Dutch craft chocolate makers: an overview in three and a few words
After giving a small presentation at the #StayHomeWithChocolate Festival on Dutch chocolate makers I felt the need to write some sort of an overview. While making a chronological list I couldn't resist formulating some thoughts on what's typical Dutch about these chocolate makers.
So here I go, trying to catch the spirit of the Dutch craft chocolate movement and its makers.
- If you ask me to describe Dutch chocolate makers "purist" would be the first word to come to my mind. Most Dutch makers concentrate their work on the chocolate part of their product. The bean is seen as the source by which the taste will reveal itself and adjectives (read inclusions) are considered as being distracting. This whole development of inclusions like tropical fruit, nuts or matcha hasn't affected makers like Krak, Mesjokke and Heinde &Verre. These brands find their differentiation in the kind of cacao beans they use, the cacao percentage and the different kinds of sugar and milk powder.
So here I go, trying to catch the spirit of the Dutch craft chocolate movement and its makers.
- If you ask me to describe Dutch chocolate makers "purist" would be the first word to come to my mind. Most Dutch makers concentrate their work on the chocolate part of their product. The bean is seen as the source by which the taste will reveal itself and adjectives (read inclusions) are considered as being distracting. This whole development of inclusions like tropical fruit, nuts or matcha hasn't affected makers like Krak, Mesjokke and Heinde &Verre. These brands find their differentiation in the kind of cacao beans they use, the cacao percentage and the different kinds of sugar and milk powder.
Also Chocolatemakers, the only certified organic craft chocolate producer in the Netherlands, with a strong position on the organic market, hardly offers anything else besides milk and dark chocolate. A bar with sea salt and a bar with cacao nibs is albout as exotic as it gets.
One could say: perhaps the demand on the Dutch craft chocolate market for exotic tastes and inclusions is not that strong? I don't believe that's the case. You only have to take a look at the wild tastes Tony's Chocolonely sells in the supermarkets to know that the demand is there.
I would say, this puristic tendency in the Dutch craft chocolate movement shows us how these makers look at their own work. Making an honest product, and trying to convince the public by taste or by telling that honest story is what they all strive for.
-Therefor "honesty" would be the second word for me that applies to the craft makers in the Netherlands. Telling the whole story, from source (direct trade) to price (fair trade) to circular production (recyclable packaging and rest product use) and being transparent about these themes are essential parts of their business strategy. But this honesty hasn't resulted in a lot of certification.
On the regular Dutch chocolate market certification and labels are a big issue. The earlier mentioned Tony Chocolonely, with their "slave free chocolate" is the best example for what influence a label can have on the market. On the craft chocolate market size is probably the explanation for a somewhat different situation. Only Chocolatemakers are certified, although a lot of the other makers do also use organic or fair trade ingredients. These craft chocolate makers either don't want to be labeled ( some say it would make them sad knowing their products would be sold only for the support of a good cause and not for the good product it is). Or the costs for getting these labels are just too high compared to the small volumes they make.
-The last word to complete my thoughts would be "taste". Although this would perhaps apply to all craft chocolate makers, I believe that Dutch makers are very much taste orientated and not so much consumer orientated. Not only because some of them have a background as a pastry chef or sommelier, but also because of a lot of conversations I have had with these makers, I feel that taste is the real drive for these men and women.
The quest for an honest, puristic chocolate taste is what most Dutch makers have in common. (Especially the creators at Heinde & Verre are the living proof of tasting nerds. Just visit them and their chocolate library and you'll understand.)
But also among the few makers that do work with inclusions or other taste experiments, it's still the pure taste that leads these makers and not the demand from the consumers. Which alas makes the Dutch customer longing for these tasty extra's having to search for the smaller makers or find a specialty shop to supply them with foreign brands.
One could say: perhaps the demand on the Dutch craft chocolate market for exotic tastes and inclusions is not that strong? I don't believe that's the case. You only have to take a look at the wild tastes Tony's Chocolonely sells in the supermarkets to know that the demand is there.
I would say, this puristic tendency in the Dutch craft chocolate movement shows us how these makers look at their own work. Making an honest product, and trying to convince the public by taste or by telling that honest story is what they all strive for.
