Travel Blog

11 Oct

Local Chocolatiers win big at Canadian National Chocolate Competition + Giveaway!

Photo credit: Sean Neild

Photo credit: Sean Neild

Since 2012, Canadian chocolatiers have competed to win a spot at the International Chocolate Awards. The 2014 Canadian qualifying competition was held October 9 and an awards ceremony took place at popular Vancouver chocolate shop, xoxolat. The Canadian National Competition of the International Chocolate Awards saw Lower Mainland chocolate makers take the podium last night.

With entries from coast to coast, chocolate makers competed in a number of categories including:  Bars – Milk chocolate flavoured with an infusion, ganache, truffles and nut-based pralines among many other.

There were some familiar entrants competing for the second year in a row: Sweet Lollapalooza, Violet Chocolate Company from Edmonton, Christophe Morel from Montreal and Beta5 Chocolates from Vancouver. 

Some of Canada’s lesser known chocolate-loving cities were also represented during the competition, too. There was Miss Chocolate from Hull, Quebec; Gusto Chocolates from Maple Ridge and Hummingbird Chocolate from Mississippi Mills, ON. Speaking of lesser known cities, there were also a fair number of lesser known chocolate flavours at this year’s competition – think Grandma’s rhubarb crumble, buttered popcorn or caramelized onion.

Vancouver’s Beta5 chocolates were awarded gold medals in the Milk – nut based praline with their Carrot Cake praline and also in the ganache and truffle mixed with dark/milk/white fillings category with their unique Yuzu curd flavoured chocolates. Once again, Beta5 won the dark chocolate ganach truffle section with their Fisherman’s Friend dark chocolate ganache truffle.

Meanwhile, Chez Christophe Chocolate Patisserie won silver in the White flavoured filled chocolate category and Gusto Chocolates won bronze in the Bars – flavour white chocolate section.

Photo Credit: Sean Neild

Photo Credit: Sean Neild

The Canadian winners are invited to enter the world finals held November 4–6 in London, England, where they will compete against the best from the European and Americas Semi-final rounds.

The International Chocolate Awards is an independent competition recognizing excellence in fine chocolate making and in the products made with fine chocolate. The Awards were founded in 2012 based on years of experience running chocolate awards and other events in the UK, and are run by a group of international partners based in the UK, Italy and the USA. The Vancouver competition is run by Eagranie Yuh, author of The Chocolate Tasting Kit (Chronicle Books).

One lucky Inside Vancouver reader will have a chance to win a chocolate prize pack containing chocolates from Canadian National Competition Vancouver competitors plus a copy of the Chocolate Tasting Kit. To enter, tell us your favourite Vancouver chocolate maker in the comments section below. The winner will be chosen at random the afternoon of Tuesday, October 14.

Article source: http://www.insidevancouver.ca/2014/10/10/local-chocolatiers-win-big-giveaway/