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I remember receiving a box from M de Noir last year and I’ve often remembered that wonderful gift. My family and I agreed that M de Noir chocolate is special, full of flavor, yet often thought of as a bit expensive.
Walking around the aisles of The Cooking Festival and Le Salon du Chocolat, I felt the need to visit M de Noir again for a closer look at their creations. Believe me, this was not just any tasting. Allow me to tell you, honestly, M de Noir is the firmest local chocolate I've had to date in Lebanon. It’s not so much a chocolate you enjoy, but more of a chocolate that works within. The texture, the taste, the melting point... Ouf! It’s simply great.
Born from a flame that grew over the years, M de Noir offers an assortment of noble confections made with grand chocolates and opulent ingredients that are crafted with the utmost care. Having acquired the know-how at the prestigious schools of Ritz Escoffier and Valrhona, Maya Maalouf Kanaan invites refined and sophisticated gourmets to share her passion and melt in her unique universe of aromas and flavors.
M de Noir started in 2011, using the finest chocolate ever, Grands Crus, which Maya Maalouf Kanaan imports from Europe. After getting an MBA in marketing this passionate entrepreneur studied desserts and chocolate in Paris before participating in Le Salon du Chocolat in 2014, where she won an award, a grand prize that putt her in the 2015 guide “L’espoir Etranger”. She was also chosen as one of the 22 best international chocolates.
I was offered half a dozen choices to try, each made my heart skip a beat. Meske, margelaine, truffle arak, blanc Cointreau, salted caramel, baies rose, black salt...
Impressive: The finesse, the smoothness, the alcohol... The content, each step of the tasting experience was extraordinary!
Each trip starts as the little piece of chocolate melts on your tongue and you feel the quality and class of the chocolate, afterwards the aromas take over, preparing you for best bit. Alcohol or saltiness comes next, and your brain might well reel with the shock. Yes, it’s shocking! Anyway, you might think I'm exaggerating, so please go try them for yourself.
M de Noir reinforced my belief in this county’s potential for innovation, creativity and class. Maya Maalouf Kanaan has won the Club des Croqueurs du Chocolat’s “Espoir Etranger” award, conferred at the Salon du Chocolat in Paris on October 31, 2014. Maya is the very first chocolatier from the Middle-East to win such an award... and she deserves it.
