Made in Styria

Queuing up for a piece of Dubai chocolate

Pop star Simone tastes the original from Dubai.

(Bild: Kevin Geißler)

The huge hype surrounding Dubai chocolate is never ending and is captivating many like pop singer Simone. There is also a gold-rush atmosphere among local chocolatiers who want to get their hands on the exotic chocolate cake.

An exotic smell wafts through the chocolate factory in Birkfeld. In his sweet workshop, chocolatier Stefan Felber, 7,000 kilometers away from Dubai, is experimenting with replicas of the hyped sweet treat. "I've been in this business for 21 years, but I've never experienced such a craze for chocolate". The craving falls into the category of madness.

The East Styrian also had to react to the acute craving for the delicacy from the Orient. For weeks, the master has been tinkering with the recipe for a Dubai chocolate made in Styria. "There is no patent for it, the chocolate can be reproduced without restrictions, each of my colleagues makes it a little differently and meets the challenge with a successful mixture of cream and crunch".

Since it became known that people have been queuing up for a piece of Dubai chocolate, sometimes even camping outside the stores, local confectionery producers have had no choice but to get involved themselves. If you don't take part, you lose customers and sales.

Chocolatier Stefan Felber produces the coveted sweet.

(Bild: Julia Felber)

It only worked on the fifth attempt
The race for the regional replica of Dubai chocolate is driving prices for the main ingredients, pistachio cream and Kadyif dough threads, to unpleasant heights. "We are currently at 13 euros for a 70 gram bar, which goes on sale in time for the first Advent. The first 200 bars are gone, now it's time for the next 500!" beams the chocolatier, who spent two months working on the chocolate side of his "masterpiece". It only worked on the fifth attempt.

The challenge lies in the perfect blend of exotic spices and ingredients, the right consistency and the exact processing temperature, which is between 45 and 30 degrees depending on the ingredient. "Almost everything depends on this, not least the appearance. Then there is the dehydrating roasting of the angel hair, which is crucial for the crunch and shelf life of the chocolate, which is sweetened with a little sea salt. "The taste is special, with the crunch it feels like a slice." The East Styrian chocolatier has written and tried out around 1000 different chocolate recipes "I really pushed the boundaries with the Dubai chocolate".

Popsinger Simone understands the hype 
Pop singer Simone also had to realize this when she went in search of the ever out-of-stock luxury item at home in Murau. "I've experienced the hype first-hand and empathize with the people queuing up for Dubai chocolate. Despite good connections, I didn't manage to get hold of any Dubai chocolate in Styria". In the end, a good friend of the pop singer took pity on him and gave him an original piece from Dubai as a gift. "I only taste a small piece of it, because my Charly (Brunner) has the real sweet tooth in the house. He would be offended if he didn't get this "piece of gold" from me". The hit couple crunches when it comes to the exotic chocolate hit. "Personally, I have a lot of fun with the home-baked Christmas cookies from Eastern Styria," smiles Simone, putting the minds of all those hoping for Dubai chocolate behind every door in the Advent calendar at ease.