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Laurent Gerbaud
Laurent Gerbaud, an exceptional Belgian chocolatier, has a true passion: for unusual flavours, travelling, encounters... and life in general.
For over fifteen years now, he has been delighting the taste buds of visitors to his shop on Rue Ravenstein, just a stone's throw from the Mont des Arts, right in the heart of Brussels.
It was on two-year voyage of initiation – and chocolate – to China that Laurent discovered the wonders of a less sugar-focused cuisine and, on his return, started to produce blends of flavours as unique as they are addictive.
His artisan creations successfully convey some of his love for travel through their unique combinations and choice of premium raw ingredients. Skilfully balanced through experimentation and instinct, delightful ingredients like the Shanghai orange, Madagascar pepper, the Izmir fig, or the Taggiascha black olive, will be sure to give you a taste of Laurent's favourite destinations.
Seeking to offer the best chocolate, every Laurent Gerbaud product is hand crafted in our kitchen, which is open to view behind a glass screen in the boutique. This transparency is essential to Laurent: customers can watch the entire process involved in making the chocolates and other treats, and then try them in the tearoom or back at home on their sofa. So, there's no trickery involved: Laurent Gerbaud's chocolate is as authentic as it is delicious – its imperfections simply add to its beauty.
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Lastly, the whole Laurent Gerbaud ethos is about warmth and friendliness: Laurent is not just a chocolatier, he is also a friend, a neighbour, a stranger you can enjoy a cup of coffee with. His enthusiasm and passion are there to be experienced, in store or at an event, through him or his team – a loyal team with unparalleled know-how, a solid nucleus at the heart of the chocolate shop, whose love of the craft is conveyed in each and every one of our creations.
In homage to his travels in China, our logo is a personalised Chinese stamp in which the initials LG are hidden. The rest of the pictogram means 'chocolate' in Chinese, literally ``tchio – ke – li chocoli ``.
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The recipe for Gerbaud chocolates…
- Character: passion
Laurent Gerbaud chocolates have a characteristically strong and authentic taste, blends of aromas and textures, of sweet and savoury, sour, bitter or spicy flavours. The whole collection is evidence of an original search that departs from the traditional tastes of the Belgian art of chocolate making.
- Premium raw ingredients: delicious and sustainable
The secret of Laurent Gerbaud chocolate also lies in its ingredients. After 15 years of collaboration with the Domori factory in Piedmont, in September 2020, we started working with Danish artisan Mikkel Friis-Holm, winner of a number of gold medals for his meticulous chocolate creations. Together, we have created two recipes using Nicaliso beans from the Ingemann cooperative, a sustainable cocoa producer and exporter in Nicaragua: a 70% cocoa dark chocolate and a very chocolaty 55% cocoa milk chocolate. The dark chocolate has a hint of dried and candied fruits that fits perfectly with our collection. The milk chocolate is very intense, not very sweet, and its dark colour is close to that of dark chocolate.
- An exceptional team: the kitchen
A devoted production team that knows its recipes like the back of its hand. Every product is hand crafted in our workshop in the city centre. Our team of three master chocolate makers convey their passion in each and every one of our creations.
Certified no added sugar*, no butter, no alcohol, no preservatives, no soy lecithin, no artificial flavourings, no additives…
*(or the minimum where no alternative is possible)
But full of love!