Valrhona is a French premium chocolate manufacturer founded in 1922 by Alberic Guironnet, a pastry chef in the town of Tain-l'Hermitage in the Rhone Valley, France. The company name is a combination of "Vallee" (valley) and "Rhone," referencing its geographic origin. Valrhona has grown from a small local chocolate workshop into one of the most respected professional chocolate suppliers in the world.
The company is known for its couverture chocolates, which are used by professional pastry chefs, chocolatiers, and restaurants globally. Valrhona pioneered the concept of single-origin chocolate in the professional market, introducing its Guanaja 70% chocolate in 1986, which was one of the first widely available single-origin dark chocolates. The company sources cacao from plantations in the Caribbean, South America, Madagascar, and other regions, maintaining long-term partnerships with farming cooperatives.
Valrhona's product lines include the Grand Cru single-origin range, Signature blends for professionals, Inspiration fruit-flavored chocolates, and Dulcey, a blond chocolate the company introduced in 2012. The company also operates the Ecole du Grand Chocolat Valrhona, a professional training school at its Tain-l'Hermitage headquarters that offers courses to chefs and chocolatiers worldwide.
Since 2012, Valrhona has been a subsidiary of Savencia Fromage & Dairy, a French food group. The company operates a visitor center, the Cite du Chocolat, at its headquarters. While primarily a professional supplier, Valrhona also sells directly to consumers through its boutiques and online shop. The brand is widely regarded as a benchmark for quality in professional chocolate making.