The vanity market has always been lucrative, we all like to brag about something, and chocolate makers are no exception. There are a number of different awards for the best chocolates in the world, but two stand out: the Academy of Chocolate and the International Chocolate Awards.
Stiv Kahlina from Taman Chocolates explains why: "These two organizations have a jury of independent experts and a thorough evaluation process on several levels, similar to how coffee and wine are evaluated, while most other awards are just votings of journalists, consumers, and bloggers."
In these awards, of course, you won't find Hersheys and Milka chocolates, but neither will you find big manufacturers like Lindt or even Godiva. This is how the famous "The Chocolate Journalist" explains it:
"When trying to make a distinction between mass-produced and craft chocolate, why don’t we start putting the attention on the final product instead of the process? You see, whenever we put the emphasis on the bean-to-bar process, the craftsmanship, the fine cacao, and anything that comes before the chocolate, industrial companies always find a way to deceive consumers with their misleading marketing. (...) But there is ONE thing that big chocolate companies can’t possibly fake: FINE FLAVOR
Fine flavor requires fine cacao that was grown with care and paid well. Fine flavor needs the skills of an attentive artisan. Fine flavor can only be revealed when profits are not the absolute priority. Mass-produced chocolate companies can’t pour enough money into their R&D and marketing departments to replace that. There is no way that fine flavor can arise from cheap cacao, standardized protocols, and large-scale production. So in the debate about using the term bean-to-bar, craft, fine, or artisan chocolate, I am personally loving the words “fine-flavor chocolate”, because the flavor is the only part of the chocolate that can’t be twisted or faked."
Current champions
In ten days, the Academy of Chocolate will announce this year's selection of the best Tree to Bar and Bean to Bar Chocolates, while the International Chocolate Awards winners will be announced in the fall.
Until then, these are the current champions.
Academy of Chocolate
The Academy of Chocolate was founded in 2005 by five of Britain's leading chocolate professionals. Their aim is to identify, recognize and showcase the world's most talented chocolate producers and finest chocolates. The Academy of Chocolate website states: We are an independent membership body that promotes real chocolate. The Academy showcases great taste, encourages sustainable and ethical production, and provides educational opportunities.
Main categories gold winners for 2021
Tree to Bar
🇺🇸 Limited Chocolate LLC, Hawaii Kalaoa 73% Dark
Tree to Bar category winner: Hawaii Kalaoa 73% Dark Credits: Limited Chocolate LLC
Dark Bean to Bar under 90%
🇬🇧 Åkessons's Organic, 75% criollo cacao, Bejofo Estate, Madagascar
🇳🇮 Argencove, Mombacho
🇬🇧 Bare Bones Chocolate, 65% Guatemala Dark
🇧🇪 Benoît Nihant Chocolatier-Cacaofèvier, Belize, Maya Mountain 74%
🇺🇸 Chokolabean to bar, Tranquilidad, wild bolivia 75%
🇨🇦 Desbarres Chocolate, Kilombero 72%
🇬🇧 Dormouse Chocolates, Trio Reserve Microlot
🇳🇴 Fjåk Chocolate, 68% dark India
🇺🇸 Goodnow Farms Chocolate, Asochivite, 77%
🇺🇸 Goodnow Farms Chocolate, Boyaca, 73%
🇨🇦 Hummingbird Chocolate, Hispaniola 85%
🇨🇦 Hummingbird Chocolate, Zorzal 70%
🇺🇸 LetterPress Chocolate, Bachelor's Hall, Jamaica 70% Dark
🇺🇸 LetterPress Chocolate, Costa Esmeraldas Ecuador 70%
🇺🇸 LetterPress Chocolate, Hacienda Azul Costa Rica 70%
🇺🇸 LetterPress Chocolate, São Tomé Limited Edition 70% Dark
🇺🇸 LetterPress Chocolate, Tranquilidad, Bolivia 70% Dark
