Soon Easter is chocolate time. However, there are (almost) as many chocolates as there are cultures. From Mexico to the Basque Country, here are 5 destinations that will thrill chocolate lovers. Dark or milk, candy or pralines, discover other ways to taste chocolate!

It is in Oaxaca that we drink, it seems, the best hot chocolate in the world. A tradition that dates back to the pre-Columbian era, even if the original recipe has changed.

Cultivated on the territory of the current states of Tabasco and Chiapas for 3,500 years, the cocoa bean served as a ritual offering and currency for the Mayans and the Aztecs. Reserved for the elite, the drink was bitter, mossy, and sometimes spiced up.

Today, Mexican chocolate has gained in sweetness, thanks to the addition of sugar, and it is flavored with cinnamon, almonds or vanilla. To taste it, visit one of the markets in the pretty colonial town of Oaxaca. A word of advice: accompany it with a pan of yema, a brioche bun.

At Mercado 20 de Noviembre, you can also find drinks (tejate, champurrado) and traditional dishes (chicken with mole sauce) made from cocoa. Finally, the city has many chocolate factories. The main ones (Mayordomo, La Soledad) operate in Calle Mina. Do not hesitate to taste.

Switzerland: Gruyère is also chocolate

Contrary to what one might think, in the Gruyère region, you don’t just find cheese!

At Maison Cailler, chocolate is made. The history of the oldest Swiss chocolate brand begins in 1819, but the Broc factory was opened in 1898.

Imposing, the large white building evokes the imagination of “Charlie and the chocolate factory”. Mr. Wonka is not there, but if you participate in a workshop, you will meet a master chocolate maker who will introduce you to the art of conching and ganache.

The site visit, as informative as it is fun, takes you on cocoa paths, from Aztec temples to Switzerland, and all the stages of production are explained to you, from the bean to the packaging. After which, you are ripe for a tasting…

Brussels, the kingdom of praline

In Brussels, we are melting for the praline. This little bite of filled chocolate has a fun story.

In 1857, Jean Neuhaus, apothecary by trade, opened a boutique in the Queen’s Gallery and, to hide the taste of his remedies, coated them with chocolate. In 1912, his grandson went further and completely replaced the drugs with crème fraîche. The praline was born, and the fortune of the Neuhaus family made.

Around the Grand-Place , your taste buds are tickled by the tempting storefronts of the other big names in Belgian chocolate: Leonidas , Godiva , Corné , Galler, Mary , and, ten minutes on foot, at Sablon , Marcolini and Wittamer , official supplier to the royal family, among others. Other creations are to be enjoyed at chocolate makers such as Jean-Philippe Darcis or Pierre Ledent.

If you want to get your hands dirty (cocoa), head to the artisanal chocolate factories. At Zaabär, you will learn how to make tablets, beggars or truffles, while at Planète Chocolat, you will make beautiful pralines. Here, between the workshops, the visits and the tastings, the fans of the bean are delighted.

There are also two museums: the Belgian Chocolate Village, near the Sacré-Coeur basilica, and Choco-Story near the Grand Place.

Turin, much more than Nutella!

This is the XVI th century was born the great history of chocolate in Turin, when the Duke Emmanuel Philibert of Savoy reports of his trip to the Spanish court of cocoa beans. Today, 40% of the national production is produced there, which gives the city the nickname of the Italian capital of chocolate.

Besides industrial giants such as Ferrero, inventor of the famous Nutella, many houses (Peyrano, Baratti & Milano, Streglio, Feletti, Caffarel, Stratta) are always guarantors of the tradition, while constantly inventing new recipes.

Among the Piedmontese specialties are the gianduiotto, a creamy paste mixing cocoa and hazelnuts from the region, wrapped in gold or silver paper; but also, the cioccolatini, pralines with multiple forms, the alpino and the cremino, filled with sweet cream.

Finally, it is impossible to leave Turin without having tasted the famous bicerin in the refined decor of one of the historic cafes in the city center. Served in a stemmed glass, like a grand cru, this drink consists of three layers: first a very dark coffee, then a good layer of thick chocolate, all topped with whipping cream. Delizioso.

Bayonne, French capital of chocolate

Little is known, but Bayonne is the leading chocolate city in France. This is, in fact, that cocoa was introduced into the country at the beginning of the XVII th century. Fleeing the Inquisition, the Jews of the Iberian Peninsula, who settled in the Saint-Esprit district, brought the precious bean in their luggage. But, better still, they know the art of making chocolate.

At the time, it was tasted as a spicy drink. A pleasure reserved for the wealthy. It will be necessary to wait for the XIX E century so that one can crunch it with full teeth.

Four centuries later, Bayonne still has reference chocolate makers, who even have their own academy. Among them, the Atelier du Chocolat (7, allée de Gibéléou) offers a discovery tour of 1 hour 30 minutes, which ends with a tasting.

And each weekend of the Ascension, the city celebrates the Chocolate Days, with concerts, street performances, exhibitions, conferences, and, above all, “soaking” and tastings with artisans.

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