Avan

[20.05.2010]
Starting from September 2010 all our references "alcohol pralines" will be labelled with the Superior Taste award label!!

The International Taste & Quality Institute (www.iTQi.com) has recently granted the Duc d'O Liqueur Filled Chocolates with the highest possible 3-star Superior Taste Award.

iTQi is the leading independent Chefs - and Sommeliers based organisation dedicated to testing, awarding and promoting superior tasting consumer food and drink. The iTQi jury is comprised of 120 renowned Chefs and Sommeliers from 12 of the most famous European culinary associations such as Academie Culinaire de France, Academy of Culinary Arts (UK), Euro-Toques, Meesterkoks van Belgie / Maitres Cuisiniers de Belgique, Jeunes Restaurateurs d'Europe, Maitres Cuisiniers de France and Verband der Koche Deutschlands. Products are blind tested on their own merit, with the focus on the intensity of gustatory pleasures. Organoleptic criteria are scored (first impression, appearance, aroma, texture, flavour and retro-olfaction) and commented on by each judge. The Superior Taste Award crowns products having met or exceeded the judges' expectations in terms of taste quality, winning the respect of the food industry.

For the next three years, Duc d'O receives a license to put the iTQi-quality seal on its packaging, making it visibly clear for partners and consumers that this is an "exceptional product". Christian DEBAUW, Managing Partner of iTQi comments on the Duc d'O-award: "We armly congratulate Duc d'O for their remarkable achievement. This company and its team should be particularly proud to market products that are so valued for their superior taste." Gijsbrecht Ostyn, Brand Manager Duc d'O explains: "We have always known that our Liqueur Filled Chocolates are amongst the best on the market. The fact that these 'ambassadors of taste' have now come to the same conclusion, means a lot to us. Our chocolates perfectly combine the traditional craftsmanship, needed to produce these unique pralines, with the exquisite taste, necessary to convince today's demanding consumers. This prestigious Superior Taste Award proves that our strategy of using only high quality, natural ingredients and world-renowned liqueurs is the right one. This will undoubtedly further increase our brand credibility on the shelve for a product that has seen consecutive sales growth over the last decade."

The classic Duc d'O Liqueur Filled Chocolates come in a variety of packaging. From classical wooden crates to the more temporary cardboard boxes and ballotins, from 125g to 1kg. However, they all have in common that there are five different quality liqueurs used to produce them:

Remy Martin Fine Champagne Cognac
Cointreau
The Famous Grouse Whisky
Mandarine Napoleon
Grand Marnier

These artisanal pralines are made according to an old and renowned sugar-crust 2 technique. After first boiling a mixture of liqueur and sugar, the substance is poured into wooden crates, filled with flour. A time-consuming crystallisation process then forms a thin sugar crust around the liquid spirits. When this crust is hard enough to protect the precious liqueur inside, Duc d'O enrobes the pralines with high quality Belgian dark chocolate and wraps every single product in an aluminium foil. Apart from the luxurious colours of these foils, a matching sticker also tells consumers what type of liqueur is inside.

01.01.2010
Today, we are very proud with the delivery of goods to almost 5000 retail clients and more than 200 wholesalers, which numbers are increasing. The retail distribution is well developed in the city of Sofia and the surrounding regions. We have developed a national distribution network to key customers (shop chains) and wholesalers.