Best Chocolate Praline 2023

The judges of this year's annual competition for the title of 'Best Chocolate Praline' were impressed by the quality and variety of chocolates. As in the past few years, the judges were the owners of the famous Austrian Zotter chocolate manufacturer.

As part of the 10th Radovljica Chocolate Festival, which will take place on 15th and 16th April, on 22nd March 2023 judging took place in the competition to win the title 'Best Chocolate Praline'. The competition was judged by the owners of the famous Austrian Zotter chocolate manufacturer, where the famous chocolatier Jozef Zotter and his daughter Julia tasted and assessed 14 chocolates from seven chocolatiers based on the criteria for winning the title. They assessed the appearance, flavour, technological preparation (level of difficulty, process of production and range of raw ingredients) and uniqueness.

The following chocolates were entered into the competition to be awarded the title 'Best Chocolate':

• Hiša čokolade Molinet: Snickers, Praline Surprise
• Aska: Pumpkin duja with raspberry, Yuzu and pepper
• Lucifer: Potica, The Universe
• Passero: Dark chocolate orange, White tarragon
• Zavod Ivana Cankarja Vrhnika: Must pear, Coffee
• Rajska ptica: Truffle with black truffle, Yuzu lemon and pistachio
• Radolška čokolada: Goat's choice good choice, Jack Sparrow

Throughout the competition, the judges emphasised the high quality of all the chocolates entered, hence it was a very close run competition to choose the winner.

The four best rated chocolates made it to the final, where the judges chose the ultimate winners:

1st place went to the Snickers chocolate made by the Hiša čokolade Molinet chocolatier from Kropa, which won overt the judges due to the consistent and demanding production and the range of ingredients, of which the most expressive were the homemade paste, peanut butter and choice of ingredients. The judges summarised their choice by saying that they wouldn't change anything about this winning chocolate.

2nd place was taken by the Goat's choice good choice chocolate, made by the Radolška čokolada chocolatier, mainly due to the special character it is given by goat's curd cheese as well as the excellent production and appearance.

3rd place was awarded to the Yuzu and pepper chocolate from the Aska chocolatier. The judges liked the taste and flavour, thanks to the excellent homemade paste, and were also impressed by the texture and appearance of the chocolate.

Visitors to the 10th Radovljica Chocolate Festival, will have a chance to try all three of the winning chocolates, which will occupy a special place in Radovljica Manor. An additional competition will take place to find the 'Best Chocolate Chosen by Visitors' as well as a prize game.

Congratulations to all the participating chocolatiers!