In Modica, since 1999 the Donna Elvira confectionery has been handcrafting the famous Modica IGP chocolate, totally “bean to bar” thanks to the selection of the best cocoa beans from all over the world and the touch of charm of its muse Emma Petriliggieri.
Donna Elvira was born in Modica, a place where the profession of confectioner is rooted in the deepest soul of the splendid baroque city thanks to its long tradition in this art, and since she was a child she could not escape the charm of the cocoa epic of which today she is a passionate cultivator and ambassador in the world.
Following her passion for the “sweet” world, Elvira Roccasalva’s life changed in 1999 when she had the opportunity to take over an artisan biscuit factory in the historic center of Modica, where, like an alchemist with the Holy Grail, she began to study the handwritten recipes of the ancient Sicilian conventual pastry masters.
Each bar requires a dedication that reaches down to the most infinitesimal of ingredients and processing steps, dedicating the right amount of time, rest and a lot of heart.
(Emma Petriliggieri)
Little by little, Elvira becomes more and more passionate about chocolate, that of Modica, unique in the world, for its history, tradition and for the cold processing of cocoa, a direct descendant of that used by the Mesoamerican populations and spread in Europe through the Spanish “conquistadores” in the 16th century.
Thus, Donna Elvira in her small factory begins to experiment with artisanal chocolate and to directly select the most prized varieties of cocoa – from Colombia, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Peru, but also from Vietnam, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Madagascar – giving life to the only Modica company whose production is entirely bean-to-bar, or from the cocoa bean to the chocolate bar, with direct management of the entire supply chain.
Since 2023, Donna Elvira has been supported by her daughter Emma, with a background as a creative and interior designer, who has brought a touch of charming style to the production, to the sweet shop, and, above all, to the refined packaging, so beautiful that you almost don’t want to open it to continue admiring it.
A visit to Donna Elvira Dolceria (sweet shop) is truly an unforgettable experience that will make you love, if possible, the world of chocolate even more. In the laboratory, located in the back of the shop, Elvira, Emma and their team will show you all the steps of the production, from the selection to the roasting, from the manual grinding of the cocoa, just as the noble Spanish families once did to obtain the grain, to the milling that gives life to the cocoa liquor from which, finally, the bars are born.
A tasting of Donna Elvira Single Origin bars is a wonderful journey around the world: you can taste, for example, Fortunato n. 4, which comes from the rarest cocoa, the legendary Peruvian Pure Nacional with white and purple seeds, whose mother plant was rediscovered only a few years ago on Don Fortunato’s farm lost in the heart of the Marañón River Canyon.
Or you can taste Wild Beniano, which everyone thought was extinct, and which instead survived in the heart of the Bolivian rainforest, or, again, the great Mexicans, such as Soconusco Wild and Carmelo, so pure and clean that they convinced Donna Elvira to produce the first ‘zero dosage’ bars (i.e. without added sugar).
In addition to chocolate, in the Donna Elvira confectionery you can also find many other handmade products of the Sicilian confectionery tradition, such as nougats, jams, traditional almond pastes such as Frutta Martorana, and many types of traditional sweets.
Just as you can buy special editions made in collaboration with brands that embrace the same philosophy as the chocolate flavored with Timor coffee by Giamaica Caffè or with the Aromatic Black Pepper of Sarawak selected by Maricha, or the Chocolate Grappa produced by Distilleria Gualco.
Each product is a small, sweet and colorful baroque jewel, because at Donna Elvira what it is good is also beautyful.
The Secret
Donna Elvira has started a process of recovery of the “cold chocolate” method. This processing method seemed, in fact, destined to disappear because with the Industrial Revolution new processes such as conching and tempering (to make the crystals and particles of chocolate as fine as possible) had become popular, which changed its taste and consistency. In cold chocolate, however, at a temperature between 45 and 50 degrees, the cocoa mass is combined with sugar so that the latter does not melt and remains in the form of crystals, giving the chocolate a characteristic “rough” appearance. Unique and delicious.
Useful Info
Donna Elvira
Via Risorgimento 32
97015 Modica, Ragusa
Tel. +39 0932 764359
Visit with chocolate tasting: starting from 5 euro per person; visit with tasting of single-origin chocolate paired with spirits 30 euro per person
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