Two artisanal producers have been named as winners of the coveted Golden Bean trophy at the prestigious Academy of Chocolate Awards this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chocolat Madagascar<\/strong><\/a>, which became the first tree-to-bar producer to win the Golden Bean award in 2017, has again been successful with its single-farm \u2018Ottange\u2019 bar, made from 100% cacao.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meanwhile, Qantu<\/strong><\/a>, which once again won over judges with its interpretation of single-source Peruvian cacao, picked up the second Golden Bean award this year for its \u2018Chaska\u2019 bar, made from 70% cacao.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The award-winners were among entries from more than 50 countries, demonstrating the growth of fine chocolate across the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The delayed ceremony marked the first-ever virtual Academy of Chocolate Awards which, due to the pandemic, could not be held as in past years at Claridge\u2019s Hotel in London\u2019s Mayfair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This year\u2019s Golden Bonbon was awarded to Realm of Cream<\/strong><\/a> for its single-estate 75% St. Vincent dark chocolate ganache infused with Hungarian plum p\u00e1linka, while the Mott Green Award went to Neary N\u00f3gs<\/strong><\/a>, the first bean-to-bar craft chocolate makers in Northern Ireland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There were two recipients of the 2020 Social Enterprise Award: Juliana Aquino<\/strong>, who has long been involved in social enterprises and supports tree-to-bar and bean-to-bar producers in Brazil; and first-time entrants, Choba Choba<\/strong><\/a>, who delighted with the flavour, presentation, and story of their bars \u2013 motivated by improving the living conditions of Peruvian cacao farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Other special awards presented included two rising star awards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The UK Rising Star 2020 went to first-time entrant, Bare Bones<\/strong><\/a>, a micro-batch bean-to-bar chocolate company with a minimalist approach. Based in Glasgow, the producer\u2019s gold award-winning packaging is made from recycled paper cups and vegware which can be recycled or composted after use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maastricht-based\u00a0La F\u00e8ve<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(bonbons) was named European Rising Star 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There were also four winners of the new Shining Bright award for producers who have demonstrated progression: Philippines-based Auro<\/strong><\/a>, which scored highly across a range of categories including drinking chocolate; Chocolat Madagascar<\/strong><\/a>, which picked up two golds and a silver for its bars made from 100% cocoa solids; Fj\u00e5k<\/strong><\/a>, the first bean-to-bar producer in Norway, which scored highly among judges for both plain and nordic-flavoured bars; and Massachusetts-based Goodnow Farms Chocolate<\/strong><\/a>, which was awarded three golds and eight silvers for bars in various flavours including coffee, whiskey, and rum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n