For the people of Lion City, Gina Hardy is well known for truffles which are made in 50 different flavors, ranging from coconut and rum to earl grey tea and orange.
The 42-year-old Singaporean, who is a former auditor, also pursued her degree in law before setting up her own business. Gina Hardy has recently launched "Midnight Humming Bird" that is going to be available to people by January on Singapore based online chocolate retailer 'Beans to Bar'.
Hardy spent her childhood eating best French and Belgian Chocolates but never thought she would become well known for her art of chocolate making. At the age of 21, this entrepreneur left Singapore and settled in England, eventually falling in love with her now husband Trinidadian Simon Hardy.
She made her first batch of chocolates to complete her orders in Christmas 2007 and went on to make chocolates for the Summit of the Americans which Trinidad and Tobago hosted in 2009. Moreover, her chocolates are handmade in the fully air-conditioned central kitchen basement of her home in Port of Spain.
Hardy further mastered her skills in Belgium chocolates as well as cocoa and chocolate through Trinidad and Tobago's Cocoa Research Institute. Her process of chocolate making starts from checking dried fermented cocoa beans at the estate and zeroing in on the best.
It is then hand sorted and roasted in order to remove the husk from the nibs, and gently grinding them to the powder without losing the nib's volatile chemical components and natural flavor.
Gina 's chocolates are sold in eight shops in Port of Spain as well as at the city's airport. In Trinidad, a 100 single–origin chocolate bar costs US$10 (S$14) while a box of 15 bonbons cost US$25. The person who did not imagine making chocolate truffles till a decade ago is now a well-known entrepreneur in Singapore as well as all over the world. Gina hopes that people will continue to love her brand.
