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« Hot Chocolate with Salted-Butter Caramel Chocolatiers and Chocolate-Makers January 14, 2007
The other night I was having dinner in a resto, and struck up a conversation with the fellow dining at the next table, who turned out to be Swiss. As we talked, the conversation turned to what I did and when I replied that I wrote cookbooks on baking and chocolate. His curiosity was piqued...as well as that of the two Belgian women at the other table. I knew exactly where the conversation soon would be heading, and of course, I was asked the inevitable question:
 Belgian Chocolates
(As well as, "Why the heck would you ask someone what they think if you don't care to hear their answer?" What is this, Fox News?) But it's really a pointless question. And there's lousy wine made in all those countries too. As you may have tasted. But is there one country quantitatively better than at making wine than another? Is there some formula that one can follow to show who wins the mantle of Best Winemaking Country in the World? Perhaps one could argue that the soil in one county is better than another, or the weather, or maybe other factors. But for making chocolate couverture, pure, solid chocolate, most of the time the cocoa beans aren't grown in the countries where chocolate is produced, with a few exceptions. And is there really a country that makes the Best Chocolate In The World? Anyhow, back to dinner... So I answered, "The best chocolate in the world is made in the United States."
 Theo Chocolate, Hand-Made In Seattle
How silly of them; what were they thinking? The Swiss gent, being more intelligent (not because he's Swiss, but because he was more interested in my response), listened as I explained, "I'm more interested in artisan-produced chocolates and a majority of them are being made in the United States. Most of the industrial chocolates don't interest me." I explained that I use several top-notch mass-produced Belgian and French chocolate for baking. Plus I went to school in Belgium and spent time working in a very good chocolate shop in Brussels, but there was only a handful of independent chocolatiers in Belgium that are doing quality work, while most of the other chocolates are mass-produced, and not particularly of interest to me.(Although I did plow through a decent-sized box that someone gave to me for Christmas with remarkable speed...so I guess I'm not that much of a snob after all...)
 Cocoa Beans Being Ground Into Chocolate Couverture (Photo courtesy of ScharffenBerger Chocolate)
And even though they couldn't name any individually-owned chocolate shops in their own country, I could. One favorite of mine is Laurent Gerbaud, who dislikes Belgian couverture and uses Domori from Italy, and Wittamer, who use Belgian-made Barry-Callebaut chocolate. In France, there are several companies making chocolate on a small-scale, such as Pralus and Bernachon, which are fabulous, but Bernachon is only available at their shop in Lyon and in Paris (at A l'Etoile d'Or) and Pralus is just starting to be more widely-distributed. Otherwise, mostly what's available here is Lindt, Nestlé, and Cote d'Or, which are great for baking and snacking in general, but I wouldn't call them interesting eating chocolates. So it doesn't really matter if chocolate came from Belgium, Switzerland, France, or even, gasp, the United States, now, does it? Let's open our minds, folks.
And since our minds are now wide open, one thing that confuses people is the difference between a Chocolatier and a Chocolate Maker. Quick show of hands: How many of you know the difference? Ok, not bad. A Chocolatier is someone who makes chocolates, those dipped, nutty, or cream-filled confections that we all know and love. A Chocolate Maker is someone, or a company, that buys and roasts cocoa beans and grinds them into chocolate. There are lots of chocolatiers out there, probably (and hopefully) several in your city, but there are very few chocolate-makers, since the process is difficult, costly, and requires a lot of very specialized equipment and knowledge. There's no shame in not making your own chocolate from scratch. Very few people can pull together the equipment for making chocolate, then figure out how to do it correctly, so most small-scale chocolate shops buy their couverture, melt it down, and use it for dipping their chocolates. Much of this discussion was also prompted by was an interesting series of articles about Noka Chocolate, outrageously-priced chocolate from Texas, which sells for almost $9 a piece, and someone tracked down their lineage, which a few folks sent to me (thanks Tana, Cindy, and Ashleigh.) I don't know if Noka chocolate intended to give people the impression that they're making their own chocolate from scratch or not (since I was polishing off a bottle of wine while I finished it) but the writer spent considerable time tracking down what he suspects is their couverture du jour. The writer noted that the company alluded to the fact they make their own couverture, but I never believe anyone who says they're making their own chocolate unless they have some documentation to back it up, or I can see it being made. Did you know there are only about sixteen chocolate-makers in America? (See below) Very, very few chocolatiers make their own chocolate. Even a talent like Michael Recchiuti in San Francisco, who's a chocolatier, happily admits to buying his chocolate couverture, which he sources from the best. No shame in that...heck, I do it too.
