EVENTS

Belcolade Headquarters
10 October 2007

Belcolade has taken the initiative in starting a new contest. The competition’s goal is to present an award for the tastiest praline in the Netherlands and is only open to professional chocolate confectioners.

The winner will be chosen after three rounds. In addition to the final round, which will be held during the Margriet Winter Fair, a prize will also be awarded to the public's favourite on this occasion. Belcolade's goal is to stimulate the chocolate confectionery profession. 

The number of entrants in the competition is high. Last Sunday, an expert jury of professionals judged 38 pralines at Belcolade's facility in the Netherlands. The jury consisted of Dominique Persoone (Shock-O-Latier and owner of The Chocolate Line in Bruges), Paul Fagel (chief cook at het Arsenaal in Naarden and president of the Koksgilde [Chefs Guild]), and Robert van Beckhoven (Pastry chef and co-founder of the Nederlands Patisserie Team). The pralines were made by the various contestants in the competition De lekkerste Bonbon van Nederland (the Netherlands' Tastiest Praline). The level of the contestants is high, and it was a difficult choice for the jury to arrive at the group of semi-finalists. As Robèrt van Beckhoven, the chairman of the jury, said to the audience of over 40 people present: "It was a difficult choice and we decided to allow the makers of the 16 best pralines to continue on to the semi-finals. The general level of skill is high, proof that the chocolate confectionery profession in the Netherlands has grown tremendously in the past few decades." 

The semi-finalists will battle it out during the second round on 10 October at the Belcolade factory in Belgium for a spot in the finals to be held at the Margriet Winter Fair in November. During the second round, the participants will create their pralines on site. After 10 October, five chocolate confectioners will continue on to the finals with their creations. Dominique Persoone: "The pralines entered in the contest are extremely creative and beautifully designed. The participants obviously have an eye for both the visual aspect as well as for what constitutes great flavour. As a jury, we are extremely satisfied with the entries and are very curious about the rest of the contest." Paul Fagel: "We have really enjoyed all of these delicious treats and are already looking forward to the next round!"   

It is no coincidence but was instead a conscious choice to hold the final round at the Margriet Winter Fair. Marc van Hulst, General Director of Belcolade Nederland: "We hope to stimulate the chocolate confectionery profession by giving the general public the chance to experience the ultimate pleasure of delightful chocolate. In short: we want to offer the consumer the opportunity to enjoy. And with this contest, we hope to create more notoriety for the confectioners."  

Organised by Belcolade, this is the first time The Netherlands Tastiest Praline contest will be held, and the manufacturer is extremely enthusiastic about the way things have gone up to now. Marc van Hulst: "This is an event that will without a doubt be repeated in the years to come! The responses we are receiving are very enthusiastic. Chocolate is hot and provides pure pleasure!" The atmosphere among the participants present was positive and relaxed.