Grezzo Raw Chocolate is a brand that made possible to change sweet treats into healthy 100% vegan food. The idea of creation came to Vito Cortese, pastry chef of natural cuisine and raw food from Italy. The healthy deserts exclude the use of animal products, the refined flour and sugar, gluten and yeast, which makes biscuits and chocolate available to those who suffer from intolerance to gluten or lactose. The unique technology of cocoa beans drying is behind the healthy nutrition of the Grezzo’s raw chocolate so that it is 5 times healthier than the chocolate made of fried beans. The pastry professional chefs use ingredients that mother nature offers such as valuable cocoa beans raw or precious, not fried Sicilian almonds, which are widely used in the sweet. The brand’s philosophy voices the following: food is one of the main elements that can be treated to improve the lifestyle and the health. Born in the heart of Italy, Grezzo made a significant breakthrough in the world of gourmet raw food.

THE IDEA

Vito Cortese, pastry chef along with Nicola Salvi, the business coach gave birth to the Grezzo Raw Chocolate, aiming to change the eating habits of the planet because an often food is being abused and is only used to fill the stomach, rather than to feed. They wanted humanity to take care of what they eat. Respecting the health food, the inventors attempt to offer the highest quality products and the best experience possible taste. The never stop searching for the best combinations to get unique products.

In the heart of Italy, in the friendly neighbourhood of vegetarian and vegan food, you can find Grezzo Raw Chocolate, pastry store that is 100% vegan. The varicolored display case of cakes from the front invites visitors to come in.

THE INVENTOR

Vito Cortese, the inventor of Grezzo raw chocolate is one of the most famous pastry chefs and raw foodists of Italy. His passion for cooking and good food helped him to open his first restaurant business at the age of 21. Since 2007 he became interested in nutrition from a health point of view, that brought him to the natural cuisine.

Soon, in 2009 he has discovered the raw food, remaining so fascinated that it became his greatest passion. He began to study and to do research, encoding an original method to cook the raw food in the more professional way.

In 2010 he organised the first cooking class, where he taught the tricks of this mysterious art and created the brand Naked & Raw, raw food cooking school. Success was immediate. He held over 15 courses around Italy in next six months. At this point he decided to go to the USA, to perfect himself at the renowned Culinary Academy of Matthew Kenney, the number one school in the world of gourmet raw food. He studied at the Academy for two months and deepened the best of this cuisine techniques.

When Vito came back to Italy he continued to research and develop increasingly applying what has been his intuition. He applied the raw food approach to the extraordinary Italian gastronomic culture that still remains the most fascinating.

In April 2014, along with Nicola Salvi, he opened Grezzo Raw Chocolate, a completely organic raw pastry, ice-cream and food, that offers such a wide and complete range of products. The name "grezzo" {adj. m} in Italian means "raw". The brand as a virtue of an exclusive partnership between a business coach and the best Italian raw master chef became the one-of-a-kind manufacturer of richly textured raw healthy chocolate.

Taste is important as much as health. The mission and path for Grezzo are to provide customers with the finest raw chocolate and pastry, using only the highest quality ingredients. Each Grezzo recipe is designed to enhance the health and joy. The company never uses refined sugar, gluten, soy, dairy, GMOs, or chemical ingredients. Only the highest quality organic ingredients.

THE TEAM

Under the strict guidance of inventors, the Master Chef Vito Cortese and the General Manager Nicola Salvi the culinary team, represented by Roberta Salvi, operations manager, Samantha Chriss Jeffs, administration, Patrizia Romeo and Romina Montoni, assistant cooks, is never satisfied with the results achieved and constantly improves the professional qualities. Grezzo's personnel always shares their positive energy with the customers.

RAW AND TOTALLY ORGANIC INGREDIENTS

Grezzo combines the distinct raw, crafted and organic ingredients to create delicious, creamy textured chocolate and delicacy. The novel best-selling creations are formulated with blends of the finest ingredients such as:

Many years of research and study by Vito Cortese, the landmark of Italian gourmets of raw kitchen food, led to the creation of desserts that will satisfy all tastes. In Grezzo's own pastry laboratory in Rome, the quality control is one of the highest priority. The production cycle of raw chocolate creation excludes GMOs and chemical ingredients. Almond milk, the main ingredient for a lot of sweets is prepared daily is the lab while all the others come from selected Bio certified farmers. Grezzo pastries, biscuits, ice cream and chocolate doesn't contain any milk, eggs, flour, refined sugar, soy and gluten.

Rome can finally boast raw vegan cakes that, in addition to eliminating the use of animal products, also exclude the use of refined flour and yeast, which make biscuits and chocolate available to those who suffer from intolerance to gluten or lactose. Gluten intolerance is spreading more and more. Doctors are recommending to follow the low gluten diet. All raw materials in Grezzo are gluten-free and natural. Grezzo gluten free desserts are perfectly suitable for celiac. Used for sweetening coconut sugar is unrefined and without preservatives, it is extracted from coconut palms, rich in vitamins and minerals, and inulin, fibre slows the absorption of sucrose and that gives this sugar a low glycemic index (only 35). Coconut sugar has a simple and fast process, which makes it one of the most natural sweeteners in the world.

