Thursday, October 16, 2008
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
About an old friend, kind of, who just died.
Robert Steinberg, who helped elevate chocolate into the realm of fine wine and gourmet food as founder of Scharffen Berger chocolate company, died Wednesday in San Francisco. He was 61.
Dr. Steinberg died at UCSF of lymphoma, which was diagnosed in 1989.
"Chocolate in this country is changed forever because of Robert," said Alice Medrich, cookbook author and founder of Cocolat dessert company in Berkeley. "He and his partner made a chocolate that was so different, it set off this explosion. He changed our idea of what chocolate is and what it can be."
Scharffen Berger was among the first small artisan makers of premium chocolate in the United States, creating chocolate from high-quality beans and less sugar than conventional candymakers.
The award-winning chocolate led to a wave of high-end chocolatiers across the country and a national craze for dark chocolate. Scharffen Berger was also among the first to advertise the percentage of cacao in each bar.
"He showed us that chocolate is not just a sweet candy," said Medrich. "It really was revolutionary."
Dr. Steinberg was born in Boston, the son of a clinical psychologist and elementary school teacher. He received a bachelor's degree in English literature from Harvard and a medical degree from University of Connecticut, moving to San Francisco to complete his postgraduate work. He practiced family medicine for many years in San Francisco and Ukiah, quitting when he was diagnosed with chronic lymphoma.
"He thought about his life and re-evaluated his decisions because he realized he would be ill. He knew he wanted to do something with food because he had always loved cooking," said his sister, Nancy Steinberg of New York. "A friend suggested chocolate. We had high-quality wines and coffee, but no high quality chocolate. He thought the country was ready for that."
Dr. Steinberg was intrigued by the complexity of chocolate and the combination of science and cooking skills required in its manufacture. He traveled to Bernachon, a small chocolate-maker in Lyon, France, to learn the nuances of chocolate-making, and opened Scharffen Berger in 1996 with his friend and former patient, winemaker John Scharffenberger.
The pair experimented in Dr. Steinberg's kitchen using a coffee grinder, mortar and pestle, electric mixer and hair dryer. Their first products were created in a South San Francisco factory, which they outgrew in 2000 and moved to a larger plant in West Berkeley.
In 2005, Hershey bought Scharffen Berger and Dr. Steinberg left the company, starting a new career working directly with cacao farmers in Ecuador, Nicaragua and Honduras. He hoped to help them grow higher quality beans and improve their economic outlook, his sister said.
He was planning trips to Nicaragua later this month and France in October, but contracted a fever two weeks ago and was admitted to UCSF.
"Notwithstanding the extraordinary tenacity that was required of him, he was quite a gentle soul," said his friend and college roommate, Tony Ganz. "He was such a sweet guy in so many ways, but at the same time had an iron will. He was remarkably resilient and uncomplaining."
In addition to his sister, Dr. Steinberg is survived by his mother, Selma Goldberg of Marblehead, Mass., and a stepsister, Judith Margolin of Stamford, Ct..
Services will be private.
Donations can be sent to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, P.O. Box 4072, Pittsfield, MA 01202.