This text is part of the special Pleasures notebook
It was December 8, 2008. Chocolatier Carl Pelletier was betting on opening an artisanal chocolate factory in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts, a charming little town nestled between the St. Lawrence River and the Gaspésie National Park. Fifteen years of satisfied customers later, he marks his anniversary with a signature chocolate recipe called Mer et Montagnes.
This chocolate, created to measure according to the tastes of the chocolatier, is what we call “Black Gold”, a creation from the French house Cacao Barry.
The personalized chocolate laboratory, founded in 2007, aims to offer chefs and chocolatiers around the world the opportunity to explore, thanks to a patented method, unlimited possibilities for customizing a chocolate that would be unique to them.
Although cocoa is not a local product, having your own recipe is a way for Quebec chocolatiers to experiment, stand out and create something that resembles them.
However, don’t embark on this adventure who wants. “It’s gaining volume!” exclaims the chocolatier. You have to be able to order a ton [1000 kilos] of his personalized recipe to have it created! »
The creation of Carl Pelletier’s “Black Gold” began at the very beginning of 2023 and would take almost 10 months to be completed… its release coinciding perfectly with its 15e birthday.
Direction France
From its Gaspé boutique, the Couleur Chocolat team first had to blind taste numerous chocolate samples in order to determine its favorite taste profile.
Indeed, chocolate has different flavor profiles, including, among others, roasted/grilled (coffee, biscuit aromas), spicy (vanilla, cinnamon aromas) and fruity (berry, cinnamon aromas). jam, dried fruit).
It was on the latter that Carl Pelletier set his sights. “We realized that I particularly liked the notes of red fruits and banana, with a hint of acidity, a silky texture and a nice length on the palate. »
The team members then packed their bags to go to Hardricourt, a suburb of Paris, for a second tasting session at Cacao Barry. “We check if what we decided at the previous tasting is still valid. I was very consistent in my tastes, it was easy! » remembers the Gaspé chocolatier.
On site, Cacao Barry offers a few recipes, and the team agrees on their favorite. The final result, “a 72.5% dark chocolate made from chocolates from Mexico and Tanzania”, tasted and approved both blindly and uncovered, then becomes the unique recipe for Couleur Chocolat: the Sea and Mountains.
Three to four months of production later, the chocolate shipment headed to Sainte-Anne-des-Monts.
Chocolate Gaspésie
Once the chocolate was received at his shop, Carl Pelletier quickly set about transforming it into delicious chocolate products. “We made pistoles from it, which will allow people to cook it, eat it in fondue, make sauces with it. We also have snack bars, bars with ganache, beggars…”
His next project will most likely be a new collection of his popular forest chocolates, fine bites combining fine chocolate and local aromas, such as comptonia traveler, cherry syrup, balsam fir or wild caraway. And for a long time, Carl Pelletier has wanted to work with dune pepper. Maybe it will be with the Sea and Mountains?
Carl Pelletier’s creations are sold at colorchocolat.ca and in store.
Quebec chocolates to offer
Montreal “black gold” to try
This content was produced by the Special Publications team at Duty, relating to marketing. The writing of the Duty did not take part.