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France is renowned across the world for its culinary achievements, dainty pastries, and perfectly baked bread. And the world of French chocolate making is no different. Centuries of expertise and experimentation have produced some of the most delicious sweet treats.
The French take chocolate making seriously, from the traditional family workshops to the beautiful and refined boutiques of famous chefs like Jean-Paul Hévin and Alain Ducasse. Many chocolate makers have even won the prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France, awarded for craftsmanship.
And this also means that there’s something for everyone. Whether you have a refined sweet tooth or not, it’s hard not to fall in love with the diverse world of chocolate that France has to offer.
While my favorite is of course the intensity of 100% dark chocolate bars, I’m literally a kid in a candy shop when it comes to the diversity of chocolates from France.
So, if you’re looking for the best French chocolate brands for your particular taste, look no further. Here’s my list of the 10 best French chocolate brands and must-buy chocolates.
Table of Contents
1. Chapon
I tasted my first Chapon chocolate bar in Paris, originally attracted to the beautiful design of its wrapping. And so began my love affair with all the best chocolate France has to offer.
Patrice Chapon’s passion for chocolate making came during his time at La Maison Du Sorbet, where he would make sweet treats for the British Royal Family. Returning to France, he began making bonbons in his family home, and soon moved into his own boutique.
Chapon was determined to make chocolate directly from the bean himself, a practice which is not much used in Europe, but makes the chocolate even more delicious. Through research and innovation, Chapon chocolate is now some of the best French chocolate, combined with the bright and colorful packaging that reflects Patrice Chapon’s original aspirations in design.
Favorites include the 75% Madagascar chocolate bar and the 100 Chocolates Box, which contains an amazing 100 varieties of chocolate for you to explore.
2. Valrhona
Valrhona is one of the most popular brands of chocolate amongst French people, and for good reason.
Pastry chef Albéric Guironnet set up his chocolaterie in the small village of Tain L’Hermitage in 1922, and Valrhona has been crafting perfect blends of flavors ever since. This also makes it one of the most established and oldest French chocolate brands.
Valrhona is one of the most popular brands of chocolate amongst French people, and for good reason. Pastry chef Albéric Guironnet set up his chocolaterie in the small village of Tain L’Hermitage in 1922, and Valrhona has been crafting perfect blends of flavors ever since. This also makes it one of the most established and oldest French chocolate brands.
The brand is especially popular amongst pastry chefs and home bakers, having originally been established for the creation of delicious chocolatey pastries. Its range of hot chocolate also makes it one of the best French hot chocolate brands.
- WONDERFUL AND UNIQUE TASTE – GUANAJA develops extraordinary bitterness, revealing a whole aromatic…
- PREMIUM FRENCH BAKING DARK CHOCOLATE DISKS (FEVES): Perfectly sized. Easy to scale, use and melt…
- HIGH-QUALITY INGREDIENTS: A subtle blend of the finest and most unique cocoa. The original Dark…
Its best-selling products include the Guanaja 70% noir bar, which includes blends of cocoa from Trinidad, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, and Madagascar, and the Komuntu 80% dark chocolate chips, which are great for baking or even on their own.
- WONDERFUL AND WORLDLY KOMUNTU 80% DARK reveals its rounded notes of woody, strong and bitter against…
- PREMIUM FRENCH BAKING DARK CHOCOLATE DISKS (FEVES): Perfectly sized. Easy to scale, use and melt…
- HIGHEST-QUALITY INGREDIENTS: KOMUNTU is the very essence of ethical chocolate expressed through a…
Chocophiles can also visit Valrhona’s Cité du Chocolat (Chocolate City) in the heart of the Rhone Valley, to learn more about their chocolate-making process and try some culinary workshops. Welcoming 140,000 visitors every year, it’s France’s biggest chocolate attraction.
3. François Pralus
Since 1948, François Pralus has grown from a renowned patisserie to a worldwide-selling French chocolate manufacturer. Set up in the city of Roanne, Auguste and Noëlie were originally known for the Praluline, an impressive brioche coated in rose chocolate pralines.
When their son François became a trainee of famous chocolate maker Bernachon in 1977, he realized that making chocolate was his passion, and the business expanded to creating beautiful chocolate blended from the world’s best cocoa beans. The chocolate is still made out of the family factory in Roanne, using cocoa produced from Pralus’ plantation in Madagascar.
The flagship François Pralus product is the Tropical Pyramid, which includes ten 50g bars of 75%, made from carefully selected cocoa from ten different countries. It is some of my favorite chocolate from France. Maybe also pick up an iconic Praluline while you’re there.
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4. Michel Cluizel
Michel Cluizel is another of France’s most popular chocolate makers, and one of the only large-scale manufacturers in the world to produce chocolate directly from cocoa beans, rather than from chocolate or cocoa paste supplied by a third party. Michel calls this the cacaofèvier process, which has been tried and adopted by many other chocolate makers.
The business was originally founded as a patisserie by Marc and Marcelle Cluizel in the town of Damville, Normandy in 1948. From their own kitchen, the family began expanding into chocolate making, aided by their apprentice son, Michel.
