AUI (Albert Uster Imports) was the first company to introduce Swiss couverture to American chefs and is proud to expand and improve their classic Des Alpes couverture collection with new packaging and an additional couverture percentage, 58% Emerald Dark Couverture.

All of the Des Alpes couverture coins are now available in convenient 11lbs/5kg cube boxes. The sleek boxes include color coded labels, a list of the cocoa bean assemblages, and Quick Response (QR) codes that link directly to a comprehensive collection of original Des Alpes recipes crafted by the AUI culinary team and informative tempering videos hosted on the company’s YouTube channel. Moreover, these Des Alpes couvertures have specially created inner bags to protect the couverture from direct sunlight, humidity, and unwanted odors.

Please contact customer service at 1.800.231.8154 or customerservice@auiswiss.com with any questions about perishability, special shipping constraints, or with any concerns.

2012 Thanksgiving Shipping Schedule

The ACF Culinary Team USA has just returned home from Erfurt, Germany where they participated in the Internationale Kochkunst Ausstellung (IKA) International Culinary Exhibition (also known as the “Culinary Olympics”) from October 5-10. Hard work by all four ACF teams paid off, with each team placing in the top 10. The ACF Culinary National Team, U.S. Army Culinary Arts Team, regional, and youth teams competed against 1,500 chefs from 54 countries to earn two gold medals and five silver medals. The ACF Culinary National Team won two silver medals, one in cold-food presentation and one in hot-food presentation. The U.S. Army Culinary Arts Team took home a gold medal in cold-food and a silver medal in hot-food presentation.

Congratulations to the ACF Culinary Teams for their outstanding performance at the Culinary Olympics. AUI is proud to have sponsored and supported the ACF Culinary Team and its members including Steve Jilleba, CMC, CCE, AAC, manager; Thomas Macrina, CEC, CCA, HGT, AAC, business manager; and Joachim Buchner, CMC, coach. Congratulations to all of the U.S. individual winners, including 2012 Michigan Culinary Olympics Team members Brian Beland, CMC, for winning gold; Doug Ganhs, CEC, for winning bronze; Shawn Loving, CEC, CCA, for winning bronze; Sarah Rougeau, CSC, for winning silver; and Gabriel Vera for receiving a diploma at IKA. To read more about the ACF Culinary Teams experience visit their blog.

AUI (Albert Uster Imports), announced a new partnership with acclaimed pastry and bakery manufacturer, Martin Braun. As the exclusive distributor of BRAUN products in the United States, customers will receive a selection of high-quality, high-value and extremely versatile ingredients. Known for their superior product quality, the exclusive BRAUN product line matches AUI’s standards of culinary excellence. BRAUN, based in Hanover, Germany, is a worldwide leader in the baking industry and caters to AUI’s core customer base with a comprehensive collection of powder mixes, baking ingredients, flavorings, fillings, glazes and coatings. In addition to delivering BRAUN’s “quality on principle” products to customers, AUI offers exclusive recipe creations on their website to demonstrate the versatility and convenience of the collection. “Alaska Express is the signature product in our BRAUN line. It includes over 10 different freeze-stable powder mousse mixes that are easily to prepare to achieve a consistent product,” Corporate Pastry Chef, Amanda Haba said. “We are thrilled to exclusively import and distribute the BRAUN collection,” President and CEO, Philipp Braun said. “As culinary experts, BRAUN understands the importance of a knowledgeable sales force and AUI is excited to partner with them.”

We value your business and always strive to provide the best service to our customers. During the holiday season we recognize that you are busy planning and preparing for many events and parties, and concentrating on providing the best possible service to your customers. To assist you in this process we would like to remind you of some of the practices that allow us to serve you better. Please keep the following information in mind when placing orders online or with our customer service team. Thank you for your understanding, and we look forward to working with you this holiday season.

• Due to increased delivery volume during the holiday season (October through December), orders may take an additional 1-2 days to be delivered. Our warehouse and customer service personal will do everything they can to get your order out as soon as possible. Occasionally, our staff or our couriers may not be able to move all the freight they receive in the same day.
• To expedite the ordering process, please be ready with your customer number, item numbers and product descriptions when you call customer service to order.
• Personalized praline orders are only shipped on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Thursday shipments may be sent if your shipping address is within our 24-hour delivery area. Orders are sent from our Gaithersburg, Maryland warehouse only.
• Please also be advised that personalized praline orders always require 7-10 business days of lead time from image approval by customer.
• If you are ordering a pallet of products it may take 2-3 weeks to be delivered. Please keep this in mind when planning your purchases.

If you have any questions please reach out to our customer service team by calling 1.800.231.8154 or emailing us at emailorders@auiswiss.com.