Gianduiotto Chocolate Celebrates 150 Years

With its distinctive upturned boat shape, smooth creaminess, and perfect combination of chocolate and hazelnut, Gianduiotto is immediately recognizable. This chocolate and hazelnut culinary creation has been a favorite for 150 years now, and the sweet treat has not faltered in providing candy lovers everywhere with joy and delight.

 

The famous name of the Italian chocolate can be linked back to the traditional carnival of Turin, capital of Piedmont, where it was known throughout history as the place where people tossed pieces of Gianduiotto to each other during the carnival.  

 

Originally named “givù”, meaning “small delicacy” in Piedmontese, Gianduiotto changed its name in 1867 after a particular carnival celebration where an actor dressed as “Gianduja”, a mask from the Italian Commedia dell’Arte that represents the classic Piedmontese, distributed the new chocolate to the crowd for the first time.

 

Before the creation of Gianduiotto, during Napoleon’s reign, raw cocoa had severely become expensive and Napoleon had closed all imports of cocoa from England. Fortunately, hazelnuts were easy to come by in Piedmont, and ultimately made for a more profitable substitute for cocoa.

 

 

Another revelation about this chocolate sweet is that it was the first chocolate to be wrapped in foil. Caffarel was able to distribute the candy throughout Italy and the world, thanks to his revolutionary form of packaging. This explains why Gianduiotto chocolates are now individually wrapped in a tinfoil cover, typically gold or silver colored. 

 

Today the Gianduiotto chocolate is produced worldwide, but the Caffarel industry is the only one to make 40 million a year, making it an Italian culinary excellence. It is bizarre to imagine, but if it were not for Napoleon, people all around the world would never have Gianduiotto chocolate treats.