Shooter fires pure 'choco pleasure'

THE EASTER weekend will see millions of children - and more than a few adults - taking part in Easter egg hunts and eating perhaps a bit too much chocolate, but one chocolatier has taken tasting the treat to a whole new level.

Dominique Persoone has created a “chocolate shooter” that allows users to shoot powdered chocolate mixed with mint and either ginger or raspberry up their nose - and they're proving popular with French chocolate lovers.

Inspired by a device his grandfather used to propel tobacco snuff up his nose, Mr Persoone originally created the chocolate-sniffing device for a party organised for Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood in 2007. He has now sold more than 25,000 of them. At first they were only available at his store in Bruges, Belgium, but now they are being sold worldwide.

The shooter’s website claims research has shown sniffing cocoa, some laced with raspberry or ginger and mint, provides an enhanced chocolate experience. It comes with a warning against excessive sniffing, but Mr Persoone - who has worked with the likes of Heston Blumenthal - insists it is safe.

Image: BFMTV screengrab