-Therefor "honesty" would be the second word for me that applies to the craft makers in the Netherlands. Telling the whole story, from source (direct trade) to price (fair trade) to circular production (recyclable packaging and rest product use) and being transparent about these themes are essential parts of their business strategy. But this honesty hasn't resulted in a lot of certification.
On the regular Dutch chocolate market certification and labels are a big issue. The earlier mentioned Tony Chocolonely, with their "slave free chocolate" is the best example for what influence a label can have on the market. On the craft chocolate market size is probably the explanation for a somewhat different situation. Only Chocolatemakers are certified, although a lot of the other makers do also use organic or fair trade ingredients. These craft chocolate makers either don't want to be labeled ( some say it would make them sad knowing their products would be sold only for the support of a good cause and not for the good product it is). Or the costs for getting these labels are just too high compared to the small volumes they make.
-The last word to complete my thoughts would be "taste". Although this would perhaps apply to all craft chocolate makers, I believe that Dutch makers are very much taste orientated and not so much consumer orientated. Not only because some of them have a background as a pastry chef or sommelier, but also because of a lot of conversations I have had with these makers, I feel that taste is the real drive for these men and women.
The quest for an honest, puristic chocolate taste is what most Dutch makers have in common. (Especially the creators at Heinde & Verre are the living proof of tasting nerds. Just visit them and their chocolate library and you'll understand.)
But also among the few makers that do work with inclusions or other taste experiments, it's still the pure taste that leads these makers and not the demand from the consumers. Which alas makes the Dutch customer longing for these tasty extra's having to search for the smaller makers or find a specialty shop to supply them with foreign brands.
At the end all makers make chocolate they like themself, none of them makes a bar just for the money. It is pure passion.
Here my historic overview.
Here my historic overview.
In 2010 Kees Raat founded Metropolitan in Amsterdam and this could be seen as the start of the craft chocolate movement in the Netherlands. Metropolitan is situated in the center of the city and offers a wide range of home made pastry, ice cream, Italian coffee, chocolate and bonbons. The chocolate used in all these products is made in the house, bean to bar. At this moment they use cacao from Venezuela and Ecuador. Kees and his team process about 10 Tons of cacao a year. I can't go on without mentioning their drinking chocolate. Anyone visiting Amsterdam should drink it at least once during stay in the city.
In 2011 Enver Loke and Rodney Nikkels founded Chocolatemakers, also in Amsterdam. They recently moved to a new completely sustainable factory in the north part of the city, which is open for guided tours. At this moment Chocolademakers is by far the biggest producer of craft chocolate in the Netherlands. They produce about 70 Tons of organic certified chocolate a year. The cacao used from the Dominican Republic is transported by the sailing vessel Tres Hombres. Other sort of cacao's they use are from Congo (Virunga) and Peru (Awajun). The transparency applied throughout their whole organization is exemplary for an ethically working producer.
Zoen Chocolate was founded in 2012 in Leiden by Harm van Oudenhoven. After having worked for NGO's in Nicaragua, where he founded El Castillo del Cacao, he started using the same cacao to make bean to bar products in the Netherlands. Zoen offers chocolate chunks with all kinds of inclusions and freshly grinded thick chocolate pastes in cup cake shapes. They come in three different tastes. Harm simply raps his chocolate in a bit of paper like the Dutch do with their cheese. He offers workshops on how to make your own chocolate in his shop. He processes around 1 Ton of cacao a year.
Mark Schimmel founded Krak Chocolade in 2013 after having worked as a pastry chef at the highest international level. He is based in Ermelo, a small place in the east of the country, where he processes almost 2 Ton of chocolate a year. Krak produces bars only and has no shop of his own. Mark works closely with Daarnhouwer, a Dutch coffee and cacao trader and importer. He gets his cacao from them and that's why his portfolio has a broad assortment of different origins. Some of them stay in production for a longer time, others are rare and come in limited small batches. Almost all bars are 70% cacao with only cane sugar. Just this year he produced his first 55% dark milk bar.
