Adorable Chocolat Made In The Tradition Of French Chocolatiers
This story is part of a series on Maritime chocolate and candy companies gearing up for Valentine’s Day.
SHEDIAC – The owner of Adorable Chocolat learned the traditional chocolate-making techniques and a dedication to the art in his home country, France.
Chocolatier Frédéric Desclos grew up making chocolate and pastries in Bretagne under the tutelage of its fine chocolatiers.
Chocolate seems simple to make, but there is more to it than meets the eye. The French technique of tempérage du chocolat, adjusting heat and cold to give chocolate a crack when chewed is a skill people spend their lives learning.
“They really focus on creating traditional artisan chocolate that he would create when he was a young man in France,” said account manager Jonathan Keeley in an interview with Huddle.
“They use all the same recipes and the same ingredients and the traditional chocolate-making ways, everything is made by him. Every morning he does everything by hand, there’s no manufacturing – every piece is made by hand.”
When Desclos moved to Canada in 2011, he opened Adorable Chocolat with the goal to help health-conscious people enjoy chocolate.
Keeley explains what makes Adorable’s chocolate different from chocolate one would get at a grocery store is that it is made from pure cocoa butter and cocoa powder. Their chocolate does not contain GMOs, corn syrup, palm and hydrogenated oils, or other artificial ingredients.
The company also offers vegan and keto chocolate options.
“You don’t miss out on anything, it tastes the same and it’s very rich and delicious, so you don’t feel like you’re being cheated for eating healthier alternatives,” he said.
Adorable Chocolat sells their chocolate across Atlantic Canada, selling in local boutiques and health food stores, such as Corn Crib Natural Foods, Sequoia Natural & Organic and Dolma Foods.
“We’ve continued to do social media and advertising, and he did almost the same revenues as he predicted before Covid,” said Keeley. “We’ve really had a lot of support from the community and even local tourism this summer, so it’s been a very pleasant surprise – and it’s all due to the local community supporting local businesses.”
Corporate gifts are another large source of revenue, with clients placing orders of chocolates with emblazoned with their logos or personalized messages.
“Local businesses really love to order from us and give them to their to their employees or their customers as a thank you,” he said. “We’ve just seen a lot of growth within that side of the business and it’s been really helpful for us, especially this year because it kind of filled up the void of not having tourism this summer.”
For the last two weeks Adorable had been busy creating and stocking up special treats for Valentine’s Day.
“Desclos uses coloured chocolate to create a pattern on hollow chocolate hearts, which are each made uniquely – you won’t find two products that are the same,” he said.
Each heart is filled with a ball of flavour, from hazelnut to caramel to hot pepper, with flavours varying every year.
Adorable Chocolat’s will be selling their Valentine’s Day chocolates in-store and at the Dieppe Farmer’s Market on Saturday.
“We’re really looking at what the business model is even after Covid, so if our community is the local area, we are examining how can we better serve them, and offer more to people from around here,” he said.
Other stories in the series:
- This Halifax Couple Celebrates Valentine’s Day Making Chocolates For You
- 2021 Can Only Be Sweeter For McGuire Chocolate
- Wild Flours Sweets and Treats Happy To Report Pandemic Not Dampening Enthusiasm For Valentine’s Day
- Podcast: Bryana Ganong And The Chocolate Factory