The Local S’Lowdown: Meet Knoops!

We all know how much you lot love a hot chocolate and there’s no better place in Rye for a hot chocolate than Knoops.

Jens Knoops founded the first Knoops chocolate bar in Rye in 2013. It offers expertly crafted chocolate drinks and coffee too. It’s all about Knoopology! Here’s how it works – you start by choosing your preferred chocolate drink (hot chocolate, milkshake or mocha) and then you pick the chocolate percentage you want – to suit your taste. The menu ranges from 28% white chocolate right the way through to 100% extra dark! And all of the chocolate varieties over 54% are vegan friendly. Once you’ve decided on your percentage, the next choice you make is the milk – everything from dairy milk sourced from our local Northiam Dairies (side note/fun fact: the cows at Northiam dairies are fed throughout winter on hayledge from Swallowtail Hill’s wildflower meadows!), or you might prefer oat, almond, soya, coconut or lacto free. For a finishing touch you can add a little extra – maybe a pinch of sea salt, cinnamon or orange zest – the Knoopologists in store know some great combinations. Or you could just stick with the tried, tested and much loved – handmade marshmallow. DELICIOUS!

If you’ve a stay booked at Swallowtail Hill later in the year in the hope that by then we’ll be out of lockdown and feeling a bit more normal, make a plan to take a trip to Knoops when you visit Rye. Enjoy a drink while you mooch about the town, and buy some chocolate flakes to make your own around the campfire when you’re back at your cabin. After all – glamping isn’t really glamping unless there’s a hot chocolate involved somewhere!

‘That’s all well and good’ I hear you say –  ‘but you’ve got me craving hot chocolate right now! What can I do?’  Never fear – you can enjoy some Knoops in the comfort of your own home – because their range of chocolate flakes is available online, take a look at their shop. Treat yourself to the perfect cup of comfort during lockdown!