Turin and Piedmont, the Italian chocolate district

Turin and Piedmont, the Italian chocolate district
Turin and Piedmont, the homeland of chocolate: here the skill of chocolate artisans is combined
with creativity and innovation. Specialities such as: gianduiotto (a small chocolate made with
cocoa, sugar and the famous “Tonda Gentile” or the “Round and Refined” of the Langhe district),
gianduia spread, with chocolate and hazelnuts, bicerin (a hot drink made of cocoa, milk and
coffee), alpino (small gianduia chocolate filled with creamy liqueur), are all creations of Turin’s
skilful chocolate artisans who, with their passion, made the history of Italian chocolate. Currently
Turin and its district are one of the main Italian chocolate centres with a production of 85
thousand tons and revenues of approximately 850 million euro, corresponding to 35.7% of the
national production and 34.2% of Italian turnover (2002 data). In parallel to major industrial
corporations like Ferrero, Caffarel, Streglio, Pernigotti, Novi, it is the small chocolate firms
which continue Turin’s chocolate tradition using top-quality cocoa from Central and Latin America
and from South-East Asia. A book published by the Chamber of Commerce entitled “Taste
Masters in Turin and its Province” reports some of the very best chocolate artisans in the area:
Atelier del Cioccolato at Giaveno, Candifrutto Bottega del Cioccolato, Guido Gobino,
Peyrano and Premier Cioccolato in the city.
In the past few years, with a view to promoting chocolate culture at an international level, a
number of initiatives were launched in the framework of the “Sweet Piemonte” project in Europe,
Canada and in the United States, with the participation of Piedmont companies in major
international events.
Furthermore, Turin hosts ChocolaTò, the chocolate festival in Piazza San Carlo, that will take
place between March 24 and April 2 this year (www.cioccola-tò.com), with the best chocolate
artisans, both local and international, who will bring their treats to the city in a framework of enogastronomic, musical, literary, cinema and artistic events. It is an excellent opportunity to taste
the specialities of the greatest master chocolate chefs in the world and attend exhibitions, shows
and conferences on chocolate. During the same days Turin will also host the Chocolate
Exchange, a programme of business meetings between Piedmontese companies and foreign
importers and distributors.
Piedmontese companies processing cocoa, chocolate, candies and confectionery
Jan./Sept. 2005
Imprese
piemontesi
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cacao,
cioccolato,
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confetteria20032004gen/sett.
2005ALESSANDRIA151616ASTI777BIELLA322CUNEO202219TORINO394246VERBANO
CUSIO
OSSOLA11TOTALE849091Fonte: Elaborazione a cura della Camera di commercio di Torino su dati InfoCamere
Source: InfoCamere data processed by the Turin Chamber of Commerce
The origins
Turin tradition in the chocolate arts goes back to 1560, when Emanuel Philibert, to celebrate the
transfer of the ducal capital from Chambery to Turin , symbolically served a cup of steaming hot
chocolate to the city. A little more than a century later, the Royal Lady Giovanna Battista
Nemours officially authorized public serving. This event was bound to turn Turin into the main
Italian centre of the “food of the gods”. When cocoa was brought to Turin from Spain in the XVI
century it was made into a drink: it was called “bavaresia” and was served with coffee and milk.
However, at the beginning of the Nineteenth century a new machine was invented to mix cocoa,
vanilla, water and sugar to turn liquid chocolate into solid bars. It was this invention that boosted
the cocoa industry in the city: chocolates, created in Turin, became the favorite way to eat the
new delicacy. Hence the early, historical chocolate-making companies and a variety of creative
specialities like bonbons, pralines, “cremini”, truffles and, above all “gianduiotti”. The latter, along
with Gianduja cream, named after the comic icon figure of Turin carnival – were first made in
1865, when Michele Prochet formulated a new mixture of cocoa and toasted hazelnuts, the
famous “Tonda Gentile delle Langhe,” or the “Round and Refined” hazelnut of the Langhe district.
He created a tidbit still famous all over the world, not only thanks to the small boat-shaped
chocolates, but also thanks to the renowned Nutella. Over time the tradition of this speciality was
nurtured by famous Turinese chocolate masters like Baratti & Milano, Caffarel, Gobino, Peyrano,
G- Pfatisch, Streglio, Stratta, who were able to renew it with new formulas and inventions.
In the meantime, while chocolate production was further developing, under the arcades and in the
piazzas of the city centre some salons and cafés started to serve chocolate, with rituals that have
survived till today: Bicerin – which offers the famous homonymous “bicchierino” with cocoa,
coffee and liquid cream, Caffè San Carlo, Caffè Torino, Baratti & Milano, Mulassano, Stratta,
Fiorio are only some of the historical cafés still serving cocoa-based delicacies.
But the chocolate arts in Turin go well beyond gianduiotti to include other specialities such as: the
original and rich “alpino” (filled with creamy liqueur and packaged in tiny silver baskets), “preferiti”
and “favoriti”, which are also known as “cremini”.
For more information please contact:
Marco Digioia
Unioncamere Piemonte
Union of Chambers of Commerce of Piedmont
Tel: 0032 2 5500250 (general) 5500253 (direct)
Fax: 0032 2 5500259
Rue de l'Industrie 22
1040 Brussels