When it comes to gourmet chocolate, no one does it better than Belgium. It is Belgium chocolate that sets the standard to which all other luxury chocolates measure themselves. Why is this? In Belgium chocolate making is quite serious business and a big business. The country produces over 170,000 tons of Belgium chocolate per year. And just about every town in Belgium has a chocolate store. There, chocolate shops are a big tourist draw. Just like wineries in Italy, Belgian chocolate shops offer tours and taste centers. And the process hasn’t changed in hundreds of years. Most Belgian chocolates are still made by hand, adhering to age old techniques that create the best chocolate on the globe.

The beginnings of this fine, gourmet chocolate began In 1912. It started when chocolate maker Jean Neuhaus created a new process for manufacturing chocolate confections. He experimented with different types of chocolate called “couvertuer” which is a hard chocolate shell. Neuhaus was able to fill this shell with a variety of soft chocolate and other yummy fillings. This was the world’s first filled chocolate, dubbed the “praline”. Over time Neuhaus kept updating his praline, using only the finest ingredients possible. This standard still exists today. Neuhaus chocolates remain one of the premier chocolate companies in the world, offering top-tier Belgian chocolates in outlets in over fifty countries.

Today, Belgium houses many of the top chocolate producers. Leonidas and Godiva are just two of the many well known brands to come out of Belgium. Companies such as these pride themselves on their top-quality ingredients. They use 100% cocoa butter, no vegetable oils or fats. Only the best cocoa beans are used. By such strict adherence to quality, there is a guarantee that the chocolate is of the very best man can produce.

Still the most popular Belgian chocolate is by far the praline. The hard coated shell with rich, smooth filling is what makes this the most sought after confection in Belgium. You now are able to obtain these scrumptious confections in sugar free Belgian chocolate versions as well.