Amano
Comments Hi David, this is such an interesting post. I'm always eager to learn more on chocolate and pastry and your blog seems to be the best ressource for it. - fanny Posted by fanny at January 14, 2007 5:36 PM Thank you David for the list of US based chocolate-makers. I have been fairly obsessed with the agriculture and processing of cacao since I visited Belize last November and am thrilled to know, definitively, who goes from bean to bar in the US. The Kekchi Maya of Belize have cultivated cacao for thousands of years. Today, a trip to the market in Punta Gorda will yield both bags of fermented and dried beans and small balls of partially processed cacao. It was the unbroken link of the present to ancient times that first got my motor whirring. Now I can't make it stop! Posted by Nelle Gretzinger at January 14, 2007 7:07 PM This is such a great post! I'm convinced that all good chocolate and chocolatiers are coming out of the Pacific Northwest. Dagoba, and I've never had Theo, but I'm going to run to the shop down the street right now to try it out. And with Chocolatiers Portland is doing some amazing things, one of them has a wonderful liquid salted caramel. Not to mention Fran's in Seattle. Posted by Katie at January 14, 2007 7:34 PM I live in the Seattle area and am a huge fan of Theo. (Tip: Take the tasty tour.) I didn't care for dark chocolate before tasting their coffee Phinney bar. The origin bar line is amazing, and if anyone ever has a doubt about cacao's terroir, try the Madagascar bar; you'd swear it had fruit in it. One point from your posting I'm confused about is the Dagoba listing as chocolate maker. From Theo's website and tour, you learn that they're the only organic chocolate maker in the US. From Dagoba's website, you learn that they're organic but it doesn't say explicitly that they make the chocolate. Are you sure Dagoba makes their chocolate? Or did they start doing it after the Hershey's acquisition? Posted by alan at January 14, 2007 8:28 PM I was so glad to see how you started out this post. Of course there's no BEST country for chocolate - I completely agree, I've had some great European stuff and I've had some deplorable European stuff. Same in the States. People ask me things like that sometimes and I just have to wonder what sort of answer they want (or if they're really interested in conversing at all). About the list, is Peter's Chocolate now made at the Wilbur plant in PA? I'm a little unclear what happened when they were bought by Cargill. I'm going to the Fancy Foods show next week and I hope to sample Theo. Alan ... The Theo site says "We are proud to be the first roaster of Fair Trade Certifiedâ„¢ cocoa beans and the only roaster of organic cocoa beans in the United States." So perhaps its's the all fair trade thing that sets them apart or does Dagoba roast their beans overseas? Posted by cybele at January 14, 2007 8:41 PM Hi David, Posted by Paul at January 14, 2007 9:24 PM Very informative post, David. I looked for your chocolate book at Barnes & Noble in Green Bay yesterday to no avail. Must read it by May, just in case I don't win the chocolate tour tomorrow.) All I know is what I tasted in France: Chocolate bars (from Monoprix) that were creamer than the same brand in the U.S. I have much to learn. But I know what I like. Posted by mimi at January 14, 2007 9:59 PM My feeling is that the chocolate makers in each country make chocolate that appeals to a part of the market in that country. Italian chocolate off the market shelf in Italy is too sweet for me, and yet there are chocolates here that are wonderful. Posted by Judith in Umbria at January 15, 2007 4:36 AM Hi Judith: Yes, Italy is a great example. There's amazing chocolate made there (as well as the supermarket stuff.) But I wonder how many people in Italy buy it, as opposed to how many Americans buy artisanal chocolate. And curiously, you can't get hardly any of the Italian artisanal chocolates, like Slitti or Domori in Paris. Or American ones...or even the French ones, save for a handful of places. (FYI: Aoki pastry shop carries 3 kinds of Domori chocolate and da rosa carries Amedei bars.) I find it intriguing that American's have this reputation for crappy food, but there's this big resurgence and interest in fine food products there, including chocolate. Maybe because it's a novelty and people are looking for a re-connection with the producers of what their eating, but I don't see as much evidence of it elsewhere. Is it the politics of economics of scale? I love sampling chocolate made by small-producers and always search vigorously for it wherever I'm visiting. I'd be curious to hear why other's think artisanal chocolates are widely available in the US, but are not so commonly available in other countries. In constructive, non-judgemental ways, of course.
