. We were given tasters of the different sorts, & one special hazelnut cup that she had made for each of us. Julie explained that chocolate is graded by the %age of cocoa solids it contains, & that the legal limit for it to be labelled chocolate is a minimum of 39%. We were then each served with tea or coffee & a jam & fresh cream scone. Handmade chocolates & truffles were available for us to buy if we wished. The coach then returned to Stoke Ferry, arriving home at 6pm. Members thanked Mrs Gillian Smith for organising the day, which was enjoyed in spite of the monsoon! The next meeting will take place on Sept 6th, and will be a talk on bee keeping by Fred Lucas. Claire Lankfer ( secretary )