🇫🇷 Manufacture Cluizel, Los Anconès Plantation San-Francisco De Macoris Grand Cru (Santo Domingo) 73% Dark Chocolate
🇫🇷 Manufacture Cluizel, Mokaya Plantation Tapachula Grand Cru (Mexico) 75% Dark Chocolate
🇦🇺 Metiisto artisan chocolate, Berau 73%
🇦🇺 Metiisto artisan chocolate, Tenaru 67%
🇧🇷 Mission Chocolate, Two Rivers
🇹🇭 PARADAi Chocolate Co.,Ltd, Nakhon Si Thammarat Dark Chocolate 75%
🇨🇦 Qantu Chocolate, Bagua 70%
🇨🇦 Qantu Chocolate, Morropon 70%
🇸🇪 Standout Chocolate, Single Origin Belize Maya Mountain 70%
🇩🇪 Truly Chocolate, Puerto Plata
Dark Bean to Bar 90% and over cocoa solids
Dark Bean to Bar 90% and over cocoa solids winner: Chocolate Negro Ilhas Salomão Makira 100% Credits: Feitoria do Cacao
🇵🇹 Feitoria do Cacao, Chocolate Negro Ilhas Salomão Makira 100%
🇦🇺 Metiisto artisan chocolate, Solomon islands 100%
Milk Bean to Bar
🇺🇸 Castronovo Chocolate, Sierra Nevada, Colombia Dark Milk 63%
🇬🇧 Dormouse Chocolates, Trio Reserve Microlot Milk
🇳🇱 Heinde & Verre, Dutch Vegan Mylk
🇳🇱 Krak Chocolate, Colombia, Sierra Nevada 55%
🇦🇺 Metiisto artisan chocolate, Old school milk
🇸🇪 Standout Chocolate, Dark Milk Haiti Cap-Haïtien 60%
🇸🇪 Standout Chocolate, Dark Milk Madagascar Sambirano 60%
White Bean to Bar
🇦🇺 ATYPIC LABATYPIC CHOCOLATE, Caramelised White Chocolate
🇳🇱 Heinde & Verre, Gold Piura Peru
All winners here:
academyofchocolate.org.uk/awards/2021/
International Chocolate Awards Winners
Established in 2012, The International Chocolate Awards is an independent competition recognizing excellence in fine chocolate making and the products made of fine chocolate. The Awards are run by independent international partners with years of experience in tasting and evaluating chocolate and running fine chocolate-related events.
‘Best in competition’ overall winner: Plain/origin dark bar categories
🇵🇪 Cacaosuyo, Cuzco 80
‘Best in competition’ overall winner: Plain/origin milk bar categories
🇨🇦 Qantu, la vache! Morropón Milk 60%
Plain/origin dark bar category winner: Cuzco 80 Credits: Cacaosuyo
Micro-batch – Plain/origin dark chocolate bars
🇹🇼 Fu Wan Chocolate, Strawberry Beer Yeast 70%
Plain/origin chocolate bars with alternative ingredients
🇺🇸 Wild Blue Chocolate, 70% Dark Chocolate, Pisa Haiti
Plain/origin white chocolate bars
🇬🇹 Danta Chocolate, Kampura White Limited Edition
All winners here:
www.internationalchocolateawards.com/2021/05/world-final-winners-2020-21/
Bean-to-Bar and Tree to Bar?
Credits: Kampura Cacao Forestry
Finally, let's clarify this:
Bean-to-Bar Chocolate is a relatively new phrase and label that originated in the 2000s and it refers to a trade model. It generally indicates that one brand controls every stage in chocolate making process - from the purchase of the beans to the creation of the bar.
Small chocolate producers first used the phrase "bean to bar chocolate" to set their products apart from that of mass producers. They started out with this process because they wanted to learn how chocolate is made and continued after realizing how much control small chocolate producers have over the final product.
If bean-to-bar chocolate is made by chocolate makers from scratch starting from the raw cocoa beans, the process for tree-to-bar chocolate starts even earlier.
"Tree-to-bar” defines a chocolate maker that also produces its own cacao beans. When a product claims to be "tree to bar chocolate," it implies that the cacao was cultivated and processed under the sole supervision of the manufacturer and that the chocolate was produced in the same country of origin.
This approach results in truly special chocolate that expresses a comprehensive vision and approach by the chocolate maker, all the way from seed to bar.
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