The Plantation N°50 Tasting Collection Box is Michel Cluizel’s best-selling product, and includes a tasting selection of seven different types of delicious milk and dark chocolate, made from cocoa beans across the world. I personally love the La Laguna variety from Guatemala!
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To learn more about the interesting story of the family business and its famous cacaofèvier chocolate-making process, you can visit the Michel Cluizel chocolatrium in Damville.
5. Chocolat Bonnat
Chocolat Bonnat has been a staple of French chocolate making for generations, passed down through the Bonnat family since Félix Bonnat opened his workshop in Voiron in 1884.
The chocolaterie continues to make chocolate in Voiron, which is itself worth a day trip. The stunning Saint Bruno de Voiron church still features on the chocolate’s distinctive packaging, making it a well-known symbol of Chocolat Bonnat.
In 1965, Raymond Bonnat was the first chocolate maker to make French chocolate bars purely from cocoa beans of the same origin, which he called the Grands Crus. The idea revolutionized chocolate making in Europe, and is now used by most prominent chocolate makers from France.
To get a real taste of Bonnat chocolate, try the selection of classic Grands Crus chocolate bars, made of 75% cacao chocolate of origin ranging from Ecuador to Ivory Coast.
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6. Patrick Roger
Patrick Roger has been revolutionizing French chocolate making since he opened his first boutique in 1997, after over a decade of experience crafting sweet creations in patisseries and chocolateries across the country.
Using chocolate as a means to experiment with art and sculpting, Patrick Roger is a well-known figure across France, and has won a range of artistic and culinary awards throughout his career. His life-size chocolate sculptures of people and animals are not only impressive, but his chocolate is delicious.
For the best dip into the world of Patrick Roger, you must try the Assortment BR6, made up of a wide selection of his finest ganaches or pralines. Alternatively, visit his flagship boutique in Place Saint-Sulpice, in Paris, to immerse yourself in all his latest experimentations and to create your own tailor-made assortment.
7. A la Mère de Famille
A la Mère de Famille is the oldest chocolaterie in Paris, where centuries of chocolate-making experience and history have created an impressive brand and an important site of cultural heritage.
Today, it’s run by the Dolfi family. Its four siblings work to produce not just their ganaches and pralines by hand according to traditional recipes, but also a range of fruit jellies and ice creams.
But it’s not just the chocolate that’s the attraction. Be sure to visit the heritage boutique on the rue du Faubourg Montmartre, where you can try some of Paris’s best chocolate while gazing at its historical 19th-century interior and shopfront.
Its most popular products include the 1761 assorted chocolate box and the assorted specialty box. These boxes are a wonderful way to discover the range of chocolates made by A la Mère de Famille, and the 1761 box is itself beautifully decorated with an image of the store’s iconic facade.
8. La Maison du Chocolat
Ever since it was founded in 1977 by visionary chocolatier Robert Linxe, La Maison du Chocolat has been touched and transformed by a range of famous and artistic culinary figures.
Today, you can easily notice the influence of Nicolas Cloiseau, winner of the Meilleur Ouvrier de France, who continues to produce wonderful experimental chocolate while staying in touch with the chocolaterie’s tradition. Wacky flavors such as olive oil and mushroom are what you can expect here.
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La Maison du Chocolat is especially known for its pralines, truffles, and rochers, amongst the best French rocher chocolate. Or if you’re feeling adventurous, you can even make your own ganache spread according to the famous Maison du Chocolat recipe.
9. Jean-Paul Hévin
Jean-Paul Hévin has been a renowned chocolate and pastry connoisseur in France since the 1980s, and another winner of the Meilleur Ouvrier de France.
His boutique chocolate stores are not just popular in France, but also across Japan, where he too enjoys a high standing. Japanese flavors and techniques continue to influence his chocolate-making and art.
The Chocolate Grand Cru Millot Discovery Box is the best and most popular way to explore Jean-Paul Hévin’s chocolate genius, and to also sample a selection of his famous chocolate macarons.
Cheese lovers should try the more adventurous Chocolate Appetizers, which combine the strength of Jean-Paul Hévin dark chocolate with the smoothness of intense cheese such as Roquefort.
10. Le Chocolat Alain Ducasse
Already a renowned chef, Alain Ducasse set up his own chocolaterie in 2013 out of a restored garage in the 11th arrondissement. The beautiful interior and exterior are well worth a visit in their own right.
With the help of established pastry chef Nicolas Berger, the two of them personally select the best cocoa beans and ingredients to craft perfect mixes of flavors and aromas. They also pride themselves on roasting 100% of their chocolate on-site in Paris, unlike many other large-scale chocolatiers in the city.
To truly explore the variety of chocolate and flavors offered, try the Ganaches and Pralines à l’Ancienne box. Alternatively, the intense and powerful 100% extra dark chocolate bar is a well-known favorite of dark chocolate lovers such as myself.
And there we have it, my list of the 10 best French chocolate brands and must-buy chocolates! Which one’s your favorite?
Also read: Can You Bring Chocolate on a Plane? Here’s the Answer
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