What Makes Specialty Couverture So Special?

In a world where craft, artisan, and specialty chocolate is increasingly trending and known, its sister, specialty couverture, may seem like a relatively new product. With the recent developments in the cocoa world, namely price and growing interest in specialty grade cacao, specialty couverture may just be set to take its rightful place in the world of high-end pastry and confectionery.

What is Speciality Couverture?

Similar to specialty chocolate in bars, specialty couverture focuses on the same values of transparency, traceability, and high-quality craftsmanship. The key differentiator here is that couverture contains a significantly higher cacao butter content, to facilitate fluidity and therefore ease of workability for chefs, pâtissiers, and chocolatiers.

Yet, for many, specialty couverture is still unchartered territory. There are many factors differentiating it from the mainstream couvertures of large chocolate brands, specialty couverture is almost an entirely different product. With distinctive characteristics when it comes to flavor and textures, culinary professionals seem to be either avid fans, or hardly at all.

Chef Favored Brands of Speciality Couverture

For most, chocolate is just another ingredient forming part of chefs' beautiful creations, but not necessarily the star highlight. Also, working with specialty couverture can be a challenge for those who are accustomed to mainstream couvertures, as it demands different techniques and some patience to gain familiarity. However, the efforts tend to yield high rewards. Brands like Madagascar’s Menakao have been favored by Hélène Kerloeguen, Pastry Chef at Parisian luxury hotel Prince de Galle, over other well-known Madagascan origin couvertures.

The couverture of choice for award-winning chocolatier Jade Genin (daughter of famous French chocolatier Jacques Genin, also in Paris) is the Honduran Mayan Red from Xoco Gourmet, a tree to bar chocolate maker.

Aneesh Popat of The Chocolatier based in the UK with clientele which includes royalty, Michelin starred restaurants, luxury hotels, Harrods, Fortnum & Mason, The Houses of Parliament and leading global brands including Rolls Royce and Cartier, employs Original Beans couverture in his renowned creations. The choice to work with specialty couverture by these skilled artisans are no accident, and instead an act of boldness which contribute towards their standout creations of superior flavour and quality.

Two Leading Specialty Couverture Brands

Conexion: Speciality Couverture from Ecuador

Chef Derek Poirier, Jenny Samaniego and Mario Remache

Conexion, an Ecuadorian chocolate maker is also making its mark with its new range of high-end couverture for professionals. Founded by Jenny Samaniego, who believes that it is possible to produce exquisite, high-end chocolate in the country of origin such as her home country of Ecuador, Conexion specialty couverture is establishing its place as a go-to quality chocolate for chocolatiers thanks to respected names such as The Grocer’s Daughter and Bon Bon Bon, both based in the US.

“Couverture chocolate is crafted with high-quality cocoa beans, resulting in a more complex and nuanced flavor profile compared to mainstream chocolate. At Conexión, our priority is to provide world-class flavor profiles and the highest quality chocolate available.” explains Rafael Quiroz, Marketing Coordinator at Conexion. “We focus on sourcing the finest cocoa beans, using traditional craftsmanship techniques, and maintaining strict quality control measures to ensure consistency and excellence in every batch of chocolate we produce.” Samaniego’s numerous years in various areas of the chocolate industry has certainly been key in creating a couverture which puts sustainability, traceability and transparency at heart.

Conexion is not deterred by any potential reluctance to try specialty couverture, and Quiroz supplies cogent arguments for giving specialty couverture a go. “Embracing specialty couverture chocolate can be a rewarding experience, opening up new creative possibilities and elevating the quality of your creations. Culinary arts thrive on innovation and pushing boundaries. Trying new ingredients, techniques, and flavors is essential for growth and staying relevant in a dynamic industry. Our specialty chocolate couverture offers an opportunity for chefs to explore new avenues of creativity and differentiate their offerings in a competitive market.”

Quiroz also sheds some light on how partnerships and collaborations are key to Conexion’s growing success as the go to specialty couverture supplier. “Building strong partnerships and collaborations with influential individuals and organizations in the culinary industry has been instrumental in expanding our reach and visibility. We recently added renowned Chef Derek Poirier to our team as our first executive chef. We also have had the opportunity to work with amazing chocolatiers and pâtissiers who share our passion for quality and innovation. They showcase their creations and endorsements as testimonials of the exceptional quality and versatility of our specialty couverture chocolate.”

Menakao: Specialty Couverture from Madagascar

Lea Cassim, who represents the family business of Menakao, tends to have similar notions. Menakao, also a Made at Origin bean to bar brand, but hailing from Madagascar, is slowly taking the European culinary market by storm following its success with the renowned Parisian Prince de Galle hotel. “We were surprised to find out we were selected as a supplier, as we know the French market is tough when it comes to couverture”, Cassim confesses. How exactly did Menakao break through, then? “We wanted to make a difference during the (chocolate making) process with a slow roasting to respect the flavors of the Malagasy cocoa beans and that was what made the difference for Cheffe Pâtissier Hélène Kerloeguen. (For those who still may be unaccustomed to the Madagascan origin, these cacao beans tend to have inherent bright citrus and red fruit notes, thus benefiting greatly from a lighter roast)

Prince de Galle Religeuse photo credit Emilio Franzo @plusunemiette

One of the star creations by the respected Cheffe Pâtissier is the chocolate and cardamom ‘religeuse’, a traditional French pastry made of a small choux pastry case stacked on top of a larger one, both filled with crème pâtissière. On why she chose to work with Menakao chocolate, “We use 44% milk chocolate for the namelaka inside the religeuse. Menakao milk chocolate with its caramel flavour balances well with the black cardamom infused in the namelaka cream. It adds roundness to the smoky note of the black cardamom and brings comfort,” explains Kerloeguen.

If the above stories are any indication, the future of specialty couverture certainly appears to be a bright one, full of potential waiting to be explored only by the most adventurous culinary professionals worldwide seeking a unique competitive edge. An appetite for risk appears to go hand in hand with that for good chocolate, and now the real question is this: How long will it take for the gastronomic world to make the switch?