Judges considered a record-breaking 1,600 entries from 46 countries and the winners were presented with their awards at Claridge’s Hotel in London’s Mayfair.

The Sierra Nevada dark milk bar uses wild heirloom cacao harvested by the Arhuaco indigenous people. In recent years dark chocolate has emerged as a ‘popular’ trend as a higher percentage of cacao means that dark milk chocolate has less sugar and more flavour.

Sara Jayne Stanes OBE, Academy founder, said: “We are particularly impressed with the quality, craftsmanship and enthusiasm shown in all those small producers from around the chocolate world who won awards. The talent and creativity of newcomers is notable and we applaud the enduring continuity, brilliance and expertise of regular entrants.

“With so many incredible entries, the task of determining our winners was harder than ever. We were looking for complexity and innovation, stunning appearance and a beautiful melt. And in our special award winners this is precisely what we found.”

The UK Rising Star 2019 award went to Luisa’s Vegan Chocolates (bars), highlighting growing demand for quality fine vegan chocolate. Based in Nottingham, the producer makes bean-to-bar chocolate using cacao beans sourced from volcanic islands in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean.

There were three winners of the International Rising Star 2019: Valenza Chocolatier (USA), DesBarres Chocolate (Canada) and Metiisto Artisan Chocolate (Australia).

The list of overall winners can be found at: www.academyofchocolate.org.uk/awards/