Posted by David at January 15, 2007 4:49 AM Great and very thorough post on chocolate. Posted by ParisBreakfasts at January 15, 2007 9:05 AM ScharffenBerger has been bought by Hershey's so I am not sure it makes sense to list them as two separate companies. Posted by Ilana at January 15, 2007 10:22 AM Thanks for the informative post, this was really interesting information. I too would have assumed that the two terms were interchangeable. The discussion of who makes the best chocolate can only lead to fun experiences, trying different chocolates, right? When we were in Belgium last year, I had some of the best chocolates I've ever had (especially in terms of flavor combinations) - but there were plenty that were just okay as well. Posted by Kim U at January 15, 2007 10:36 AM Here in Holland we have lots of chocolate makers who make lots of horrible sicky tasting chocolate. How on earth do they make chocolate have that greasy taste? Unfortunate really. I had some Ghirardelli at Christmas that a friend sent me and I was quite dumbstruck for a few minutes. It was great! She sent Ghirardelli because she wanted me to have real American chocolate. To be representative of Holland I could have sent her some Droste but I don't like it. I do like their cocoa though. Thanks for the insight into the Noka chocolate article. My opinion was that the article was interesting but if people wanted to be silly enough to pay that much for repackaged chocolate then why not let them. Posted by Ash at January 15, 2007 11:19 AM Oh sorry, edit! I meant to say we have lots of Dutch chocolatiers! They obviously all buy their chocolate from the same source because it all tastes greasy. Posted by Ash at January 15, 2007 11:23 AM David, Posted by Lesley at January 15, 2007 11:23 AM Dear David, your little story about chocolate made me laugh out loud. I'm a native Costarrican who knows for a fact that European countries don't grow the Theobroma Cacao used to make the lovely confections found in lovely shops all over Europe. I teach a baking and pastry class and on Chocolate Day the students always take me for a snob because I lean towards European makers rather than American, so thanks for the info on the domestic chocolate. Look forward to read your chocolate book (soon to be a proud member of my bookshelf), and hope to one day join you on your Parisian chocolate tour. Love your blog!! Posted by Roxana at January 15, 2007 11:46 AM I'd note that the varietal chocolate sold at Trader Joe's under the Unique Origin label (which I think is pretty good, though I'm no expert) is apparently made in Spain--a country I haven't seen mentioned yet in any of these comments. Posted by Steve at January 15, 2007 1:12 PM I've updated the list on wikipedia based on the list in this post. Are there other issues with the wikipedia entry? Posted by Mohe at January 15, 2007 1:46 PM Ash; When buying dark chocolate, make sure the only fat listed on the label is cocoa butter. There was an EU directive a few years back allowing some other fats to be added to chocolate, depending on the country. Mohe: Thanks! Mimi: Some of those chocolate bars at Monoprix aren't bad, although I snuck one into a chocolate-tasting I led a while ago and while some folks liked it, they didn't smell or taste very appealing to me. Next time you come, try some of the Nestlé blocks; I like the Corsé very much for baking. Alan: I was under the impression that Dagoba was very close to having their new factory up-and-running, although I'm unaware of the timeline for that (Frederick invited me to come and visit in the spring, so I was assuming it was close to being open.) If I get there, I'll be sure to take lots of pictures and report back what I see..and taste. Steve: Spain has some great chocolate, including Chocovic, which is under the umbrella of another larger company in the Netherlands, I believe. I tried to go visit them, and attend their chocolate classes when I was writing my chocolate book, but they didn't exactly roll out the welcome mat, so I never got to go. But I think their chocolate is excellent, especially the Ocumare. Kim: Just like anywhere, Belgium has some good and some not-so-great chocolates. Glad you found some that you like! My main point was not to judge a chocolate based on the country where it's fabricated since that has little to do with taste. Ilana: Both ScharffenBerger and Dagoba are now owned by Hershey's, although they fall under the division 'Artisan Confections' (although I'm not quite sure exactly what that means.) Since they still retain their individual identities though, I listed them individually, like I did with Ghiradelli, which is owned by our friends in Switzerland. Posted by David at January 15, 2007 4:19 PM David, Posted by Susan Bruce at January 15, 2007 8:54 PM For all the good press Swiss chocolate gets, I find it quite boring. Milky and flabby and bland. I didn't know that Ghiradelli is owned by the Swiss, but it makes perfect sense--I find it just as ordinary. Portland, Oregon-based Moonstruck Chocolate Company, on the other hand, makes fabulous artisanal chocolates. Posted by Terry B at January 15, 2007 11:09 PM Thanks for the spiced glazed nuts and pretzel mix -aka 'best holiday snack ever'. Also for the cherry nectarine compote - cherries just finishing up here in Adelaide, Aust. Both recipes made me, and my guests, very happy. Posted by Anne T at January 15, 2007 11:21 PM A surprising post..I'm still coming to Paris to eat chocolate. Maybe it's something in