Frequently Asked Questions
Question
Can I join? What doe the membership involves? How much will it cost?
Answer
Events diary and friends membership in pipeline. Details to be announced shortly.
Question
I want some high - quality chocolate. My son has a nut allergy and so it must be nut free. Can you advise me, as most of the high-quality manufacturers don't include allergy advice on their products.
Answer
As far as I am aware, it is now part of the requirement when labelling foodstuffs to list any possible allergens. As almost every chocolate maker has some nuts somewhere in their production this warning is should be added to cover the (albeit very slight) risk of contamination by nuts. In the USA there is a difference between "tree" nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, etc) and "ground" nuts (peanuts). The latter being seen as a much higher risk as an allergen.
Most high quality chocolate would not be tainted by peanuts, as they are seen as cheap substitute for almonds or hazelnuts.
Kinnerton claim to be nut free, and so do the Grenada Chocolate Company. Have a look at their websites:
http://www.kinnerton.com/
http://www.grenadachocolate.com/
Question
I am a 28 year old part-time French student in Sheffield, and a qualified cake decorator, but as time passes it becomes more clear to me that chocolate is my true passion and I want to work with it. I have very basic knowledge from a CENTRA module whilst learning cake decoration, and from practise at home and knowledge gleaned from books and visits to the Salon du Chocolat in Paris.
I am finding it very difficult to locate training in the field, so would be so grateful if you could you please inform me of the best route to gaining a good working knowledge of chocolate and perhaps where I might find work experience, with an end to starting my own small business.
Answer
Learning to be a chocolatier is notoriously difficult as there is no dedicated training in this country – yet. However, the best route is your pastry department at the local college. Then working with the best product that you can find in this country – Amedei is the most expensive but well worth it and the family company is a model of ecological and environmental good practice. Valrhona is great too as it Michel Cluizel. . Barry Callebaut has its own academy and it is worth contacting Beverley Dunkley on Beverley_dunkley(at) 01295 224700. It is worth remembering that visits to the factories such as Barry Callebaut in France or Belgium, Valrhona in Tain Hermitage in France who also does a Course (I think they do one a year in English). For this one call Simon Yorke at HB provisions simon.yorke(at)hbfoodprovisions.co.uk 0207 819 6070.
Nothing can teach you more than visiting all the chocolate shops in Paris. See my book Chocolate: The Definitive Guide
for a whole chapter on the best ones. Pierre Hermé is
missing as I did not know about him when I wrote the
book.
You will need persistence so Good Luck!