Can a chocolate tasting online ever replace a "real" one?

On a typical Berlin evening, chocolate lovers and those interested in chocolate regularly came together to discover and discuss fine chocolate flavors together! But this changed suddenly in March 2020 when “normal” life came to a standstill due to Corona. But just as cocoa trees adapt to their environment, the Theyo team quickly adapted to the new reality: from then on, the chocolate tastings were digital! – Read here: an experience report and interview with our co-founders Madita and Moritz.

Chocolate tasting suddenly from home

“Chocolate tasting, similar to wine tasting, is about talking shop together and having a good time,” says Moritz, founder of Theyo. “In March we were already missing interaction with other chocolate fans and started thinking about how we could create this feeling digitally. We therefore started offering digital chocolate tastings on platforms such as Google Meet and Zoom early on.”
While virtual chocolate tastings do not involve the usual logistical considerations as analogue tastings - e.g. sufficient space for everyone, assessment of overbooking and no-show rates and much more. – online tastings come with completely different challenges. “Even the smallest technical problems can put a stop to the fun of chocolate tasting,” says Moritz.

Theyo goes global: chocolate tasting as an online company event

On the other hand, the virtual aspect has given the Theyo team a completely new reach. While we at Theyo previously mainly targeted Berlin teams, companies and private individuals with tastings, we now reach chocolate fans from Australia to India to the USA with our digital team events . Moritz and Madita select the most interesting chocolates from thousands, our team organizes worldwide shipping and finally personally guides you through the virtual tasting.

People from all over the world are enthusiastic about cocoa and chocolate

Chocolate as social glue

“Chocolate is unique in its ability to connect us to our senses, the present moment and community,” says Theyo founder Madita. "Our tastings - like our chocolate blog - are educational and immersive." They therefore represent a great opportunity to spend a good time with teams and friends. We notice again and again that shared physical enjoyment also reduces the digital distance Tasting participants from all over the world see it similarly to us:

A huge thank you from us for the wonderful event last week.
Everyone was absolutely thrilled!
Laura, Salesforce

Thank you very much for the event – ​​it was a complete success, the team really enjoyed it and enjoyed it! 😊
Nicola, SAP

We would like to thank you again for the good cooperation and the interesting insight into the world of cocoa beans.
The participants really enjoyed this little break.
Sabrina, Porsche Engineering

Our directors were still raving about the chocolate and the event weeks later! Thank you for that too!!
Christiane, Office of the Ministerial Representative for Secondary Schools in Swabia

Thank you for the great organization! We got great feedback from our colleagues 😊
Aleksandra, The Boston Consulting Group

Thanks a lot both!! It was really awesome!
I appreciated all the detailed information about chocolate and especially about the brands, fair trade, etc.
Looking forward to the next event :)
Daniel, Google

Thanks again for the great session on Friday! I've gotten positive feedback from the team, they're all excited about the workshop and we're all definitely looking at chocolate from a different perspective.
Hey, Google

Thank you very much for the appointment, it was really very informative and structured and everyone had a lot of fun.
Silke, Telefonica

Absolutely recommended and not only delicious and surprising, but also highly informative.
And: The topic of sustainability is a top topic for customers anyway. Splendid!
Mike, Google

Thank you again for the great tasting, everyone really, really enjoyed it and enjoyed it 😊
Wiebke, The Boston Consulting Group

Really great! Thank you for arranging everything so well. Big success amongst the team :)
Jolijn, Google

You can find even more voices from enthusiastic chocolate fans on our chocolate tasting page ...

Digital chocolate tastings are a delicious change

The future of (digital) chocolate tastings

Moritz is also certain that the format of chocolate tasting will change after Corona: “We are currently planning a hybrid approach. Corona has opened up completely new communication possibilities and a whole new understanding of chocolate has emerged. We have observed a much more critical discussion of topics such as fairness and sustainability.” Whether online or analogue: at Theyo we hope that this new perspective on (fine) chocolate will continue to exist even after Corona.

Craving chocolate? Take a look at what offer could be exciting for your team or company . Or simply make yourself a chocolatey gift !