JUDGES at the 2015 International Chocolate Awards World Drinking Chocolate Competition have adjudged the Philippine-made Malagos 65% Dark Chocolate as one of the worlds best.
In an announcement made on its website on October 9, 2015, the organization gave Malagos 65% Dark Chocolate the Silver Prize as one of the worlds best drinking chocolates.
The Davao-made chocolate won in the Dark Drinking Chocolate Category, specifically drinks made with milk.
Winning the Gold was Chocolate de Mesa from the United States.
Entries to the 2015 World Drinking Chocolate Competition of the International Chocolate Awards were judged using a specially developed judging system, created after international trials and consultation with independent experts around the world.
The competition drew entries from around the world. The entries were judged live at the Schokolade Gourmet Festival in Hannover, Germany last September 2015, using consumer recipes prepared by a team of chefs according to the entrants consumer recipes.
This honor comes soon after Malagos Chocolates recent victory at the 2015 Academy of Chocolate Awards in London, where its 100% Pure Unsweetened Chocolate won the Bronze Award for Best Unflavored Drinking Chocolate.
u0093We are very proud of this achievement. Winning two international awards in the span of only one year proves that Philippine-made chocolates can be elevated to world-class standards, said Rex Puentespina, Chocolate Maker at MalagosAgri-Ventures Corp., the company that makes the award-winning chocolates.
The Davao-based company started making premium single-origin cocoa liquor in 2012.
They received training from the Mars Cocoa Sustainability Team, which taught them how to process high-quality beans to international standards.
The company also started working closely with more than 40 small farmers in the area, using cacao beans harvested from trees growing in the foothills of Mount Talomo in Davao.
The area is a highly diverse agricultural zone on the island of Mindanao in the southern Philippines.
Malagos Agri-Ventures grows Trinitario clones, a cross between the Criollo and Forastero varieties, specifically and predominantly the UF 18, BR 25 and PBC 123 clones. These beans are considered as fine flavor beans.
These are manually harvested then fermented on the farm to further enhance naturally their complex flavor.
The company also invested in solar dryers, precision-controlled roasters, ball mill grinders and tempering machines. The company continues to invest in equipment and technology, producing other premium, single-origin fine chocolate products such as Malagos Cocoa Liquor /Mass, Malagos 100% Pure Unsweetened Chocolate, Malagos Roasted Cocoa Nibs and Malagos Dark Chocolate in 65%, 72% & 85%.
The International Chocolate Awards is an independent competition recognizing excellence in fine chocolate making and in the products made with fine chocolate.
As the Worlds only fully independent international fine chocolate competition, it aims to support companies producing fine chocolate and chocolatiers, small companies and artisans working with fine chocolate.
By helping these markets to grow and develop, it also aims to support the farmers that grow fine cacao.