Well yes, I had been thinking for years about accomplishing something tangible in the area of chocolate in the land of Piedmont! Thus we were able to finalize the “Small Chocolate Museum Project,” with the valuable collaboration of my friend and colleague Valerio Angelino Catella.

Although Silvio Bessone’s Chocolate Museum started a few years ago, at a precise moment in September 1970, when walking in front of a pastry shop Silvio said to his Father, “when I grow up I will be a Chocolate Maker.” A dream that lasted 40 years. The museum traces that time through the eyes of a child who didn’t even know about Willy Wonka but dreamed of those magic spells and longed to be a part of them.

The Chocolate Museum is nestled inside the famous Cioccolocanda. A guided tour will show you the stages of cocoa processing and Silvio Bessone’s passion for the food of the gods! A unique experience where it is also possible (by reservation) to attend cooking and pastry classes

The Silvio Bessone Chocolate Museum is a private, in-house facility of the chocolate company of the same name and is located in Vicoforte 100 meters from the beautiful Montis Regalis Shrine.

The Chocolate Museum is a unique tour, where ancient machinery greets you at the entrance and takes you through a series of illustrative panels through some of the history that links Charles Emmanuel I, the initiator and financier for the House of Savoy of the majestic Shrine, and the history of Cocoa in Europe. A brief illustration explains where cocoa grows and what the most significant varieties are and then takes you to where a sign stands that says : THE Chocolate in my opinion!

So Silvio welcomes you to the first of two rooms, not large but original.

The first room, also an auditorium, is dedicated to the world of cocoa; some small cocoa seedlings from Ecuador, Venezuela and Tanzania are accompanied by a Bourbon vanilla flower bed that is putting out new shoots in addition to bananas, pineapples, papayas, dates, lychees, machete guaja etc., which make up the small indoor nursery. The room has a mega-screen where one can travel with the eyes of that child who dreamed of being a chocolatier through a journey from seed to bar.

Sniffer! It is a UNIQUE experience! More than 44 varieties of cocoa from around the world can be sampled and smelled through specially set up Plexan silos,

The faces of cocoa! In an environment totally dedicated to cocoa Silvio has dedicated the one wall, the most important one to his farmer friends, those who with their sweat and sacrifice make it possible every year to have excellent cocoa for processing into Artisan Chocolate.

The Artisan Chocolate Factory is located on the floor below the museum, but cannot be visited except for a few scheduled cases published on these pages.

The Metate! room collects antique items that Silvio has used over the years, molds and small equipment in addition to the first Tostino, some machinery medals and cups that over the years have seen Silvio bessone winning major World competitions, such as the Coupe du Mond de la Patisserie, 1995-2001-2003, the World Pastry team in 2006 and other international cups and trophies in addition to the casserole “Disciple of August Escoffier”

The vault, with an array of dark and white milk chocolate ingots and the legendary “Aztec Metate of 1400” placed under display case so that it would not be damaged.

Before you leave, you can take advantage of the sales outlet where you can fulfill every purchase wish. Really interesting dessert offerings and the endless range of locally produced chocolate bars and chocolates

EXCEPTIONALLY NEXT SCHEDULED VISIT TO THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY SATURDAY, April 16, 10 a.m. EXCLUSIVELY BY BOOKING! for guests who book lunch in the Chocolate Museum.

by sending an email to
ciocco@silviobessone.it