EXETER — Enna Chocolate's Hacienda Victoria Ecuador 76% Dark Chocolate bar was crowned a winner at the 2024 Good Food Awards .
Enna Grazier was presented the award during a ceremony in Portland, Oregon April 29. The annual awards recognize food companies dedicated to "sustainable, delicious, and responsibly crafted food and drink."
“It was an absolute pleasure and honor to share the festivities with my family, and it made the win so much more special,” Grazier said.
The bean-to-bar chocolate is made in Grazier's Exeter shop, Enna Chocolate , at 152 Front Street, with cacao she purchases direct from the producer Hacienda Victoria in Cerecita, Guayas, near the Pacific Coast of Ecuador. The farm's mission is to responsibly preserve the Nacional Arriba cacao bean and bring ethical and positive biodiverse impact to cacao farming.
“It is an honor to work with these beautiful cacao beans and share their flavor with the world,” Grazier said.
The same “workhorse” beans, she added, are also used in many other products in her store, such as cookies and hot chocolates.
Grazier’s chocolate bar was selected from a highly competitive field of submissions from all over the United States. The winners were selected through rigorous blind tasting and sustainability vetting.
“The Good Food Awards considers all chocolate submissions together: they do not have sub-categories for dark chocolate or for chocolate with creative additional ingredients like fruits or nuts," said Grazier. "So to be recognized for a simple dark chocolate among so many other kinds of chocolate bars is extra special.”
The recent recognition comes after Grazier won two awards from the 2023 Americas Bean-to-Bar and Craft Chocolatier Competition.
Grazier has been making chocolate from bean to bar for nearly a decade. Her hobby turned into a profession after chef Evan Mallett tasted one of her samples and asked if he could sell them at his restaurant.
She started making the bars in her kitchen, then a commercial space in Epping, until she moved into her current space and cafe on Front Street.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Exeter's Enna Chocolate wins Good Food Award for chocolate bar
Most Popular
Comments / 0