It was 27 years ago that master chocolatier Bernard Callebaut chose Calgary as his home base. Between 1983 and this year, when he lost the rights to his eponymous company, he spread big smiles and fine chocolate everywhere he went, like a saner, upscale Willy Wonka. Calgarians weren’t the only ones who appreciated his craftsmanship—Callebaut has been awarded the prestigious International Order of French Gastronomy and Grand Prix International Artisan Chocolatier, the top award at the International Chocolate Festival in Roanne, France. (He’s the only North American chocolatier to achieve even one of these accolades, let alone both.)
There has been a lot of speculation as to how Callebaut lost his namesake company, but the focus is now on his attempt to rise, phoenix-like, from the cocoa dust. Bernard Callebaut the man is starting over from scratch in a rented former Blimpy’s in the Deer Run shopping centre, aided by new financing from Calgary-based Podium Ventures. The back-to-basics approach fits his new brand, papa chocolat, a name he chose after hearing his son Baudouin singing “Papa Chocolat” from his bed one night. Baudouin, 6, and his brother Benedict, 18 months, have chocolate in their blood, Bernard says, describing the fifth generation of Callebaut chocolatiers’ favourite breakfast with pride: cocoa puffs topped with chocolate shavings and doused in chocolate milk.
This time out, there are no fancy stores or specialized equipment. The chocolates are being made by hand in small batches utilizing the most basic tools: a double boiler, some pots and pans, ladles—“anything you’d find in a home kitchen,” papa chocolat says, offering up a Fairwinds Farm goat-cheese chocolate truffle he created the night before. Callebaut’s new incarnation as a micro-chocolatier has given him the opportunity to work with local ingredients including cream from Picture Butte’s Vital Green farms, and sea salt made in France by the mother of L’Epicerie’s Dominique Moussu. “You dream up new recipes, and that’s where your imagination comes into play,” Callebaut says. “I have no interest in making the same thing as before. That wouldn’t be a good business decision.”
To taste the new recipes for yourself, visit papachocolat.ca or call 1-855-322-7272.
Stephen
1:39 PM
What a weird article. Both awards seem strange and one I even googled and nothing came up. Had he been awarded a MOF, then I would be impressed. I suspect if he had an MOF, he would not be in Calgary. He has a famous last name and that is the end of it. His chocolate is not that good, in particular, papa chocolat.
Jessie
11:12 AM
Why is he called a master chocolatier when he can’t even temper chocolate? I looked up on the internet and to use the term master chocolatier sounds good but means nothing.
Cynthia
11:46 PM
He is an amazing man and deserves full respect. The rudeness amazes me. He will be back bigger and better in no time.