Belgian chocolate has been a popular choice since the eighteenth century but it really started gaining popularity in the early part of the twentieth century. That?s when, in 1912, noted Belgian chocolatier Jean Neuhaus created a new? process using a special chocolate variety – couverteur – as a solid shell for what he referred to as pralines.
The Chocolate industry forms an important part of the Belgian economy and culture with over 2,000 chocolatiers and 172,000 tonnes of production each year.
What makes Belgian chocolate unique is the quality of the ingredients and an almost fanatical adherence to Old World manufacturing techniques. Even in today’s world of automation and mass production, most of the chocolate is still made by hand in small shops using traditional style equipment.