Archive for the ‘professional chocolate training’ Category

Cargill to host two upcoming workshops for aspiring chocolatiers
The Chocolatier’s Workshop is a three-day, hands-on seminar created for confectioners and chocolatiers who want to start a confectionery business

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Lititz, PA (February 12, 2010) – Cargill, owner of Wilbur® chocolate and Peter’s® chocolate, has announced it will offer the fifth and sixth sessions of The Chocolatier’s Workshop™ in March and May of 2010. The fifth session will take place March 22-24 and the sixth session will occur May 3-5. Both sessions will be held in Lititz, Pa. Over 30 participants have already successfully completed the three-day workshop.

“The Chocolatier’s Workshop™ is beneficial for people working in the confectionery industry,” said Courtney LeDrew, marketing manager, Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate. “With two days spent on business and marketing plans, the workshop can be instructional and valuable for those just beginning, those who need a refresher, or those in need of a few good ideas.”

The Chocolatier’s Workshop™ is an interactive, three-day seminar that focuses on opening and operating a confectionery business. The workshop consists of two days in a classroom setting where participants will learn the fundamentals of starting a chocolate business such as selecting a site location, determining the proper product mix, purchasing the correct equipment, marketing, advertising, the legal and operational landscape of business and the type of professionals who can help navigate it, and understanding an owner’s rights and responsibilities.

The third day is spent in the Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate research and development laboratory where participants will get a hands-on candy-making and tempering session with Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate’s expert instructors.

Eric Berley, a participant of The Chocolatier’s Workshop™, comments, “The class was a great beginning course for the novice like me with trained experts to help guide the individuals to a better understanding of chocolate and its properties and the mechanics of operating a full scale business within that field. I highly recommend it to anyone who is thinking about getting into the chocolate business.”

The Chocolatier’s Workshop™ is limited to 10 participants who meet the workshop qualifications. Please contact Amanda Frey at 717-626-3246 or e-mail chocolate@cargill.com to register or for more information.

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Valrhona is a French chocolate manufacturer based in the small town of Tain L’Hermitage in Hermitage, a wine growing district near Lyon. Valrhona  produces 10 tons of product per day as compared to 100 – 150 tons for a large, European manufacturer.

Known in the industry as a supplier of high quality raw chocolate for chocolatiers they took the name Valrhona (from valley and Rhone) in the early 1950s. Valrhona has been producing fine chocolate couvertures since 1922.

Couverture is easiest to understand as a coating, shell or covering.  But in reality the topic is as complex as making chocolate is.

Famous with chefs the world over, Valrhona formerly known as La Chocolaterie de Vivarais – was founded by Monsieur Guironnet, a pastry chef from the Rhone valley in 1924.

Valrhona focuses mainly on top-quality luxury chocolate marketed for professional as well as for private consumption.  Though considered one of the finest chocolate makers in the world, it is roughly in line price wise with Godiva and Neuhaus.

To maintain their top quality chocolates their buyer searches the cocoa-cultivating nations for special cocoa beans.  If a country grows 500,000 tons of beans in a year but only 50 tons are good, it is Valrhona’s mission to find those 50 tons and leave the rest behind.

Valrhona pioneered the production of high quality chocolate from carefully controlled sources and started the trend of featuring the percentage of the cocoa solids in chocolate.

With the introduction of their ‘grand cru’ chocolates in the eighties they led the way towards chocolate from known origins and quality beans.

The company also maintains the Ecole du Grand Chocolat.  This is a school for professional chefs with a focus on chocolate-based dishes and pastries.

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