Chocolatier of the Year

The annual **Chocolatier of the Year Competition** is a crucial event that benchmarks excellence and innovation in fine chocolate production across the nation. This archived post celebrates a pivotal year in the competition, showcasing the rigorous judging process—which assesses taste, creativity, and workmanship—and the top contenders who elevated the craft of the bonbon. The dedication to supporting small business owners and providing national exposure remains a core value reflected in the structure of this prestigious contest.

A true highlight of Pastry Live, nine elite chocolatiers from across the country submitted two of their finest chocolates for review. One chocolate was required to be their **best available in-store** and the other, a **specialty enrobed chocolate**. The judges, some of the best in the industry—Chris Northmore, Stephen Durfee, Jean-Marie Auboine, Vincent Pilon, Stéphane Treand, Jerome Landrieu, and A.J. DiFonzo—based their scores on the **taste, creativity, and workmanship** of each chocolate. Forty audience members took their roles as “People’s Choice” judges seriously and also critiqued the fine bonbons. The results were exciting:

Chocolatier of the Year Archive: And the Winner Is…

The official competition results:

1st Place: Lionel Clement, chef at Nuubia Chocolat, impressed the judges with his unique flavor combination and mastery of bonbons. His **lime-vanilla ganache** chocolate earned him high scores for its excellent flavor and texture, while his **raspberry jasmine tea** chocolate was praised for its creativity of design and execution.

2nd Place: Frederic Loraschi of Chocolat Frederic Loraschi was awarded for his brown sugar caramel and cinnamon ganache filled “Swirl” recipe and his homemade peanut praline “Caracas” chocolates.

3rd Place: David Ramirez

Audience Choice: David Ramirez of Cocoa Latte won over the audience with his hand dipped crunchy-pistachio truffles and his Florida key-lime chocolates.

Archived Competition Structure and Rules

Pastry Live supports small business owners!

The Chocolatier of the Year Competition was specifically designed to:

Provide an affordable way to bring national exposure to culinary work.
Offer objective feedback on how small business work measures up against others in the industry.
Provide data on public opinion via the “People’s Choice” award.

Chocolate shop owners from around the nation competed for the title of Chocolatier of the Year. Competitors were required to submit 60 pieces each of the following:

A molded chocolate already sold in their shop.
A specialty chocolate of their choice.

Chocolates were judged on taste and workmanship by a panel of industry experts. There was also a People’s Choice Award where audience members participated in the tasting and judging.

Lionel Clement
Nuubia Chocolat
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Robyn Dochterman
St. Croix Chocolate Co
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Franck Labasse
Sugar and Plumm
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Brandon Lee
Aspire Bakery & Bistro
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Gene Leiterman
Coco Flow
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Frederic Loraschi
Chocolat F.L.
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Oscar Ortega
Atelier Ortega
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David Ramirez
Cocoa Latte
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Peter Rios
Alliance Bakery
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Amy Everett Stankus
Chocolate South
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Download the original rules. Click here!

Registration is permanently closed for this archived competition.

The Chocolatier of the Year competition continues to define the forefront of fine chocolate work. The archived results demonstrate that success hinges on both technical mastery (workmanship, texture) and bold flavor innovation (lime-vanilla, raspberry jasmine tea). The inclusion of the “Audience Choice” award also underscores the enduring value of connecting exceptional quality with popular appeal, proving that even in the world of gourmet chocolate, public feedback is an essential metric for small business success.

of the Year 2011

Abderrahmane Neggaz

Chocotenango

Aberrahmane Neggaz, a native of Algiers, Algeria, grew up surrounded by the smells and flavors of his mother’s kitchen. He has been a professional chef since 1994. Igniting his love of cooking, he started his career in the bread and sweets department of Cranks, in London, England. He went on to study Pastry Arts at Newbury College in Newton, MA and additionally received a professional chef’s degree from the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts. Continuing his love of learning, he studied sugarwork under Chef Notter. Abderrahmane worked as an Assistant Pastry Chef at Upstairs at the Pudding and led the savory team at the Rialto, both in the Boston area. Moving to Guatemala to accommodate his wife’s new job, he opened a small cooking school before opening his own chocolate business, Chocotenango (meaning the place of chocolate) where he created over 100 original recipes and quickly become the go to place for chocolate in the region. Abderrahmane’s versatility is perfectly suited to the creative pursuit of chocolate, in which he can balance both sweet and savory. In 2008, he was awarded first place at the 13th International Gastronomy Festival in Guatemala in the chocolate category. Now based in Washington DC, Chocotenango reopened in 2013 after Neggaz spent a few years working at the Four Seasons in Georgetown. Neggaz derives his inspiration from the unique ingredients that make up local cuisines from around the globe. Truly a global citizen, Abderrahmane speaks four languages, has lived on four continents and has traveled extensively. He often says, “I don’t find ingredients, they find me.”

Kevin Lindee

Ganache: Truffles For Every Occasion

Chef Kevin Lindee is the owner and chocolatier of local Minnesota company, Ganache: Desserts and Confections. After rejecting two music scholarships to pursue a BS in Culinary Management and an AA in Baking and Pastry, Kevin’s passion for culinary arts flourished as he began creating specialty confections and unique desserts. He creates distinctive flavor profiles and contemporary combinations while infusing modern techniques in every tantalizing treat. By introducing herbs, spices, exotic fruits, and savory applications, Kevin creates seasonal and refreshing concepts that are comforting and delicious.

Kevin creates exceptional desserts by expanding as a boutique dessert caterer focusing on truffles, confections, cupcakes, wedding cakes, dessert stations, and international desserts for that ‘one-of-a-kind’ dessert experience. With his formal training, he experiments with new flavors and unique compositions to make each tasting experience memorable.

Justin Fry

Norman Love Confections

Justin Fry was born in Wichita, Kansas and moved to his mother’s native country in the Philippines when he was 3 years old while his father served in the military. Ultimately, the family settled in Rio Rancho, New Mexico where he attended high school with studies in music.

Upon graduating from high school, Fry attended New Mexico State University as a music performance major. During his free time, he made cakes for friends and family and when asked to bake a wedding cake for a friend, he discovered a true interest in pastry. Researching videos on techniques, he became fascinated with artistry in chocolate which helped solidify his career path.

While researching pastry schools and saving money for culinary school, Fry moved to Orlando and worked for Walt Disney World for four years in merchandise and transportation. He left the Sunshine State to move to Denver, Colorado to attend Johnson and Wales University where he received an Associate of Arts in pastry arts in 2010.
Upon completing an internship, Fry accepted a position at The Willard hotel, in Washington, D.C., as a pastry cook in charge of dessert service for Café du Parc with menu conceptualized by three-star Parisian chef, France Antoine Westermann.

In 2012, Fry accepted a job with Norman Love Confections in Fort Myers, Florida, as a chocolatier to hone in his chocolate skills and continue his culinary education. Currently, he is responsible for novelties and novelty production as well as overseeing ganache production.

In 2013, he assisted a Norman Love Confections’ chef chocolatier in the Paris Gourmet National Pastry Chef of the Year competition and came in third place. In 2013 September, Fryplaced second overall with a gold medal at the Florida Pastry Challenge Showpiece Competition in Orlando.

Fry travels to see as many competitions as possible to prepare for his future goal ofcompeting nationally. He is very fortunate to have the opportunity to work with the professionals at Norman Love Confections as well as the many world renowned chefs who visit Chef Love. Hecontinues his education by taking classes to further develop his showpiece and pastry skills while primarily working in chocolate.

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