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Mikkel Friis-Holm
Chocolatier
- Discipline
- Other
i. Biography
Bean-to-bar chocolate rewards controlled variables. In the late 1990s in San Francisco, Mikkel Friis-Holm encountered cacao in a food culture where origin, processing, and flavor were being examined closely. That frame became central to his later work: chocolate as an expression of bean, place, and handling, not just formulation. “It’s not about which is best but about appreciating their differences.” Mikkel has said.
Formation
Professional kitchen work gave Mikkel Friis-Holm a cook’s basis for flavor before chocolate became the focus. In 2008, the founding of Friis-Holm Chokolade in Herslev, Lejre Municipality, Denmark, established a workshop built around fine chocolate making and close attention to quality, origin, and process.
Present Day
Process variation is a defining part of the Friis-Holm method. Mikkel Friis-Holm makes multiple bars from the same origin, bean type, and percentage, changing only the conching time. For working chocolate makers, that is a clear technical proposition: hold the agricultural and recipe variables steady, then show what processing alone can do to texture, aroma, and finish.
Signature
Signature chocolates include O’Payo 68%, O’Payo Milk 50%, and Chuno Triple Turned.
Accolades
Competition recognition has followed both origin work and plain/origin bar making. Mikkel Friis-Holm received a Gold Medal for the O’Payo 68% in 2025, a Gold Medal for the O’Payo Milk 50% in the same year, and a Gold Medal in the Bars – Milk plain/origin bars category in 2014. He also received a Bronze Medal in the Bars – Dark plain/origin bars category in 2014, and in 2012 received the Annual Award from the Danish Chocolate Society.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Mikkel
What recognition has Mikkel Friis-Holm received?
Gold Medal - O’Payo 68% (2025).
What is Mikkel Friis-Holm known for?
Bean-to-bar chocolate.
