If you have a dream and everyone says you are nuts – go for it!
Chocolatiers are some of the nicest people I’ve met. I’m not sure why that is, but there’s something about the industry that attracts a certain type, I suppose. But ‘nice’ is a bit of a limp description, and the chocolatiers themselves are vibrant, passionate and creative people. They are infectiously interesting.
A good example is the people behind Belgium chocolatier, The Chocolate Line. Front and centre co-founder, Dominique Persoone presents a visage that you know will have something to say. But he speaks with his creations, using ingredients that might raise a few eyebrows.
For example, this Easter, Persoone released a particularly interesting praline made from grass, granny smith apples, and Japanese lime (yuzu). The Japanese Yuzu is different from western limes. The country produces about 27,000 tons a year but uses them mostly as a cooking ingredient, where the rind, for example, produces a fragrant zest, perhaps comparable to a grapefruit mixed with mandarin.
Any good English farmer (I was raised on one) will tell you that a Granny Smith, is not an apple for eating. It is far too tart and instead is again used in recipes. I remember some of the best apple pie being made in my household with Granny Smith green apples. I have nothing to add about the grass, however.
When you are a classic chocolate maker, you make very classic recipes. Today the customer wants to go on an adventure, also when they are eating something.
Dominique Persoone is a person who wishes to give that adventure. Growing up, he was known as the ‘Enfant Terrible’ and his rebellious nature led him to design chocolates that his colleagues thought were crazy. Today, of course, his art is acknowledged, but he is no less tame about his ideas.
Social Projects
Another characteristic of chocolatiers is that they have a deep connection with the supply chain of their ingredients, and in social impact overall. The company has a page where you can read the stories of the origins of each bar of chocolate. Each one with a picture of an Indiana Jones looking Dominique meeting the cocoa farmers.
The consideration goes further than the direct supply chain, however. The foil wrapping they use is biodegradable, they created The Chocolate Line We Care Foundation run by ‘The Big Boss’ Fabienne who graduated from studying Fashion Design to move into the world of chocolate. The foundation has a number of interests, including caring for abandoned spider monkeys.
Anyone lucky enough to be near Bruges, should pay their shop a visit when restrictions are lifted. It is a destination that I have put on post-Covid escape list.
