Valrhona

Valrhona is a French chocolate maker based in Tain-l'Hermitage in the Rhône valley. The company traces back to the pastry maker Albéric Guironnet, who founded the Chocolaterie du Vivarais there in 1922. The name Valrhona was coined later as a short form of Vallée du Rhône. Valrhona became known first among pastry chefs and restaurants and later among consumers.

Products and activities

• Couverture chocolate for professional chefs and pastry makers
• Guanaja 70%, introduced as the bitterest chocolate in the world and offered in small squares for consumers
• Rinette, the brand's first iconic bonbon, still made by hand in Tain-l'Hermitage
• L'École Valrhona, a training school for chefs and pastry makers, founded in 1989 and now also in Tokyo, Brooklyn and Paris

Ownership

Later the French cheese group Bongrain, led by Jean-Noël Bongrain, bought the company. Today it is part of Savencia, a French dairy and cheese group, which lists Valrhona as one of its brands. Valrhona has been a certified B Corporation since January 2020.