The Faces of Bordeaux

At The Bordeaux Concierge, our aim is to introduce our clients to the real Bordeaux. This includes meeting the people that make Bordeaux what it is today. As part of this effort, we will bring these vibrant personalities to our audience at home through our new series, The Faces of Bordeaux.

Hasnaâ Ferreira
Artisan Chocolatier Confectioner / Owner
Hasnaâ Chocolats Grands Crus

After participating in the MasterChef France television show in 2012 (she placed 9th), Hasnaâ Ferreira decided to retrain professionally as an artisan chocolatier confectioner. In 2014, she launched her “Grands Crus” chocolate factory in Bordeaux to promote exceptional cocoas, whose beans are carefully selected from several heterogeneous plantations in five different countries, all with beautifully complex aromatic profiles. While this is one of the newer chocolate shops to open in Bordeaux, it is considered by many to be one of the best.

Please tell us the story behind Hasnaâ Chocolats Grands Crus and how you decided to change careers and become a chocolate maker.

Hasnaâ Chocolats Grands Crus was born as a result of an all-consuming passion for cocoa. It is this passion that led me to leave my old career behind and retrain as a chocolatier and confectionary maker. Before opening my first store, I trained at the INBP School in Rouen where I prepared my diploma “CAP Chocolatier-Confiseur“. I also studied under a series of Meilleurs Ouvriers de France chocolatiers including Serge Granger, Bruno Le Derf, Philippe Parc and Pascal Brunstein, to name but a few.

What was that transition like?

It was not easy, but it was a very exciting change. Starting a new life and making your dreams come true is priceless. Also, working with a material that changes all the time stops you from ever getting bored.

Any advice for someone that wants to change careers and become a chocolate maker?

Becoming a chocolate maker is a great journey and a wonderful universe can open up to you. You just have to be curious while being yourself. You also have to persevere because working with chocolate requires a little patience.

What makes Hasnaâ chocolates special?

Respect for the raw material! We source our outstanding cocoa from producers on quality plantations so that our customers can discover the original and surprising flavors of chocolate. We are very committed to cocoa producers, in particular to promote the native species of cocoa and in a fair trade approach. I want people to see chocolate like wine, so I decided to work with cacao fino de aroma, one of the most unique cacao in the world with exquisite aromas and flavors.

In chocolate as in wine, there is a notion of an aromatic profile which can be defined by flavors and contrasts born from the type of cocoa tree from which the bean comes, from the terroir in which the cocoa tree grows, but also the climate, the fermentation and drying method used by the producer, then by the work of the craftsman during the transformation of the chocolate bean. From these aromatic profiles emerge cocoas with “pure origins” appellations, which highlight distinct flavors and notes, depending on the geographical origin of the beans. This is commonly referred to as a "grand cru" chocolate. It has a character resulting from the land in which it was cultivated. And it is these exceptional cocoas and these products of exceptional quality that I have decided to offer to consumers.

Additionally, our chocolates are completely handmade, contain 100% pure cocoa butter, and are free from preservatives, additives, and artificial flavorings. In our ganaches or pralinés, we use only premium and AOC ingredients such as Sicilian Pistachios and Piemonte Hazelnuts. As we use high quality chocolate in our recipes, we couldn’t use cheap ingredients. By working in this way, we can promote and protect these most noble ingredients

You mention that it is very important to put light on every actor within the supply chain – can you tell us more about what you mean?

Between us, the chocolate makers, and the farmers, there are traders and sourcers. Sourcers are people who are always in the fields looking for rare and native beans or high potential farms, helping them to improve quality and to preserve native varieties. Traders help farmers with international trading, shipment and customs procedures. We work with traders that buy beans from farmers at very good prices from a sustainability viewpoint. For example, when world pricing prices the beans at $1.80 a kilo, our partners will pay 3.50€ to 5.00€ to the farmers to help them have a comfortable life and give their children a future. We choose to work with this kind of partner who will be our eyes in the fields helping us to find incredible cacaos and create strong relationship with farmers. We favor native varieties of cacao because today there are a lot of natural and human hybrids that will cause the native varieties to disappear. We also give priority to organic beans and high flavored beans. For example, we work with a rare and native cacao from Urusayhua Valley in Peru called Chuncho, known as the most flavorful chocolate in the world. Most cacao trees can survive up to 800 meters in altitude, but this tree is the only tree that is able to grow at 1300 meters above sea level. It’s an incredible variety which is disappearing because of the increase of the hybrid variety of cacao. In order to protect this cacao tree, we spend more money to help expand the capacity of the post harvest center which buys the beans from farmers and encourage them to buy more of this cacao at a higher price than the hybrid variety which will hopefully convince farmers to preserve this native variety of cacao tree.

