Yannis Neuhaus

What started as a passion for cooking and baking is now almost a 60% job.

 

It all started when I was 13 years old and received a rather unpleasant diagnosis: a brain tumor.

Due to chemotherapy and surgery, I was only able to attend classes to a limited extent during this time. I dedicated the time I gained to my passion: cooking and baking.

 

During the 10 months of therapy, I cooked and baked for my family every day. I learned a lot from this.

 

I can't say that I've never burned anything or forgotten an ingredient.

The mistakes motivated me to delve even deeper into the subject and to continually deepen my knowledge in the field of cooking and baking.

 

After successfully completing my therapy, I began my training as an IT specialist with the federal government.

Interestingly, an apprenticeship in the catering industry was out of the question for me.

 

Alongside my apprenticeship as an IT specialist, I further deepened my knowledge in the areas of bean-to-bar and confectionery. Using a small melangeur, I produced gianduja and chocolate at home and processed them into pralines, etc.

 

After completing my apprenticeship, I continued working as an IT specialist, but also further developed my passion for chocolate making. In 2019, I founded the company Neuhausschoggi in Plasselb. Demand steadily increased, and I gradually reduced my workload as an IT specialist.

 

The machines used to make chocolate take up a lot of space. Since November 2022, Neuhausschoggi's production has therefore been located in St. Antoni. Here, I have approximately 200 m² of space for production. Thanks to a larger melangeur, I can now produce up to 120 kg of chocolate per batch. That's about 90 kg more than with the previous, smaller model.

 

What's important to me is to handle the entire chocolate production process myself, from start to finish. This process is called bean-to-bar and refers to the entire process, from the raw cocoa bean to the finished bar. This is the only way I can differentiate myself from other manufacturers. I also make nut fillings like gianduja myself in my melangeur. I produce approximately 5 to 6 tons of chocolate annually.