From Hong Kong to London, professional chocolate taster explores cacao’s ‘soul’ and global flavour potential

Seven years ago, the enthusiast bought a one-way ticket from Hong Kong to London in search of the stories and heart behind this complex confectionery.

How a flavourist crafts the taste of vegan meat and instant noodles

“I literally left everything behind, all my family here, [and] quit my job,” she said, recalling her determination to be immersed in a larger chocolate scene in London, where she took a chocolate tasting course at the International Institute of Chocolate and Cacao Tasting.

After 14 years in the chocolate world, she has become a chocolate judge at three renowned international awards – Academy of Chocolate Awards, International Chocolate Awards and Great Taste Awards – and she is the first and only chocolate taster from Hong Kong to have judged at all three awards.

Reflecting on why she needed to go to London to expand her skills, she said: “If I had no knowledge about how to taste chocolate, I would just eat and say, ‘Oh, it’s too sweet. It’s too bitter. I like it. I don’t like it.’ ... That is the maximum a person with a sweet tooth [can] say.”

Though Lo has now worked with chocolate makers, pastry chefs and confectionery brands locally and abroad, she did not like chocolate very much as a child.

“My throat did not feel happy – it was very sweet. I needed to drink more water,” she explained.

After university, Lo wasn’t actively seeking a job with chocolate. But while working at a wedding exhibition, she met a chocolatier and in 2009 joined them in a marketing role to promote Hong Kong’s chocolate scene.

The more she was exposed to the chocolate world, the more she needed to learn about the soul of cacao.

What is bean-to-bar chocolate and how is it made?

So she set foot in London for a chocolate tasting course, learning about how chocolate is made, the origins of cacao beans, and how to identify its flavours.

Her mind was trained to savour every delicate note. “You taste chocolate with five senses, using your nose to smell, your eyes to look at the shine, listening to snaps, [using] your palate to touch the silkiness or the mouthfeel.”

For the exam at the end of the course, the most difficult part, Lo recalled, was identifying the origins of four different melted chocolates, which were from Ecuador, Madagascar, the Dominican Republic and Peru.

But even after passing, she did not consider herself a connoisseur yet, explaining that she had high standards and refused to lie if she could not truly taste the chocolate.

To develop her palate, Lo practised simply by tasting more chocolate. It wasn’t until 2017, when she became a judge at the International Chocolate Awards and the Academy of Chocolate Awards, that she felt she was truly a chocolate connoisseur.

At one judging event, she tasted 197 pieces of chocolate in a mere three days.

Still, she is never bored with her work even if others might find it repetitive. “It is a happiness for me and also a happiness that I can bring to people when I talk about chocolate to them,” she shared.

Chocolate, tomatoes, avocados – Mexico’s culinary gifts to the world

Now, Lo works full-time in London as a new business development manager at the luxury department store, Fortnum and Mason. She continues her role as a chocolate judge and often hosts tastings in Britain and in Hong Kong to share her knowledge with others.

As Asia’s chocolate scene grows, the expert has unique insight into how the region’s local ingredients can be infused into this sweet indulgence.

“I am very glad and grateful that I can introduce ... [Asia’s] innovative ideas ... to the European chefs and chocolate makers,” she shared, giving an example of putting dried shrimp on chocolate.

“[Taiwanese people] eat it as a snack every day ... So when they put it on a chocolate, we [Asians] accept that because it is normal ... But in the European world, they’d say, ‘Oh my God, you can’t put fish in the chocolate.’”

Lo said she helped Europeans understand why Taiwanese chocolatiers put shrimp in their products: “It cooperates with chocolate, and when you taste the chocolate, it’s actually really aromatic, and it works.”

The chocolate connoisseur hopes to continue playing her heritage to her strength by being unafraid to explore chocolate’s full potential through diverse cuisines.

“My goal is just to celebrate the cultures of different countries and share more new flavours and new discoveries to different sides of the world,” she said.

Use our printable worksheet or online interactive exercises to test your understanding of this story.