San Francisco Chocolate Salon 2025 Awards Announced

• Cacao Regina
• VB Fine Chocolates

• aL chocoLat Boutique
• Socola Chocolatier LLC

• aL chocoLat Boutique
• Bonfiction and Godavari Chocolate
• Brigadeiro Sprinkles
• flying noir
• Goufrais Southern California
• Recchiuti Confections
• VB Fine Chocolates
• Volo Chocolate
• The Good Chocolate

• Cacao Regina
• Socola Chocolatier LLC
• Sonoma Chocolatiers
• The Good Chocolate
• 9th & Larkin

• Michael's Chocolates
• The Chaga Company
• CocoTutti Chocolates
• 1.2.3 Chocolat
• Formosa Chocolates
• aL chocoLat Boutique
• Brigadeiro Sprinkles
• flying noir
• Recchiuti Confections
• VB Fine Chocolates
• Stay Sweet SF

• 1.2.3 Chocolat
• aL chocoLat Boutique
• Formosa Chocolates
• Socola Chocolatier LLC
• Stay Sweet SF
• Vany's handcrafted chocolates

• --na

• Cacao Regina
• Recchiuti Confections
• 1.2.3 Chocolat
• Stay Sweet SF
• CocoTutti Chocolates
• Kokak Chocolates
• Dough It Up! Bakery
• COBA Coffee
• Deux Cranes
• Fabula Tea

• 1.2.3 Chocolat
• Recchiuti Confections
• VB Fine Chocolates
• Volo Chocolate
• Cacao Regina
• Fabula Tea

The designs and flavor combinations just keep getting better! Fantastic job to all the chocolatiers!

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This was the best SF Chocolate Salon ever. So many fabulous chocolatiers, so many unbelievable confections! I really loved the introduction to Stay Sweet San Francisco-amazing flavors. I tried them all! Loved, loved Karl the Fog and Hoijicha Oak. I hope they find a distribution. Michael's latest chocolates were fabulous. Not surprising! I loved Formosa's coffee chocolates in a coffee cup shape! How darling! Sonoma's Heirloom #13 was so special. Socola always outdoes themselves with new and unique flavors. Kodak's Pineapple and coconut was refreshing and delicious. I loved the multiple layers on the very special, very big and dense Brigadeiro Easter Egg. Packaging was terrific, too, but the flavors were amazing. So many more very, very special flavors. As I mentioned, so hard to judge this show! Every chocolatier was in top form. So glad to be able to taste and buy so many varieties.

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"Formosa's Kalamonsi Cheesecake bar was outstanding!

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Stay Sweet SF, Blue Canary and Formosa all had wonderful Earl Grey infused chocolates."

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"I loved Formosa Chocolate's beautiful designs and uniquely flavored ganaches. Their spring chicken and flower chocolates were just lovely looking and delicious.

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Recchiuti's attention to high level production and top quality ingredients produce unctuous chocolates.
9th & Larkin's, Socola's, and Cacao Regina's packaging is very elegant and sophisticated.
There was an abundance of wonderfully creative and delicious treats at this year's Salon. Kudos to all! "
"I can't get enough of Volo Chocolate bars. Their bars are exquisitely made, allowing the flavor profiles of the different chocolate bars to sing as the essence of each layer unfold while the chocolate melts in your mouth.

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Kudos to Bonfiction and Godavari Chocolate for creating a rich, dark, smooth, 91% and 99% dark chocolate bars that are delicious and edible. The 99% dark bar imparts hints of sweetness from the long and slow roasting and conching.

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Cacao Regina does a splendid job with their 100% Ecudorian dark chocolate bar that is smooth, rich and gives hints of nuttiness.

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Coba Coffee's Hojita White chocolate bar is very well balanced and provides a wonderful flavor of the roasted green tea.

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Deux Cranes delights with their raspberry lime truffle which provides a balance of bright, berry and citrus flavors.

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Flying Noir fills the niche of a memorable vegan truffle, Pashta, which is a lovely passion fruit flavor made from oat milk ganache.