A very small brand is Dam Lekker in Amsterdam, also founded in 2013. The founder is Emma Groenewoud. Every month she turns 5 Kg of Peruvian cacao into organic bars full of inclusions. You can only buy her bars in Amsterdam.This is also the city for which she offers guided chocolate tours, but only half the year, because the other half she lives in Cape Town. Emma also works as a chocolate maker there, but here she uses Kokoa Kamili beans from Tanzania.
In Utrecht, right in the middle of the country, Luc Janssens en Per Vonk started Mesjokke in 2015. You won't find any kind of certification on their bars, because they believe in their standards and fair trade is the least you can do. They would feel sorry for their bars if you bought them just to support a good cause. They only use the services of external importers after making sure the farmer doesn't get paid a cent less, other wise they work in direct trade. 3,5 Ton of cacao is being processed in their factory. Four different bars and one limited edition was their plan, but the succes of their Kokoa Kamili bar forced them to broaden their assortment. Apart from their own Mesjokke brand Per and Luc do a lot of white and private label work under the name of Chocolate Explorers.
In 2016 Arend van der Heijden founded Brick of Raw Chocolate. Situated in Heerlen, in the south, this brand concentrates on raw chocolate. The founder, a professional chef, is a strong believer in the health benefits of chocolate in combination with the six basic Ayurvedic tastes witch he uses for seasoning his bars. He also works with a lot of inclusions. I personally was very impressed by the bar in which cacao blossom sugar was used. The used cacao beans come from different origins like Costa Rica, Vietnam, Peru and Madagascar. Although the production is currently on hold Brick of Raw usually processes about 1,2 to 1,5 Tons a year.
Macao Movement founded 2017 by Malou Dronkers. The word movement in the brand name stands for the philosophy of her work. Inviting people to move with her to explore the world of chocolate in every thinkable way. For Malou this journey started before 2017 in Costa Rica turned into a movement in 2017 and since 2019 she hes her own place called Chocolalaland in the north of Amsterdam. She makes tangram shaped bars in three different tastes and also caramelised cacao beans. I have to mention the drinking cacao as well. Macao Movement uses 40 Kg of cacao beans a month originating from the Salomon Iles and the Dominican Republic.
Heinde & Verre entered the Dutch market in 2019, but Ewald Rietberg en Jan Willem Jekel had started making chocolate about four years earlier. These four years were used for testing and finding their own way in chocolate making. By choosing not to limit themselves to single origin bars only but also allowing the use of blends, they hold a special position within the craft chocolate movement. Ewald and Jan Willem strongly belief that by composing their own blends they can, into detail, organise the taste they want for their bars. Their cacao originates from Venezuela, Brazil, Indonesia and of course their blends are wel kept secret. A nice detail is the different kinds of Dutch milk powder they are using. Having been on the market for such a short period of time their numbers are not representative, but at the end of 2019 these gentelman processed 100 Kg a month.
Besides these craft makers who work from bean to bar, the Dutch chocolate world has a special branch which I would call: the good cause bar. Just as the Dutch regular market has it's "good" bar in Tonys slave free chocolate, the craft chocolate movement has three brands. These bars are not made in Holland, but their organizations are registered here.
Zoen Chocolate was founded in 2012 in Leiden by Harm van Oudenhoven. After having worked for NGO's in Nicaragua, where he founded El Castillo del Cacao, he started using the same cacao to make bean to bar products in the Netherlands. Zoen offers chocolate chunks with all kinds of inclusions and freshly grinded thick chocolate pastes in cup cake shapes. They come in three different tastes. Harm simply raps his chocolate in a bit of paper like the Dutch do with their cheese. He offers workshops on how to make your own chocolate in his shop. He processes around 1 Ton of cacao a year.
Mark Schimmel founded Krak Chocolade in 2013 after having worked as a pastry chef at the highest international level. He is based in Ermelo, a small place in the east of the country, where he processes almost 2 Ton of chocolate a year. Krak produces bars only and has no shop of his own. Mark works closely with Daarnhouwer, a Dutch coffee and cacao trader and importer. He gets his cacao from them and that's why his portfolio has a broad assortment of different origins. Some of them stay in production for a longer time, others are rare and come in limited small batches. Almost all bars are 70% cacao with only cane sugar. Just this year he produced his first 55% dark milk bar.