Raw materials have some completely innovative suggestions that combine taste, health and pleasure. All cakes, ice cream, snacks, chocolate, mousses, creams, pies, truffles, frozen desserts are carefully handmade in the laboratory with ingredients of plant origin, biological and that one does not need to cook. In order to avoid an unhealthy influence of standard deserts the brand derivatives perfect balance of ingredients, with minimal use of sweeteners. To make a cream Grezzo confectioners don't use milk. Sweet Crude is completely devoid of lactose and any animal origin. They are made only with herbal ingredients that provide profound nourishment.

The main ingredient is a raw chocolate, which is made from cocoa beans that are not fried, but dried in the sun. Cocoa drying process requires a temperature below 42 degrees. It is an alternative to the roasting process, which is currently used on a large scale in the market, with its high temperature (over 170 degrees) destroys much of the authentic taste and useful properties of cocoa. The Grezzo cocoa beans are dried naturally in order to preserve all the beneficial substances that make the healthy cocoa. The level of anti-oxidants up to 5 times higher than normal chocolate in addition to unique taste. Raw Chocolate is used only in its purest form unheated, unprocessed and unadulterated.

MARKETING

The Brand continues to surprise the foodies and chocoholics with the best tastes from the best ingredients that are vegan-friendly. The company continuously makes different sales, master classes and holiday events. This year, for Easter, Grezzo team did all the best to create two new recipes for Easter Egg Chocolate Raw.  There will be two variants of the egg. In addition to the classic dark raw chocolate, there will be the white chocolate egg. The eggs are available by pre-order beginning from March and are sized starting from 200 grammes till 1 kilogramme.

Easter eggs contain no sweeteners though will be softly sweet. Thanks to the choice of ingredients and processing methods, with more than 800 micronutrients, the value of antioxidants 5 times roasted cocoa, authentic and flavouring natural does not change when processed.

Grezzo’s packaging is as much as possible recyclable and earth friendly. Every productive move is done with ultimate attention. Cakes, ice cream, snacks, chocolates, mousses, custards, pies, and truffles: everything is made, wrapped and packaged by hand with respect for the environment. It is the intention of Grezzo to create products which reflect all that is righteous and to provide a service to the world that speaks a message.

In 2015 Grezzo Raw Chocolate has won the Bottega del Gambero Rosso Award. In 2015 the brand has won the prize of the Best Italian Confectioner Golosario. Grezzo got the recognition of the "Taste shops of 2017" at Golosario in Milan, where the Brand proudly represented the healthy raw food among other famous names in the Italian confectionery excellence.

DISTRIBUTION

To try the delicious raw desserts is possible in Grezzo Raw Chocolate pastry shop in Rome, Italy. The Grezzo showcases and windows open view on colourful cheesecakes, brownies cookies, gelati, raw cacao ice-cream, raw vegan chocolates and smoothies. All brand's desserts look like little art pieces and taste incredible. The Grezzo raw chocolate and desserts can also be ordered via the Internet at the official web-site and other partnered web-sites. The average price for desserts varies from €6.00 to €28.00.

These are some prices for Grezzo desserts:

Grezzo is the only place in Europe that produces raw foods using the gourmet technology of raw food kitchens, with ingredients of plant origin, in their natural state, clean and organic. In a world of poorly processed food, Grezzo certified chocolate offers its customers only the best quality possible.

MASS MEDIA

Raw charges a great deal of attention from both the public and the media (TG1, TG5 *, Rai2, Teleambiente channel) and several awards such as "Shop of the Year" by Gambero Rosso and also articles devoted to foreign newspapers.

"March 18 (Askanews) - Crude RawChocolate, a complete pastry, chocolate and ice cream raw food founded in Rome in 2014, opened in the spring with the first Easter egg, vegan and organic, lactose and gluten-free, made with raw chocolate based on ' Ecuador. As a result, a call conducted by Raw to offer baked goods and good nutrients that are capable of sacrificing healthy pure pleasure." Italia Finance. Translation from Italian  

"After a year and a half, I have the great opportunity to visit a unique place: The first raw pastry shop in the world is in Rome. I met Vito Cortese, founder and executive chef together with Nicola Salvi, in order to learn something more about this wonderful world. Health and Taste are the key words of GREZZO’s philosophy, a real paradise for lactose intolerants, celiacs, vegans, health fanatics, gourmand people." Ethical Code

"This absolutely high-quality pastry shop is located in Rione Monti, which is a typical old-fashioned neighbourhood in the centre of the city. Their philosophy of food is based on a raw vegan view of the cuisine, which always contains genuine and biological ingredients. The shop is dedicated to sweets and cakes, most of them containing chocolate as the main ingredient. You can also taste an absolutely amazing ice cream, made with no milk nor eggs, perfect for vegans." Low Cost Rome