What are your specialties and best sellers?

Well, we have a lot of specialities, but the most emblematic of all, is the “Un Instant à Bordeaux” box made with wine ganache. We are the only chocolate makers in the world who have managed to make ganaches from wine, and have recently filed a patent to protect this know-how. We currently work with several chateaux on the left bank including Château Marquis de Terme, Château Poujeaux, Château Léoville Poyferré, Château Le Crock, and Château Pédesclaux. We are working on preparing a “rive droite” box working with château in several of the right bank appellations inlcuing St Emilion (Château Palais Cardinal), Fronsac (Château La Dauphine), Pomerol, Côte de Bourg, and Lalande de Pomerol. We also want to explore other French terroirs such as Burgundy and the Loire Valley. The challenge of these recipes was to be able to express the different terroirs of the wine in the chocolate. In order to achieve this, we had to readapt the recipe to the strength of the aromas for each château we work with. In the end, we believe it is a great success.

Our best sellers also include our chocolate bars made from Bean-to-bar chocolate. We are one of only 30 chocolate makers in France who know how to make chocolate directly from the cocoa beans.

Are you 100% bean-to-bar?

Not yet. We mainly use the beans to make chocolate for bars. But we also use it for all our pralines and confectionery. For the ganaches, we are currently working with a Swiss chocolate maker - Felchlin, but we are working on being totally independent in the foreseeable future with the goal of being 100% bean-to-bar.

What is Mousses & Chocolats by Hasnaâ?

We created this concept to answer a demand for desserts in “Les halles de bacalan,” which is a gourmet food hall located near the Cite du Vin. We offer five different kinds of mousse including 3 with different percentages of cacao, 1 dark chocolate, along with 1 flavored mousse. We make the chocolate mousse with our bean-to-bar chocolate. It is really original and people love it.

Tell us about the team behind Hasnaâ.

I have an amazing team. My husband who manages the communication, five people in production (Mathieu, Florian, Nicolas, Sandy and Matteo), and six people in sales (Maria, Julie, Ornella, Ines, Orlane, Aude). Without them this company would not be what it is.

Hasnaâ has won numerous awards and accolades over the last few years, which is the most special for you personally?

Without a doubt, the trophy for women in the economy, promising business category (Les Femmes de L’Economie). I did not expect to win this award. I was very surprised and it is this first prize that helped launch the following ones.

Located in one of the best known wine regions, can you describe a perfect wine pairing with some of your chocolates and why they work so well together?

Wine and chocolate are a wonderful union because there are many similarities between the two. Both are “terroir” products with climate and soil having a big influence on them. One perfect pairing is Chateau Leoville Poyferre 2015 with Lachua from Guatemala. It’s a perfect match, because the chocolate does more than support the wine. With its freshness and fruity notes, this chocolate enhances the wine and it adds depth. The simultaneous tasting reinforces the opulence of the wine and the charm of the chocolate. For me a perfect pairing in a wine & chocolate tasting is a mathematic equation : 1 + 1 = 3.

How can guests visit your bean-to-bar workshop?

We used to provide visits with a chocolate tasting before the Covid crisis. Today, each visitor can ask our crew to go to the shop and see the process up close. If it’s a family, a couple or just one person, we will be able to welcome the curious just as before. Just ask our sales staff.

If guests can’t get to Bordeaux to visit you, how can they taste your chocolate?

We can ship to anywhere from our e-shop , and we also sell our products at Colette, a fine grocery store based in London.

What is your favorite thing to do in and around Bordeaux?

Bordeaux is such a beautiful city! I love walking on its streets and enjoying the architecture, but I also love to discover the nearby wine châteaux and going for a picnic with my daughters and husband at the top of La Dune du Pyla.

Hasnaâ Ferreira has three locations in Bordeaux where you can enjoy her tasty treats including at her boutique located at 4 rue de la Vieille Tour, her workshop located at 192 rue Fondaudège, and also at Mousses & Chocolats by HASNAÂ located at Les Halles de Bacalan. Hasnaâ products can also be ordered and shipped internationally from the e-shop.

Let us introduce you to the most luxurious experiences in Bordeaux, Cognac, and Paris

The Faces of Bordeaux - Hasnaâ Ferreira, Hasnaâ Chocolats Grands Crus