the air there that makes it taste better... Posted by ParisBreakfasts at January 16, 2007 8:16 AM "I find it intriguing that American's have this reputation for crappy food, but there's this big resurgence and interest in fine food products there, including chocolate." I have also been thinking about that and the problem, to me at least, is that the mainstream food is the US is of crappier quality than in France (for example). That drives me mad! Just take MacDonald's, for example, in France, they serve expresso with a square of Côte d'Or chocolate and in the US... they advertise about adding cream and sugar for you at the drive-thru!!Great!! That is just an example but I hope you see my point. In the US, I feel like good food is for rich people, vs in France, everyone cares about eating good stuff. I remember a comment on Kate's blog (the Accidental Hedonist), she was talking about guacamole with no avocado and someone left a comment saying she should focus on talking about foie gras instead. Sorry, but I think good food should be for everyone! I am not sure I have been clear but I hope you see my point... Anyway, regarding chocolate, I have seen much more diversity in the US over the past years, it became much easier to eat good chocolate in this country. Posted by Estelle at January 16, 2007 9:49 AM Bonjour Estelle: I agree, and I think good food is more expensive and junk food is cheap in the US, whereas in France, good food is reasonable and junk food is expensive. When a croissant or baguette is around 85 centimes, and you can buy a nice selection of 3-4 outstanding cheeses for less than 10 euros, that's not too expensive (and roughly the same price as a few cups of coffee at Starbucks.) The difference as well is there really isn't any 'cheap' food here. Supermarket produce is pricey so people generally buy quality since there's not as many low-priced options as in the US. (BTW: I've seen that icky green 'guacamole' here in France too! But I'll stick with foie gras...) Posted by David at January 16, 2007 10:13 AM I agree that this is a great post. I was working as a pastry chef when Scharffenberger started and I tried to get the owner to order some instead of Vahlrona since the restaurant focused on local, seasonal eating. We never did get it and I still have a soft spot for the taste of Vahlrona. Posted by lee at January 16, 2007 11:01 AM What about Vosges? Posted by Anna at January 16, 2007 1:36 PM Oh Vosges... That's good stuff... Posted by Estelle at January 16, 2007 3:28 PM I went on and on about Belizean cacao in an earlier comment, but should mention that Green & Black's (who has a lock on the market for cacao in southern Belize) is now owned by Cadbury-Schweppes. C'est globalization. C'est la vie! Posted by Nelle Gretzinger at January 16, 2007 7:45 PM Thank you for a lovely post about true chocolate makers David. I work for Theo chocolate and I cannot tell you how flattered I am to see you, the prince of chocolate, enjoying Theo's creative, delcious and ethical chocolate! I hope you have had a chance to bite into our delicious confections as well.. wow about Green and Black's! I work in the industry, and didn't know that too has been swept up! Us little guys are few and far between I suppose. Posted by Lola at January 17, 2007 11:59 AM The discussion of American vs. European chocolate is interesting to me because I work in an imported chocolate shop in St. Louis. We operate on the assumption that imported chocolate experience should be more easily achievable, to a person here in St. Louis or (via our website) to anyone in the States or elsewhere. But we tend to get quite a few people in the shop convinced of one country's supremacy in the chocolate realm, and most all of them convinced that European chocolate trumps American chocolate any day. We do carry Vosges chocolates, however, alongside Neuhaus and Cluizel, and pricewise Vosges is definitely not the cheapest. There are two quotes (I hope I don't botch them too terribly) that I read in Mort Rosenblum's book, Chocolate, that I'm very fond of sharing: "Expensive chocolate is not necessarily the best, but the best chocolate is rarely cheap" and "There are no right or wrong answers when it comes to the best chocolate - only strong opinions." Posted by Kristen at January 17, 2007 4:31 PM Hi David, Posted by Anna at January 17, 2007 7:38 PM thanks for all the info here, and i can see that i need to be fully educated now about my chocolate addiction! david, ScharffenBerger chocolate (and all others) are now at World Wide Chocolate. (Note from David: This is a site selling chocolates from around the world.) Posted by barb at January 18, 2007 7:53 PM I just got around to reading this post David, and it is really excellent. I wish I could have gotten a quote from you for my book, CHOCOLATE FRENCH. Posted by Andre at TasteTV at February 13, 2007 9:17 PM i'm a farmer in west Africa[Ghana] i deal with the production of natural cocoa seed and powder, my product has been graded and ready for sale, Posted by ugo chris at March 5, 2008 1:42 PM Hi David, Great post! I would like to add a few US-based chocolate makers to your list: Amano (Orem, UT) They do seem to be popping up all over the place. Posted by Greg at May 12, 2008 1:35 PM Hi Greg: Thanks. I've been adding new chocolate companies to my Links page, as well as profiling them on the site as fast as I can keep up! Posted by David at May 12, 2008 2:04 PM Post a comment |
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