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Hapa Chocolat offers a gratifying experience with their Dominican Republic chocolate bar with chili and cherries, a pleasing taste of fruit with a hint of heat.

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Kokak Chocolates delights with their Unami White Chocolate bar which provides a crunchy, savory, sweet combination in a whirlwind of Asian influenced flavors.

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Michael's Chocolates never fails to delight. Their new flavors of strawberry and cream and caramel apple truffles are not to be missed.

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Loved Recchiuti Confections's Rosemary Olive Oil truffle, a scrumptious combination.

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Socola Chocolatier is consistently exquisite in nailing their flavor profiles and always delights. I love the brightness of the Passion Fruit truffle and the classic Vanilla Bean truffle.

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Stay Sweet SF is new to the chocolate scene, but one to be watched, followed, and tasted. They offer vegan truffles as well as the classic dairy based ganaches. A standout is the Hazelnut Crunch, nutty with a great crunchy texture.

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Vanys Handcrafted Chocolates offered a plethora of flavors, many unique but all exquisite. My favorite truffles included Traditional French (so rich, soft, smooth and creamy), Basil (light and herbaceous), and Cashew Fig (creamy and flavorful).

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Memory maker truffles for VB Fine Chocolates include their Passion Fruit Truffle, so bright, light and fruity, and the Kahlua Coffee Liqueur, which has a blissful coffee flavor and gratifying Kahlua accent.

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At the ICS 2025 it was wonderful to taste the abundance of perfectly crafted truffles, especially with bright fruit, herb, and even olive oil fillings! This reporter has been very much impressed with Cacao Regina two ingredient bars with the best in the industry A2 Alexandre milk and no added sweeteners (WELL DONE!) Another great presentation from VB Fine Chocolates. Very exciting freshness, variety, great taste, and packaging. All in all this Salon gets better year after year. Kudos to all hard working chocolate makers and organizers!

This was without a doubt the finest collection of chocolates. There were so many smooth and exquisite flavors and textures. Stay Sweet San Francisco had a wide variety of depth and flavor in each mouth water sample. Karl the Fog and Hojicha Oak were superb Michael's never disappoints. The caramel apple, strawberry cream and pistachio cardamon were filled with clean fruit and nut forward flavors. Formosa's coffee had a playful coffee cup shape to match its satisfying flavors. Bon Fiction's Rose and Pistachio was for real and not fictional. Cacao Regina, brought out the regional differences with its Peruvian and Tanzanian cacao. Sonoma's Heirloom #13 was quite a treat with its strong taste and mouth feel. Socola had some fruit forward truffles that highlighted the flavor of both strawberries and cream. Kodak's pineapple and coconut reminded me of being on a tropical beach and enjoying the pineapple and coconut flavor of a special cocktail.The special Brigadeiro Cupuacu (forgive the spelling) was smooth and delightful. This was especially a difficult competition because all of the purveyors of fine flavors have delivered delicious flavors.

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• Cacao Regina
• Formosa Chocolates

• aL chocoLat Boutique
• CocoTutti Chocolates
• Michael's Chocolates
• Socola Chocolatier LLC

• Recchiuti Confections
• CocoTutti Chocolates
• Socola Chocolatier LLC

• Formosa Chocolates

• Formosa Chocolates
• Recchiuti Confections
• Kokak Chocolates
• Stay Sweet SF
• aL chocoLat Boutique
• Socola Chocolatier LLC
• Goufrais Southern California
• Kindred Caramels
• Z. Cioccolato

• COBA Coffee
• Hapa Chocolat
• Michael's Chocolates
• Recchiuti Confections
• Volo Chocolate

• Recchiuti Confections

• Socola Chocolatier LLC

• Deux Cranes

• 9th & Larkin
• Cacao Regina
• Volo Chocolate

• Socola Chocolatier LLC

• Socola Chocolatier LLC
• Cacao Regina
• Volo Chocolate