Inside the first room is the Aurora Fountain, created in England in 1870. The entire fountain is made of hand-painted ceramic tiles. Additionally, the Chocolate Girl by Swiss artist Jean Etienne is displayed. This famous painting was later painted on porcelain, chocolate tins, and speciality chocolate drinking cups in the 18th century.
We walked through a Tudor-style house with displays of old chocolate packaging and advertisements. Then we entered the factory side of the building and learned about the local ingredients used in their cookie production. As part of the tour we were given a fresh cookie. I'm not generally a fan of white chocolate, but the combination of buttery sweet cookie and smooth chocolate was a winner.
On the other side of the production line, we walked through a gramophone gallery and old children's toy boxes. Unfortunately, the lighting was poor so we weren't able to capture any pictures. There was also a large exhibit of children's toys ranging from late 18th century to current. It was exciting to see how toys have gradually changed over time. We viewed unopened Star Wars toys with Tamagotchi in a display next to signed Beetles memorabilia. Definitely a varied, yet interesting exhibit.
I suppose my tenure at McKee's was long enough ago that I can comment freely on the various processes that I observed in making their treats. I am always fascinated by the different methods companies use to produce their desserts. Sounds like a fun place to visit!
ReplyDeleteIt was defintiely a tasty place. The smell of fresh baked butter cookies was never ending. I liked watching the observers pull out broken or crooked cookies. Amazing how far technology has come that means you only need two people to run the entire baking/combining/packaging/boxing process.
DeleteThe Ones you shared with us were fabulous! Alanna loved them so much she stole about 4 of them while our backs were turned.
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