Rose Amores Hudson hand-crafts dome bonbons that can bring awakening to anyone suffering from sweet-tooth malaise.

MOTHER OF FOUR, FASHION muse of top designers and the chocolatier of Victoria Amores artisanal bonbons, Rose Hudson continues to create couverture domes for the most discerning chocoholics. All these highly-prized wonders are sourced from cacao grown and processed in Bohol and then carefully crafted in her cold kitchen in Japan.

Rose was trained by Russian chocolatier Vladislav Pancha for chocolate bonbon making back in June 2018. In January 2019, she became a member of the Fine Chocolate Industry Association (FCIA); an organization focused on supporting fine chocolate professionals and promoting artistry and craftsmanship in producing premium chocolate products. She further developed her passion for chocolate by attending an extensive cacao program organized by FCIA held in Costa Rica last March 2019. She learned cacao cultivation, post-harvest processing and chocolate making. In May 2020, Rose graduated from the Professional Chocolatier Program at Ecole Chocolat Professional School of Chocolate Arts and was certified as “Chocolatier” with full knowledge of cacao cultivation and processing, and scientific understanding of chocolate chemical structures. She continues to develop extensive recipes customized according to ethical and dietary choices, professional chocolate-making skills and techniques.

How did you come up with the brand Victoria Amores? Victoria was one of the ships from a fleet that brought the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan to Philippine shores. Magellan claimed the country for Spain. Colonialization lead to a trading route  etween Mexico, where cacao was one of the prized commodities, and the Philippines. This circumstance is believed to have brought cacao to the Philippines and shaped Filipino chocolate culture. Meanwhile, Amores, which means love, is my maiden name. Thus, in this context, Victoria Amores implies the timeless love for chocolate. 

What are your signature chocolate flavors? The brand specializes in making small batch, hand-painted chocolate bonbons that I formulate myself. I started off with some funky, unique shapes but now I adopted a classic dome shape from a Belgian mold. I created a chocolate bonbon which emphasizes that chocolate is gold. The Gold creation is a classic dark chocolate ganache incased in gold-leafed chocolate shell. Each of my bonbons have a unique flavor and distinct design but one of my signature bonbon has a galactic inspiration with “latik” flavored filling, thus its name “Galactic Latik.”

Victoria Amores is unique for its Filipino flavors, what are your best sellers? Latik (muscovado, coconut caramel ganache), Puto Maya (ginger-infused coconut ganache & puff rice white chocolate crunch), Turon (banana-caramel and Turon crunch), Mango Passion (a layer of passion pate de fruit plus a layer of mango cream coconut ganache), Ube (‘ube halaya’ and coconut cream ganache), Chili- mansi (spicy dark chocolate ganache and calamansi pate de fruit).

How and why did you start making chocolate bonbons? I love going to the “tabo sa banay” (Sunday market) whenever I visit my hometown Bohol. A few years ago, I saw sacks and sacks of cacao pods being sold in the market at a meager price. This cut-rate price got me concerned for the welfare of farmers knowing that cocoa is a high-value crop. On my next visit, I shared with them a box of Victoria Amores chocolate bonbons. They then realized the value of their cocoa pods. Part of the brand’s initial advocacy was to make farmers recognize that they were growing fine-flavored cacao that should not be sold at a measly price in the market. I source all the beans from Bohol; my farm, and other trusty small farmers. I buy at a premium price. We have a small processing facility in the farm where we ferment, dry, roast and grind the cacao beans. The cacao mass in tableya tablet form is sent to Japan for further processing into chocolate bonbons.

Making chocolate bonbons is a 4-day procedure excluding crafting the chocolate itself. The refining machine requires 36 hours to achieve the perfect particle size for a smooth, creamy texture. 

You mentioned that your beans are sourced from your own farm in Bohol, is the source that important? Knowing where your food comes from is very important. My father planted cacao trees in the 80s to make tableya for family consumption. It is ingrained in our minds that food tastes best if you have an input on how it is made. One should know what it is made of and where it comes from. As such, I make the couverture for Victoria Amores chocolate bonbons exclusively out of cacao beans sourced from our family farm and trusted farmers.

Who was the first person to love your chocolates? For whom would you create the last batch of bonbons? My husband Karl had his first taste and loved my chocolates. It was a colossal compliment considering his distinctive background in the hospitality industry. He gets presented with the highest quality food across different hotel brands, and is a very discerning food critic. For your second question; my last batch of bonbons will be for institutions that advocate women empowerment and inclusivity. At our farm, we maintain mostly female employees because I recognize that women are effective, productive, and are determined decision-makers in society.