An Ideal Chocolate Judging Rubric? | #PodSaveChocolate Ep 149
Episode 149 of #PodSaveChocolate revisits the hows and whys of judging systems, for your own enjoyment and professionally, and poses the question, “Is there an ideal rubric?” [ Updated Sep 28 ]
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Episode 149 Overview
So far, in 2025, I have been a (virtual) judge in three chocolate competitions:
- The Craft Chocolate Challenge (three times as head judge)
- The Ecuadorian Cacao Innovation Awards (once; the inauguaral competition)
- The Prêmio Bean-to-Bar Brazil (at least three times)
⋯ and have hosted at least four episodes of PodSaveChocolate on judging (and several more on tasting):
Clay Gordon
Clay Gordon
Clay Gordon
Clay Gordon
Previously, I have been a judge for the International Chocolate Awards – multiple times, in country (Peru; twice), region (Americas; three or four times), and at the World rounds (at least twice) – the Good Food Awards (in the confections category).
Language is Key
The descriptors used to guide judges must represent the purpose and style of the competition: What is being judged and awarded, why and how?
I was the head judge responsible for the creation of the judging rules for the Next Generation Chocolatier Competition in 2008. The following are the instructions I created for the judges:
2008 Next Generation Chocolatier Competition Judging Instructions
- There are two scoring sheets. One for bonbons and one for bars. There is NO correlation between the numbers on the bonbon sheet and the numbers on the bar sheet.
- Judging Order: There is no special order in which the pieces have been arranged. They are numbered in the order that the shipments arrived and were opened. The bonbon entries will be judged first, then the bars.
- Initial Assessment: In your opinion, should the piece be considered for ANY award according to the Judging Criteria set forth?
Use a + or - for Taste and Tech(nique) and an overall Yes or No. - Strength of Conviction: If Yes, and if you had to choose between two or more pieces for an award, how hard would you fight for this choice?
Use H(igh), M(edium), or L(ow).
Award Category(ies). If you give the piece a Yes assessment, which award category(ies) do you think this piece should be considered for?
- The Award Categories are: Best BonBon, Best Bar, and Rising Star. If a chocolatier is in consideration for the Rising Star award, you may nominate their piece(s) for Rising Star AND/OR Best BonBon OR Best Bar.
- Final Assessment: Leave this blank initially. It will be used once all pieces have been judged, for you to make your final decisions regarding pieces. You can nominate up to 3 pieces for each category.
Judging Criteria Notes: Enter the strongest impression/taste descriptors you have for this piece. If you assign a minus for any reason, concisely explain in the Notes.
Judging Criteria
- Flavor: The theme of this year’s competition is Salty Sweets. After reading the description of the piece written by the chocolatier and then tasting the piece, how well, in your opinion, does the piece deliver on the chocolatier’s description AND meet this year’s theme? Flavor is the most important criterion. If the flavor of a piece fails, in your opinion, to match the description and/or deliver on the theme, you may at this point give it a NO assessment (a - (minus)).
- Technique: Technique refers to the combination of Texture/Mouthfeel and Appearance. Overall, your Technique Assessment reflects your judgment of the entrant's grasp of the medium of chocolate. Texture/Mouthfeel covers the texture of the filling and the balance of taste and textures between the filling and the shell. Appearance covers mastery of work skills such as tempering, surface appearance (e.g., presence or lack of bloom, pinholes), consistency of shell thickness, cleanliness of bottoms, etc.
The entrant’s description for one of the bar entries:
73% Venezuelan chocolate with a butter and sel gris toffee, toasted hazelnuts, salted pistachios and a light sprinkle of Flor de Sal (Portuguese sea salt). The toffee is made with sel gris for its intense saltiness and smooth blendability. It balances the sweetness of the toffee and intensifies the caramel notes. The pistachios are salty but the hazelnuts are not- again contrasting the two wakes up your tastebuds and keeps them at attention, the piece is finished with the lightest dusting of Flor de Sal, from the Algarve region of Portugal, which is like a crunchy little snowflake. The texture is lovely against the silky chocolate and the saltiness opens the palate and makes the chocolate more intense.
Descriptors for Two Competitions
| Aroma | ||
|---|---|---|
| Score | Comp A | Comp B |
| 1 | Unpleasant, not acceptable for a chocolate. | Disagreeable. Alarming, unenticing. |
| 2 | Discreet, basic or imperceptible. | Unobtrusive. Basic but not bad. |
| 3 | Nice, you can identify it. | Pleasant. Identifiable and interesting. |
| 4 | Strong and attractive. | Enticing. Strong, alluring, and clear. |
| 5 | Irresistible and surprising. | Irresistible. Astonishing. Compels tasting. |
| Flavor | ||
|---|---|---|
| Score | Comp A | Comp B |
| 1 | Unpleasant, there's something wrong here. | Unappealing. Poor flavour. Not fine. |
| 2 | Passable, but boring or with some defect. | Passable. Easy to eat, if unexciting. |
| 3 | Good, simple, but with some interesting notes. | Good. Developed, many fine components. |
| 4 | Very good, good complexity of flavors. | Lovely. Outstanding depth and complexity. |
| 5 | Excellent. without defects. complex and persistent flavor. | Revelatory. Redefines the concept of the possible. |
What to Avoid
In one competition I judged, the criteria were preceded by the following disclaimer:
Scores range from 1 to 5. If you believe the sample does not fit any of the descriptions for a given item, disregard the descriptions and rate it based on your assessment.
1 – Very poor
2 – Poor
3 – Neutral
4 – Good
5 – Excellent
This is not a good idea for several reasons, the most important of which, to my mind, are a) judging criteria may be inconsistently applied by each judge (using different sets of criteria for different entries; and b) different judges may be using different sets of criteria.
This is one of the fine line balancing acts hinted at in the title of this episode.
Advocating for a Scale
I advocate for a 1-7 scale for the following reasons:
- I believe that five is too few steps to cover the range of possible descriptions.
- Seven is an odd number, so there are an equal number of steps above and below the center (or neutral) position.
- I am a proponent of expanding the usual Tier List scale from six elements (S, A, B, C, D, F) to seven (S, A, B, O(rdinary), C, D, F).
- I advocate for starting out by giving every component the midpoint score (4 in a seven-point scale), adding or deducting points from this baseline.
TL;DR
In this episode, I will synthesize many of my thoughts after completing the Prêmio judging and suggest an “ideal” rating system that you can easily implement for your own enjoyment and edification.
And if you’re thinking about creating a competition and need a judging rubric, consider this a starting point.
Questions?
If you have questions or want to comment, you can do so during the episode or, if you are a ChocolateLife member, add them in the Comments below at any time.
Episode Hashtags and Socials
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#LaVidaCocoa #TheChocolateLife
Future Episodes
Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival Preview with founder Dustin Cornett
The Changing Landscape of Cacao Sourcing
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