FOR lovers of chocolate in County Durham – there is a new treat in town after the region opened its first "School of Chocolate" to wide acclaim and numerous people flocking to see what it’s all about.
Named La Chocolatrice, the area's very own chocolate factory allows visitors to learn all about chocolate, design, and lets people make their own beautiful chocolate creations – right in the heart of Coxhoe.
Located on Coronation Terrace in the village, the chocolate studio is open Tuesday to Saturday, and has already had hundreds of people through its doors.
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Despite opening earlier in January in Coxhoe, La Chocolatrice popped up in the North East in 2019, when Zoë Rutter, who is originally from Coxhoe, opened her first School of Chocolate in Newcastle City Centre.
Now, three years after her first venture, the chocolatier has now taken the opportunity to expand.
The Northern Echo popped in to the new chocolate school in Coxhoe to see what all the hype was about and to see what visitors can expect from La Chocolatrice.
During the visit, there was a group of people taking part in a chocolate lesson, which involved learning about spreading chocolate, shaping chocolate, and making the perfect batch of the confectionary.
Brainchild behind the idea, Zoë, told the newspaper that she decided to open a chocolate factory in Coxhoe, due to the unique opportunity of bringing something to “her community,” as well as looking for something new during the pandemic.
The chocolatier was also struck by the demand on small batches of chocolate she made at home over the last two years – so much so, that it inspired the new factory.
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She said: "When the first lockdown hit, we were forced to temporarily close our studio in Newcastle, and I started making small batches of chocolate bars in my kitchen at home.
“I was amazed by the demand, each week selling out our online store in less than ten minutes, and soon realised I needed a bigger production space.
“I decided to open our factory in Coxhoe, as it's where I'm from, I really love the village, and I wanted to bring something special to our community.
Check out the pictures from La Chocolatrice:
Pictures: SARAH CALDECOTT.
“We are now really excited to have just opened our second chocolate workshop studio, right next to our factory and shop, so that we can also teach our fabulous chocolate making workshops in the village.”
Watch some of the first learners at La Chocolatrice in action:
As well as running their amazing chocolate making workshops, during which participants learn how to make chocolate truffles, chocolate flakes, chocolate crisps, and more in both Newcastle, and now Durham, La Chocolatrice also produce the most wonderful chocolate bars, bonbons, buttons and more, which are available to purchase online, and in their chocolate factory shop in Coxhoe.
You can find out more about La Chocolatrice here.
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