A very small brand is Dam Lekker in Amsterdam, also founded in 2013. The founder is Emma Groenewoud. Every month she turns 5 Kg of Peruvian cacao into organic bars full of inclusions. You can only buy her bars in Amsterdam.This is also the city for which she offers guided chocolate tours, but only half the year, because the other half she lives in Cape Town. Emma also works as a chocolate maker there, but here she uses Kokoa Kamili beans from Tanzania.
In Utrecht, right in the middle of the country, Luc Janssens en Per Vonk started Mesjokke in 2015. You won't find any kind of certification on their bars, because they believe in their standards and fair trade is the least you can do. They would feel sorry for their bars if you bought them just to support a good cause. They only use the services of external importers after making sure the farmer doesn't get paid a cent less, other wise they work in direct trade. 3,5 Ton of cacao is being processed in their factory. Four different bars and one limited edition was their plan, but the succes of their Kokoa Kamili bar forced them to broaden their assortment. Apart from their own Mesjokke brand Per and Luc do a lot of white and private label work under the name of Chocolate Explorers.
In 2016 Arend van der Heijden founded Brick of Raw Chocolate. Situated in Heerlen, in the south, this brand concentrates on raw chocolate. The founder, a professional chef, is a strong believer in the health benefits of chocolate in combination with the six basic Ayurvedic tastes witch he uses for seasoning his bars. He also works with a lot of inclusions. I personally was very impressed by the bar in which cacao blossom sugar was used. The used cacao beans come from different origins like Costa Rica, Vietnam, Peru and Madagascar. Although the production is currently on hold Brick of Raw usually processes about 1,2 to 1,5 Tons a year.
Macao Movement founded 2017 by Malou Dronkers. The word movement in the brand name stands for the philosophy of her work. Inviting people to move with her to explore the world of chocolate in every thinkable way. For Malou this journey started before 2017 in Costa Rica turned into a movement in 2017 and since 2019 she hes her own place called Chocolalaland in the north of Amsterdam. She makes tangram shaped bars in three different tastes and also caramelised cacao beans. I have to mention the drinking cacao as well. Macao Movement uses 40 Kg of cacao beans a month originating from the Salomon Iles and the Dominican Republic.
Heinde & Verre entered the Dutch market in 2019, but Ewald Rietberg en Jan Willem Jekel had started making chocolate about four years earlier. These four years were used for testing and finding their own way in chocolate making. By choosing not to limit themselves to single origin bars only but also allowing the use of blends, they hold a special position within the craft chocolate movement. Ewald and Jan Willem strongly belief that by composing their own blends they can, into detail, organise the taste they want for their bars. Their cacao originates from Venezuela, Brazil, Indonesia and of course their blends are wel kept secret. A nice detail is the different kinds of Dutch milk powder they are using. Having been on the market for such a short period of time their numbers are not representative, but at the end of 2019 these gentelman processed 100 Kg a month.
Besides these craft makers who work from bean to bar, the Dutch chocolate world has a special branch which I would call: the good cause bar. Just as the Dutch regular market has it's "good" bar in Tonys slave free chocolate, the craft chocolate movement has three brands. These bars are not made in Holland, but their organizations are registered here.
The oldest one, founded in 2008 by Philipp Kaufmann, is Original Beans. They have their bars made by Felchlin in Switzerland. Their cause, finding and preserving the world's rarest cacao trees is an international recognized. They didn't want to give information about their production numbers, but said "we're big for a craft maker nevertheless small for a chocolate maker".
In 2018 RokBar was founded as an organization with the aim to raise awareness and give money back to the woman making chocolate. More than half of the people working in the cacao production chain are women. The RokBar is completely made by woman in their land of origin. Until now they only have a bar from Peru, made by Shatell, but projects in other countries are in preparation. Till now half a ton of chocolate came to Holland.
The latest good cause bar I would like to mention, is called The Other Bar. Founded with the help of UNDP this bar, made by Hoja Verde in Ecuador, is an experiment towards radical equality, so they say. With the help of blockchain technology and a qr code the customer can decide where a part of his money is invested. So far 1,5 ton of chocolate has been sold.
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