After its successful revival last year following the pandemic, Brighton Chocolate Festival is back! Hosted at the Brighthelm Centre, this fantastic free event showcases some of the best, award-winning chocolatiers from all over the UK and puts an emphasis on the ethical and sustainable side of chocolate. All 14 stands unsurprisingly offer outstanding chocolate, each with their own unique flavour profiles and recipes. Chilli chocolate, tiramisu chocolate, even haggis spice chocolate, you can find it all here! Every stall was run by people who are very passionate about chocolate, eager to share their knowledge, and excited to hand out samples and discuss the flavours with eventgoers.
When I first entered Brighton Chocolate Festival, I was greeted at the first stand by Rachel from J Cocoa. Rachel has organised the festival since it’s comeback and has done a great job at bringing the chocolate community together. She explained that the bean-to-bar model used by the chocolatiers ensured the highest control of quality for their chocolate. Their cocoa farmers are paid 2 to 3 times above fairtrade prices which ensures that their hard work is reflected in their pay. She shared with me that this pay scale meant that it was possible for the farmers to send their children to higher education – something that would not have been an option in the past. Once the beans are shipped to the UK, they are roasted in small batches to create an even roast profile, creating an accurate and consistent flavour which carries through to the final product.
Not only do the stalls all promote ethical pay for their cocoa farmers, but also have a passion for sustainable packaging, most of which is lovingly hand-wrapped and presented beautifully. The zero-waste policy carries through to the products on offer too as you can find delicious cacao nibs, and warming cacao husk tea (I’m sipping some as I type this).
Did you know that chocolate contains the most flavonoids of any food? Neither did I until I visited Brighton Chocolate Festival. Chocolate contains over 400 flavonoids (antioxidants which counteract cellular aging and preserve brain functions) which is even more reason to enjoy it!
I also learned that the chocolate percentage does not always indicate an increase in bitterness. I tasted two chocolates of similar percentages (71% & 72%) and they had wildly different flavours, this is because the more important factor is the bean species, in this case Nicaraguan and Peruvian respectively.
It was so wonderful to attend this event and meet people who were genuinely passionate about their craft, creating stunning chocolate, and actively improving the cocoa farming industry through their practices. I will definitely be going back next year.
It’s all too easy to forget in a developed western country that chocolate is in fact a luxury, and that a tremendous amount of work goes in to cultivating the beans, to turning it into a bar on a shop shelf. After attending Brighton Chocolate Festival, I will never think about chocolate the same way again.
Below are links to all the fantastic businesses who had stalls, I hope you will take a look at all of them and find your new favourite chocolate which will not only taste delicious, but your conscious will be sound knowing that your purchase is going towards an ethical and sustainable producer. Also, if anyone says you’re eating too much chocolate, tell them about the flavonoids thing.
Find out more: www.brightonchocolatefestival.co.uk
Chocolatiers:
www.tosier.co.uk, www.franceschichocolate.com, www.choctree.co.uk, www.jcocoa.co.uk, www.chocolateseekers.com, www.rubyhue.co.uk, www.eponine.co.uk, www.mayoycacao.com, www.terredesienne.com, www.anisaandchocolate.com, www.contourchocolate.co.uk, www.dormousechocolates.com, www.nearynogs.com, www.londonchocolate.co.uk
