The Lindt Chocolate Workshop in Zürich is 100% chocolate bliss

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Some people might credit the Mayas with the invention of chocolate.

Of course, they are right. But it took the inventiveness of the Swiss to turn the contents of cocoa beans into something that billions of earthlings will die for.

Because if it were not for the ingenious revelation that the brittle bars of the 1800s taste better when blended with Swiss milk powder, we would all still be sipping on Mayan Xocoatl.

It was in 1879 when one Rodolphe Lindt (pictured to the left of Mamiko) invented "conche," the secret tool that made chocolate all tender and is still used today to produce that smooth, silky Swiss chocolate we all love.

There is an expression in Swiss German for those hardly tough jobs: Schoggi Job.

This term was not coined by Mr. Stefan Bruderer, Lindt Maître Chocolatier, or any of his family members who hardly ever see him. That's because when Mr. Bruderer is not in his chocolate factory near Zürich sampling his way through a dozen variations of pralines that will boost the hashtag #chocolicious on Instagram, he may be visiting an indigenous market somewhere in the Amazon.

Mr. Bruderer, Lindt Maître Chocolatier, is pictured with Sommelière Cecile Richards:

Chocolate & Wine Tasting at Lindt in Zürich

Eating chocolate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner while traveling the world on company expenses is not precisely a Schoggi Job. Mr. Bruderer is also in charge of 16 Maîtres Chocolatiers at the Lindt corporate headquarters here in Zurich.

And while personnel management and running a chocolate factory sounds like a 200 percent gig already, Mr. Bruderer is also on the hook for inventing the next big (chocolate) thing...

When wine meets chocolate, magic happens.

On a recent weeknight, we were invited to meet the kind people at Lindt for their first-ever wine and chocolate tasting. Unfortunately, Roger Federer called in a last-minute cancellation. But even without him, we enjoyed the company of chocolate lovers as we tasted our way through some very exclusive pairings.

Sommelière Cecile Richards is our star this evening. She has hand-picked some fine vintages and port wines to match the lineup of Lindt chocolates: Austrian Kracher Cuvée Auslese 2013 with Chili Noir, Portuguese Taylor's Port Ruby Select with Fleur de Sel, or Spanish Lustau Rare Cream Sherry with Caramel à Pointe de Sel.

Our instinct has been to pair dark chocolate with heavy reds, but Mrs. Richards has taught us otherwise. This was a truly unique event; we hope it will get a permanent slot at the Lindt chocolate factory!

Then, as if sampling wine and chocolate was not enough, the kind chocolatiers invited us inside the Lindt Chocolate Workshop.

The Lindt Chocolate Workshop is open to the public, but spaces sell out quickly. We count ourselves lucky and proceed to the first step before entering the workshop area: To get dressed in a white apron and one of the iconic chocolatier hats we all know from the commercials.

Inside are six preparation stations with a large pot of melted chocolate each. Some pots contain white chocolate, others milk or dark chocolate. Our instructor explains that we will create our own Champagne-filled chocolate pralines!

Having succeeded in the minute art of filling each chocolate shell with liquid champagne chocolate, we move on to another task: Decorating pralines with everything from gold sheets to almonds. The Maître Chocolatier is undoubtedly setting the bar high: