The girl in the frock from Singapore and her very Trini Truffles

This Sunday’s bookshelf is a departure from women who make books to a woman who, though an avid reader, makes the other thing beloved to women, the thing adjunct to love itself: chocolate. A Singaporean by birth and education, Gina Hardy’s first degree is (History and Philosophy) from the National University of Singapore; her second (Law-Honours) from University College London, University of London.

After graduating, Hardy worked as a lawyer in London with White Ryland Solicitors, where she primarily represented asylum seekers and refugees. It was gratifying work, but something was missing. Hardy turned to another demanding profession: accounting. Still restless. She hadn’t found her passion. Hardy was working as an internal audit manager at Barclays Bank PLC London when she decided to chuck in the corporate world entirely, toyed with being a pastry chef, and travelled the world until Love and Cocoa brought her ‘home’ to Trinidad.

Gina Hardy, in her own words. “I have always adored chocolate. Growing up in Singapore, I sought fine chocolate and saved my pocket money to buy the best European chocolate, wondering how such delicious and decadent bars were made. London gave me access to a vast variety of chocolate, in all its glory. I was in heaven! I travelled widely, mostly backpacking and camping, but always saved a little to secure my chocolate: be it a single, exquisitely crafted bonbon which would be served with gloved hands and placed in a tiny teal box at Patrick Roger in Brussels or a Gran Couva Bar from Valrhona at Fortnum and Mason’s in London.

I had no idea I would one day live in Trinidad, where the beans used to make these chocolates came from. When I was training as an accountant and working at Barclays Bank in London, I met a Trini with whom I fell in love and married. Chocolate, my other love, found me in Trinidad.

Serendipity led me to become a chocolatier. My mother-in-law was throwing a dinner party and asked what I would make. I confidently replied, “chocolate truffles.” I had never made a truffle, but that night, I made truffles with coconut and rum, and they were a hit! I still didn’t know then that Trinidad grew some of the best cocoa on the planet. I began making truffles as hostess gifts, packaged in handcrafted boxes with pretty bows. I was happy to create and play with flavours with no intention of making it a business. One day, a friend encouraged me to take some orders. It did not take too much of a nudge: What could be better than playing with chocolate all day long? I took my first order at Christmas 2008. After that, I began researching cocoa seriously. I was using Belgian chocolate as the foundation for my truffles. Everyone kept telling me that Trinidad has the best cocoa. There had to be a way of securing chocolate made from Trinidadian cocoa beans.

A professor from the University of Pennsylvania introduced me to the Cocoa Research Institute at the University of the West Indies, where I found some of the world’s best minds regarding cocoa, flavour profiling, and chocolate. I made an appointment with Dr Darin Sukha, a Research Fellow at the Cocoa Research Centre, and turned up one sunny February afternoon in a frock with my little picnic basket and some truffles I had made. I had no idea that Dr Sukha was a rock star in the chocolate world. He reminds me of that day 15 years ago, this out-of-place Singaporean girl with a funny accent, a glint in her eye, with a passion for chocolate and complex flavours.

The Cocoa Centre became one of my greatest allies in this journey. I would spend the next 15 years working with Prof Umaharan, Dr Sukha and Dr Naailah Ali to understand how best to showcase this valuable commodity to the world. At the time, the sale of cocoa beans was strictly controlled by the Cocoa Board, making it impossible to buy beans directly from cocoa farmers in Trinidad. Despite this, I continued to make my truffles, always with the ambition of one day making my own chocolate for bonbons and bars.

In 2009, the Government of T&T invited me to participate in the Summit of the Americas, where I had the opportunity to showcase Gina’s Chocolate Truffles for the first time. I also made truffles for President Obama, which were presented to Mr Obama’s Personal Valets for the President and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the Summit. Later that year, the Government of T&T invited me to create boxes of truffles for every Head of State, including Her Majesty, the Queen, and every Foreign Minister attending the Commonwealth Summit (CHOGM) held in Port-of-Spain.

In 2013, I had the opportunity to attend Advanced Chocolatier Training at the atelier of De Zwarte Vos in Dienze, Belgium. This was an initiative of the Centre for the Development of Enterprise under the European Union. I was invited among the top seven chocolatiers in the Caribbean. The market for Trinidadian cocoa beans has opened significantly. I have been making my own bean-to-bar chocolate for eight years, using the skills I have learned from our local experts, European chocolatiers, and chocolate makers. I have been involved in ongoing training with the Cocoa Centre in beanto-bar chocolate making and completed three courses, including (in February 2018) with Regis Bouet, a master chocolate maker and pastry chef who worked for Valrhona for over 20 years and was selected as one of the top chocolate makers in T&T.

I strive to do my best at every step, from selecting the best beans to asking for help (I ask for a lot of help) to creating local and cosmopolitan flavours and designing beautiful truffles and bars. I build alliances and collaborations to show the world whatwe can do with this delicate commodity–the cocoa bean. Not just any cocoa bean, but Trinitario cocoa beans, lovingly dried and fermented and roasted, shelled and sorted, ground, tempered and made into food: food that nourishes and delights.

My commitment to using local ingredients is about supporting local farmers so most of my ingredients are local, (especially cocoa beans). Trinidad grows high-quality local ingredients like passion fruit, sorrel, oranges and grapefruit, so I hardly need to look elsewhere for my stock ingredients. I use imported ingredients sparingly, such as rose petals and lavender flowers for my bars and truffles.

I inject a heavy dose of fun and whimsy in my chocolates with unusual flavour combinations, including pistachio and cardamom for Taj Truffles, lime and black pepper for ‘Limin’, and passion fruit for my bonbons and bars. So far, I have created bonbons with over 85 different flavours and 21 chocolate bars (Gina’s Midnight Hummingbird) with inclusions like pink grapefruit, lavender flowers, passion fruit, and rose petals. I am driven by my love for chocolate. It’s not just a job for me; it’s a passion. I pour my heart and soul into every bar and bonbon I create, striving to do justice to Trinidad’s cocoa beans. My aim is to surprise and delight my customers with each handcrafted piece.

Most recently (April 2024), I was invited to participate in the DC. Chocolate Festival at the French Embassy in Washington, DC. I formed part of a delegation from T&T under the auspices of Export TT and the Cocoa Centre to showcase the best of what we offer. Fine flavour Trinitario Cocoa is my passion. I am willing to work to absolute and utter exhaustion to ensure our chocolate is front and centre on the world stage. When I came to Trinidad, I wanted to contribute to the country, to work with the people of this country and to give back to the place I now call home.”

Gina Hardy, in her own words, as told to Ira Mathur.